Art & Photography, Best 2022, Best Books, Best Year-End

The Best Art, Photography, And Coffee Table Books of 2022 (A Year-End List Aggregation)

“What are the best Art, Photography, And Coffee Table books released in 2022?” We looked at 214 of the top Art, Photography, And Coffee Table books, aggregating and ranking them so we could answer that very question!

The top 15 books, all appearing on 2 or more “Best Art, Photography, And Coffee Table” book lists, are ranked below by how many times they appear. The remaining 175+ titles, as well as the sources we used, are in alphabetical order on the bottom of the page.

Our other Best Of 2022 Articles:

Previous Years: 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015

Happy Scrolling!



Top 15 Best Art, Photography, And Coffee Table Books From 2022



15.) 1000 Design Classics written by Phaidon Press (Author)

1000 Design Classics

Lists It Appears On:

  • Curbed
  • NPR 2

The most innovative, iconic, and influential products ever designed – from 1663 to the present day Originating from the highly acclaimed and groundbre…



14.) A Book of Days written by Patti Smith (Author)

A Book of Days

Lists It Appears On:

  • NPR 2
  • Real Simple

A deeply moving and brilliantly idiosyncratic visual book of days by the National Book Award-winning author of Just Kids and M Train, featuring more t…



13.) African Art Now: 50 Pioneers Defining African Art for the Twenty-First Century written by Osei Bonsu

African Art Now: 50 Pioneers Defining African Art for the Twenty-First Century

Lists It Appears On:

  • Dandelion Chandelier
  • Real Simple

This deluxe hardcover survey, featuring profiles of 50 artists on the rise, is the definitive guide to contemporary African art. With African artists …



12.) Art Is Life: Icons and Iconoclasts, Visionaries and Vigilantes, and Flashes of Hope in the Night written by Jerry Saltz

Art Is Life: Icons and Iconoclasts, Visionaries and Vigilantes, and Flashes of Hope in the Night

Lists It Appears On:

  • Dandelion Chandelier
  • Waterstones

From the Pulitzer Prize winner and bestselling author of How to Be an Artist a deliciously readable survey of the art world in turbulent times Jerry S…



11.) Building for Change: The Architecture of Creative Reuse written by Ruth Lang

Building for Change: The Architecture of Creative Reuse

Lists It Appears On:

  • Financial Times
  • Five Books

Architects are adapting existing buildings to create new spaces for a more conscious future. The urban fabric changes more slowly than our spatial nee…



10.) Flint is Family in Three Acts written by LaToya Ruby Frazier

Flint is Family in Three Acts

Lists It Appears On:

  • Curbed
  • Smithsonian



9.) Floridas written by Anastasia Samoylova and Walker Evans

Floridas

Lists It Appears On:

  • Photo Eye
  • Smithsonian

Sunshine state. Swampland paradise. Tourist aspiration. Real-estate racket. Refuge of excess. Political swing-state. Sub-tropical fever dream. With fo…



8.) Jean-Michel Basquiat: King Pleasure(c) written by Lisane Basquiat

Jean-Michel Basquiat: King Pleasure(c)

Lists It Appears On:

  • Colossal
  • Waterstones

This landmark volume tells the story of Jean-Michel Basquiat from the intimate perspective of his family, intertwining his artistic endeavors with his…



7.) Making Videogames: The Art of Creating Digital Worlds written by Duncan Harris and Alex Wiltshire

Making Videogames: The Art of Creating Digital Worlds

Lists It Appears On:

  • Five Books
  • NPR

Making Videogames is an extraordinary snapshot of modern interactive entertainment, with insight from pioneers about the most important games in the i…



6.) Meet Me by the Fountain: An Inside History of the Mall written by Alexandra Lange

Meet Me by the Fountain: An Inside History of the Mall

Lists It Appears On:

  • Curbed
  • Fast Company

“A smart and accessible cultural history.”–Los Angeles Times “A fantastic examination of what became the mall … envision[ing] a more meaningful pub…



5.) Paint with Thread: A Step-By-Step Guide to Embroidery Through the Seasons written by Emillie Ferris

