Delves into the wealth of unrealized artist projects documented in the collections of the Archives of American Art: unrealized artworks, publications, exhibitions, and other creative ventures that, for a variety of reasons, were planned but not brought to completion. 

Best Laid Plans highlights rarely exhibited or published works that have survived and are documented thanks to the Archives of American Art. This publication draws from the vast collection of the Archives and introduces the reader to little-known or even unknown projects by influential artists and thinkers. By focusing exclusively on unrealized projects, this book offers an unconventional approach and view into the creative process. Illustrated throughout, this book features an essay by exhibition curator Jacob Proctor, alongside interviews with contemporary artists Jessica Stockholder, Paul Ramirez Jonas, and Matt Mullican.

Best Laid Plans features nearly sixty projects, including those by Robert Smithson, Nancy Holt, Jessica Stockholder, Matt Mullican, Nancy Spero, Leon Golub, Beverly Buchanan, Four Walls, Georgy Kepes, Robert Irwin, Stephen Antonakos, Carl Andre, Gregory Battcock, Bruce Conner, Joseph Cornell, Jackie Apple, Gretchen Bender, Jaime Davidovich, Ilene Segalove, Paul Ramirez Jonas, Roberta Allen, Walter Gropius, and Marcel Breuer, among others.