The Art of Rivalry: Four Friendships, Betrayals, and Breakthroughs in Modern Art (2017) by Sebastian Smee
"I found it a fascinating read about how competition can be a driving force in stimulating artists’ creativity. Particularly engaging for me were the Pollock-De Kooning relationship and the Freud-Bacon one. Food for thought for my generation of artists."
High Price: Art Between the Market and Celebrity Culture (2009) by Isabelle Graw
"At times a bit too academic for me, with a lot of theoretical references, so this isolation period, with more time at hand, has been the perfect occasion to go for it. Although written in 2009, most of the ideas are still fresh and relevant. In particular the constant discourse about the relationship between artistic production and art market."
Francis Bacon: Catalogue Raisonné (2016) edited by Martin Harrison
"I received it as a birthday gift from a friend a few years ago and I enjoy going through it at least a couple of times a year. [Bacon is] one of the post-war figurative painters I admire the most, in particular I always enjoy the 1960s and early 1970s paintings!"
Albert Oehlen (2016)
"In this gigantic catalogue, it’s really possible to enjoy the fantastic and eclectic output of one of the most influential painters alive, from the early Mirror paintings to more recent abstraction. This Taschen book has a strong presence among many other Taschen catalogues in my library. It was a wedding present from another friend—I feel very lucky!"