Paint with Thread: A Step-By-Step Guide to Embroidery Through the Seasons

Lists It Appears On:

  • Colossal
  • Waterstones

Slow down and embroider your way through the changing seasons with the beautiful debut book from embroidery artist and rising star Emillie Ferris. Nee…



4.) Queer Maximalism X Machine Dazzle written by Elissa Auther, Mx. Justin Vivian Bond, David Román, Taylor Mac, madison moore

Queer Maximalism X Machine Dazzle

Lists It Appears On:

  • Book Riot
  • Real Simple

Machine Dazzle, to my mind, [is] a true theatrical genius who has created some of the most inventive costumes and sets I have ever seen. –Hilton Als,…



3.) Queer Spaces: An Atlas of LGBTQ+ Places and Stories written by Adam Nathaniel Furman and Joshua Mardell

Queer Spaces: An Atlas of LGBTQ+ Places and Stories

Lists It Appears On:

  • Curbed
  • Waterstones

An independent bookshop in Glasgow. An ice cream parlour in Havana, where strawberry is the queerest choice. A cathedral in ruins in Managua, occupied…



2.) Wildlife Photographer of the Year: Portfolio 32: Volume 32 written by Rosamund Kidman Cox

Wildlife Photographer of the Year: Portfolio 32: Volume 32

Lists It Appears On:

  • The Telegraph
  • Waterstones

This is the most memorable and surprising collection of wildlife imagery of the year–a gallery of work by more than 70 photographers from 30 countrie…



1.) Great Women Painters written by Alison M Gingeras

Great Women Painters

Lists It Appears On:

  • Colossal
  • Dandelion Chandelier
  • Five Books

A sumptuous survey of over 300 women painters and their work spanning almost five centuries Great Women Painters is a groundbreaking book that reveals…




The 175+ Additional Best Art, Photography, And Coffee Table Books Released In 2022



