Seven essential books to explore the world of art

From the mysteries of the Mona Lisa to the impact of Latin American art, a selection of titles for readers of all ages to explore the visual universe, diversity, culture and contemporary aesthetics.
Art, in its many forms, is an inexhaustible source of inspiration and reflection throughout the centuries. In a publishing landscape full of novelties, some books manage to capture certain interesting aspects of this visual universe, and offer the reader a deep look at the works, artists and movements that have defined the course of cultural history.
For this reason, Noticias Argentinas made a selection of seven books to begin reading about art and to fully immerse yourself in the visual universe through reading.
Diversity and Latin American art. Stories of artists who broke the glass ceiling, by Andrea Giunta (Siglo XXI)
Diversity and Latin American art. Stories of Artists Who Broke the Glass Ceiling, by renowned art historian Andrea Giunta, is one of the most relevant novelties of recent months. Published by the Siglo XXI label, the book offers a tour of the work of creators who challenged the norms and limitations of Latin American art. Through their works, these artists broke barriers of gender, race and sexuality, questioning the conventions of the artistic canon. The book examines how Latin American art, influenced by its colonial, indigenous and Afro-descendant history, becomes a platform to make visible minoritized affections and cultures.
A doctor in Philosophy and Letters, Giunta is a senior researcher at Conicet and a professor of Latin American and International Art at the University of Buenos Aires. She is also the author of Feminism and Latin American Art (2018), Writing Images (2011) and Vanguard, Internationalism and Politics (2008), and co-author of Radical Women. Latin American Art, 1960-1985 and Verboamérica. Her career was awarded the Konex Prize on three occasions and prestigious scholarships such as the Guggenheim and Harrington, among others.

Now, with Diversity and Latin American Art, she rigorously analyzes the paths that these artists took from the sixties to the present, and explores the scenes of countries such as Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Mexico and Colombia. The author highlights individual and collective trajectories that rewrite established poetics and open new agendas, focusing on topics such as the role of women, racism, disability and sexual diversity.
The book's journey ranges from the exploration of fluid sexuality and its link to religion in the work of Carlos Motta, to the immersive experiences of the Uruguayan Pau Delgado Iglesias with blind people; Latin American art offers diverse perspectives. Also highlighted is the theory of affections around Cristina Schiavi, the late recognition of the Argentine centenarian Ides Kihlen, whose career has not been analyzed from a gender perspective, and the pioneer Rosana Paulino, the first Afro-Brazilian woman to earn a doctorate at the University of São Paulo. And one more fact: the illustration on the cover is a work by the feminist Mónica Mayer.
Dystopias and microutopias. Resistance practices in 21st century art, by Elena Oliveras (Paidós)
Dystopias and microutopias, by Elena Oliveras, explores 21st century art through two apparently opposite concepts: dystopia and utopia. Oliveras suggests how contemporary art, in the midst of a convulsed world, not only reflects dystopian visions, but is also capable of proposing small spaces of hope, called microutopias. The work invites us to think about how artistic practices act as tools of resistance and reflection.

Elena Oliveras is a professor of Philosophy at the Universidad Nacional del Nordeste and holds a PhD in Aesthetics from the University of Paris. Professor Emeritus at the Universidad del Salvador, she was also an Associate in the Department of Aesthetics at the University of Buenos Aires. Member of the National Academy of Fine Arts, the National Academy of Sciences of Buenos Aires and several critical associations, she is the author of books such as La levedad del límites, Arte cinético y neocinatismo and Estéticas de lo extremo. She has received numerous awards, such as the first prize for Essay from the Fondo Nacional de las Artes and two diplomas of merit from the Premios Konex.
Divided into several sections, Dystopias and Microutopias analyzes everything from metamodernity to the most recent artistic expressions, including the impact of climate change, posthumanism, and violence. The author offers a tour of various disciplines, such as literature, cinema, and the visual arts, to demonstrate how, even in the darkest landscapes, art can generate new perspectives and actions. Throughout her essay, Oliveras suggests that dystopia and microutopia are not exclusive categories, but two sides of the same reality.

With a deep and critical eye, Oliveras examines art as a terrain in which utopia, although fragmented, is still possible. The essay is enriched with theoretical references and examples of artistic works, ranging from the posthuman, artificial intelligence, to ecological imbalances.
Aisenberg (Adriana Hidalgo Editora)
Aisenberg presents for the first time an exhaustive compilation of the work of Diana Aisenberg, a key figure in Argentine art since the 1980s. Known for her role as a teacher and trainer of artists, her extensive artistic production had been overshadowed by her intense educational work.

This book reveals her most emblematic works, from the Madonnas, where she reinterpreted religious painting from a feminist perspective, to her installations that question the relationship between painting and reality, passing through her tributes to the "Madonna of the arts" and her experimentation with animals, flowers and architecture.

The work, which includes essays and interviews with prominent critics such as Roberto Amigo, María Moreno and Santiago Villanueva, offers a deep analysis without following a strict chronological order. Amigo focuses on the recurring themes and iconographies that run through Aisenberg's work, while Moreno, in a revealing interview, explores the intimate connection between her life and her art. Villanueva, for his part, reflects on the pedagogical method that Aisenberg develops in her clinics and workshops, linked to the Argentine artistic and pedagogical tradition.

Part of Adriana Hidalgo's book collection, this work offers a comprehensive overview of the artist, highlighting her ability to materialize the sacred and the collective in her work, and her constant exploration of the relationship between art, community, and teaching.
Becoming a Work of Art, by Boris Groys (Caja Negra Editora)
In Becoming a Work of Art, Boris Groys, a philosopher and art theorist recognized for his approach to contemporary culture, examines how aestheticization has invaded all aspects of modern life. From the preservation of nature to the self-design of the public image, Groys argues that today we not only have the right, but also the obligation to construct and control our appearance in front of others. However, he argues that this control is illusory, since the public image is created collectively and is not entirely in our hands.

Published by Caja Negra Editora, the book delves into how aesthetic practices and the use of the Internet generate "public corpses," digital documents and representations that continue to exist beyond physical death.

Through a profound critique of digital culture, Groys contrasts the fleeting nature of biological life with the immortalization sought by works of art and our online identities, thus redefining the role of the human being in a world where the ephemeral and the eternal are intertwined. A completely contemporary reflection.
Ways of Seeing, by John Berger (Editorial GG)

Ways of Seeing, written by essayist and art critic John Berger, offers a profound reflection on how ways of seeing influence the interpretation of art and visual culture. Adapted from his influential 1972 television series Ways of Seeing, the book offers a critical view of the evolution of the gaze in the history of art, analyzing everything from oil painting to modern advertising.

Throughout seven essays, three of them composed exclusively of images, Berger examines topics such as the origin of art in relation to property, the role of women as objects in European painting, and the way in which technical reproduction has transformed the original meaning of works of art. Inspired by the ideas of Walter Benjamin, the author unravels how advertising has replaced painting in its capacity to reflect status and power in the contemporary world.
Surprise Movement, by Julio Le Parc (Pequeño Editor)

The Theft of the Mona Lisa, by Franco Vaccarini, with illustrations by Jimena Tello (VyR Editoras)
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