Whitehot Magazine

November 2025

"The Best Art In The World"

"The Best Art In The World"
November 2025

Whitehot Magazine at Tom Sachs Studio preview of Phaidon’s new book "Tom Sachs Guide"

Photo, from artist

By CLAUDIA November 4th, 2025

Last Tuesday artist Tom Sachs and Phaidon invited Whitehot Magazine to his studio in Soho to preview Sachs' new book, “Tom Sachs Guide” published by Phaidon and dropping December 1, 2025.

I arrived and the first thing I saw was Sachs by entrance deep in the midst of conversation and surrounded by several eager listeners.

The room was wallpapered with the pages of two copies of the guide that had been sacrificed for the endeavor; flayed across the walls, allowing you to see the book laid out in order all together at once. It was wonderful and I wish others would do the same as it’s impossible to actually look at a book during a launch event. For those who preferred it, there was also a copy by the door allowing guests to flip through the pages while still bound.

At 528 pages and with over 650 full color photos, as well as 23 essays readers are ‘guided’ through decades of his work, his studio, and collaborations. The book is quite engaging. It’s easy to open it and immediately fall down the rabbit hole, spending more time than you planned in what’s truly a wonderland of all things Tom Sachs.

There were some quite delicious tequila and tortilla chips and dips, all presented in NASA bowls next to stacks of napkins emblazoned with the quote, “It won’t fail because of me.” A gong was struck several times indicating the start of the talk with Sachs and his two coauthors Yeju Choi and Howie Kahn. We made our way to the gathering of chairs each done up in signature Sachs style, and with its own name. I of course, picked the Goethe chair. The talk was entertaining, informative and unstuffy. A very welcome rarity in the art world and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

If you are a fan of Tom Sachs, this is the book to own. And if you aren’t a fan, I definitely suggest at least taking a look. It will give you an appreciation for his work, if not just for the depth and breadth of his practice. His work goes beyond the popular image of him as a DIY god and sneakerhead messiah, and gives an in-depth look into the what and who of “Tom Sachs.”

Photo by Claudia