Louise Bourgeois is one of the most important and influential artists of the 20th century. Born in France in 1911 and working in America from 1938 until her death in 2010, Bourgeois created a vast body of work fuelled by introspective reality and articulated through recurrent motifs—including body parts, houses, and spiders—employing personal symbolism across a remarkable variety of genres, media, and materials. In this generously illustrated and accessible guide to Bourgeois’ life and work, writer and curator Justin Paton, Chief Curator at Art Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney, explores how the artist’s studio became a site of psychological release and personal transformation. Combining Paton’s engaging insights with a timeline of Bourgeois’ life and career and archival images, ‘In the Studio: Louise Bourgeois’ is an excellent resource for both newcomers and those familiar with her groundbreaking work.

Justin Paton is Chief Curator at the Art Gallery of New South Wales.