Rakewell
Uncle Monty, auction darling
The items that furnished Uncle Monty’s apartment in ‘Withnail and I’ have proved quite the draw at auction
Who would take on the Tate’s Rex Whistler mural?
The Tate has announced a new commission to respond to its racist mural but why would any artist accept?
Is Francis Bacon really the greatest painter of the 20th century?
As a triptych comes to auction, Rakewell wonders if we have finally found an artist whose talent is unquestionable
Gwyneth Paltrow’s inspiration
Rakewell revels in the latest interiors shoot of the actor’s house, but is there an ugly truth behind the beautiful surface?
Oh Pantone, why so blue?
Rakewell wonders whether Pantone’s ’Color of the Year 2022’ might not belong more comfortably to an earlier era
A total artist – in memoriam Meat Loaf
Rakewell pays tribute to the late, great Marvin Lee Aday, who combined art forms with an originality matched only by Richard Wagner
Art attack – when vandals strike
After the hammer attack on Eric Gill’s statue of ‘Prospero and Ariel’, Rakewell reflects upon other artworks that have seized the imagination of vandals
Hollywood’s Waterloo – the art of playing Napoleon
Ridley Scott is pressing ahead with his biopic about Bonaparte – but Rakewell has a modest proposal regarding the leading man
Drawn with conviction – a brief history of courtroom art
Like many of the most notorious trials of modern times, Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial has been summed up by a skilful courtroom sketch artist
The art of Christmas parties
The Dickensian illustrator John Leech would have been the ideal artist to capture the spirit of Downing Street festivities – fictional or otherwise
What Stephen Sondheim saw in Georges Seurat
The pointillist painter inspired the composer and lyricist to make his most personal artistic statement
The culture ministers who really are culture vultures
Delighted by the fact that the new German culture minister once managed a rock band, Rakewell recalls other culture ministers with an artistic bent
Gal Gadot turns to art crime, with The Rock in hot pursuit
’Red Notice’ may not be most sophisticated heist film, but it’s hard to resist The Rock on the trail of Wonder Woman
Todd Haynes takes on the Velvet Underground – but could he have gone even further?
Rakewell couldn’t be happier about the film-maker’s documentary about the band – but does have a suggestion for a sequel
Contemporary art has a new home – at the Vatican
Pope Francis seems to be a fan of contemporary art – and he’s hardly the first pontiff to have encouraged the latest artistic developments
A hairy situation at the Wallace Collection
The moustachioed can get into the Wallace Collection’s Frans Hals exhibition for free on Mondays – but Rakewell has a much better idea
Alan Titchmarsh, Renaissance man
Rakewell is delighted to learn that the superstar TV gardener is also something of an art aficionado
Vienna flaunts its assets on OnlyFans
Nudes by Titian, Rubens and Schiele are now available to viewers on the adults-only subscription service
Why Squid Game looks so strangely familiar
The hit series takes many of its visual cues from M.C. Escher – and a host of other films that have been inspired by the Dutch artist
Sole survivors – how to draw your way out of heartbreak
Some unusual relationship advice has recently caught Rakewell’s eye. Next time you’re nursing a broken heart, why not try drawing your shoe?
When Miriam Margolyes met Augustus John
The actor offered her services as a life model to the painter when she was 19. One can only wonder that she got away so lightly
The mystery of the real-life Maltese Falcon
The film noir starring Humphrey Bogart is back in cinemas – but the confusion over what happened to the statuettes of the falcon remains to be cleared up
My Little Pony rides again – at the National Gallery
Masterpieces of equestrian art are about to get some rainbow-coloured companions, thanks to an augmented-reality makeover
The artists who have turned to coffee for their creative fuel
Making coffee might be considered an art form – but don’t forget the artistic possibilities offered by the substance itself
What happens when an artist wants to be anonymous?