A touch of absurdity can help to wrap your mind around reality
And now for something completely different: how a dose of the surreal or absurd helps to make sense of our place in the world
by David Robson
Philosophy of art
When art transports us, where do we actually go?
Artworks have the capacity to transport us into other worlds. But where exactly do we go when we are immersed in art?
by Harri Mäcklin
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
Engaging with an artwork leaves you and the art transformed
When you engage with an artwork, a form of cognitive coupling takes place in which your mind and the art are transformed
by Miranda Anderson
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
You can be aesthetically sensitive and know nothing about art
Aesthetic sensitivity is not about being correct in your judgments of beauty, but rather how much you’re affected by it
by Guido Corradi
In defence of memoirs – a way to grip our story-shaped lives
Even the non-linear memoir creates meaning by shaping the hot mess of life into a narrative arc. What’s wrong with that?
by Helena de Bres
Archaeology excavates the layers of meaning we leave behind
Archaeologists make sense of the past by thinking about the intentional and the natural meanings of what they uncover
by Marilynn Johnson
‘Nothing renders their beauty’ – can art ever capture the splendour of a flower?
A film by Miléna Trivier
The astounding performances of an artist making art and life simultaneous
Directed by Adrian Heathfield & Hugo Glendinning
Looking at portraits with an eye to evolutionary psychology
Why our understanding of Jean-François Raffaëlli’s ‘Roadman’ portrait can use a little help from evolutionary psychology
by Dan Sperber
Ancient Greek ideas of attunement can breathe new life into music
In Athenian philosophy, attunement is important not only in music, but also for moods, attitudes and states of mind
by John Bagby
‘Once upon a time…’ Deconstructing our insatiable appetite for stories
Directed by Aisling Chin-Yee
Debating Bon Jovi’s cheesiness will enrich your conceptual life
Aesthetic questions don’t have answers ‘out there’ in the world. We’re free to decide what’s a glitch or a sculpture, and why
by Elizabeth Cantalamessa
Is the concept of originality in art a bit, well, unoriginal?
Directed by Drew Christie
Why we love to play pretend in front of scenic backdrops
Zoom backgrounds have their roots in 19th-century portrait photography and say as much about the creation of the social self
by Kim Beil