Art
How Andrew Wyeth's Cast Bronze Hands Inspired a Morbid Self-Portrait
Andrew Wyeth was not fond of self-portraits, and they rarely appear in his long career in 20th-century realism.
Auctions
News
Rare Shunga Scroll of Gay Erotic Scenes Goes to Auction
Shunga, the Japanese term for erotic art, was highly popular during the Edo Period, with artists still creating to fill demand even after the government banned the explicit illustrations in 1722.
News
Mementoes of Grief Go to Auction from the US's Only Museum for Mourning Art
Art related to death in the United States evolved from European influences in the colonial era to a distinct language of mourning, guided by widespread grieving for public figures like the country's presidents.
In Brief
A Skull Carved from a Meteorite Lands on the Auction Block
The skull is a universal symbol of mortality, appearing in artworks by everyone from Hans Holbein the Younger and Albrecht Dürer to Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat.
Opinion
Move Over, Modigliani: Some Slightly More Altruistic Ways to Spend $170.4 Million
On Monday, Amadeo Modigliani's "Nu couché" (Reclining Nude), a 1917 painting of a woman sprawled naked on red bedding, fetched $170.4 million at Christie's.
News
Four Centuries of Cat Art Go Up for Auction
As works by artists from Balthus to Théophile Steinlen reveal, the cat has long been a popular subject for depiction.
Art
An Illustrated Guide to Auction House Terminology
What is “chandelier bidding?” How do third-party guarantees work? And what are the “three D’s?”
Art
Highlights from Maya Angelou's Art Collection Head to Auction
Works from the private art collection of renowned poet and author Maya Angelou will soon go on public display.
Art
Silhouette Portraits from the Days Before Photography
Before photography, the silhouette was a popular form of portraiture more affordable than oil painting, where the outline of a face in profile was cut in black.
Art
Political Cartoons from a Golden Age of British Satire
In late 18th-century Britain, etched cartoons and caricatures abounded, poking fun at kings, noblemen, society ladies, French revolutionaries, the institution of marriage, and countless other people and things.
In Brief
Newly Discovered Photo Offers a Glimpse of van Gogh, Gauguin, and Other Drunk Artists
While Vincent van Gogh's self-portraits were a significant part of his painting career, no confirmed photographs of the artist as an adult are known to exist.
News
Hopi Tribe Fights to Halt French Sales of Sacred Artifacts for Good
Wednesday morning, Paris's Drouot auction house proceeded with a contentious sale of objects sacred to the Hopi Tribe of northern Arizona.