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Arts & Culture / Art & Artists

Did artist Verrocchio delegate two figures in his Beheading of St. John the Baptist to his prize pupil Leonardo da Vinci?

Looking for Leonardo

Are figures in a Florentine altar panel attributed to Italian artist Andrea del Verrocchio actually by Leonardo da Vinci?

Amy Herman at the Metropolitan Museum with Sargent's Madame X asks her class of cops, "How would you describe this woman in one sentence?"

Teaching Cops to See

At New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, Amy Herman schools police in the fine art of deductive observation

Anne Truitt in her Twining Court studio, Washington, DC, 1962.

Anne Truitt’s Artistic Journey

Balancing the two lives of a Washington, D.C. sculptor—1950s hostess and emergent artist

Josiah Wedgwood's innovative products gained popularity and by 1763, he was filling orders for kings, queens and nobles.

250 Years of Wedgwood

Two new exhibitions celebrate the enduring wares of ceramics designer and entrepreneur Josiah Wedgwood

With a degree in English, biology and education, actor Tom Cavanagh holds his own on Smithsonian Channel's award-winning series, "Stories from the Vaults."

Q and A: Smithsonian Channel Host Tom Cavanagh

Actor Tom Cavanagh discusses what it is like to go behind the scenes of the Smithsonian museums

New extensive studies on Rearing Horse and Mounted Warrior have yielded evidence that supports the possibility that it was cast from an original Leonardo model.

Leonardo’s Horse?

New research may shed light on a nearly century-old theory that a sculpture thought to be ancient Greek may be da Vinci’s work

Bill T. Jones has become famous for creating a modern dance aesthetic that addresses major moral and social questions.

Dancing Around Abraham Lincoln

Bill T. Jones, one of America’s foremost living choreographers, tackles Lincoln’s complicated legacy in his newest work

A Japanese folk tale is immortalized in artwork, such as this 19th-century fan painting by Kawanabe Kyosai.

What’s Up

Frontier photography, Japanese folk tales, indigenous art and more

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Letters

Readers Respond to the July Issue

The diamond’s current setting, once described by Evalyn Walsh McLean as a “frame of diamonds,” was originally created by Pierre Cartier and has remained largely unchanged since the early 1900s.

A New Chapter in the Hope Diamond’s History

The National Museum of Natural History’s most famous gem gets a modern update

Katz (today, in SoHo) pursued figurative painting even in the 1950s, when Abstract Expressionism was at its height.

Alex Katz Is Cooler Than Ever

At 82, the pathbreaking painter known for stylized figurative works has never been in more demand

Mary Van Cline's Cycles of Relationship of Time, 2000.

What’s Up

The 11 minutes of powered descent to the lunar surface was Buzz Aldrin's most memorable moment in the lunar module.

Q and A: Astronaut Buzz Aldrin on the Moon

Buzz Aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon, reflects on the Apollo 11 mission

The Smithsonian's Feather Identification Laboratory quickly determined that Canada geese had disabled US Airways Flight 1549.

From the Castle

Ways We Serve

Two in half a million: Bobbi Kelly and Nick Ercoline greet the dawn on August 17, 1969.

A Woodstock Moment – 40 Years Later

On a whim, a young duo went to the legendary festival only to be captured in a memorable image by photographer Burk Uzzle

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Letters

Readers Respond to the June Issue

The tradition of Smithsonian museums loaning art to the White House began in the 1940s.

Decorating the White House with Smithsonian Art

Continuing a Washington tradition, the Obamas selected artwork from the Smithsonian collections to hang in their historic home

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Letters

Readers respond to the May Issue

Artist Shahzia Sikander guest-curates at the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum in New York City.

What’s Up

Jean Shin has a new show at the Smithsonian American Art Museum called, "Jean Shin: Common Threads."

Q and A: Sculpture Artist Jean Shin

The artists creates sculptures from castaway objects such as old lottery tickets and broken umbrellas

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