Best Sculpture Books of 2025

Loose Leaf for Living with Art by McGraw-Hill Education is a comprehensive guide that delves into the significance of art in our daily lives. The book sheds light on why we study art and how to talk about it. It helps readers understand and appreciate art by providing them with the necessary tools to analyze and digest it. The author, Mark Getlein, takes it a step further by encouraging readers to uphold a lifelong enthusiasm for art. This book is a must-read for anyone interested in arts and photography criticism.

Making with Data: Physical Design and Craft in a Data-Driven World is a visually stunning book that showcases the innovative ways contemporary creators are giving data physical form. The book features over 25 chapters, each detailing the process of creating a specific data-driven piece, with candid sketches, photos, and design artifacts from the creators' studios. It includes contributions from influential voices in computer science, data science, graphic design, art, craft, and architecture. This book is an excellent resource for anyone interested in the frontiers of art and science in the field of data design.

The Roman Nude: Heroic Portrait Statuary 200 BC - AD 300 is a thought-provoking book that offers a new perspective on Roman nude statues. The author, Christopher Hallett, presents comprehensively illustrated black and white photos of these statues and investigates how the nudity was intended to be understood by contemporary viewers. Hallett argues that these statues are documents of first importance for the cultural historian. He also explores the significance of the different costumes used in Roman statues. Overall, this book is a valuable contribution to the study of Roman art and culture.

The Sculpture of Andrea and Nino Pisano is a comprehensive study in English that sheds light on the artistic context, stylistic development and origins of the Pisanos. This book is a must-read for those interested in the history of art and sculpture appreciation. Dr Anita Moscowitz's work is a significant contribution to the field and brings to focus the artistic personalities of Andrea and Nino Pisano. The book's high-quality illustrations add to the reading experience and make it a valuable addition to any art lover's collection.

The book "Supports in Roman Marble Sculpture" by Anna Anguissola is the first comprehensive investigation of non-figural supports in Roman sculpture. It overturns previous conceptions of Roman visual values and traditions and challenges our understanding of the Roman reception of Greek art. Drawing on a large body of examples, Greek and Latin literary sources, and modern theories of visual culture, the book explores the functions and aesthetics of non-figural supports in Roman stone sculpture. This significant and thought-provoking book offers a new perspective on a crucial aspect of Roman art and is a must-read for anyone interested in sculpture appreciation.

The Art of Sculpture in Fifteenth-Century Italy is a comprehensive overview of Italian sculpture during a century of intense creativity and development. The book comprises nineteen essays by top scholars, exploring the vast range of techniques and media used to fashion works of sculpture. The volume offers much new research and abundant riches, including 250 illustrations, many of them color plates. Specialists will discover much of interest and value in this varied cornucopia. Highly recommended.

The Shock of the New: The Hundred-Year History of Modern Art: Its Rise, Its Dazzling Achievement, It's Fall is a comprehensive survey of modern art's birth and development, including the European and American art movements in the 70s and 80s. This revised edition includes an updated discussion of minimalist and public art, German Neo-Expressionism, art by women, and environmental art. The book's final chapter, "The Future that Was," is completely rewritten and updated. With 75% of the 275 illustrations in full color, this book provides an authoritative and lively exploration of modern art.

Sound Art: Concepts and Practices is an excellent introduction to the world of sound art, perfect for undergraduate students. The book covers the history and practice of sound art in 13 thematic chapters, exploring key ideas and theories, and discussing selected works, both classic and current. The author, Thom Holmes, draws on a broad, diverse range of examples, making this book essential reading for anyone interested in the theory, history, appreciation, or practice of sound art. Overall, this book offers a comprehensive and interdisciplinary approach to sound art, making it a unique and valuable addition to any music appreciation book collection.

Sculpture Since 1945 by Andrew Causey is a ground-breaking account of the development of post-war sculpture. The book examines innovative and avant-garde works in relation to contemporary events, festivals, commissions, the marketplace, and the changing functions of museums. Causey explores the use of everyday objects and the importance of sculptural context, discussing figurative and non-figurative works, Anti-form, Minimalism, experimental form, Earth art, landscape sculpture, installation, and performance art. The holistic picture of post-War sculpture which emerges in Sculpture Since 1945 establishes key events and themes around which future debate will center. Highly informative and well-read, this book contextualizes contemporary sculpture within other world events and art genres.

This book is a must-read for anyone interested in twentieth-century sculpture. It accompanies a major retrospective exhibition of Constantin Brancusi's work and provides a detailed reassessment of his sculptures, drawings, and photographs. The authors incorporate and extend the profound revisions in scholarship that have been taking place since the last major retrospective in 1969-70. The book is profusely illustrated throughout, with photographs by the artist and images culled from a wide range of archival sources. This definitive work is written by Friedrich Teja Bach, Margit Rowell, and Ann Temkin, who are all experts in their respective fields.