The Most Recommended Art Books

“A medley of art books.”

The merits and appeal of art books run the gamut from being invaluable sources for learning about how people have expressed themselves over time to serving as conversation-starting decor on a tabletop. They can be a portal to a gallery on the other side of the world or an invitation to stare inwards. A good art book can be about anything really—part of the beauty of the form borrows from the versatility of art itself. And the most sublime of art books are art; they transcend the form by imploring their audiences to be enlightened and entertained—in equal parts—beyond their wildest dreams.

Here’s a selection that passerby are poring over. And if you’re looking for where to buy, Head Hi is a go-to favorite. According to naturopath Maria Geyman, “they specialize in this, can custom order, and have an always-changing collection.”

Black Futures by Jenna Wortham and Kimberly Drew

Recommended by jasmine imani, céline semaan, fatima jones, erin allweiss, and georgie greville

Black Futures is a book that keeps popping up in our recommendations, and for good reason. Jenna Wortham and Kimberly Drew’s sweeping book mines Black culture to compile the story of Black creativity of our times. Art, it seems in Wortham and Drew’s view, is as expansive as it is unlimited by medium: Black Futures includes “images, photos, essays, memes, dialogues, recipes, tweets, poetry,” amongst other forms.

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Women by Nadia Lee Cohen

Recommended by ly ngo and marina sulmona

Nudes happen to be Nadia Lee Cohen’s specialty, and she captures them unlike you’ve ever seen. In her debut book, the seasoned, British-born, Los Angeles-based photographer captures “100 extra unordinary portraits” of women of all stripes, from celebrities to herself. Her images are surreal and flashy though endearingly honest.

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Dalí: Les Dîners de Gala by Salvador Dalí

Recommended by kavi moltz and marina sulmona

It probably comes as a surprise to no one that Salvador Dali was known for his dinner parties, which—like his art—were over the top and bizarre. Legend (and photographic evidence) has it that they were attended by celebrities and wild animals alike. Guests wore eccentric costumes and were served outlandish dishes like “Thousand Year Old Eggs” or “Frog Pasties.” As part cookbook, part art book, Les Diners de Gala chronicled it all. “It’s so cool,” Kavi Moltz says.

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New York Studio Conversations (Part II): Twenty-One Women Talk About Art by Stephanie Buhmann

Recommended by Nicole Steriovski

In this perennially-timely volume of the ongoing series New York Studio Conversations, art historian Stephanie Buhmann interviews twenty female artists who live and work in the city. Their ages range from 41 to 96, and their techniques, practices, and approaches are just as varied. Art Director Nicole Steriovski was gifted the book by her creative partner Jenna Saraco “a couple years ago” and remarks on how “the time feels right to read it now.”

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The Story of Art by E.H. Gombrich

Recommended by Vere Van Gool

The Story of Art by E.H. Gombrich is precisely what it sounds like it would be: a detailed tale about the history of art and its cultural significances across time. And Gombrich’s prose is indeed story-like—making the text approachable, unpretentious, and enrapturing. “Best book ever,” as curator Vere van Gool puts it.

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Dances of Africa by Claude Savary and Michel Huet

Recommended by mahen bonetti

Over a 40 year period spanning 1945 to 1985, photographer Michel Huet spent an abundance of time in Africa, capturing slices of life across the continent. One aspect he zoomed in on was capturing the ceremonial rituals and dances of “fifty African tribes, among them the Yoruba, Tutsi, Dogon, Mbuti, and Masai.”

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Anaglypta by Nick Waplington

Recommended by Caitlin Mcmullen

‘Anaglypta’ is defined as “a type of thick embossed wallpaper, designed to be painted over.” The title of Nick Waplington’s book then is apt: flipping though it feels like traversing a work that’s continually metamorphosing. It’s comprised of photography that non-linearly decodes his life. As Waplington himself puts it: “Oh and Anaglypta…it’s whatever you want it to be.”