While activism and art have long been intertwined, environmental activism and art have a more recent history. Artists have been using their work to call attention to environmental issues since the 1960s, while activists have been using artistic vandalism to draw attention to social and environmental issues since the early 20th century.
Interviews & Essays
More than a century after they were founded, the Vienna Secession and Wiener Werkstätte movements have shot back into the interior-design limelight. With their geometric patterning, deeply saturated colors, and obsessive focus on craftsmanship, these iconic European styles are being rediscovered by today’s designers putting together spaces that unapologetically traverse genres and eras.
The last few months have seen a flurry of gallery space relocations and consolidations as owners seek more affordable locations to reduce overhead. Rising commercial rents, stiff competition from online platforms, and pressure to support artists have weighed heavily on the art market during recent years.
A fascinating exhibition at the Tate Modern in London reflected on the history of art and electronics before the advent of the internet. Electric Dreams not only showcases multimedia works by more than 70 artists both well-known and obscure but also gives occasion to reflect on the relationship between art and science, creativity and computing.
It seems curious that artists’ books are often regarded as a separate species in the art world, considered merely illustrated texts. When in reality, they can be so much more.
Born in Paris in 1840, Claude Monet became a master painter whose works have become synonymous with the Impressionist movement he helped found. Here are ten little-known facts about the life of Claude Monet.
In the largest inscription round to date, UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage added 68 new elements to its international lists during the 20th session this December in New Delhi, India.
What happens to an artist’s work after they die? It’s not a new question, nor is it a simple one. The outcome is never guaranteed, even among those with megawatt careers and a flourishing market. And for those who are not at that privileged level, it is far less clear-cut.
With its origins in late Medieval art and religious culture, the word “Gothic” conjures the dark, the mysterious, or the otherworldly. A international exhibition, Gothic Modern: From Darkness to Light, not only broadly explores such popular associations but also provides a ground-breaking examination of later 19th- and early 20th-century artistic fascinations with the era, all while complicating traditional narratives of the history of Modernism.
As the hype fades following the record-breaking $54.7 million sale at Sotheby’s in November 2025 of Frida Kahlo’s 1940 self-portrait, El sueño (La cama), becoming the most expensive artwork by a female artist ever sold at auction, let’s pause and consider the facts.
