ENTREE reviews hundreds of books each year and these two are our favorites:

ASSEMBLAGE: The Art of the Room published by Thames & Hudson is a dazzling study of interior design, architecture, artists, and designers that illustrates how thoughtful styling can make a room. We agree a house is not just a series of rooms but a curated collection of treasured objects and belongings. From the architects who have built the spaces to the artisans and makers who have crafted the objects, this stunning book features twenty-four inspiring interiors and the people that make them exceptional.

Shannon McGrath, one of Australia’s best interiors photographers, delves into her archive to reveal the details and layers that make up a room: from furniture and fittings to lighting choices, color palettes, and art curation. Grand or subtle, traditional or contemporary, each gesture is part of a house’s legacy, adding layers of detail that bring it to life.

Featuring text by experienced design writer Annie Reid, Assemblage is a true celebration of the beauty of design and intentional curation, revealing that even the smallest of objects, and the way they are assembled, can make an extraordinary impact.

Showcasing these inspiring interiors, this celebrated duet of writer and photographer have selected the most interesting spaces and reveal the details and layers that make up a room: furniture, fittings, lighting choices, color palettes, and art curation. Whether grand or subtle, traditional or contemporary, each gesture is part of a house’s unique feel, bringing it to life and reflecting the inhabitant’s life experiences and personal expression.

This is a unique and insightful book that shows how discrete pieces work in tandem to create appealing, unified interiors, a wonderful celebration of the beauty of design and intentional curation.

Alex Johnson’s STUDIOS OF THEIR OWN, Where Great Artists Work published by Frances Lincoln takes readers around the world examining the unique spaces, habits and rituals of over 50 famous artists.

From Picasso, to Hockney, to Caravaggio, this is a fascinating discovery of the eclectic creative spaces used by artistic visionaries, brought to life with evocative illustrations.

Crossing centuries, continents and genres, the author explores these artists’ workspaces and habits. How do they practise their craft? What do they look for in a studio? Do they work in silence or with music… in a shared space or in solitude? How do they harness the light? And how do their physical spaces affect and inspire their output?

This striking collection focuses on more than 50 international artists, including:

• Claude Monet, who created an inspirational garden in which to work en plein air and paint his famous water lilies
• Frida Kahlo, forced to work from her bed, inspired by the lucky talismans she surrounded herself with
• Jean-Michel Basquiat, working in an old stable, could turn anything into canvas, walking and lying on his works as he created them
• Lee Krasner’s art dramatically changed when she moved from her small studio into the larger, light-filled one that she took over when her husband, Jackson Pollock, died

In looking at the working lives of these great artists, we found ourselves transported to other worlds, as well as gaining a deeper insight into the creative process.

The illustrations by James Oses are charming. Here’s an example: