Features
Priming up the walls – on colour and confinement
Some choose their wallpaper, some have paint schemes thrust upon them… a decorative dérive through the history of colour and interiors
‘Here is a man who could do whatever interested him in paint’ – on the paintings of Beauford Delaney
After a period of critical neglect the artist is at last in the ascendant, as his great friend James Baldwin always thought he would be
Light fantastic – a short history of neon
From Raymond Chandler to Tracey Emin, writers and artists alike have long been seduced by the melancholy brilliance of neon
Feat of Klee – how the Swiss-born artist saw comic potential in dark times
The final years of Paul Klee’s life coincided with the rise of Nazism – but the painter deployed his taste for humour and satire to the last
Grand union – how canals have captivated British artists for centuries
Painters from Constable to the present day have been inspired by urban waterways as a place for both lovers and labourers
The Algerians battling to save the Casbah from crumbling
It may be on Unesco’s list of World Heritage sites, but the houses of the famous district have suffered years of neglect
The Albertina Modern’s opening has been delayed – so what are we missing out on?
The contemporary art satellite of the Albertina was set to open last week. Visitors will find solace there, says its director, when the lockdown is over
Rigged results – the artistic licence of Turner’s Fighting Temeraire
In depicting the final journey of a fêted battleship, Turner tweaked the facts to inflate the pathos of the scene
Acquisitions of the Month: February 2020
One of Landseer’s earliest masterpieces and a 16th-century drug jar are among this month’s highlights
Kasper (1926–2020)
The fashion designer, who has died at the age of 93, filled his Upper East Side apartment with art – from Old Master drawings to Anselm Kiefer. In this republished interview from 2017, he discussed the evolution of his collection
British aisles – the Met’s new galleries don’t shy away from addressing a complicated past
The collection is now displayed with a greater sense of social history – without sacrificing aesthetic delight
Beyond TEFAF – more to see in and around Maastricht this year
As the art world makes for Maastricht, it’s worth casting an eye further abroad to the full range of events and shows across the region
Why is the Egyptian government moving ancient monuments around the country?
The transfer of obelixes and sphinxes to Cairo is the latest episode in a long history of rulers using the ancient past for their own ends
The triumphant – but temporary – return of Raphael’s tapestries to the Sistine Chapel
For just one week the full set of surviving tapestries commissioned by Pope Leo X could be seen in their original setting
‘The arrival of a large cultural centre in Landerneau was a real coup’
The presence of the Fonds Hélène & Édouard Leclerc has raised the cultural profile of the small town in Brittany
Open access image libraries – a handy list
A round-up of museums and archives that have released high resolution images into the public domain
The emperor who rooted out magic in medieval Ethiopia
Vivid illuminated manuscripts show how important the cult of the Virgin Mary was to the emperor Zar’a Ya‘eqob
Sheer delight – at the State Silk Museum in Tbilisi
The world’s most significant collection of silkworm cocoons, and many other marvels of sericulture, can be found in the capital of Georgia
A Viking-inspired frieze by Walter Crane finds a new home in Rouen
The Musée des Beaux-Arts in the capital of Normandy, where the Vikings once ruled, is the perfect place for this painting of a wandering warrior
‘It’s very meaningful to have an Asian art museum in this city’
The Seattle Asian Art Museum reopens with a thorough overhaul of its displays – and a commitment to being open about uncomfortable recent histories
How the only portrait Beethoven posed for in his lifetime became a much coveted memento
For the past two centuries, Joseph Karl Stieler’s portrait of the composer has been highly sought after by music lovers
Acquisitions of the Month: January 2020
A masterpiece of Pahari painting and a pot adorned with poetry are among this month’s highlights
A closer look at the ‘fake’ Gauguin at the Getty
The wooden horned head is now believed to be by an unknown artist. Questions over its attribution to Gauguin were examined in Apollo in 2009, in an article republished in full here
A new look for the princely collection that now belongs to the Polish state
The Princes Czartoryski Museum in Kraków has reopened after a decade of controversies and delays
The many faces of Mary Magdalene