Tabish Khan the @LondonArtCritic takes a break from exhibitions to recommend his top art books to read this Spring. Each one comes with a concise review to help you decide whether it’s for you.
This book will make you an Artist by Ruth Millington, illustrated by Ellen Surrey – published by Nosy Crow
This is a brilliant book on how to get children engaged in creating art in the styles of many of history’s greatest artists from Salvador Dali to Frida Kahlo. A great book to get little ones started in engaging with art history and creating art.
Whilst the World Sleeps by Eleanor Macnair, published by RRB Photobooks
Taking photographs by well-known photographers including Gillian Wearing, Man Ray and Cindy Sherman (pictured), then recreating them in Play-Doh Eleanor Macnair has taken what started as a pub quiz activity and turned it into a playful art form.
Project UrbEx by Ikumi Nakamura, published by Thames & Hudson
I love great photographs of abandoned spaces and this book contains lots from around the world – from abandoned theme parks to power plants. Seen from the viewpoint of video game creator Ikumi Nakamura, it’s a spectacular journey into this secret world.
LAN Party: Inside the multiplayer revolution by Merritt K, published by Thames & Hudson
For a brief period when multiplayer gaming had taken off but high speed Internet hadn’t, LAN parties were how people came together to play video games and this book of photographs and essays captures this short-lived cultural phenomenon. It’s a major dose of nostalgia for me.
Ten Days in Gaza: A journey into the past, present and future, published by Hood Hood books
Gaza is in the news right now but this photography book of images taken in 2010 shows that bombardment and displacement have always been a part of life in Gaza. There are plenty of photographs of destroyed buildings and rubble, but there are also powerful intimate portraits and those of children are especially captivating. A similarly powerful photography book is Edge of Hope, by Anthony Dawton and Jim MacFarlane, that shows the people and the conditions within a Rohingya refugee camp in Bangladesh.
Warhol after Warhol: Power and Money in the Art World by Richard Dorment, published by Picador
This is a fascinating dive into the world of authenticating artworks told by an art critic who became embroiled in it. I didn’t know much about this aspect of art, and from the technical elements to the political machinations – it’s a gripping tale.
Art Unpacked – 50 works of art: uncovered, explained, explored by Matthew Wilson, published by Thames & Hudson
Each artwork has a story behind it and details that can easily be missed on first viewing. This beautifully illustrated book takes 50 artworks and does a detailed analysis of each one from Vincent Van Gogh to Paula Rego, so we get to learn a lot more about artworks that are both familiar and unfamiliar. It’s a great journey through art history that ensures it takes work from Asia, South America and Africa – as well as the European lens we often see art history through.
Andy Warhol: A Graphic Biography. Text by Michele Botton, illustrations by Marco Maraggi – published by Frances Lincoln
I like this recent trend in graphic novels as an easy introduction to famous artists, their works and their lives. It gives a bite-sized overview of Andy Warhol that can be digested in one sitting. It’s a handy introduction that’s far more accessible than an academic text.
The Visual Detox: How to Consume Media Without Letting it Consume You by Marine Tanguy, published by Square Peg
We live in a world where we often over-consume through social media and while there have been many great books written about it from the perspective of the technology and the corporate world, this is the first from a creative standpoint and it’s needed given how much the visual arts world relies on Instagram. It’s well researched and has lots of practical tips to improve your visual consumption.
LAN Party photo: Ian Berry. All other images courtesy author, illustrator and publisher respectively.
