Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Arts & Culture / Art & Artists

None

Inside America’s Great Romance With Norman Rockwell

A new biography of the artist reveals the complex inner life of our greatest and most controversial illustrator

Carlos, by Joseph Rodriguez: a sense of ownership of the city

An Exploration of Latino Art at the Smithsonian

Smithsonian Secretary G. Wayne Clough previews a new exhibit at the American Art Museum

Martin Klimas captures “Sonic Sculptures” of songs by setting paint atop a speaker and cranking the volume. Above: “Time,” by Pink Floyd.

The Sounds of Pink Floyd, Daft Punk and James Brown, As Expressed by Flying Paint

Photographer Martin Klimas sets paint atop a speaker and cranks the volume, snapping shots as the boom of music pulses paint into the air

Osmia chalybea, Cumberland Island National Seashore, Georgia

Bee-utiful! The Stinging Insect Gets a Close-Up

Biologist Sam Droege’s sharply-focused photographs of bees, used for identifying different species, make for fine art

Hairy woodpecker (Picoides villosus)

Diana Beltran Herrera’s Flock of Paper Birds

We are not talking origami here. The Colombian artist has created paper sculptures of more than 100 species, and they are startlingly realistic

“Sonic Bloom,” a solar sculpture at the Pacific Science Center in Seattle

Energy Innovation

Sonic Bloom! A New Solar-Powered Sculpture

Dan Corson’s latest installation in Seattle—flower sculptures that light up at night—show that solar energy is viable even in the cloudy Pacific Northwest

Oceanographer Gareth Lawson, who studies pteropods, was able to identify Kavanagh’s sculptures to species, such as this Limacina helicina.

The Gorgeous Shapes of Sea Butterflies

Cornelia Kavanagh’s sculptures magnify tiny sea butterflies—ocean acidification’s unlikely mascots—hundreds of times

Photographer Kieran Dodds has temporarily taken over the Smithsonian magazine Instagram account.

Six Questions With Photographer Kieran Dodds

The photojournalist talks about his Bionic Man assignment and what his plans are for taking over our Instagram account

What Happens When You Freeze Flowers and Shoot Them With a Gun?

With the help of a little liquid nitrogen, German photographer Martin Klimas captures the fragile chaos of flowers as they explode

Cerro Prieto Geothermal Power Station, Baja, Mexico 2012

Aerial Views of Our Water World

In a new book, documentary and exhibition, photographer Edward Burtynsky looks at humans’ dramatic relationship with water

None

Top 10 Biggest Roadside Foods in America

Where is the world’s biggest pistachio?

Cuban Emerald (Chlorostilbon ricordii), Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology, Collected from Andros Island, Bahamas, on January 22, 1988.

The Art of the Bird’s Nest

The architectural masterpieces of numerous bird species are the subject of Sharon Beals’ latest photo series—on display at the National Academy of Sciences

None

Coming Soon: The Sifang Art Museum

A first look at the 15,000-square-foot space being built outside of Nanjing, China

None

Why David Hockney Has a Love-Hate Relationship With Technology

A new retrospective highlights the artist’s two, seemingly opposite passions

None

The Art That is Hidden in Plain Sight

A Milan-based artistic duo uses color to reveal a series of dreamlike panoramas concealed in white light

Valley of the Reclining Woman

Carl Warner’s Mountains Are Made of Elbows and Knees

The British photographer creates convincing landscapes—deserts and rocky scenes—by piecing together photos of nude models

Sprites over Red Willow County, Nebraska, on August 12, 2013

Scientists Capture Rare Photographs of Red Lightning

Graduate student Jason Ahrns and colleagues hunt the skies for sprites—fleeting streaks and bursts of color that can appear above thunderstorms

None

These Ocean Waves Look Like Liquid Sculptures

Photographer Pierre Carreau captures waves mid-break, showing the surf’s delicate balance of power and fragility

None

Sharks Made Out of Golf Bags? A Look at the Big Fish in Contemporary Art

Intrigued by the powerful hunters, artists have made tiger sharks, great whites and hammerheads the subjects of sculpture

None

Landscape Through a Car Window, Darkly

A new exhibition presents 1970s photography that challenged the traditional American landscape

Page 55 of 111