Five new art books to look out for this spring, from a Michaelina Wautier biography to Francis Bacon's reading list

"Michaelina Wautier, Katlijne Van der Stighelen, Lund Humphries, 152pp, 63 col. illus., £35 (hb), 28 April The Illuminating Women Artists series goes from strength to strength, with this volume on the Brussels-based 17th century painter, and another on the 18th-century French still-life artist Anne Vallayer-Coster, both arriving in April. Knife-Woman: The Life of Louise Bourgeois, Marie-Laure Bernadac, translated by Lauren Elkin, Yale University Press, 472pp, 36 colour & 35 b/w illus., £30 (hb), 13 January Marie-Laure Bernadac uses unpublished material from Bourgeois's personal archive to survey the life and oeuvre of one of the 20th century's most significant artists."

"Michelangelo and Titian: A Tale of Rivalry and Genius, William E. Wallace, Princeton University Press, 248pp, 48 colour & 49 b/w illus., $35/£30 (hb), 3 February (US) and 31 March (UK) In a classic "Clash of the Titans", William E. Wallace explores the unspoken rivalry that spurred on the two Renaissance superstars Michelangelo and Titian. Frida: The Making of an Icon, Mari Carmen Ramirez et al., Museum of Fine Arts, Houston/Yale University Press, 400pp, 400 colour illus., £50 (hb),24 March Published to accompany the exhibition at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (19 January-17 May) and Tate Modern in London (25 June-3 January 2027), Frida focuses on how the Mexican painter became a global icon. Francis Bacon's Library, Monika Keska and Barbara Dawson, Skira, 240pp, 300 colour illus., $55 (pb), 31 March This promises to be a fascinating delve into Francis Bacon's literary interests and inspirations, with Jane Austen and Agatha Christie among the material now housed in the Hugh Lane Gallery archive."

Several forthcoming art books present studies of notable artists, archives, and rivalries. Michaelina Wautier receives a focused monograph alongside a volume on Anne Vallayer-Coster in the Illuminating Women Artists series. A biography of Louise Bourgeois draws on unpublished personal-archive material. A dual study examines the rivalry between Michelangelo and Titian and its artistic effects. A Frida Kahlo volume accompanies international exhibitions and traces the painter's rise to global icon status. A book on Francis Bacon's library surveys the writerly influences in his archive, including holdings by Jane Austen and Agatha Christie at the Hugh Lane Gallery.

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