Destination Art: 500 Artworks Worth the Trip

by Phaidon Press

A global guide to the 500 works of permanently installed modern and contemporary art worth traveling to experience Enjoy a world tour from the comfort of your reading chair or plan a detailed and engaging art itinerary for your next trip with Destination Art , the essential guide to 500 must-see examples of permanently installed art from the last 100 years. With the book's geographical organization and logistical details - including GPS coordinates, addresses, websites, and symbols indicating the degree of possible access, travel planning is made easy. Discover hidden gems in big cities, explore art in nature, and trek to remote locales for one-of-a-kind experiences of art in unique locations. The artists featured in this global selection are among the world's best and most beloved from the past century, including Marina Abramović, Alexander Calder, Jenny Holzer, Yayoi Kusama, Henri Matisse, Henry Moore, Richard Serra, and many more. Highlighting the best and most significant of public art in city centers, sculpture parks, site-specific installations in museums, memorials designed by contemporary artists, works of land art, and much more, Destination Art is an informative and enjoyable overview of the most significant and travel-worthy art around the globe. From the publisher of Destination Architecture .

Genres: Nonfiction, Art, Reference, Travel

560 pages, Hardcover

Published October 5, 2018

About the author

Phaidon Press is a global publisher of books on art, architecture, design, fashion, photography, and popular culture, as well as cookbooks, children's books, and travel books. The company is based in London and New York City, with additional offices in Paris and Berlin. -wikipedia

Reviews

[Keen Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Initially the number 500 sounds absolutely huge, but of course this is but a tiny fraction of the permanently sited artworks out there in the world. The layout is lovely. Clean text, bright colours and short, simple descriptions of the locations. It did lack detail on some of the works, but overall they were pretty efficient. The global reach of this and the diversity of the contents put me very much in mind of “Atlas Obscura”.

So we do get a wide range of work, Land Art by the likes of Richard Long, murals by Picasso, interior designs by Damien Hirst, sound installations, frescos by Richard Wright, LED work by Jenny Holzer, kinetic machines, fountains, sculpture trails, sculpture parks, sculpture gardens, underwater sculpture parks and even house building by Grayson Perry.

This is packed with many celebrated artists, familiar names like Anish Kapoor, Antony Gormley and Jeff Koons sit alongside many of the not so well-known figures. There is a thrilling otherworldliness about so many of these, a cunning playfulness with others, like Fiona Banner’s full stops in London.

With this being art, there is also plenty of room for some controversy, particularly with the likes of “Santa with Butt Plug”, in Rotterdam. You would surely struggle to find many other cities or nations in the world brave enough to permanently host such a refreshingly controversial work in their city centre. The City Lounge in St. Gallen Switzerland, gives a refreshing twist to the usual dull monotony of a parochial city’s CBD and much of the Land Art, particularly in America’s South West does some really interesting things in some really fresh ways.

As with any list on any subject, there are plenty of I can’t believe they didn’t include…moments, as well as the I can't believe that they didn't include…moments too, which is all part of the fun of it. This was a really useful and informative little guide that is definitely worth a read.

[Holly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant collection of predominantly public art (which is mainly sculpture) dotted around the globe. Unsurprisingly, it is weighted heavily towards Europe and North America, but it does feature a fantastic mix of artists and artworks and has left me longing to travel the globe again to see more of them in person. I read it cover to cover, but I'll definitely be checking through it again ahead of any future trips, to ensure I know what I need to see in each place! Highly recommend to anyone who loves both art and travel.

[Lynne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Focused primarily on sculpture and public works of art, this book highlights a great many tributes to nature, the human spirit and the quirkiness that life brings. I liked it and found it helpful.