Top 10 Art Books of 2023: From Italian Contemporary to Digital Realms
A roundup of the ten best art books published in 2023, as selected by Artribune, covers a wide range of topics including Italian contemporary art, internet subcultures, relational aesthetics, and activist art. Notable titles include 'Strata: arte italiana dal 2000' edited by Vincenzo de Bellis and Alessandro Rabottini, featuring dialogues with 37 Italian artists; Valentina Tanni's 'Exit Reality' exploring vaporwave, backrooms, and meme culture; and the 'Dizionario Lucio Fontana' edited by Luca Pietro Nicoletti with contributions from over sixty authors. Other highlights are the two-volume catalog for the Gabriele Basilico exhibition at Triennale Milano and Palazzo Reale, Vincenzo Trione's 'Prologo celeste' on Anselm Kiefer's studio La Ribaute, Serena Carbone's 'L'arte in preda al possibile' critiquing relational art, Christian Caliandro's 'Contro l'arte fighetta' against elitist art, Gregory Sholette's 'L'arte dell'attivismo e l'attivismo dell'arte' on art and activism, Nicolas Ballario's '100 luoghi del contemporaneo in Italia' mapping contemporary art venues, and Marco Enrico Giacomelli's 'Ma dove sono le opere d'arte?' inspired by documenta 15.
Key facts
- Strata: arte italiana dal 2000 features 37 Italian artists in dialogue, edited by Vincenzo de Bellis and Alessandro Rabottini.
- Valentina Tanni's Exit Reality covers vaporwave, backrooms, weirdcore, and memes, published by Nero.
- Dizionario Lucio Fontana includes over 60 authors and 700 pages, edited by Luca Pietro Nicoletti in collaboration with Fondazione Lucio Fontana.
- Gabriele Basilico exhibition at Triennale Milano and Palazzo Reale produced a two-volume catalog by Electa.
- Vincenzo Trione's Prologo celeste explores Anselm Kiefer's studio La Ribaute, published by Einaudi.
- Serena Carbone's L'arte in preda al possibile critiques relational art practices, published by Gli Ori.
- Christian Caliandro's Contro l'arte fighetta attacks conformist art, published by Castelvecchi.
- Gregory Sholette's L'arte dell'attivismo e l'attivismo dell'arte examines art and activism since the 2008 crisis, published by Postmedia books.
- Nicolas Ballario's 100 luoghi del contemporaneo in Italia maps 100 contemporary art venues across Italy, published by 24 ORE Cultura.
- Marco Enrico Giacomelli's Ma dove sono le opere d'arte? is a glossary inspired by documenta 15, published by Castelvecchi.
Entities
Artists
- Vincenzo de Bellis
- Alessandro Rabottini
- Valentina Tanni
- Lucio Fontana
- Luca Pietro Nicoletti
- Enrico Crispolti
- Gabriele Basilico
- Vincenzo Trione
- Anselm Kiefer
- Serena Carbone
- Pietro Gaglianò
- Christian Caliandro
- Gregory Sholette
- Nicolas Ballario
- Marco Enrico Giacomelli
- Carla Lonzi
- Bruno Munari
- Medardo Rosso
- Carlo Scarpa
- Francesco Somaini
- Edoardo Camurri
Institutions
- Lenz
- Nero
- Quodlibet
- Fondazione Lucio Fontana
- Electa
- Triennale Milano
- Palazzo Reale
- Einaudi
- Gli Ori
- Castelvecchi
- Postmedia books
- 24 ORE Cultura
- Il Sole 24 Ore
- Artribune
- documenta
Locations
- Milano
- Italy
- Roma
- La Ribaute