The Climate Canvasses of the Little Ice Age
Low Country artists of the late Renaissance and Early Baroque eras captured the happiness and hardships of snowy winters—an ever rarer phenomenon now.
How American Librarians Helped Defeat the Nazis
Recruited to the war effort thanks to their deft research skills and technological know-how, librarians used microforms to gather and share intelligence with Allied forces.
Scrub-a-Dub in a Medieval Tub
Contrary to popular misconceptions, Europeans in the Middle Ages took pains to keep themselves clean.
A Centennial Celebration of Spring and All
William Carlos Williams's hybrid work of poetry and prose both upended narrative conventions and delighted in the wondrous, unifying force of imagination.
Slavery and the Modern-Day Prison Plantation
"Except as punishment for a crime," reads the constitutional exception to abolition. In prison plantations across the United States, slavery thrives.
Indigenous Kings in Londontown
In 1710, Queen Anne of England feted four Native American dignitaries—would-be political allies. Their presence at a performance of Macbeth caused a stir.
Lines of Poetry, Rows of Trees
Ronald Johnson’s Valley of the Many-Colored Grasses, newly re-issued, offers entry into the work of a pioneering master collagist.
AI and the Creative Process: Part Three
The multifaceted nature of creativity subverts the assumption it’s a human endeavor exclusively—meaning we might need to radically re-think the definition of “art.”
AI and the Creative Process: Part Two
Though technological innovation has always influenced considerations of art—think of Duchamp’s controversial urinal—the constant throughout is human touch.
AI and the Creative Process: Part One
How does generative artificial intelligence upend conventional understandings of who is and what makes for a true artist?