Art Bookshop Review: Foyles (Charing Cross Road)

This is a review of the Art Bookshop area on the second floor within Foyles Flagship book store at 113-117 Charing Cross Road in central London. Below you will find a review including photographs of the bookshop.

Foyles Art Books
about half of the shelving in the art section on the 2nd floor of this bookshop

First a note for those who know the Foyles of old and have not visited for some time.

I first started going to Foyles when I was a student in the 70s when it was ran by Christina Foyle.  It was a complete and utter maze interspersed by book stacks on the floor as well as the shelves.  It had the most books of any bookshop in London but finding them wasn't easy and the process of paying for them was completely antiquated and very slow.  As a result, it's one of the few bookshops that has made it into Wikipedia.

Foyles was once listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the world's largest bookshop in terms of shelf area (30 miles/50 kilometres) and number of titles on display.[1] In the past, it was famed for its anachronistic, eccentric and sometimes infuriating business practices, so much that they made it a tourist attraction.[2]Wikipedia - Foyles Bookshop

However all that was swept away and the shop has enjoyed a complete and comprehensive makeover.  The shelving is now exemplary and shopping for books is a complete pleasure.


RECOMMENDED:  I'd go so far as to say this is probably my bookshop of choice for art books.  The only improvement I can think of would be the addition of a few comfy chairs and a rethink of the location of books on shelves relative to the demographics of its customers!

Name of Art Bookshop: Foyles Bookshop

(Branch) Address: 113-119 Charing Cross Road, London, WC2H 0EB conveniently located for people visiting Oxford Street / Tottenham Court Road / Covent Garden / Leicester Square area.  Two minutes from Tottenham Road Tube station (involves a walk around the CrossRail development between Centre Point and Tottenham Court Road Tube Station

Website: General http://www.foyles.co.uk/ Specific to Foyles Charing Cross Road http://www.foyles.co.uk/Public/Stores/Detail.aspx?storeid=1011 Twitter: @Foyles

Shop hours: Monday - Saturday 9.30am - 9.00pm Sundays 11.30am* - 6.00pm (*11.30am - 12.00pm browsing only) Public holidays 11.00am - 8.00pm: Closed on Easter Sunday and Christmas Day Easter Good Friday and Easter Saturday, normal hours apply; Easter Sunday, closed; Easter Monday, 11am - 8pm

Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7437 5660

Email: customerservices@foyles.co.uk

Of interest to: art students (beginners through to Higher Education); amateur artists; professional artists; art lovers; graphic designers; illustrators; typographers

Major section on Art Theory and Aesthetics Highlights very well laid out with good labelling;  includes a “new books” section specifically for art plus a section on catalogues for current exhibitions absolutely huge section devoted to art history and artists biggest selection of books on art theory that I’ve seen in a long time (this shop is close to a leading art school) good selection of books relating to art instruction targeted at amateur artists very extensive sections devoted to graphics, design, type, illustration and photography a selection of art DVDs - including fictionalised films about artists very wide range of specialist art journals lots of knowledgeable assistants and speedy processing of purchases a very good bookshop for other books as well (the music and history sections kept my other half absorbed for over two hours!) ART DVDs and Catalogues for Current and Future Art Exhibitions specialist shelving features not often seen in art bookshops

Think Again? not for those who like their art “dumbed down” you have to be able to bend down to see the art instruction books - Foyles might like to think about the fact that a lot of (less bendy) older people take up art in their retirement a visit could get expensive - because you see so many books you want! Art Instruction books a little too low for my liking A bit too low for those whose backs and knees don't bend as well as they used to

Art Instruction: Anatomy for Drawing and Portrait/Figure Drawing section Summary: This is the bookshop to go for art books if you like a good selection and you enjoy a better quality art book. I’ve got a very good awareness of art books in print and on offer and I was generally very impressed with the books they’d chosen to stock.  This is a very good place to start if looking for books on a particular art topic.

A New Bookshop and a Move for Foyles


Foyles is due to move to a purpose-built bookshop in the adjacent former Central St Martins building in late 2013 or early 2014. They are now actively involved in planning the design of the new bookshop.

Their leasehold for site of this original bookshop is and other adjacent properties are being marketed for a very considerable sum. One can only surmise that this relates to taking advantage of the development of the new Crossrail station and retail hub at Tottenham Court Road

Other art bookshops

You can read other reviews of Art Bookshops in London in the following posts:

• Botanical Art Bookshop Review - Kew Gardens
• Art Bookshop Review: Waterstones (Covent Garden)
• Art Bookshop Review: Tate Britain Millbank Shop
• Art Bookshop Review: Thomas Heneage Art Books
• Art Bookshop Review: The National Gallery Bookshop

Plus good art bookshops in the UK are listed in Art Bookshops - Resources for Artists

DVD Review: Lucian Freud Portraits

DVD: Lucian Freud - Portraits [DVD] (released 18 April 2005)

Summary: A film portrait of Lucian Freud produced by people he knows well and based on interviews with people who have sat for portraits by Freud. Most of the sitters are also relatives or friends of Freud.  Images of the portraits discussed and other portraits are interspersed with film of the interviewees. I personally found it fascinating and recommend this DVD.

Technical Details: made by film-maker Jake Auerbach (son of Freud's long time friend Frank Auerbach and best known for his documentary films about artists) and  Freud's biographer William Feaver.  Feaver is a painter, critic, writer, and curator. He has curated the following exhibitions: Lucian Freud (2002 Tate and tour), Freud (2005 Museo Correr, Venice), and Freud & Auerbach (2006 V&A). He is the author of the exhibition catalogue, Lucian Freud (Tate, 2002).

Who should buy this?  fans of Lucian Freud portrait artists aspiring portrait artists

Who should not buy this? artists not interested in portraiture people wanting to see/hear Freud himself

Highlights: the range of sitters/interviewees who include: his daughters, Bella Freud and Esther Freud, and granddaughters the late Duke and the now Dowager Duchess of Devonshire  fellow painter David Hockney - a particular highlight for me! friends - Louise Lidell and Andrew Parker-Bowles ex-lovers professional models: the wife of performance artist and model Leigh Bowery and "Big Sue" - Sue Tilley (the Benefits Supervisor) the range of different people's perspectives - all of whom seem to agree he was a man with a lot of stories who could be great fun. Which seems surprising given that all photos seem to be of somebody who is apparently quite sombre and serious. They all provide insight into the process of the sitting - and an appreciation that the "getting to know the sitter" involved dinners and conversations outside his studio the level of apparent intimacy ie these are people who know the man well and hence talk with the confidence that their interviewer understands what they are saying

Think Again? I think most people will find it leaves them thinking about what Freud's grandfather - Sigmund Freud - would have made of Lucian Freud painting his daughters and granddaughters in the nude, particularly given the fact that he had been a very distant parent! Region 2 DVD - meaning it's only playable in the UK, Europe, Japan, South Africa and Middle East

Producer:  Jake Auerbach Films Limited

Suppliers:   available from Amazon UK and a variety of other online distributors as a Region 2 DVD  has been seen in the shop at the National Portrait Gallery

Link:  Lucian Freud - Resources for Art Lovers