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
Making lunch for Lucian Freud
A regular haunt of artists, dealers and curators, Sally Clarke’s restaurant in Kensington has been a beacon of unfussy excellence for 40 years
Frieze week highlights: two shamans and a sage of modern art
Plus: the subversive art of Kapwani Kiwanga, Georgie Hopton’s delightful prints and a brief history of drawing on blue paper
Crafting value in Venice
The Homo Faber art fair featured a bounty of contemporary crafts, but were the finer details in danger of getting lost with so much on display?
Scotland the brave – an interview with the director of Studio Voltaire
As the cutting-edge arts organisation in south London turns 30, Joe Scotland talks to Apollo about class, community and contemporary art
The Mothercare founder with the Midas touch
As the collection of Renaissance silver Selim Zilkha formed with his wife Mary comes to auction, his children Michael and Nadia recall their father’s dazzling hobby
Is investing in the past the way of the future?
A new report by Historic England claims that investing in heritage will boost the economies of struggling English towns – but how reliable are the means of measurement?
‘I wanted conversations, I wanted people, I wanted the play’ – an interview with Hildegard Bechtler
Creating the sets for plays at the National Theatre, the Barbican and the Royal Court is no mean feat. The German-born set designer speaks to Apollo about how she works her magic
What are art fairs really for?
Piling into an exhibition hall to see as much art as possible in a short space of time is few people’s idea of a good time, but the most resourceful fairs provide some worthwhile surprises
The dealers who are turning art fairs into more domestic affairs
Jeffrey Deitch’s pleasingly homely booth at Art Basel this year reflects the tastes of a new generation of buyers – but is the loss of connoisseurship a price worth paying?
When fashion resists interpretation
Peter Hujar and Paul Thek offer a lesson in the art of appreciation at Loewe’s menswear show in Paris
Why London’s auction houses are feeling so flat
With cancelled sales and market uncertainty, Christie’s and Sotheby’s have been taking hammer blows in recent months – but it’s not just a London problem
Should permanent collections tell up-to-the-minute stories?
Museums often have a responsibility to reflect major events, but should be careful not to disregard seemingly smaller stories
For the Loewe Foundation, there is no higher art than craft
It’s becoming increasingly difficult to tell whether the finalists of the annual Craft Prize are artisans aspiring to art, or artists getting crafty
Has arts punditry become a perk for politicos?
It seems as if arts criticism is becoming a treat for political journalists – but perhaps the job should be treated a little more seriously
Must-see pavilions at the Venice Biennale 2024
From the recent history of Timor-Leste to world-building in Bulgaria, this year’s shows present a rich and varied cross-section of contemporary art from around the world
Space explorer – an interview with Kapwani Kiwanga
Despite the painstaking research that underpins the artist’s work, there’s nothing dry about its outcomes – as visitors to the Canadian Pavilion in Venice will discover
Lynda Benglis’s wearable sculptures are a perfect fit
There’s a thin but fluid line between fine art and fashion for the artist who is now making accessories for Loewe
What use are the arts?
The notion that art should serve a personal or social good is more prevalent than ever – but is usefulness really the point of creativity?
Caravaggio goes digital in Milan
A flawless digital copy of the artist’s Basket of Fruit raises the tricky question of how much authenticity should matter to museums
Gesture politics – an interview with Julie Mehretu
The artist layers a multitude of marks to create palimpsestic paintings and prints, but the results are far from purely abstract
Old Masters prove lacklustre at auction – but a late medieval painter is golden
A newly attributed Rembrandt failed to hit the heights at Sotheby’s, but Pietro Lorenzetti pushed up the bidding in Paris
Have single-owner sales had their day?
Mediocre results for the November auctions in New York suggest that the auction-houses have put too many eggs in the same kind of basket
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Are the art market’s problems being blown out of proportion?
Recent results for the London auctions may be a sign that things aren’t all doom and gloom