https://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/art-history/RSS feed for Art HistoryenFri, 22 May 2026 19:51:01 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/what-did-jackson-pollock-hope-to-accomplish-with-this-dizzying-drip-painting-which-just-sold-for-a-record-breaking-181-million-180988794/The Abstract Expressionist is best known for his action paintings, which emphasized the movements of the artist's body during the creative process. "Number 7A, 1948" is now his most expensive work ever auctionedFri, 22 May 2026 19:51:01 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/what-did-jackson-pollock-hope-to-accomplish-with-this-dizzying-drip-painting-which-just-sold-for-a-record-breaking-181-million-180988794/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/before-the-kiss-gustav-klimt-got-his-first-big-art-assignment-at-this-austrian-theater-now-visitors-can-see-his-ceiling-paintings-up-close-for-the-first-time-180988698/As a young man, the artist who later became famous for working gold leaf into portraits earned a Golden Cross of Merit from an emperor for his contributions to Vienna’s BurgtheaterThu, 07 May 2026 19:13:07 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/before-the-kiss-gustav-klimt-got-his-first-big-art-assignment-at-this-austrian-theater-now-visitors-can-see-his-ceiling-paintings-up-close-for-the-first-time-180988698/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/alexander-calder-thought-it-would-be-fun-to-set-abstract-art-in-motion-his-mesmerizing-mobiles-transformed-the-definition-of-sculpture-180988631/A new exhibition at the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris spotlights 300 of the sculptor's groundbreaking kinetic artworks, large-scale public sculptures, paintings, drawings and wire portraitsTue, 28 Apr 2026 16:24:04 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/alexander-calder-thought-it-would-be-fun-to-set-abstract-art-in-motion-his-mesmerizing-mobiles-transformed-the-definition-of-sculpture-180988631/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-dazzling-tiffany-stained-glass-window-adorned-a-church-for-more-than-a-century-now-it-needs-a-new-home-180988590/The Second Congregational Church of Winsted in Connecticut will auction off the colorful artwork featuring a stunning waterfall and sunsetWed, 22 Apr 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-dazzling-tiffany-stained-glass-window-adorned-a-church-for-more-than-a-century-now-it-needs-a-new-home-180988590/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/renaissance-art-linked-beauty-with-virtue-and-ugliness-with-vice-see-how-painters-from-leonardo-da-vinci-to-botticelli-viewed-physical-attractiveness-180988584/An exhibition in Brussels spotlights 90-plus artworks featuring golden-haired muses, greedy old men and those deemed unattractive simply because they were differentTue, 21 Apr 2026 15:55:23 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/renaissance-art-linked-beauty-with-virtue-and-ugliness-with-vice-see-how-painters-from-leonardo-da-vinci-to-botticelli-viewed-physical-attractiveness-180988584/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/can-ai-determine-which-artist-made-a-painting-this-new-brushstroke-detection-tool-may-have-solved-a-mystery-about-el-greco-180988576/While debating the authorship of "The Baptism of Christ," one of El Greco’s final works, art experts long relied on their own analysis of brushstrokes. A new study tapped artificial intelligence to peer at the paint at a microscopic levelMon, 20 Apr 2026 19:33:58 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/can-ai-determine-which-artist-made-a-painting-this-new-brushstroke-detection-tool-may-have-solved-a-mystery-about-el-greco-180988576/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/andrew-lloyd-webber-says-hes-writing-a-new-musical-about-the-time-the-mona-lisa-vanished-without-a-trace-in-1911-180988559/Known for spectacles like "The Phantom of the Opera," Broadway's most commercially successful composer now wants to tell the story of the world's most famous paintingFri, 17 Apr 2026 10:15:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/andrew-lloyd-webber-says-hes-writing-a-new-musical-about-the-time-the-mona-lisa-vanished-without-a-trace-in-1911-180988559/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/rolled-up-in-a-cellar-for-decades-this-artemisia-gentileschi-painting-is-now-up-for-auction-why-is-mary-magdalenes-face-missing-from-the-portrait-180988537/Found in Berlin, the artwork was probably damaged in the chaotic aftermath of World War II. Despite the gaping hole in the canvas, it could sell for upwards of $180,000 later this monthMon, 13 Apr 2026 17:10:03 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/rolled-up-in-a-cellar-for-decades-this-artemisia-gentileschi-painting-is-now-up-for-auction-why-is-mary-magdalenes-face-missing-from-the-portrait-180988537/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/mysterious-monumental-scroll-public-display-first-time-aints-picture-artistic-fusion-colonial-india-180988512/A new exhibition shares the artistic legacy of centuries of British East India Company influence in East and Southeast AsiaThu, 09 Apr 2026 17:45:46 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/mysterious-monumental-scroll-public-display-first-time-aints-picture-artistic-fusion-colonial-india-180988512/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-painting-was-thought-to-be-a-workshop-copy-of-a-rembrandt-now-one-scholar-argues-its-the-real-deal-180988473/"Old Man With a Gold Chain" is on display beside a smaller copy for the first time in centuries. According to scholar Gary Schwartz, the Dutch master painted both himselfThu, 02 Apr 2026 14:16:07 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-painting-was-thought-to-be-a-workshop-copy-of-a-rembrandt-now-one-scholar-argues-its-the-real-deal-180988473/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/willem-de-kooning-didnt-get-his-big-break-until-his-40s-see-the-stunning-abstract-paintings-that-first-captivated-audiences-180988397/Artworks that showcase the painter's early foray into Abstract Expressionism are now on view at the Princeton University Art MuseumMon, 30 Mar 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/willem-de-kooning-didnt-get-his-big-break-until-his-40s-see-the-stunning-abstract-paintings-that-first-captivated-audiences-180988397/