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Impressionist painting of a rural landscape with cows grazing, trees, houses, a church spire and a hazy sky at sunset.

Human evolution

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Why it took us thousands of years to see the colour violet

The colour violet was largely missing from art before the Impressionists, and is seen differently by different cultures. Why?

by Allen Tager

Two people viewing the Mona Lisa painting in an ornate frame, displayed against a dark wall in a gallery.

Beauty and aesthetics

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What happens if we make the Mona Lisa more symmetrical?

The Golden Ratio and symmetry are two universal rules of beauty. The problem is they conflict with one another

by Manil Suri

Artists and art history

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Gentileschi. Let us not allow sexual violence to define the artist

Artemisia Gentileschi’s body of work has been framed by her personal history. Her paintings should speak for themselves

by Eliza Apperly

A photo from the set of the film Edward Scissorhands of Johnny Depp and Diane Wiest as the characters Edward and Peg

Artists and art history

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Love the art, disgusted by the artist? Maybe philosophy can help

Rather than trying to leave behind beloved art by immoral artists, let philosophy offer you a model for engaging with it

by Erich Hatala Matthes

A painting of a distressed, partially nude woman confronting two older men in red and black robes who are whispering to each other.

Artists and art history

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What art history reveals about the rise of anti-feminist women

How can anyone favour a patriarchal system that routinely harms them? On Susanna and the Elders and anti-feminist women

by Paula Keller

Photo of a person with a guitar leaning against a vintage car in a forest with vibrant pink foliage, wearing a hat and white shirt.

Music

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Bob Dylan turned American folk traditions into modern prophecy

Bob Dylan’s ‘A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall’ is the first truly modernist folk song: it reworks tradition into a prophetic warning

by Timothy Hampton

Painting of a man and a woman in period clothing pose inside a room with a chandelier, a convex mirror, and an inscription on the wall behind.

Philosophy of art

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To master the art of close looking, learn to hold time still

Visual literacy is a skillset that’s rarely taught, but it begins with learning how to look – and how to hold time still

by Grace Linden

Black-and-white photo of an empty city street flanked by tall buildings and a few parked cars, with signs and street lamps visible.

Photography

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Struth’s unpeopled photos evoke the loneliness of urban life

Thomas Struth’s empty streets speak of an existential loneliness that is a shadowy but ever-present aspect of urban life

by Richard Deming

A historical painting showing three people, one standing with a fan and two seated, each holding a flower; vibrant clothing and a colourful background.

Artists and art history

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The art of Mughal India is best appreciated with all the senses

Experience the multiple layers of sensory pleasure and meaning conveyed through scented flowers in the art of Mughal India

by Bharti Lalwani & Nicolas Roth

Ancient cave painting with red pigment and engraved lines on a textured stone surface.

Artists and art history

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The art of Ice Age children offers a tactile sense of the past

Small hands in dark caves: Ice Age art reveals the role of artistic expression and child’s play in ancient societies

by Izzy Wisher

A pointillist painting of three nude women indoors, two seated and one standing, with a wall and a window showing an outdoor scene.

Artists and art history

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The vibrating beingness of Seurat’s pointillist paintings

The pointillist paintings of Georges Seurat have a blurred, vibrating beingness that is a visual manifestation of emotion

by Summer Brennan

Abstract painting of a kneeling, distressed figure inside a colourful, cavernous space with purple, red and green organic shapes.

Psychiatry

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This isn’t just art, but a supercharged act of meaning-making

Psychiatric art is crammed with meaning yet it actively resists interpretation. This paradox lies at the heart of its appeal

by Shruti Ravindran