KATY HESSEL
The Story of Art without Men: An illustrated guide to amazing women artists
Puffin Books | Pre-order your copy!
This is an adaptation of The Story of Art Without Men for readers aged 8–14 (and above!), brought to life with beautiful illustrations by Ping Zhu and artworks from the last 500 years.
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Learn about artistic trailblazers, ​freedom fighters, game changers and adventurers from the Renaissance to the Second World War, and across the globe, from Cornwall to Japan.
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New chapters from the original book feature, such as the world of First Nations Art in Australia. The book is highly interactive. Each chapter features an “art task” to encourage the reader to make their own art – from making “wish trees” in the manner of Yoko Ono, to turning their favourite singer or actor into a “pop art” image. Perfect for teachers, too!
Published by Puffin, March 2026. Get your copy.
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How To Live An Artful Life
366 Inspirations from Artists on how to Bring Creativity to Your Everyday
Penguin Books | Get your copy now!
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How to Live an Artful Life features a quote by an artist or writer for every day of the year – from Tracey Emin to Zadie Smith.
Full of thoughts, reflections, encouragement and inspiration – each passage is accompanied by Katy’s response, bringing alive the artists’ words and as a guide for you, the reader.
Each month explores a different theme: January is beginnings; February is love; August is beauty; September is time, December, joy...
While living an “artful life” can mean being an artist, the book is also for anyone wanting to add 5 minutes of creativity to their every day.
With this book in hand, pay attention, and see the world anew.
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Published by Penguin, November 2025. Get yours!
The Story of Art without Men
A Sunday Times Bestseller
A New York Times Bestseller
Waterstones Book of the Year 2022
Shortlisted: The British Book Awards 2023
Shortlisted: Barnes & Noble Book of the Year 2023
Discover the glittering Sofonisba Anguissola of the Renaissance, the radical work of Harriet Powers in the nineteenth-century USA, and the artist who really invented the Readymade. Have your sense of art history overturned, and your eyes opened to many art forms often overlooked or dismissed. This is the history of art as it's never been told before.
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Published by Penguin, September 2022
Get your copy! ​
“Our booksellers championed The Story of Art Without Men from the start. It is a must-have for any booklover’s shelf: as essential as it is enjoyable. Written with wit and ease, the resulting book, packed full of beautiful illustrations, can be devoured in one-sitting or dipped into at a whim. This is a book which will be prized for years to come; a feast for the senses, as well as the mind.” - Kate Skipper, Waterstones Chief Operating Officer
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"The Story of Art Without Men is a sumptuously illustrated history of women artists from 1500 to the present day, at once broad in scope and meticulously researched. Though the book aims to be accessible to people with minimal prior knowledge of the topic, to "break down the stigma around elitism in art", even connoisseurs will discover new artists in its pages." - Times Literary Supplement
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"The Story of Art Without Men should be on the reading list of every A-level and university art history course and on the front table of every museum and gallery shop." – The Times
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"Katy Hessel ... created this positive, beautifully written corrective, which should become a founding text in the history of art by women ... The Story of Art Without Men brings centuries-old figures to life while giving form and gravitas to emergent voices and covering every substantial movement from dadaism to civil-rights-era antiracist art along the way." - The Observer​​
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"I can’t wait to give this to my teenage daughter." – The i Newspaper
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"Katy Hessel's unapologetically revisionist book campaigns against the patriarchy of the art world" - The Financial Times
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"Hessel’s book is a revelation and an important first step towards redressing the balance of an art world in which women have been sidelined, stepped over and trampled upon for far too long.” – Refinery 29
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"Hessel never condescends . . . with a first-person delivery akin to writers such as Jennifer Higgie and Olivia Laing, illustrating what makes an artist or artwork genuinely meaningful." - The Sydney Morning Herald
"It will change the history of art." – Tracey Emin​
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