16) A Few Collectors – Pierre Le-Tan List: (Waterstones)
17) A Life of Picasso Volume IV – John Richardson List: (Waterstones)
18) A Little History of Art – Charlotte Mullins List: (Waterstones)
19) A Metamathematical Proposition – Shigeru Onishi List: (Photo Eye)
20) A Visible Man – Edward Enninful List: (Waterstones)
21) A-Z of Record Shop Bags: 1940s to 1990s – Johnny Trunk List: (The Globe and Mail)
22) All Is Possible – List: (Real Simple)
23) An Alternative History of Photography – List: (Colossal)
24) An File Mícheál Ó’Gaoithín: The Blasket Painter – Mícheál Ó Gaoithín List: (Irish Times)
25) Andinos: Encounters in Cusco, Peru – Gabriel Barreto Bentin List: (Book Riot)
26) Another Country – Gerry Badger List: (Waterstones)
27) AphroChic: Celebrating the Legacy of the Black Family Home – Bryan Mason and Jeanine Hays List: (Curbed)
28) Arent & Pyke – Arent & Pyke List: (Booktopia)
29) Art Against Despair – The School of Life List: (Waterstones)
30) Art and Climate Change – List: (Colossal)
31) Art of the Chicken: A Master Chef’s Paintings, Stories, and Recipes of the Humble Bird – Jacques Pépin List: (NPR)
32) Artists: Their Lives and Works – DK and Ross King List: (Dandelion Chandelier)
33) As It Was Give(n) to Me – Stacy Kranitz List: (Smithsonian)
34) Atlas of Mid-Century Modern Houses – List: (Real Simple)
35) Audrey Hepburn – Megan Hess List: (Booktopia)
36) Bacon in Moscow – James Birch List: (Waterstones)
37) Baldwin Lee – List: (Photo Eye)
38) Bali Mystique – List: (Travel + Leisure)
39) Bargain Hunt: The Spotter’s Guide to Antiques – Karen Farrington List: (Waterstones)
40) Bird Planet – Tim Laman List: (Smithsonian)
41) Bit Facade – Áine McBride List: (Irish Times)
42) Black Paper: Writing in a Dark Time – Teju Cole List: (Booklist)
43) Body Work: The Radical Power of Personal Narrative – Melissa Febos List: (NPR)
44) Brutalist Britain: Buildings of the 1960s and 1970s – Elain Harwood, List: (Financial Times)
45) Built in Chelsea – Dan Cruickshank List: (Waterstones)
46) Camera Man: Buster Keaton, the Dawn of Cinema, and the Invention of the Twentieth Century – Dana Stevens List: (Booklist)
47) Captured by the Sea – List: (Travel + Leisure)
48) Chromorama – Riccardo Falcinelli List: (Waterstones)
49) Colorization: One Hundred Years of Black Films in a White World – Wil Haygood List: (Booklist)
50) Colours of London – Peter Ackroyd List: (Waterstones)
51) Companion Piece: A Novel – Ali Smith List: (NPR)
52) Concorde – Wolfgang Tillmans List: (Irish Times)
53) Constable – James Hamilton List: (Waterstones)
54) Constructing a Nervous System: A Memoir – Margo Jefferson List: (NPR)
55) Context and Content – The Memoir of a Fortunate Architect – A.J. Diamond List: (The Globe and Mail)
56) Cressida Campbell – National Gallery of Australia List: (Booktopia)
57) Dead of Night – Robert H Boltz List: (Photo Eye)
58) Declassified: A Low-Key Guide to the High-Strung World of Classical Music – Arianna Warsaw-Fan Rauch List: (Booklist)
59) Deeda Blair: Food, Flowers, & Fantasy – Deborah Needleman List: (Curbed)
60) Design After Capitalism – Matthew Wizinsky List: (Fast Company)
61) Designs on Democracy: Architecture and the Public in Interwar London – Neal Shasore, List: (Financial Times)
62) Dreaming the Land – Marie Geissler List: (Booktopia)
63) Ed Fella: A Life In Images – List: (Fast Company)
64) Elizabeth II – Alexandra Shulman List: (Waterstones)
65) Endangered – List: (Travel + Leisure)
66) Engineering in Plain Sight: An Illustrated Field Guide to the Constructed Environment – Grady Hillhouse List: (The Globe and Mail)
67) Equal Nine Patch – Miranda Blennerhassett List: (Irish Times)
68) Exposed – Caroline Vout List: (Waterstones)
69) Farah Al Qasimi: Hello Future – List: (Dandelion Chandelier)
70) Feeling Seen: The Photographs of Campbell Addy – Campbell Addy, Edward Enninful, Ekow Eshun List: (Book Riot)
71) Feng Shui Modern – Cliff Tan List: (Waterstones)
72) Florida! A Hyperlocal Guide to the Flora, Fauna, and Fantasy of the Most Far-Out State in America – List: (Curbed)
73) Flying Solo – Linda Holmes List: (NPR)
74) Football: Designing the Beautiful Game – Thomas Turner List: (The Globe and Mail)
75) Forever Saul Leiter – Saul Leiter List: (Waterstones)
76) Frida: Style Icon – Charlie Collins List: (Waterstones)
77) Friends to Keep in Art and Life – Nicole Tersigni List: (Dandelion Chandelier)
78) From Seed to Bloom – Milli Proust List: (Waterstones)
79) Gentrification Is Inevitable And Other Lies – Leslie Kern List: (Curbed)
80) Get Changed – Kat Farmer List: (Waterstones)
81) Ghetto Gastro Presents Black Power Kitchen – List: (Real Simple)
82) Green Living Made Easy – Nancy Birtwhistle List: (Waterstones)
83) Growing Up Underground: A Memoir of Counterculture New York – Steven Heller List: (Curbed)
