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Art

View of Takanawa Ushimachi under a Shrouded Moon, Kobayashi Kiyochika,1879

Tokyo in Transition: Woodblock Prints Cast an Ambiguous Light on Japan’s Modernization

A collection of works by the great Eastern modernist Kobayashi Kiyochika are on view at the Arthur M. Sackler Museum

The Paris Metro map, edited.

Cool Finds

This Architect Spends His Free Time Reinventing the World’s Subway Maps

The new system is meant to be easy to read and understand, no matter how foreign the place

Detroit Institute of Arts

Trending Today

Bidders Are Clamoring for Detroit’s Artwork, But the City Isn’t Selling

As the bankruptcy fight rages on, Detroit’s artworks are still objects of interest

Flower Garden Brooch

These Artists Turn Trash Into Wearable Treasure

Scott and Lisa Cylinder use retooled or found objects to create their clever, one-of-a-kind baubles.

Suspended clock made from walnut, cherry wood, white oak and box elder

James Borden Doesn’t Just Build Clocks, He Creates Sculptures that Tell Time

At the 32nd annual craft fair, the art and craft of the traditional clock takes on a whole new tick tock

George W. Bush's self portrait.

Trending Today

How to Get a Solo Show as an Amateur Artist: First, Serve Two Terms As President…

President George W. Bush’s portraits of world leaders appear to be copied off photos available on the internet

Desmarestia herbacea, acid kelp; Santa Cruz, CA; c. 1898; Collection: University Herbarium, UC Berkeley, CA

Art Meets Science

These Delicate Images of Seaweed Were Captured Using a Flatbed Scanner

In a new book, photographer Josie Iselin highlights the exquisite colors and forms of kelp and other marine algae

Cool Finds

Andy Warhol Probably Never Said His Celebrated “Fifteen Minutes of Fame” Line

In the interest of branding, however, it doesn’t matter who said it, only that it worked

Cool Finds

The “Tibetan Book of Buddhist Proportions” Show Exactly How to Draw the Buddha

Representations of the Buddha are highly particular

The Original Grenade Mugs

This Steampunk Pottery by a Man Named Beer is Not Your Usual Craft Fair Fare

Paveen “Beer” Chunhaswasdikul’s unique, hand-hewn stoneware will be showcased at the 32nd annual Smithsonian Craft Show

Carcinogenic material was used as a finish coating in this painting.

New Research

Byzantine Monks Built Walls With Asbestos, Too

In millennia past, asbestos has also been used to make stronger pottery and flame-proof napkins

Tie Dye Egg by Lindsey Bull from last year's Big Egg Hunt in London

Cool Finds

The Hunt For Giant Easter Eggs Across New York City Is On

Not just any eggs—260 egg-shaped sculptures that range from ornate to modern

Edward Burne-Jones, The Last Sleep of Arthur in Avalon, painted probably using Mummy Brown.

Cool Finds

Ground Up Mummies Were Once an Ingredient in Paint

In 1964, the manufacturer who made Mummy Brown reportedly ran out of mummies to grind up

A view of the installation of the ATLAS portion of the Large Hadron Collider at CERN.

Art Meets Science

Art and Science Collide in the Discovery of the Higgs Boson

Particle Fever, a documentary about the physicists who found the “God particle,” suggests doing science isn’t that different from making art

Cool Finds

This Firefly Time-Lapse Video Is Beautiful

A visit to a serene lake in Missouri kicked off an obsession with creating time-lapse images of fireflies

Artwork At Delaware Art Muesum

Trending Today

Detroit’s Art Might Be Safe, But Delaware’s Isn’t

Detroit (for now) has prevented a massive sale of artwork, but Delaware’s art museum hasn’t been so lucky

Cool Finds

15 Minutes of Wet Clay Has Never Been More Hypnotic

As the potter adds different strokes, the design spins and melds and transforms in front of your eyes

The Lake, Petworth: Sunset, Fighting Bucks, painted by J.M.W. Turner around 1829, was one of several works studied to see if there was a connection between the colors used in the image and volcanic particles in the atmosphere at the time of the painting's creation.

New Research

How Paintings of Sunsets Immortalize Past Volcanic Eruptions

The balance of reds and greens reflects the amount of tiny particles in the atmosphere, scientists say

The suspect cockatoo is on the left, perched just above the Virgin's head.

Cool Finds

Why Is There a Cockatoo in This Italian Renaissance Painting?

The bird’s presence in the painting lends insight into trade between Europe and Australia in the 15th century

Measuring 745 feet across, Janet Echelman's Skies Painted with Unnumbered Sparks is her largest aerial sculpture to date.

Art Meets Science

A Massive Aerial Sculpture Is Hoisted in Downtown Vancouver

Artist Janet Echelman combines ancient techniques with modern technology to create her largest-ever net sculpture for TED’s 30th anniversary

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