Book Club

The Art Newspaper’s Book Club shines a light on art books in their myriad forms and brings you exclusive extracts, interviews and recommendations from leading art world figures. Sign up to our monthly newsletter above

‘The artist the critics love to hate’: the colourful life of sports star painter and Playboy illustrator LeRoy Neiman

We speak to the author of a new biography that reassesses the legacy of the “hustler” artist who rubbed shoulders with celebrities

Ultimate reading lists

Interviews with writers

Features

My five-year-old could do that! The impact of childhood on the work of artists

A new book gathers together anecdotes from artists' early years and looks at how these formative experiences shaped their careers

What it's like modelling naked for Lucian Freud when he's your father

Rose Boyt’s memoir explores the highs, lows and contradictions of sitting for the artist

A move to London, the famous logo and liquid lunches: a short history of Thames & Hudson

As it marks its 75th anniversary, we hear how the “amazing melting pot” of Vienna shaped the publisher’s identity and what’s in store for the future

What is the art world reading?

Book extracts

In Pictures

In Pictures | Artist billboards across America tell a story of US politics today

Ahead of the November presidential election, a new book by the For Freedoms organisation brings together the topical and political posters that it has commissioned since 2016

An expert’s guide to Helen Frankenthaler: five must-read books on the Abstract Expressionist

All you ever wanted to know about Frankenthaler, from a seminal monograph to the story of the bohemian world that forged her—selected by the curator and writer Douglas Dreishpoon

An expert's guide to Impressionism: five must-read books on the art movement

All you ever wanted to know about the subject, from tomes on how society shaped Impressionism to a deep dive into how the paintings were actually made—selected by curators Kimberly Jones and Mary Morton

Book Clubinterview

The world’s oldest printed book and rare ancient manuscripts from the Mogao caves in China to go on show in London

We speak to the British Library exhibition curator Melodie Doumy about the Diamond Sutra and other treasures from the Library Cave

Book Clubinterview

Maria Balshaw on the roles of museums today and what Tate’s sponsorship red line is

The Tate director discusses her new book about art institutions and their challenges in the 21st century

Book Clubfeature

Katherine Parr: power, patronage and the first full-length portrait of an English queen

In this exclusive extract from a new book about Henry VIII’s six wives, the art historian Suzannah Lipscomb writes about “perhaps the greatest artistic patron of them all”

An expert's guide to sculpture: five must-read books on the art of the three dimensional

All you ever wanted to know about the topic, from the latest experimentations in contemporary art to some lesser-known Surrealist sculpture—selected by the head of the Henry Moore Institute, Laurence Sillars

Book Clubinterview

Tears, tantrums and Turner Prize titbits: Lynn Barber on the messy art of interviewing artists

In her latest book, the veteran UK journalist recalls her many encounters with artists such as Salvador Dalí, Howard Hodgkin and the Chapman brothers

An expert’s guide to Michelangelo: five must-read books on the Renaissance Old Master

All you ever wanted to know about Michelangelo, from a “masterly” catalogue of drawings to a collection of letters covering art, deliveries and the artist’s favourite wine—selected by the curator Grant Lewis

Book Clubinterview

The art critic Robert Storr on the slow road to social and racial justice

A new series of books titled Focal Points launches with three volumes of essays and articles by the former curator

An expert's guide to colour: five must-read books on all things chromatic

All you ever wanted to know about the topic, from our difficult relationship with colour to a remarkable monochrome children’s book—selected by the colour historian Alexandra Loske

Book Clubfeature

A golden age for photobooks? As publishers join forces we find out what the future holds

The London-based publisher Mack is acquiring smaller firms and widening its visual culture coverage

Book Clubinterview

Former Tate Britain director Penelope Curtis on why she became a novelist

As the art historian makes the move into fiction writing, she tells us how learning about her family history inspired her

An expert's guide to Frank Auerbach: three must-read books (and a film) on the German-British painter

All you ever wanted to know about Auerbach, from a biography by one of his sitters to a collection of essays about his drawings—selected by the Courtauld Gallery curator Barnaby Wright

Book Clubreview

The rise of a queer art history: three new publications and the stories behind them

Recently published books aim to bring a deeper understanding of the canon, from the work of LGBTQ+ photographers to the pioneers who paved the way for later generations

Book Clubfeature

‘Have you ever been sat on before?’ What it's like taking part in a (surprisingly) private view

An exclusive extract from a new book by Bianca Bosker that lifts the lid on the secret life of the art world

Bianca Bosker. With an introduction by Gareth Harris

An expert's guide to Constantin Brâncuși: five must-read books on the Romanian sculptor

All you ever wanted to know about Brâncuși, from a landmark catalogue to a comic retelling of his run-in with US Customs—selected by the Centre Pompidou curator Ariane Coulondre

Booksfeature

Missing Mona Lisa: the story behind the 1911 theft of Leonardo’s masterpiece

The author of a new book tells us why it was stolen and how Picasso got embroiled in the scandal

Book Clubfeature

Why Anthony van Dyck was summoned to paint a recently deceased noblewoman

This extract from a new book about works in the Dulwich Picture Gallery by Helen Hillyard and Jennifer Scott reveals the story behind the artist's 1663 portrait of Lady Digby

Helen Hillyard and Jennifer Scott. With an introduction by José da Silva

An expert's guide to Frans Hals: five must-read books on the Dutch Old Master

All you ever wanted to know about Hals, from an 18th-century biography to a 1994 novel of the artist's “lost diaries”—selected by the Rijksmuseum curator Friso Lammertse