84) Harry Styles – Terry Newman List: (Waterstones)
85) Hayao Miyazaki – List: (Real Simple)
86) Heaven on Earth – Emma J. Wells List: (Waterstones)
87) Her Country: How the Women of Country Music Became the Success They Were Never Supposed to Be – Marissa R List: (Booklist)
88) Her Majesty. A Photographic History 1926-2022 – Christopher Warwick List: (Waterstones)
89) Hermès: Straight from the Horse’s Mouth – List: (Real Simple)
90) High Street (Victoria and Albert Museum) – J. M. Richards List: (Waterstones)
91) Hollywood: The Oral History – Jeanine Basinger and Sam Wasson List: (Booklist)
92) Home by the Sea: The Surf Shacks and Hinterland Hideaways of Byron Bay – List: (Real Simple)
93) Home Is Not A Place – Johny Pitts List: (Waterstones)
94) How Art Can Change Your Life – Susie Hodge List: (Waterstones)
95) How I Make Photographs (Masters of Photography) – List: (Travel + Leisure)
96) How to Keep House While Drowning – KC Davis List: (Waterstones)
97) How to Live with Objects: A Guide to More Meaningful Interiors – Jill Singer and Monica Khemsurov List: (Curbed)
98) How You Get Famous: Ten Years of Drag Madness in Brooklyn – Nicole Pasulka List: (Booklist)
99) I Just Wanna Surf – Gabriella Angotti-Jones List: (Smithsonian)
100) I Paint What I Want to See – Philip Guston List: (Waterstones)
101) Ice – Meghann Riepenhoff List: (Smithsonian)
102) Ice Cold: A Hip-Hop Jewelry Story – List: (Real Simple)
103) Iconicon – John Grindrod List: (Waterstones)
104) If I Call Stones Blue It Is Because Blue Is The Precise Word – Joselito Verschaeve List: (Photo Eye)
105) If Walls Could Speak: My Life in Architecture – Moshe Safdie List: (The Globe and Mail)
106) In Love with Paris: Recipes & Stories From the Most Romantic City in the World – List: (Travel + Leisure)
107) Inside, At Home with Great Designers – List: (Curbed)
108) Italy – List: (Travel + Leisure)
109) Japanese Interiors – List: (Real Simple)
110) Judith Joy Ross: Photographs 1978–2015 – Joshua Chuang List: (Five Books)
111) Karl Lagerfeld – Alfons Kaiser List: (Waterstones)
112) King of the Blues: The Rise and Reign of B. B. King – Daniel de Visé List: (Booklist)
113) Landscape Photographer of the Year: Collection 15 – List: (The Telegraph)
114) Like a River – Daniel Jack Lyons List: (Smithsonian)
115) Looking to Sea – Lily Le Brun List: (Waterstones)
116) Lost Places: Images of Bygone America – Heribert Niehues List: (Book Riot)
117) Louis Vuitton: Virgil Abloh – List: (Dandelion Chandelier)
118) Love Lucian: The Letters of Lucian Freud 1939-1954 – List: (NPR 2)
119) Lucian Freud – List: (NPR 2)
120) Made with Love – Tom Daley List: (Waterstones)
121) Making a Scene – Constance Wu List: (Booklist)
122) Matisse and the Joy of Drawing – Christopher Lloyd List: (Waterstones)
123) Me Kaksi – Pentti Sammallahti List: (Photo Eye)
124) Migrations: A History of Where We All Came From – DK, David Olusoga List: (Book Riot)
125) Mise En Scène – Mike Belleme List: (Photo Eye)
126) Modern Buildings in Britain – Owen Hatherley List: (Waterstones)
127) Monumental Lies: Culture Wars and the Truth about the Past – Robert Bevan, List: (Financial Times)
128) Monuments Man – James J. Rorimer List: (Waterstones)
129) Mouth to Mouth: A Novel – Antoine Wilson List: (NPR)
130) Mr. B: George Balanchine’s 20th Century – Jennifer Homans List: (NPR)
131) Muse – Ruth Millington List: (Waterstones)
132) MUTTS: A Celebration of Mystery Mixed Breeds – Olivia Grey Pritchard List: (Book Riot)
133) Nadine Ijewere: Our Own Selves – Nadine Ijewere and Lynette Nylander List: (Dandelion Chandelier)
134) Nature Swagger: Stories and Visions of Black Joy in the Outdoors – List: (Travel + Leisure)
135) Nick Cave: Forothermore – List: (Colossal)
136) Nigel Sylvester: GO – Nigel Sylvester, Harrison Boyce List: (Book Riot)
137) Ocean, Exploring the Marine World – List: (Colossal)
138) Olafur Eliasson, Experience – List: (Colossal)
139) On Letters – Prem Krishnamurthy List: (Fast Company)
140) Overview: A New Perspective of Earth – List: (Travel + Leisure)
141) Part of a City: The Work of Neave Brown Architect – Patrick and Claudia Lynch and David Porter List: (Financial Times)
142) Point Break: Surfers and Waves – Raymond Pettibon List: (Five Books)
143) Pools from Above – List: (Real Simple)
144) Portrait of a Thief: A Novel – Grace D. Li List: (NPR)
145) Portrait of Humanity Vol 4 – List: (The Telegraph)
146) PRIME, Art’s Next Generation – List: (Colossal)
147) Raphael – David Ekserdjian List: (Waterstones)
148) Revolution: The History of Turntable Design – Gideon Schwartz List: (The Globe and Mail)
149) Rising Among Ruins, Dancing Amid Bullets – Maryam Ashrafi List: (Photo Eye)
150) River’s Dream – Curran Hatleberg List: (Photo Eye)
151) Ruth Asawa: Citizen of the Universe – Emma Ridgeway List: (Dandelion Chandelier)
