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Arts & Culture

Outrigger canoes race in the Majuro lagoon in the Marshall Islands. Traditional Marshallese wave piloting uses the feeling of the ocean to navigate precisely across vast stretches of open water.

Age of Humans

Science and Tradition Are Resurrecting the Lost Art of Wave Piloting

Can Marshall Islanders’ unique heritage help them navigate a rising ocean?

Breaking Ground

The National Museum of African American History and Culture: Breaking Ground

Countdown begins towards the historic opening of the new national museum on Saturday, Sept. 24, 2016

Inside Infinite Harvest's 5,400 square-foot grow facility in Lakewood, Colorado.

Astronauts and Arugula: Using Space-Station Technology to Grow Food

Infinite Harvest, an indoor vertical farm in Lakewood, Colorado, provides a glimpse into the future of global large-scale food production

Statue of Liberty stamp art, 1994, by Tom Engerman

Get Stuck on New York’s Pop Culture With These Historic Stamps

A new exhibition at the National Postal Museum spotlights Gotham’s cultural impact

“I’d never go into a back alley in Berlin or Manhattan,” Wolf says. “It’s not like that at all here.” In this alley, a resident has found a creative use for coat hangers: to make hanging planters for orchids.

The Beautiful Life Hacks in Hong Kong’s Back Alleys

In a new book, photographer Michael Wolf captures the ways inhabitants of the ultra-dense city carve personal space out of grim alleyways

A life-sized Helicoprion head, created by sculptor Gary Staab, seems to burst through the wall at the Idaho Museum of Natural History as part of the buzz shark exhibit.

Art Meets Science

The Prehistoric Buzz Shark Has a Modern-Day Hero in Artist Ray Troll

How an Alaska-based artist helped solve a mystery that baffled paleontologists for over a century

"I Just Want to Come Home," a mural addressing the relationship between police and young men of color.

New York City Is Paying Public Housing Residents to Paint Murals

Young tenants will create public art that captures social issues at five housing projects, one in each borough

Home of a Rebel Sharpshooter by Alexander Gardner

Poetry Matters

Can the Civil War Still Inspire Today’s Poets?

As epic verse about the American past falls victim to modernism, a poet who is also a historian calls for a revival

Elvis Jigsaw (2011) Elvis makes an appearance in several images in Short Stories.

Photographer Matt Henry’s Obsession With the 1960s Led to These Amazing Images

Inspired by the movies of the era, he brings together elaborate sets and casts to make his scenes

Jesse J. Holland's book, "The Invisibles: The Untold Story of African American Slaves in the White House" offers new insight into lives of these men and women who lived in bondage in the White House.

The Slaves of the White House Finally Get to Have Their Stories Told

Long ignored by historians, the enslaved people of the White House are coming into focus through a new book by Jesse J. Holland

The Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist on Cathedral Island, Wroclaw, Poland.

Why You Should Visit Europe’s Two New Capitals of Culture

Wroclaw, Poland and San Sebastian, Spain just joined the EU list—and for good reason

The city of Jodhpur spills out below Mehrangarh Fort, once the residence of the royal family.

Smithsonian Journeys Travel Quarterly: India

The Fall and Rise of a Modern Maharaja

Born to a palace but stripped of his livelihood in the 1970s, Gaj Singh II created a new life dedicated to preserving royal Rajasthan

Smithsonian Journeys Travel Quarterly: India

Local Lens: Life on the Streets of Old Delhi

Instagram photographer Arjun Chhabra captures raw moments in the city’s alleyways and courtyards

Brightly colored trucks are parked near the village of Murthal, a popular stopping place for weary travelers in search of a good meal.

Smithsonian Journeys Travel Quarterly: India

Looking for Delicious, Authentic Cooking in India? Head to a Truck Stop

Known as dhabas, these roadside eateries serving classic meals offer a glimpse into India’s culture and customs

Ai Weiwei Chinese 1957– Forever Bicycles, 2011, installation view at Taipei Fine Arts Museum © Ai Weiwei

Is Ai Weiwei the Andy Warhol of Our Time?

A new exhibition in Melbourne delves into the connections between the artists who define their generations

Producers Irwin Winkler, Sylvester Stallone, Robert Chartoff with their Academy Awards for Rocky, 1977

Sylvester Stallone Joins an Oscars Elite Team: Actors Nominated Twice for the Same Role

The actor and writer who gave us Rocky Balboa (again and again and again) is the sixth member of this exclusive club

Quebec Ice fishing is a highly social affair for Quebecois, who tend to let their freak flags fly. This dwelling, clad in buoys from the local lobstering industry, belonged to a man named Pierre. “An eccentric fellow, as most of these guys are,” says photographer Richard Johnson.

Canada

Portraits of Canada’s Ice Fishing Huts

Take a look at some of Canada’s coziest ice fishing huts

A City Fabrick pop-up space.

Could Pop-Up Social Spaces at Polls Increase Voter Turnout?

Placemaking the Vote, one of the finalists in the Knight Cities Challenge, wants people to hang out at their polling places

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