Why Are Cities Filled with Metal Men on Horseback?
The original inspiration for the now-ubiquitous equestrian statue, a classical bronze of Emperor Marcus Aurelius, was almost melted down and lost forever.
The Movable Tent Cities of the Ottoman Empire
The most lavish among them were festooned with colorful appliqué and brightened with gilded leather.
These Gravity-Defying Sculptures Provoked Accusations of Demonic Possession
Demons and artists, it seems, pull from the same bag of tricks. They take ordinary matter and transform it into something more wondrous, more terrifying.
Recreating Notre Dame
The famous Paris cathedral was built over many centuries, reflecting the growth and evolution of Paris itself.
The Extremely Real Science behind the Basilisk’s Lethal Gaze
According to the extramission theory of vision, our eyes send out beams of elemental fire that spread, nerve like, to create the visual field.
When Artists Painted with Real Mummies
The popular paint pigment called “mummy brown” used to be made from—yep—ground-up Egyptian mummies.
The Park of Monsters
Constructed in the mid-16th century by Pier Francesco "Vicino" Orsini, this bizarre pleasure garden features twelve strange, disturbing statues--and no one knows why.
The Art of Walking
Walking as an art has a deep history. By guiding participants, or their own bodies, on walks, artists encourage us to see the extraordinary in the mundane.
Francis Picabia’s Chameleonic Style
The Francis Picabia retrospective at MoMA is wowing museumgoers again with his ever-shifting, always challenging art.
Kehinde Wiley: The Unlikely Star of the Hit Show “Empire”
Delve into the art and culture of Fox’s “Empire” through the monumental portrait paintings of Kehinde Wiley.