NPR - 2/2/2012 3:05 PM
- Fine Art
Conservators at Madrid's Museo del Prado recently discovered that a replica of the Mona Lisa might have been painted by one of Leonardo da Vinci's pupils. The find provides fresh insight into da Vinci's enigmatic masterpiece and studio practice.
NPR - 1/29/2012 2:53 AM
- The Picture Show
He went by Weegee ? as in ouija ? because in the 1930s and '40s, the prescient photographer and his camera were often the first to show up at crime scenes.
NPR - 1/29/2012 2:47 AM
- Around the Nation
Call it the Burning Man of the Midwest: a temporary city, built around artistic expression. On a frozen lake outside of Minneapolis, the ice shanties are filled with art and dance parties.
NPR - 1/28/2012 10:55 AM
- Art & Design
Even a century since his birth, American "splatter artist" Jackson Pollock still provokes heated debate about the very definition of art. Was a man who placed a canvas on the floor and dripped paint straight from the can actually creating a work of art?
NPR - 1/25/2012 10:03 AM
- Art & Design
When Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans in 2005, it left behind a city full of destroyed homes. Now, artists have reclaimed one of the city's blighted properties in the 9th Ward ? and turned it into a work of art and music.
NPR - 1/18/2012 9:00 AM
- Around the Nation
Lego introduced a new lineup of toys earlier this month meant to appeal to girls. But a petition posted on Change.org is calling on the toy maker to stop distinguishing between toys for girls and those for boys. So far, the petition has amassed over 47 thousand signatures. Host Michel Martin speaks with one of the sponsors of that petition, Bailey Shoemaker Richards.
NPR - 1/16/2012 9:01 PM
- Author Interviews
Some of My Lives is a lively chronicle of postwar Paris and the author's celebrated circle, a movable feast that included Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse and Gertrude Stein.
NPR - 1/15/2012 5:00 AM
- Around the Nation
"I was a drum major for justice, peace and righteousness." That sentence is inscribed on a statue of Martin Luther King Jr. in Washington, D.C. The problem? King never said those words, at least, not exactly. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar has given the National Park Service a deadline to correct the inscription. Host Rachel Martin has more.
NPR - 1/15/2012 2:56 AM
- Fine Art
Metropolis II is a giant model of a city with 1,200 colorful little cars zooming at lightning speed around it. The 10-foot-tall piece basically fills up a room, and accidents can happen at any time. Artist Chris Burden decided early in his career that "movement, performance in a certain sense, was the core of sculpture."
NPR - 1/12/2012 7:00 AM
- Fine Art
With tens of thousands of Haitians still displaced and living in tent cities, some might consider art a luxury few can afford. But curator Diane Ford Dessables is working with venues in the U.S. to sell the work of Haitian painters. The sales go to the artists and to help rebuild an art school. Host Michel Martin talks with Dessables.
NPR - 1/9/2012 9:00 AM
- Arts & Life
One Maryland prison is seeing a waiting list for inmates to get into a weekly knitting class. Participants of 'Knitting Behind Bars' learn how to make hats, dolls and other small items. The program's co-founder, Lynn Zwerling, talks with host Michel Martin about how knitting has benefited prisoners.
NPR - 1/8/2012 9:01 PM
- Art & Design
Every four years in January, Washington plays host to the country's biggest "prom." Inaugural balls bring out happy winners, administration bigwigs and a gown ? on the first lady ? that will become part of history. A Smithsonian exhibition displays some of those gowns.
NPR - 12/31/2011 3:27 AM
- Art & Design
Be it a crown or a baseball cap, the hat has signified a variety of things throughout history. A dazzling traveling exhibition celebrates centuries of hats, but really, its curator says, hats tell us more about mood than time.
NPR - 12/31/2011 3:24 AM
- Author Interviews
Ellis Avery's novel The Last Nude imagines the hidden affair between art deco painter Tamara de Lempicka and her model Rafaela. From afar, the boldly colored paintings appear polished and cool-headed, but up close, Avery says, you can see they were created in a state of passion.
NPR - 12/28/2011 9:00 AM
- It Was A Good Year For...
High-end fashion designers have been getting rave reviews for the African prints, textiles and shapes that they sent down the runways. Host Michel Martin explores how it was a good year for African prints and where the trend is going in 2012. She talks with online boutique owner Dolapo Shobanjo and style correspondent Robin Givhan.