152) Secret Identity: A Novel – Alex Segura List: (NPR)
153) Shapes, Lines, and Light: My Grandfather’s American Journey – Katie Yamasaki List: (Curbed)
154) Shocking: The Surreal World of Elsa Schiaparelli – List: (NPR 2)
155) Sleeping State of Being – Sara Skorgan Teigen List: (Photo Eye)
156) Some Say Ice – Alessandra Sanguinetti List: (Photo Eye)
157) Sony World Photography Awards: 2022 – List: (The Telegraph)
158) Soundsuits – List: (Colossal)
159) Steven Klein – List: (Real Simple)
160) Stunning Iceland: The Hedonist’s Guide – List: (Travel + Leisure)
161) Style – Natalie Walton List: (Booktopia)
162) Tangier in the Rain – Fabien Grolleau List: (NPR)
163) Tell Me I’m an Artist: A Novel – Chelsea Martin List: (NPR)
164) Terry O’Neill: The A-Z of Rock ‘N’ Roll – List: (Real Simple)
165) The Art of the National Parks – List: (Travel + Leisure)
166) The Baby on the Fire Escape: Creativity, Motherhood, and the Mind-Baby Problem – Julie Phillips List: (NPR)
167) The Beauty of Ukraine – List: (The Telegraph)
168) The Black Experience in Design: Identity, Expression & Reflection – List: (Fast Company)
169) The British Surrealists – Desmond Morris List: (Waterstones)
170) The Catch Me If You Can: One Woman’s Journey to Every Country in the World – Jessica Nabongo List: (Book Riot)
171) The Five Lives of Hilma af Klint – List: (Real Simple)
172) The Flamingo – Guojing List: (NPR)
173) The Great British Sewing Bee: The Modern Wardrobe – Juliet Uzor List: (Waterstones)
174) The Healing Power of Nature: Vincent van Gogh – Vincent Van Gogh List: (Waterstones)
175) The Ireland That We Dreamed of – Niamh Moriarty and Ruth Clinton List: (Irish Times)
176) The Life Eclectic – Alexander Breeze List: (Waterstones)
177) The Modern Caravan: Stories of Love, Beauty, and Adventure on the Open Road – List: (Travel + Leisure)
178) The Modern Guide to Antique Jewellery – Beth Bernstein List: (Waterstones)
179) The New Black West: Photographs from America’s Only Touring Black Rodeo – List: (Real Simple)
180) The Novelist: A Novel – Jordan Castro List: (NPR)
181) The Pliable Plane: The Wall as Surface in Sculpture and Architecture, 1945-75 – Penelope Curtis, List: (Financial Times)
182) The Quentin Blake Book – Jenny Uglow List: (Waterstones)
183) The Real and the Romantic – Frances Spalding List: (Waterstones)
184) The Real Dada Mother Goose: A Treasury of Complete Nonsense – Jon Scieszka List: (NPR)
185) The Rooted Heart Began to Change by Allan Salas – List: (Smithsonian)
186) The Science of Plants: Inside Their Secret World – DK List: (Book Riot)
187) The Sculptural Imagination of Seanie Barron – List: (Irish Times)
188) The Space Shuttle: A Mission-by-Mission Celebration of NASA’s Extraordinary Spaceflight Program – List: (Real Simple)
189) The Story of Art without Men – Katy Hessel List: (Waterstones)
190) The Third Person – Emma Grove List: (NPR)
191) The Three Corners of the Ocean – Claudia López Ortega List: (Photo Eye)
192) The Trayvon Generation – Elizabeth Alexander List: (NPR)
193) The Women Who Changed Architecture – Amale Andraos List: (Waterstones)
194) Theatrum Equorum – Andrea Modica List: (Smithsonian)
195) There Are No Accidents: The Deadly Rise of Injury and Disaster — Who Profits and Who Pays the Price – Jessie Singer List: (Curbed)
196) Thermal: Saunas, Hot Springs & Baths – List: (Travel + Leisure)
197) This is Tomorrow – Michael Bird List: (Waterstones)
198) Tierra del Sol – Carlos Jaramillo List: (Smithsonian)
199) To Begin Again: Artists and Childhood – Naima J. Keith List: (Book Riot)
200) Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow: A Novel – Gabrielle Zevin List: (NPR)
201) Transforming Space Over Time: Set Design and Visual Storytelling with Broadway’s Legendary Directors – Beowulf Boritt List: (NPR)
202) Treasures of Ukraine: A Nation’s Cultural Heritage – List: (NPR 2)
203) W Magazine: 50 Years/50 Stories – List: (Real Simple)
204) Ways of Being – James Bridle List: (Fast Company)
205) Wayward: Stories and Photographs – List: (Real Simple)
206) West Coast North: Interiors Designed for Living – Julia Dilworth List: (The Globe and Mail)
207) When Eero Met His Match: Aline Louchheim Saarinen and the Making of an Architect – Eva Hagberg List: (Fast Company)
208) Wild Things Are Happening: The Art of Maurice Sendak – Maurice Sendak and Jonathan Weinberg List: (Dandelion Chandelier)
209) Winslow Homer: American Passage – William R List: (Booklist)
210) Women Holding Things – List: (Real Simple)
211) Worn – Sofi Thanhauser List: (Waterstones)
212) Wreck – Tom de Freston List: (Waterstones)
213) You Are Here: Hikes: The Most Scenic Spots on Earth – List: (Travel + Leisure)
214) You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty: A Novel – Akwaeke Emezi List: (NPR)



