Totem: The Untold Story of Sculpture

by Jo Baring

A story-driven meditation on one of the oldest art forms and what it reveals about memory, creativity, and being human

Why have we always made sculpture? What draws us to carve, cast, and mold forms from the materials around us? What do these objects say about the artists who create them and the societies they belong to?

In Totem, art historian and curator Jo Baring uncovers the untold story of sculpture, not through a traditional survey but by tracing how it has shaped and been shaped by human experience across cultures and millennia. From prehistoric artifacts like the Lion-man figure found in a German cave to to an ancient Mayan pyramid that conjures a serpent made of shadows, to the icons of the Italian Renaissance and the radical innovations of the twentieth century, Baring reveals how sculpture expresses power, loss, identity, and the need to make meaning through form. Along the way, she introduces us to the artists who have expanded sculpture’s possibilities—including Barbara Hepworth, Constantin Brâncuși, Louise Bourgeois, Yayoi Kusama, and Antony Gormley—and revisits familiar works with fresh eyes.

Featuring original illustrations by Julia Ashe—line drawings that work in concert with Baring’s lithe, intimate storytelling to bring us closer to this thoughtfully curated selection of sculptures—Totem is a powerful reflection on our need to make, to remember, and to understand ourselves through the things we shape.

Genres: Art, History, Nonfiction

Kindle Edition

Expected publication November 3, 2026

Reviews

[Katy Wheatley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Baring gives us a tour of sculpture, weaving from prehistory to modern day and attempting to understand and explain our need to make objects which are imbued with a meaning greater than what they physically represent. She looks at sculpture through various lenses, the most important of which is in relation to the word totem and what it means both for art and for cultural understanding. She treads a difficult line at times, dealing with the elements of art and history that a lot of people tend to obscure because they are problematic. Thoughtful, generous and grounded in feeling as much as technical knowledge. I really enjoyed this.

[Tabish Khan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautifully written trip around the world, taking in some of the most powerful sculptures, and transporting us to them. It will make you want to visit them all, and the book reminds us of the importance of sculpture and our experiences with it.