Category: visual

“Is it just possible that Titian paid for a syphilis cure with a portrait? If so, it would not be the only astonishing thing about this painting, which has just been rediscovered in the basement of the National Gallery.”

“Le Jardin, or The Garden, was taken from the Museum of Modern Art in Stockholm during a robbery in the early hours of 11 May, 1987.”

“Weary commuters arising from the depths of the Civic Center Red Line station are greeted by Samm Kunce’s Under the Living Rock, a 160-foot curved wall depicting a classical hanging garden of Venetian glass and striated granite. An uplifting passage from Ovid’s Metamorphoses, etched into black granite ribbon, may well soothe the harried soul.”

“To some young Baltimore fans of traditional photography, especially black and white, that past is well worth remembering and preserving, which is why they’re building darkrooms where the old methods can be taught and practiced.”

Background, analyses, educated guesses and more on the split of the artist from the powerhouse gallery owner and dealer.

The trees, whose bark glows in the moonlight, were famous because of the work of Aboriginal artist Albert Namatjira – and their destruction has shocked Australia.

“The museum was forced to close after the storm destroyed its telecommunications, electrical, heating and air conditioning systems. It reopened in mid-December and estimates that repairs will cost $22 million. As a result, it is still seeking contributions.”

“Four art critics for The New York Times select artworks from New York museums and discuss the varied use of light.” (No, there’s no Thomas Kincade; yes, of course there’s Vermeer, but there’s also Mondrian, a Mesopotamian potter and an unknown colonial Peruvian.)

“It is possible that the Chongqing pirates got hold of some digital files or renderings of the project.”

“There are strong theological precepts against the creation of likenesses of living things, and above all of religious figures, especially Muhammad. And yet lush vegetation in mosaic form garlands the façade of the Umayyad mosque in Damascus, devotional pictures of members of the prophet’s family are common among Shias, and merchants in the Tehran bazaar sell pendants with Muhammad’s portrait on them.”