19 Best Art, Photography, And Coffee Table Book Sources/Lists



SourceArticle
Book Riot THE BIGGER, THE BETTER: THE BEST NEW COFFEE TABLE BOOKS OF 2022
Booklist Top 10 Art Books: 2022
Booktopia Booktopia’s Best Non-Fiction Books of 2022
Colossal Top of the Stack: Colossal’s Favorite Art Books of 2022
Curbed The Best New Books for Design, Architecture, and Urbanism Enthusiasts
Dandelion Chandelier The 10 Best Art, Design and Fashion Coffee Table Books of 2022
Fast Company The best design books of 2022
Financial Times Best books of 2022: Architecture and design
Five Books The Best Art & Design Books of 2022
Irish Times Best Art Books 2022
NPR Books We Love – 2022
NPR 2 A visual feast: 6 favorite coffee table and gift books of 2022
Photo Eye T W E L V E F A V O R I T E P H O T O B O O K S
Real Simple The 30 Best Coffee Table Books of 2022 for Every Interest
Smithsonian The Ten Best Photography Books of 2022
The Globe and Mail The best books to gift this year
The Telegraph Armchair travelling this Christmas? These are 2022’s most stunning travel photography books
Travel + Leisure The 13 Best Travel Coffee Table Books of 2022
Waterstones The Best Books of 2022: Art, Architecture & Fashion