As an art student, understanding the basic context of art history is the most basic, so Chinese and foreign art history is a must. There are many versions, and the subject can choose the appropriate version according to the actual situation. The art history I read is A Brief History of China Art and A Brief History of Foreign Art compiled by the Teaching and Research Section of the Central Academy of Fine Arts.
After the context of art history is clarified, it is necessary to focus on some important artists and related works in art history. At this stage, it is suggested not to choose those theoretical and academic books, but to read some books that are easy to understand, interesting and easy to remember, such as Gu Gu Chat Painting by Gu Ye (1 2), Kyoko Nakano's Mystery of Famous Paintings series and No Paintings series. For the book about China's painting, please read Ma Jingjing's Talking about Painting Landscape.
In the third stage, we can read some theoretical books, such as Danner's Philosophy of Art, Gombrich's History of Art Development, Hegel's Aesthetics (this book is very deep, and it is recommended to read the condensed version of color pictures), Li Zehou's Three Books on Aesthetics and Jiang Xun's Meditation on Beauty, which are all helpful to improve aesthetic cultivation.
Finally, you can read biographies or literary works about painters, such as Rembrandt of Van Loon, Van Gogh of Si Tong, Who's Who of Roland and The Girl with Pearl Earrings by Tracy Chevrolet.
Also, as the friend above said, read more famous picture books.
I believe that such a whole process is very helpful to improve one's self-cultivation and broaden one's horizons. I wish you all a happy study!