Art
The Tricky Role of Humor in Activist Art and Design
An SFMOMA exhibition raises questions about what it means when museum board members have ties to politicians who support border wall policies.
Reviews
Art
Exhibiting the Afterlives of Looted Art
The Jewish Museum delves into "degenerate" art and art made under duress as part of a thought-provoking yet diffuse exhibition.
Art
Model, Rebel, and Painter, Suzanne Valadon Defied the Odds
Her female nudes were extraordinary for the time because she portrayed female sexual desire. Her subjects defied conventional ideals of femininity.
Art
The Cerebral Art of Wrestling
Wrestling is less a physical act than a psychological space in Mark Yang’s paintings.
Art
The Voices Dawoud Bey Hears
Unless you were already familiar with Bey's documentary work, the horror he refers to might not be recognizable to you.
Art
Shimon Attie Resurrects “Hitler on Ice” With Afro-Brazilian Dance
The intention behind the seemingly bizarre combination was, according to Attie, “to give visual form to the shared American and Brazilian reality of nationalistic divisions that defines our political present.”
Art
Diane Simpson's Sculpture Finds Beauty of a Different Kind
In a world delighted and entertained by displays of material excess, Diane Simpson shows that there is another possibility.
Art
Tamara Kostianovsky Envisions a Whimsical Slaughterhouse
The animal carcass sculptures are gruesome yet their materials — the artist’s own discarded clothing — lend them some gentleness.
Film
Dune Is Impressive but Incomplete
The biggest problem with turning Dune into a film is that the book appears increasingly derivative of generic sci-fi tropes.
Books
The Mythology of the Cross-Country Motorcycle Trip in Ed Roberson's Early Poems
Ed Roberson's motorcycle ride from Pittsburgh to the Pacific is a quest-romance, an exploration of American culture and American mythology.
Art
A Well-Intentioned Poussin Show Almost Gets it Right
Poussin and the Dance is a valiant attempt to break into Poussin’s staunchly academic oeuvre and provide a relatable point of entry, highlighting the exciting elements of revelry and movement despite impenetrable and unemotional rendering.
Art
Creating Home From Scraps of Place
With scavenged materials, Amanda Maciel Antunes constructs a motherland.