Features
In lockdown Paris, the photographs of Eugène Atget suddenly feel eerily familiar
Walking around the city can feel like following in the footsteps of the famous photographer – but today’s empty streets are altogether more depressing
By royal arrangement: Queen Mary’s compulsive collecting
Many British royals have been keen on acquiring works of art, but few have been as diligent about looking after them as Queen Mary
Seven cultural escapes if you’re stuck in the UK all summer
You’re not going abroad this summer – but you can still have a holiday with an artistic twist
The tomb of Rome’s first emperor at last reveals its secrets
The restored tomb of Augustus reopened this month – and an extensive new website gives a good sense of what has happened to it over the last two thousand years
Surface tension: the glamorous world of Noël Coward
The glittering displays of Noël Coward and chums masked an altogether less divine reality – but anxiety and fear were always part of the act
In search of Irma Stern, whose paintings still embody the contradictions of South Africa
Irma Stern’s idylls of African life have too often been read at face value – but they mask a more troubled history
Pinpoint perfection: how the brooch became an experimental art form
Since the 1960s, artists and designers have regarded the brooch as a miniature sculpture – and an opportunity to try out new materials and techniques
Alan Bowness (1928–2021) – an evangelist for modern art who transformed the Tate
Norman Rosenthal celebrates a great champion of contemporary art in Britain, who as director of the Tate founded the Turner Prize
How to turn your home into a DIY art gallery
Will Martin steps away from his screen and takes his cues from some of the world’s leading contemporary artists
Drama queen: a peek inside Marie Antoinette’s private theatre
When Marie Antoinette had a theatre built at Versailles, her play-acting took to a stage of its own – and now this splendid interior has been meticulously restored
Is the French government about to criminalise photojournalists?
A proposed law will prevent journalists and the public from photographing the police – and follows widely publicised acts of police brutality, writes Valeria Costa-Kostritsky
A taste of the Uffizi, with Tuscany’s top chefs
Videos of top Italian chefs chewing over the Uffizi’s collection have a delightfully homemade flavour
The Victorian adventurers who pitched their tent for eternity
Richard and Isabel Burton are buried in a quiet churchyard in south London – but their remarkable tomb is a fitting monument to these insatiable travellers
Video in demand? The nostalgic appeal of VHS
Videos have become relics of a bygone era – but they are attracting a new following, glitches and all
For the women of Venice, the fiddly art of bead-stringing is worth fighting for
Stringing glass beads was once the main work available to Venetian women – but it’s now a protected craft pursued by only a handful of skilled artists
The merchant from Moscow who fell for the Parisian avant-garde
Ivan Morozov built one of the greatest modern art collections in the world – but only a century after his death is his legacy being recognised
The Swiss museums leading the charge to reopen
Museums in Switzerland have appealed to the government to let them reopen – and French museums are following suit
The battle to save London’s mulberry trees
Mulberry trees are rare in the city, yet more than one is currently under threat – including the oldest tree in the East End
Core values: the story of art in eight apples
The humble apple has enticed all manner of artists, from Greek potters to Pop pioneers
Acquisitions of the month: January 2021
One of Mary Cassatt’s sensitive portraits of childhood is among this month’s highlights – along with the Trump Baby blimp
The fantastically fishy business of the Raphael Cartoons
Did Raphael know a bream from a sardine? Tessa Murdoch consults her fishmonger
What happens when you hang a painting upside down?
Georg Baselitz says it makes the viewer pay closer attention – but plenty of paintings have simply been upended due to gallerists’ gaffes
The best of Keith Floyd, dished up on canvas
The colourful TV chef Keith Floyd makes an unlikely subject for fine art – but for the painter Lydia Blakeley, he has all the right ingredients
The unruly life of museum postcards
We’re all building miniature museums at home, and postcards of paintings have taken on a life of their own
What happens when an artist wants to be anonymous?