Features
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
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?
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
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
How the masters of Meissen made perfect miniature worlds
The porcelain marvels produced in the 18th century combine opulence with naturalism to heart-stopping effect
When Francis Bacon went al fresco
By exhibiting Two Figures in the Grass the artist succeeded in attracting the controversy he was almost certainly courting
When does food become art?
Paying hundreds of pounds for a dessert may seem excessive, but we wouldn’t think it an unreasonable price for a work of art
Golden Boy goes home – but where is that, exactly?
The Met’s return of a bronze statue to Thailand and the reaction in Cambodia shows the difficulty of recovering the origins of looted objects
Make a date with the Stone of Destiny at the new Perth Museum
The ancient Scottish relic makes for a captivating moment of theatre, but the rest of the displays are just as artfully done
Fossil fuelled – the sticky relationship between art and the oil industry
Cultural institutions are increasingly cutting ties with fossil fuel sponsors, but art and oil have long been intertwined in surprising ways
Acquisitions of the Month: April 2024
A luscious portrait by Johann Richard Seel and a magnificent bronze statue by Giambologna are among the most important works to have entered public collections last month
How national is the National Gallery in London?
The museum is founded on the collection of John Julius Angerstein and, 200 years later, the banker’s taste is still making itself felt
The dealer who got the Parisian avant-garde round to decorate
For his Paris apartment, Léonce Rosenberg commissioned works from the likes of Picabia and de Chirico, fusing modernism and classic French style
Meet France’s self-appointed heritage sheriff
Didier Rykner is the tireless heritage campaigner with a talent for publicity who has become a thorn in the side of the French authorities
The modern Greek wines with an ancient heritage
Wine has been part of the lifeblood of Crete since the Bronze Age – and one grower in particular is reaching back thousands of years for inspiration
The Georgian artist who was the voice of his generation
Karlo Kacharava was only 30 when he died in 1984. In Georgia, he is regarded as a one-man avant-garde and his work is now being acclaimed abroad
Why everyone loves Keith Haring
The pop artist believed that artists should make work for the masses. Decades after his death, his images are everywhere
Licence to Rome – how the Dutch got a taste for the Italian capital
Maarten van Heemskerck’s expert renderings of Rome inspired his countrymen to see the city for themselves
Beyond the Biennale – the shows to see around Venice this month
The rest of the city still has plenty to offer, from an exploration of the travels of Marco Polo to a celebration of Jean Cocteau’s genius
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
How Italy remade Willem de Kooning
At the age of 65, the artist went to Rome a painter and returned to the United States a sculptor. It wasn’t the first time the city had changed him
Fjord focus – how Ibsen inspired the art of Edvard Munch
The Norwegian painter was referring to Ibsen’s play ‘Ghosts’ when he painted his dream-like landscape of 1906
How Compton Verney stays ahead of the flock
Now 20 years old, the country house museum in Warwickshire has developed a distinctive approach to collecting – and it’s paying off handsomely
Acquisitions of the Month: March 2024
A Poussin Last Supper and a rare oil painting by Remedios Varo are among the most exciting works to have entered public collections over the last month
Pilgrims’ progress? The Vatican Jubilee has frustrated Romans and tourists alike