The State of the Art is a short story collection by Scottish writer Iain M. Banks, first published in 1989.

A Trade Paperback edition was printed in Canada in 2007 by Night Shade Books, (ISBN 978-1-59780-074-7) It contains the additional text 'A Few Notes on the Culture'.

The cast included: "The State of the Art" was adapted by Paul Cornell for the Afternoon Play slot on BBC Radio 4 and broadcast on 5 March 2009.

[4][5] The adaptation was directed by Nadia Molinari and the main cast was: In late 2009 it was announced that the story "A Gift From the Culture" was in the early stages of being adapted for the cinema by Dominic Murphy, the director of White Lightnin'.

He praises Banks for showing a cast of believable, imperfect characters, who in turn make his utopia - the world of The Culture - more realistic.