Features

The ulterior motifs of Aby Warburg

A new life of a very singular art historian places his work in the intellectual contexts of his time

13 Aug 2024

How the Hirshhorn Museum stays ahead of the curve

The modernist building houses many significant works, but it’s the museum’s canny marketing and astute navigation of choppy political climates that really set it apart as it celebrates its 50th anniversary

10 Aug 2024

‘I know exactly what I am looking for’ – Helen Hamlyn on collecting with purpose

The philanthropist’s pursuits range from collecting Asian art to restoring ruined buildings

7 Aug 2024

Stitches in time – how a Jacobean doublet pads out our sense of the past

At Grimsthorpe Castle in Lincolnshire, the restoration of a rare piece of male dress allows us to appreciate 17th-century craftsmanship in more detail

7 Aug 2024

The Italian wines that look as good as they taste

A series of artist-designed bottles produced by an innovative Tuscan winery wouldn’t be out of place in a gallery

6 Aug 2024

The joyous art of fancy Victorian ices

Modern creations may offer a riot of flavours but in form they’re no match for the fantastical shapes of the past

30 Jul 2024

The best cellars are like museums of fine wine

Underground storage can be dark and sinister, but when it’s used for wine, it can become a place of deep pleasure

23 Jul 2024

France chases the Olympic dream

As the Olympic Games arrive in Paris, two exhibitions shine a light on overlooked aspects of competitive sport

22 Jul 2024

A Madonna pregnant with meaning

Most paintings of the Virgin Mary show her holding the divine infant, but a 14th-century panel by Cenni di Francesco reminds us of more earthy realities

9 Jul 2024

Acquisitions of the month: June 2024

A tender portrait by Gauguin of his young son and a bronze lion by Rembrandt Bugatti are among the most significant works to have entered a public collection in the last month

5 Jul 2024

On the road with Ed Ruscha

The artist laureate of Los Angeles also draws on the everyday junk of Southern California to embellish the myth of a city nestled between the ocean and the desert

1 Jul 2024

How to make a 21st-century museum in West Africa

The plans for the Museum of West African Art in Nigeria point to a new path for postcolonial institutions

1 Jul 2024

Chardin’s strawberries are ripe for reappraisal this summer

The artist’s ability to stop time is on full display in a painting that was recently acquired by the Louvre and is now touring France

27 Jun 2024

When fashion resists interpretation

Peter Hujar and Paul Thek offer a lesson in the art of appreciation at Loewe’s menswear show in Paris

25 Jun 2024

Birmingham’s Barber Institute is getting more cutting-edge

Midway through a major refurbishment, the Institute is still managing to thrive at a challenging time for UK museums

23 Jun 2024

Model behaviour – how life drawing is making a comeback at the Royal Academy

Drawing models in the flesh has been in and out of fashion over the centuries, but the London institution’s postgrad programme is breathing new life into the practice

21 Jun 2024

The Flemish tapestry that takes us into the heart of a decisive battle

Nancy E. Edwards of the Kimbell Art Museum explains how a magnificent tapestry by Bernard van Orley re-enacts the Battle of Pavia

18 Jun 2024

‘Crazed egomaniacs who want to subjugate us’ – a brief history of architects in film

Hollywood films are full of characters who design buildings for a living, but how well do they reflect the realities of the profession?

17 Jun 2024

The everyday radicalism of Joanne Leonard

A photo taken by the artist in 1979 arranges the documents of a family’s life in humorous – and radical – style

10 Jun 2024

The awesome art of Caspar David Friedrich

The leading exponent of German Romanticism was keenly concerned with the destructive effects of humans on a rapidly industrialising world

10 Jun 2024

Acquisitions of the month: May 2024

An uncanny family portrait by Lavinia Fontana and Sorolla’s striking copy of a Velásquez are among the most important works to have entered public collections last month

7 Jun 2024

In Norway, a converted grain silo contains a bumper crop of Nordic art

A 1930s structure has been repurposed to house the collection of Nicolai Tangen. It’s certainly impressive, but how coherent is the work on show?

3 Jun 2024

The Castilian ruin that is now a haven for contemporary art

Collectors Lorena Pérez-Jácome and Javier Lumbreras are bringing new life to a 16th-century Jesuit school

3 Jun 2024

Picnicking with the Impressionists

Comparing the spreads on offer in scenes by Manet and Monet suggests that eating outdoors offered the artists a very particular kind of freedom

3 Jun 2024