In 1997, a runaway teenager and her yellow toy robot travel west through a strange USA. The ruins of gigantic battle drones litter the countryside, heaped together with the discarded trash of a high tech consumerist society in decline. As their car approaches the edge of the continent, the world outside the window seems to be unraveling ever faster—as if somewhere beyond the horizon, the hollow core of civilization has finally caved in.<br /><br />Simon Stålenhag is the internationally acclaimed author, concept designer, and artist behind Tales from the Loop and Things from the Flood. His highly imaginative images and stories depicting illusive sci-fi phenomena in mundane, hyper-realistic Scandinavian landscapes have made Stålenhag one of the most sought-after visual storytellers in the world. In The Electric State, Stålenhag turns his unique vision to America.

In 1954, the Swedish government ordered the construction of the world’s largest particle accelerator. The facility was complete in 1969, located deep below the pastoral countryside of Mälaröarna. The local population called this marvel of technology The Loop. These are its strange tales.

Simon Stålenhag’s paintings of Swedish 1980s suburbia, populated by fantastic machines and strange beasts, have spread like wildfire on the Internet. The 2015 Kickstarter for the English version of the book raised over $320,000. Stålenhag’s portrayal of a childhood against a backdrop of old Volvo cars and coveralls, combined with strange and mystical machines, creates a unique atmosphere that is both instantly recognizable and utterly alien.

In this top-quality artbook, Simon Stålenhag’s first set of paintings are collected in book form—together with texts that tell the stories of the youth who lived in the shadows of the machines. In addition, three separate prints (format 260×230 mm) as well as a full-color map (format 520x340mm) of the land of The Loop are included in the book.

The Loop is closed. Life is returning to normal when the pastoral countryside is suddenly flooded by dark water from the huge abandoned underground facility. Rumors spread in classrooms and schoolyards, stories about the flood and how it has brought something with it. One thing is clear: the past is not ready to be forgotten. <br /><br />Simon Stålenhag is back. In his new artbook Things From The Flood, Stålenhag continues the stories of Tales From The Loop, memories of a Nordic childhood infused with strange machines and weird creatures from other dimensions. In Things From The Flood, Stålenhag moves his focus from the 80s to the 90s, the decade of great change when the outside world truly came to Scandinavia. These are tales of the trials of youth, of schoolyard hazings, of first kisses, of finding yourself - and robots.<br /><br />In addition, this edition includes includes three separate prints (format 260×230 mm) as well as a full-color map (format 520x340mm).

A world covered by ruins and ash, the remnants of an otherwordly phenomenon that has ravaged the earth’s atmosphere and forced the few survivors deep underground. Matt, Sigrid and Charlie leave the safe harbor of the enclave for an expedition onto the wastelands of the surface world. During their journey they are forced to confront dark secrets from the time before civilization’s fall.

The Loop is closed. Life is returning to normal when the pastoral countryside is suddenly flooded by dark water from the huge abandoned underground facility. Rumors spread in classrooms and schoolyards, stories about the flood and how it has brought something with it. One thing is clear: the past is not ready to be forgotten.
Now in development to be an Amazon Studios series!
Simon Stålenhag is back. In his new artbook Things From The Flood, Stålenhag continues the stories of Tales From The Loop, memories of a Nordic childhood infused with strange machines and weird creatures from other dimensions. In Things From The Flood, Stålenhag moves his focus from the 80s to the 90s, the decade of great change when the outside world truly came to Scandinavia. These are tales of the trials of youth, of schoolyard hazings, of first kisses, of finding yourself - and robots.

Now in development to be an Amazon Studios series!
Simon Stålenhag’s Tales from the Loop is a wildly successful crowd-funded project that takes viewers on a surprising sci-fi journey through various country and city landscapes―from small towns in Sweden and the deserts of Nevada to the bitter chill of Siberia―where children explore and engage with abandoned robots, vehicles, and machinery large and small, while dinosaurs and other creatures wander our roads and fields.
Stålenhag’s paintings and stories take place in an alternate version of Sweden in the ’80s and ’90s, primarily in the countryside of Mälaröarna, a string of islands just west of Stockholm, and how this reality came about: the development of the Loop, a large particle accelerator and the side effects of the massive project.
These incredibly captivating works and accompanying text capture perhaps a not-too-distant reality that is both haunting and imminent: addressing the many ways developing technology and nature can create havoc and wonder in our world―plus, its impact on the next generation. This is the English edition of the first book in Swedish that sold out in its initial printing.