Arts & Culture

Catherine de' Medici was the mother of three kings.

Based on a True Story

The Many Myths of Catherine de' Medici

A new Starz series, "The Serpent Queen," dramatizes the life of the much-maligned 16th-century ruler

Dehydrated carrageen looks nothing like the beautiful red fronds easily identified in coastal rocky pools.

A Brief History of Ireland's Carrageen Moss Pudding

The curious dessert—combining a seaweed found on the Emerald Isle's coast with dairy—lies in the hands of regular folks who enjoy a challenge

Robert Smithson, Spiral Jetty (1970). Great Salt Lake, Utah, USA. Mud, precipitated salt crystals, rocks, water. 1,500 ft. (457.2 m) long and 15 ft. (4.6 m) wide. Collection Dia Art Foundation. Photograph: William T. Carson, 2020

How Utah's 'Spiral Jetty' Is Drawing Attention to the Climate Crisis

Years of drought have exposed Robert Smithson's massive earthwork in the Great Salt Lake

A worker sorts coffee beans at the Lamastus Family Estate farm in Boquete, a region known the world over for its coffee varieties.

Panama

Experience Panama's Coffee Farming Tradition in the Chiriquí Highlands

A coffee circuit connects 15 farms that offer tours and tastings in what's been called the "Napa Valley of coffee"

Septima Poinsette Clark by Brian Lanker, 1987

Women Who Shaped History

These Black Women Changed America

Thirty years ago, photographer Brian Lanker made indelible images of historical lives; a new exhibition says their stories have never seemed more relevant

Few arguments showcase the fraught politics of state foods than the debate over red and green chiles in New Mexico.

The Contentious History of Official State Foods

How a bill about muffins, chili, or plums becomes law—or doesn't

The eight-episode production does not include the participation of the real-life Tyson. Pictured: Episode still of Johnny Alexander as Evander Holyfield (left) and Trevante Rhodes as Mike Tyson (right)

Based on a True Story

How Hulu's 'Mike' Dramatizes the Life of Boxing Heavyweight Mike Tyson

The new eight-part series tries to humanize its notorious central character, whose athletic prowess was later overshadowed by his actions outside the ring

Cotton fields

It's Time for the Fashion Industry to Launch a Farm-to-Closet Movement

For fiber and textile producers, the path to growing sustainable cotton, hemp and flax is complicated

One reader wonders: Why do we see the Moon during the day and not the Sun at night?

Why Can We See the Moon During the Day? And More Questions From Our Readers

You've got questions. We've got experts.

The Pekin Noodle Parlor in Butte, Montana, serves what owner Jerry Tam calls “Chinese American comfort food.”

The First Chinese Restaurant in America Has a Savory—and Unsavory—History

Venture into the Montana eatery, once a gambling den and opium repository, that still draws a crowd

Red, Green, and Blue Twisted Curves, 1979. The “spectator who looks at my work is part of the work itself,” Riley has said.

A New Exhibit Showcases the Mind-Bending Art of Bridget Riley

Six decades after she arrived on the scene, the British artist still makes waves

Head of a Negro Woman, 1946, by Elizabeth Catlett.

Women Who Shaped History

How Elizabeth Catlett Lifted Up Black Women Through Art

The pioneering sculptor defied trends to honor the daily lives of her subjects

As the North Carolina farmed oyster industry grows, advocates hope to fuel consumer demand and build the industry’s profile with a tourism “trail.”

North Carolina's Oyster Trail Aims to Give the Farmed Shellfish Industry a Boost

In the tradition of wine and ale trails, the state’s new tourism offering highlights restaurants, farms, festivals and markets

“The Great Divide” explores how ideas that came to the fore during the Enlightenment at once blurred social hierarchies and reinforced them, particularly along lines of gender and race. 

These 18th-Century Shoes Underscore the Contradictions of the Age of Enlightenment

An exhibition at Toronto's Bata Shoe Museum examines fashion's role in supporting social hierarchies that emerged during the landmark intellectual movement

The Guna, an Indigenous group residing in Panama and parts of neighboring Colombia, have been creating colorfully embroidered clothing for centuries.

Panama

The Colorful History Behind Panama's Mola

Made by hand, this clothing staple is an important piece of the country's rich culture

Ornithologist Edmund Selous made empathy for birds respectable and, in doing so, changed the world. Bird-watching became a popular pastime, eventually making birding scientific and playing a pivotal role in the animals’ conservation.

How Bird Collecting Evolved Into Bird-Watching

In the early 1900s, newfound empathy for avian creatures helped wildlife observation displace dispassionate killing

Pietas affiliate groups have built temples across Italy.

When I Celebrated the Summer Solstice With Ancient Roman Gods and Goddesses

Members of a group in Italy called Association Pietas are reviving the ancient religion of Rome

The pinta’o originated in the province of Coclé southwest of Panama City, where the hats are still made today.

Panama

The Real Panama Hat

For centuries, Panamanian artists have been weaving "pinta'o" from natural fibers

At the world's largest arms fair held every two years in London, a group of artists in 2016 organized the "Art the Arms Fair," to voice opposition to the war industry and the international arms trade (above: Pattern Tank by Tristan Oliver, 2019).

Designers Build a Provocative Road Map for World Peace

Cooper Hewitt’s new show taps into the collective consciousness of activists, app developers, artists and architects to envision a way forward

Medical student Anna Searcy in 1897

Women Who Shaped History

These Trailblazers Were the Only Women in the Room Where It Happened

A new book spotlights 100 historical photographs of lone women hidden among groups of men

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