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‘Whole streets in the City were shuttered’ – London during the devastating plague of 1665
That we know so much about the day-to-day reality of the Great Plague of London is down to the diaries of John Evelyn and Samuel Pepys
‘She refused to allow moral disgust to cancel admiration’ – a tribute to Fiona MacCarthy
The biographer’s revelations about Eric Gill were delivered with calm objectivity – a quality that made her a superb observer of extraordinary lives, her own included
Guidance and gratitude – on cultural leadership in uncertain times
The director of the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., on the challenges of steering the institution and looking after its staff during the Covid-19 crisis
Staying the distance – on museums and the art world in a time of crisis
We’ll need to find ways to be together while alone during the coming weeks and months
The brief end to the long wait for the National Museum of Contemporary Art in Athens
After two decades of delays, the museum finally opened its doors at the end of February. Now, like so many others, it has had to shut again
‘Rome without people isn’t really Rome at all’ – notes from a city under quarantine
With the whole of Italy in lockdown, the streets of Rome are empty – and the city without visitors has a strange and confusing atmosphere
‘Now is the time to be smart’ – the Pinacoteca di Brera in a time of lockdown
Its doors may be closed, but Milan’s greatest gallery will find ways to keep working for the quarantined city, says director James Bradburne
‘His work was his life, and vice versa’ – a tribute to Ulay (1943–2020)
The German-born artist never stopped reinventing himself – from his gender-bending self-portraits to a film about living with cancer
What is Pyotr Pavlensky playing at?
There is no shortage of theories about why the Russian artist leaked a sex tape that made a French politician drop out of the mayoral race in Paris
Have art prizes had their day?
The decision to split the Turner Prize caused quite a stir – do such gestures undermine art prizes or open up new ways of judging contemporary art?
The ancient heritage at risk from Trump’s border wall
With ‘controlled blasting’ underway in a national monument area in Arizona, cultural sites and their attendant artefacts may be lost forever
When Kirk Douglas played Van Gogh
A celebration of the late actor’s star turn as the tormented artist in Vincente Minnelli’s biopic of 1956
What did Venice look like to a medieval pilgrim from Tuscany?
A 14th-century sketch by a travelling friar is now thought to be the earliest known drawing of the city
Food for thought – the art of the museum restaurant
From casual cafes to fine dining – the eating options at a museum can tell us a great deal about how it sees itself
Could contemporary art be less wasteful?
What effect do contemporary artists have on the environment – and should this affect what we think about their work?
Shakespeare’s First Folio will set you back millions – but its cultural value is immeasurable
A complete version of the first collected edition of Shakespeare’s plays is up for sale. What is it that makes this book so desirable?
‘He taught by example’ – a tribute to John Baldessari (1931–2020)
One of the inventors of conceptual art, and a towering figure on the West Coast scene, he was also a dedicated mentor to his students
‘He invented modern Glasgow’ – a tribute to Alasdair Gray (1934–2019)
The painter-novelist was one of a kind – but his influence will continue to shape the imagination of Scotland
Why the National Trust is trading in its Maori meeting house for a newer model
The decision to exchange the historic carvings of Hinemihi at Clandon Park for new examples is admirable – and creative
The Kariye Museum in Istanbul – a Byzantine masterpiece under threat
A court recently ruled that the ancient site be reconverted into a mosque, casting the fate of its well-preserved mosaics and wall paintings into question
Has the Sarr-Savoy report had any effect since it was first published?
It’s been a year since the publication of a groundbreaking report calling for the restitution of African cultural heritage in French museums. How has it been received?
And the winner of this year’s Turner Prize is… the Turner Prize itself
Despite the mutterings of most critics, the decision to award the prize to all four nominees makes a lot of sense – and is good for contemporary art
‘His writing was always alive to the deep pleasures of great buildings’
Remembering the critical insights and generous instincts of the writer and architect Charles Jencks (1939–2019)
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Six paintings in search of an audience – on Titian’s poesie at the National Gallery
Bringing Titian’s great mythological works together at a time when few people would see them has been a bittersweet experience – but the paintings offer some consolation