Sofia Coppola's Important Flowers to Publish Joseph Szabo's 'American Teen'

Sofia Coppola's publishing imprint Important Flowers, established with Mack, will release 'American Teen' in October 2026. The 240-page book compiles Joseph Szabo's photographs of his students at Malverne High School on Long Island from the 1970s and 1980s, including previously unseen images. It features new texts by Coppola and Sonic Youth's Kim Gordon. Szabo began teaching at Malverne in 1972 and brought a camera to school to connect with disengaged students. He set up a photography club and darkroom, treating yearbook photos as art. Influenced by Henri Cartier-Bresson and Helen Levitt, he captured teenage life with intimacy, inspired by Brassaï's 'The Secret Paris of the 30s'. His 1978 book 'Almost Grown' included poems by teenagers and an introduction by Cornell Capa. After retiring in 1999, Szabo published several books and reconnected with former students via Facebook. The image 'Deli Corner, 1977' shows Chris, who helped organize a 1978 Rolling Stones concert that Szabo photographed in Philadelphia.