Over a thousand pyramids grace Plaza Juarez in Mexico City, as shown in the new Assouline book, Mexico City.
Photo: assouline
8 Gorgeous Art and Design Books to Gift This Holiday Season
From travel tomes to books brimming with artful interiors, these fresh titles will add style and cheer to any shelf
Photo: Prestel
1. Gustav Klimt: The Interiors (Prestel)
As one of the most prominent members of the Vienna Secession movement, Gustav Klimt had an allure that shimmered like the gold leaf he liberally applied to his canvases. The late Austrian painter was widely acclaimed for his luminous works, which telegraphed modern opulence and unabashed sensuality. Now, the new book Gustav Klimt: The Interiors explores the impact his pieces have on the interiors they grace, including vignettes of site-specific works, such as Nuda Veritas, in private salons, galleries, museums, and more. Insightful text by scholar Tobias Natter accompanies each piece and further illuminates Klimt’s acclaimed practice.
Photo: Phaidon
2. Slow Food, Fast Cars (Phaidon)
Last year, Michelin-starred chef Massimo Bottura and his wife, restauranteur Lara Gilmore, rescued a nearly-250-year-old farmhouse in the Italian countryside and turned it into Casa Maria Luigia, a 12-room guest house and dining destination encircled by acres of picturesque farmland. The couple’s new release, Slow Food, Fast Cars, shines a spotlight on the idyllic compound, including the charming interiors, plus the pair’s collection of Italian cars and motorcycles. Also included are an array of breakfast and all-day recipes that make use of prized local ingredients such as balsamic vinegar and Parmigiano Reggiano cheese. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself searching for flights to Italy while leafing through.
Photo: Frances Lincoln
3. Artists at Home (Frances Lincoln)
In Artists at Home, prolific British writer Susie Hodge explores the personal sanctuaries of some of the art world’s most influential figures, including Pablo Picasso (who graces the cover), Georgia O’Keeffe, William Morris, and Frida Kahlo. She places particular emphasis on examining the relationship between each locale and its owner’s impressive body of work. A must-have for any art lover’s shelf.
Photo: Vendome Press
4. Behind the Blue Door: A Maximalist Mantra (Vendome Press)
They say you can’t judge a book by its cover. The same could be said for the stately Upper East Side townhouse owned by business titan John Demsey, who recently released Behind the Blue Door, written by Alina Cho and shot by photographer Douglas Friedman. As the title suggests, after entering through the colorful portal, visitors are downright dazzled by the maximalist interiors they encounter. Each room in the six-story residence brims with a symphony of vivid hues, striking patterns, and tactile objects—not to mention blue-chip works of art. This visual feast must be seen to be believed.
Photo: Yale University Press
5. Givenchy: The Complete Collections (Yale University Press)
This definitive volume celebrates the sartorial magic of Givenchy, the renowned French fashion house established in 1952 by Hubert de Givenchy and later acquired by LVMH. Each distinct creative period gets its due here, with special sections dedicated to Clare Waight Keller, the first woman to become the label’s artistic director; American designer Matthew M. Williams, who joined the house in the summer of 2020; and Alexander McQueen, whose visionary Spring-Summer 1997 couture show was initially lambasted only to become regarded as a work of genius that inspired countless designers and spawned a legion of imitators.
Photo: David Zwirner Books
6. William Eggleston: The Outlands, Selected Works (David Zwirner Books)
In William Eggleston’s gaze, the mundane becomes a monument. Now 84 years old, the acclaimed photographer is something of a poet of the American South, and his unassuming photographs whisper tales of longing and grit, grace and grime. Now, an early series of his images taken from 1969 through ’74, dubbed The Outlands, is the subject of a new tome from David Zwirner Books. The trove of moody, nostalgia-inducing photographs provides the foundation for the themes Eggleston would continue to develop for decades to come. Perfect for the budding photographer on your list.
Photo: Assouline
7. Mexico City (Assouline)
History hangs heavy in the air of Mexico City. The enormous capital—one of the most populous places on Earth—was already established (under a different name, of course) by the time Hernán Cortés arrived in the 14th century. Now, Assouline continues its series of lush travel tomes with a spotlight on the vibrant metropolis, which blends pre-Hispanic roots with colonial architecture and Spanish influence. Go inside landmark structures and discover countless cultural treasures with this trove of 200 images.
Photo: Martin Morrell/Courtesy of Rizzoli
8. Vincenzo De Cotiis: Interiors (Rizzoli)
This vivid new release is the Milan-based architect and artist’s debut monograph and features nine breathtaking projects completed over the past decade. All of the high-concept, meditative spaces fully embody De Cotiis’s elevated style, which sees rare stones and polished metals juxtaposed with classical backdrops that have been stripped of modern, awkward adornments. The dazzling volume—which also includes sketches and floor plans—is the first fully realized glimpse into the practice of a pioneering talent who has been likened to legends such as Gio Ponti and Carlo Scarpa.
Cover: Over a thousand pyramids grace Plaza Juarez in Mexico City, as shown in the new Assouline book, Mexico City.
Photo: assouline
