9 art books to give as gifts this Christmas

If your Secret Santa is an art and literature lover, you can't miss the opportunity to give him a good read as a gift. After all, books are always great gift options. So, for different reading tastes , CASACOR has put together a list of 9 art books for you to give to your friends and family this Christmas . Check it out!

1. Shortcuts, Fabio Miguez

Brazilian artist Fabio Miguez began working on a series of small-format paintings called Shortcuts in 2010. This series, which also gives its title to the bilingual publication , totaled over 200 works at the time of its launch – an intriguing summary of Miguez’s recent output. Many of his paintings are directly related to the history of art; they cut out and echo parts of paintings by Piero della Francesca, Alfredo Volpi and Henri Matisse , not exactly as quotations, but as humorous comments on their sources.

2. Epistemas, by Vik Muniz

Epistemas focuses on the most recent work of visual artist Vik Muniz , especially the series “Handmade” and “Surfaces”, highlighting connections between different moments in his career. Extensively illustrated and with texts by the artist himself , as well as by critic Luísa Duarte and English scientist and writer Phillip Ball, the book touches on central points of the artist’s conceptual and formal research, which has been investigating the contradictions between visual perception and the physical world for almost four decades.

3. Theater of Matter, by Laura Vinci

Teatro das Matérias addresses the creative experience of artist Laura Vinci based on her immersion in theater , which became a kind of laboratory for the expansion of her artistic poetics. With individual editions in Portuguese and English (not bilingual), the book features an interview between the artist and Marta Bogéa , brings together four previously unpublished texts – written by Georgette Fadel, José Celso Martinez Corrêa, José Miguel Wisnik and Rodrigo Moura –, as well as presenting an extensive collection of images and technical details for each of the projects.

4. Louis Vuitton & Yayoi Kusama

Louis Vuitton , the global luxury fashion house, and Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama have teamed up to launch this special new volume that showcases the artist’s work alongside the never-before-seen collection of clothing she designed with the brand.

5. The Artist's Way, by Julia Cameron

The book brings together a series of exercises, reflections and tools to help awaken creativity , regain self-confidence and get rid of creative blocks. Organized in a 12-week program, these techniques aim to guide the reader on a journey of self-discovery , helping them to face their fears, beliefs and insecurities – the biggest obstacles for those who want to express themselves in any form of art.

6. Bruno Dunley

This publication is the largest monograph ever published on the artist Abraham Palatnik , a pioneer in kinetic art in Brazil. With the aim of expanding and renewing the debate on Palatnik's work, reaffirming the innovative character of his work, the edition features a prolific notebook of archival images and works by the artist, as well as historical and previously unpublished texts written by great names in the field.

8. A Brief History of Art, by Susie Hodge

Structured in a simple manner , the book seeks to introduce the reader to the world of art through 50 fundamental works , from the cave paintings of Lascaux to contemporary installations, relating them to the most important artistic movements, themes and techniques . In accessible language, concise and richly illustrated, this book explains how, when and why art changed, who introduced certain things, what they were, where they were produced and what their importance is.

9. Creation Paths, by José Patrício

The exercise of writing about one's own trajectory in the arts can be challenging: memories, feelings and changes in understanding resulting from time are obstacles to reaching a synthesis. However, the visual artist from Pernambuco, José Patrício, accepted this challenge in the book Percursos de Criação. In the publication, the artist writes about his discoveries, investigations and experiments with handmade paper, dominoes, dice, buttons, plastic game pieces, among other objects originating from popular commerce and everyday situations that are part of the lives of Brazilians.