A new study breaks down viewers’ reactions to Vermeer’s most famous work – a welcome reminder that artists have long had stratagems for seducing the eye
Now is your chance to bid for Jon Snow’s sword, Jaime Lannister’s golden hand, or even the head of a direwolf to stave off the darkness that lies ahead
The rapid rise to fame of a baby pygmy hippopotamus in Thailand has raised concerns about her well-being – and about who will own her image rights
Visitors to Jane Austen’s House will soon be able to ‘meet’ the popular Pride and Prejudice character, but will her avatar make a good first impression?
Undeterred by a security tag on her ankle, the convicted con artist is taking to the small screen for Dancing with the Stars
An art collection assembled by a ‘Dodo-ologist’ is heading to auction, but not everyone has had the same level of enthusiasm for the bird
PETA is throwing shade at the paint company Farrow & Ball for its use of vegan-unfriendly paint names, but coming up with terms for colours is easier said than done
While Pharrell has called for art to be part of the official competition again, let’s not ignore the artists currently making their presence felt in Paris – and the athletes with art-historical credentials
The eyewateringly expensive banquet President Macron held for Charles III belongs to a long history of conspicuous royal consumption
The LVMH stable, from Louis Vuitton to Chaumet, is ensuring that Paris 2024 will get a gold medal for aesthetics, as sport gets increasingly stylish
A tourist has been caught in the throes of passion with a statue of the god of wine, but perhaps she was merely giving into the effects of Stendhal syndrome
A three-minute-long trailer for Ridley Scott’s sequel to Gladiator drops tantalising clues about what kind of spectacle to expect in November
The famous puzzle turns 50 this year, but the exact date of its birthday is a mystery that brings into question the very nature of time itself
Was the reality star consciously emulating the Italian mannerists when she embarked on a night-time tour of France’s most hallowed museum sans footwear?
Obituaries of the actor are rightly lauding his work in M*A*S*H, Don’t Look Now and JFK, but fail to mark his indelible performance as one of the leading post-Impressionists
The fashion megabrand has used Drummond Castle in Scotland as the backdrop for a new campaign – but was it fully clued up about the site’s colourful history?
The Museum of Old and New Art is offering a rare chance to listen to the only copy of Once Upon A Time in Shaolin in existence, but what will happen to the album next?
Bridgerton provides all manner of pleasures on screen, but can a real-life partnership with Liberty come up to snuff?
The musician once gave this painting away for free, but the times, they have a-changed and he not busy being born is busy buying
The rappers remain locked in a vicious musical battle, but how does it compare with other artistic rivalries over the years?
The Pontiff touched down in Venice this week, but God knows what he thought of the art on display at the Biennale’s Vatican pavilion
The maestro’s first contract with FC Barcelona, written on a napkin, has been withdrawn from auction after a dispute between his current and former agents
The out-lettuced PM has little time for culture in her memoir-cum-manifesto – unlike her Establishment enemy, the Bank of England
