March 2023 Art News

The mysteries of the life and inner-working of Vincent van Gogh have captivated art lovers for over a century. This month, a researcher with a keen eye made a discovery that gives us further insight into his last days and final masterpiece.

John Constable, a British landscape painter, is known for his works that capture ordinary daily life.

For the past two years, the Smithsonian has been working to gather support from donors on a proposed American Women’s History Museum. Last week, the Smithsonian announced over $55 million dollars in gifts that will help to solidify the museum’s future. Though it has yet to receive Congressional approval, it is a step in the right direction for the future museum’s place on the National Mall’s promenade.

Considering Holi and Diwali’s spectacularity, and a growing number of Indian immigrants ebbing westward into American and British media, it is a small wonder that these two Hindu festivals have developed a cultish following.

Okwui Enwezor (1963–2019) was so many things: a curator, an academic, a poet. But if you were to ask what was his biggest legacy, it would be that he brought African art history to the global stage.

Much as the late nineteenth-century American myth of Manifest Destiny was used to justify westward expansion, many history paintings worked to shape and uphold stories of superiority and inferiority. This popular genre of painting, especially when applied to the depiction of historical events, sheds light on the manner in which art can be used to manipulate the truth.

The Acropolis of Athens is often seen as a symbol of the city’s ancient and wonderous past. The Parthenon, constructed in the 5th century BCE, stands above modern Athens like a jewel atop a magnificent marble crown, overlooking a city that has persisted for millennia.

This year's The Philadelphia Show—one of the nation's leading art and design fairs—is taking place at the Philadelphia Museum of Art from April 28 - April 30.
Early eighteenth-century France saw the emergence of Rococo style—an offshoot of the Baroque movement. Also called late baroque, Rococo artwork, architecture, and decor maintained the exuberance and theatricality of the Baroque but diverged with its use of asymmetry, warm-toned pastels, chinoiserie, and excessive florals.

Last week there was an exciting discovery on the remote volcanic Easter Island in Polynesia: a new moai statue. Found on the dry lakebed of Lake Rano Raraku, this moai is much smaller than the thousands that have already been cataloged.