Modern Art

Artist Graham Sutherland painted this study of William Churchill in preparation for a portrait that the politician famously despised.

A Study for the Portrait Winston Churchill Famously Abhorred Is for Sale

The final painting, dramatized on Netflix's "The Crown," was secretly burned in the middle of the night

The Pinakothek der Moderne in Munich, Germany, has more than 20,000 works in its collection.

Employee Quietly Sneaks His Own Painting Onto the Walls of a German Museum

After discovering the stunt, the ​​Pinakothek der Moderne fired the staffer and reported the crime to the police

Tiger, oil on canvas, 1912. The artist’s vibrant animal paintings were based on careful study, including hours spent observing big cats at the Berlin Zoo. 

This Artist Turned to Painting Animals in a Turbulent Historical Moment

The German Expressionist painter Franz Marc found a subject worth celebrating in the early 20th century

Installation view of "Revolutions: Art from the Hirshhorn Collection, 1860–1960," on display at the Hirshhorn Museum through April 20, 2025

Explore a Century of Masterpieces, From Rodin to Picasso, Brought Together by One Passionate Collector

A self-described "little man in a hurry," Joseph Hirshhorn built a premier modern art collection

The mural, now known as Entrée du port, depicts buildings, ship banners and masts piercing a sky.

This Cézanne Mural Was Hidden in the Walls of the Artist's Family Home

Workers found fragments of a naval scene while renovating the mansion in the south of France

L’ami intime (The Intimate Friend), René Magritte, 1958

Magritte Masterpiece Featuring a Floating Baguette Goes to Auction

"L'ami intime" could fetch $63 million at an upcoming sale celebrating 100 years of Surrealism

The museum offered an experience called "Van Gogh's Palette," allowing visitors to immerse themselves in one of the artist's paintings.

Musée d'Orsay Breaks Attendance Records With Interactive Vincent van Gogh Exhibition

The show exploring the artist's final works featured an interactive recreation of the painter trained on hundreds of his letters

Eve, Marc Chagall, 1971

Stolen Chagall Print Recovered Months After Thieves Stuffed It Into a 1996 Honda and Sped Away

Detectives have arrested two suspects involved in the dramatic heist at a New York City gallery

David Hockney painted California (1965) after traveling to Los Angeles for the first time.

One of David Hockney's First Pool Paintings Is Going on View for the First Time in 40 Years

"California," which set the stage for the British artist's later poolside pieces, is expected to sell for more than $20 million

Portrait of Fräulein Lieser, the 31-by-55-inch work by Gustav Klimt, at a press conference in Vienna

Lost Gustav Klimt Portrait Rediscovered Nearly 100 Years After It Vanished

"Portrait of Fräulein Lieser," one of the last works the Austrian artist painted before his death, could sell for over $50 million

For the year 2024, here are 24 things to look forward to at the Smithsonian.

Twenty-Four Smithsonian Shows to See in 2024

Election-year items, truth serum, Nigerian art and a pioneering self-driving car are on display this year

Luna Luna's creator, André Heller, stands on a merry-go-round designed by Keith Haring in June 1987.

When Keith Haring, Salvador Dalí and Jean-Michel Basquiat Created an Art Amusement Park

A resurrected version of Luna Luna, a fairground started by artist André Heller in 1987, opens in Los Angeles later this month

The exhibition uses the Seattle Art Museum's double-height galleries to showcase works like the 22-foot-tall sculpture Red Curly Tail  (1970).

Expansive Alexander Calder Exhibition Opens in Seattle

"Calder: In Motion" celebrates the iconic artist’s innovative mobiles, sculptures and other works

Thieves used a hammer to shatter the front door to the gallery and made off with a Chagall print.

Thieves With Hammer Stole $100,000 Chagall Print From Manhattan Gallery

The whereabouts of the work—and the individuals who conducted the "brazen" heist—remain a mystery

Pablo Picasso’s Femme à la montre (or Woman with a Watch) sold for a whopping $139.4 million at Sotheby’s in New York this month.

'Femme à la Montre' Becomes Second Most Expensive Picasso Ever Sold

The 1932 painting of the artist's mistress, Marie-Thérèse Walter, fetched $139 at auction

Before it was stolen, the toilet had been installed in a bathroom at Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire, England.

Four Men Charged With 2019 Theft of $6 Million Gold Toilet

Titled "America," the infamous 18-karat loo was created by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan

David Hockney paints the portrait of Harry Styles that is currently on display in the exhibition.

David Hockney Show Opens in London—and Features a New Portrait of Harry Styles

"David Hockney: Drawing from Life" returns to the National Portrait Gallery after the pandemic shut it down three years ago

Artist Dan Miller works at Creative Growth Art Center, which is partnering with the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.

San Francisco Museum of Modern Art Acquires More Than 100 Works by Artists With Disabilities

The purchase is one of the largest acquisitions of its kind by any museum in the United States

Nam June Paik’s 1995 Electronic Superhighway: Continental U.S., Alaska, Hawaii—a pulsing map of the 50 states lined with 575 feet of multicolored neon tubing, with each state defined by flickering video from 336 televisions and 50 DVD players—is one of the museum’s most popular pieces.

With Renovated Galleries, the Smithsonian Expands Its Approach to Contemporary American Art

The historic hall in the American Art Museum where President Abraham Lincoln held his second inaugural ball welcomes more diverse voices and visions

Alma Thomas, Autumn Leaves Fluttering in the Breeze, 1973, acrylic on canvas, 40 x 50 in., Smithsonian American Art Museum, Bequest of the artist, 1980.36.9

Alma Thomas' Signature Style Is Full of Color and Tiled Brushstrokes

After a career as a schoolteacher, the Washington, D.C.-based painter flourished, creating vibrant patterns inspired by nature, the cosmos and music

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