Features
The year ahead in novels and biographies with an artistic slant
The year ahead in novels and biographies with an artistic slantKeep an eye out for reissues of novels by Elaine Kraf and Inger Christensen, a literary thriller in which Giorgio Vasari turns detective and Francesca Wade’s biography of Gertrude Stein
Back to the future? The return of the art of divination
From the ancient world to modern times, humans have looked to the esoteric arts to answer questions about life, the universe and everything
The painterly brilliance of Luchino Visconti
‘The Leopard’ is the Italian film-maker’s masterpiece, and it owes much of its visual splendour to 19th-century paintings
The rewarding mystery of Lynette Yiadom-Boakye
A large painting of three boys in the water does not readily disclose its secrets – but perhaps that is precisely the point
High tech before big tech – ‘Electric Dreams’ at Tate Modern, reviewed
At Tate Modern, these artistic experiments by early embracers of new technology already look charmingly retro
The menacing visions of Jusepe de Ribera
Though clearly influenced by Caravaggio, the Spanish painter rendered saints and sinners in a ferocious style all of his own
The memory palace of Mario Praz
The scholar’s meticulously preserved apartment in Rome testifies to his passion for all things 19th century, and to how he treated collecting as a form of memoir
The devilish museum that makes its own wine
The Museum of Old and New Art in Tasmania is not just a gallery, but also a winery offering visitors a dose of bacchanalian revelry
Inside Edith Wharton’s house, a mirthful ode to classical taste
The home the writer designed for herself in the hills of Massachusetts is a window on to the shifting tastes of Gilded Age America
How the return of Asante gold has gone down in Ghana
Artefacts looted by British soldiers from the Asante kingdom in the 19th century can now be seen in Ghana, but are loans from UK museums nearly enough?
Sheila Hicks and the art of infinite possibility
A retrospective by the textile artist is wonderfully open to interpretation, with works so inviting you might want to throw yourself at them
After centuries of neglect, Plautilla Nelli’s reputation is soaring again
The resurgence of interest in female Renaissance painters has reached the Florentine nun and her workshop – and it’s time to pay more attention to artists in other Tuscan convents
The year ahead in anniversaries
A string of exhibitions marks 250 years since Turner’s birth and a hundred years of art deco, while Amsterdam turns 750 – and Apollo is celebrating its centenary (watch this space)
Arty films to look out for in 2025
From Adrien Brody’s architect in ‘The Brutalist’ to Tilda Swinton curating a post-apocalyptic gallery, art lovers have plenty to look forward to on screen
The major museum openings of 2025
The United States will be the centre of attention, but from London to Warsaw to Abu Dhabi, it’s a bumper year for museum-goers all over the world
Acquisitions of the month: November 2024
A panel by Fra Angelico and a video work acquired using cryptocurrency are among the most significant artworks to enter public collections recently
Contemporary art gets a permanent home in Malta
A 17th-century fort is now full of 21st-century art, and although the project has been a troubled one, the results are worth the wait
Inside the mysteries of Van Cleef and Arpels
The jeweller generally reveals precious little about its process, but Apollo gains access to the site in Paris where the magic happens
How to be buried in style in ancient China
What can a bronze Han dynasty horse tell us about status anxiety and the afterlife? Ching-Ling Wang of the Rijksmuseum talks of grave matters
Rachel Ruysch says it with flowers
The Dutch artist’s floral paintings might look merely decorative but, as curator Bernd Ebert explains, they encapsulate a world of economic and scientific change in the early modern Netherlands
The long and bloody history of Smithfield Market
The recent decision to close the meat market for good marks the end of a certain idea of the City of London and perhaps even Britain’s sense of itself
‘Somehow they seem more naked than if they were disrobed’ – John Banville on a late work by Rubens
Rubens’s technical skill and attention to detail give The Garden of Love its heightened sense of erotic potential
The wild imagination of Maurice Sendak
The true gift of the author of ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ was to see the world like a child and blur the line between dreams and reality
Heralding Mouton Rothschild’s entry into the modern age
As the chateau unveils its latest wine label, Gérarde Garouste is inspired by a key figure in its recent past
Most popular
- Recent
- Recent
Podcast
![Masterpiece [Re]discovery 2022. Photo: Ben Fisher Photography, courtesy of Masterpiece London](http://new-dev.apollo-magazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/MPL2022_4263.jpg)
‘She had no time for elitism, but was passionate about excellence’ – a tribute to Rosalind Savill