Sydney shows its heart to the world
Sydney Biennale has had a chequered history, but half a century after its first iteration a new book about the event reminds us of its champions, its humble beginnings, and why the timing was just right.
Visual Arts
The art and guilt of self-hatred
Cultural edginess has been replaced with self-pity about our ‘vulnerabilities’ and our supposed need for ‘healing’.
Top gong for art donor Lyn Williams welcome ‘but overdue’
Fred Williams’ wife, Lyn, reveals how her husband feared his artistic legacy would die with him – but the revered painter’s wife kept it alive.
Window into a lost artform
Whalemen who were bored out at sea scratched their longings into the teeth and bones of the great ocean mammals. Then one such mariner became tangled in a story of mutiny and misfortune.
Unlocking the mysteries of Machu Picchu in Peru
What was this place, occupied by the Incan Empire, from about the early 1400s to the mid-1500s?
So who did really capture ‘Napalm Girl’ shot?
International news wire agency Associated Press has been forced to defend an acclaimed photographer’s credit for shooting ‘Napalm Girl’.
How years of planning, staff are helping the Getty Museum survive an inferno
The J. Paul Getty Museum’s survival against daunting odds is emerging as a near-miraculous beacon of disaster preparedness as the Los Angeles fires continue to wreak havoc.
Intimate portrait of a genius … captured in the artworks and objects he truly loved
The late satirist and comedian Barry Humphries’ private collection of art and objects will be sold in London next month. His son reflects on his father’s passion for beauty.
Will the MCA door charge work?
Free entry to the great museums of the world allows truly democratic access to some of the most important art and archaeology of the world. Has the MCA doomed itself to failure?
How doxxing victim was lauded one day, hounded the next
The relentless pile-on against Nina Sanadze, who moved to Australia in 1996 after her family fled the Georgian civil war, reflects the deep and damaging splits in the arts caused by rising tensions over the Israel-Gaza conflict.
How Australia changed its attitude towards migration
Hopes and Fears traces the successive waves of migration that made Australia a more harmonious multicultural nation.
The best and worst of art exhibitions of 2024
There were some welcome surprises on the exhibition calendar, mostly imports, but many metropolitan galleries had a lacklustre year.
The top 10 movies of the year — and some bonus choices
This year my film favourites are an eclectic bunch … but all of them are well worth your time. How many have you seen?
![Mary Magdalene bottom right, behind the cross and kissing it? : according to Sara Penco, the author of the new book Mary Magdalene in Michelangelo’s Judgement. Dec 2024 Vatican Museum Director Professor Antonio Paolucci unveiled today to the international Press the new Lightining and air conditioning system of the Sistine Chapel, where about 6 million tourists a year visit the chapel to marvel at Michelangelo's ceiling and his depiction of the Last Judgment on the altar wall.The German firm Osram has installed more than 7,000 light-emitting diodes (LEDs) in a gilded, rail-like structure high up on the walls of the chapel to protect the artworks and provide brighter lighting.Although visitors will get less time to view the chapel, Paolucci said: "Starting in the early months of 2015, visitors to the Vatican Museums are going to be offered special, disposable ‘intelligent glasses' similar to Google Glass that will enable them to explore the Sistine [Chapel] in 3D and go deeper into its history before the actual visit."EDITORIAL US (Photo by Alessandra Benedetti/Corbis via Getty Images)](https://content.api.news/v3/images/bin/123f7bdee11c452e398dc1b37abf45fe?width=650)
Another judgment: Mary Magdalene was right up there with Jesus all along
An Italian author says the woman who followed Christ to the end is in a Sistine Chapel fresco.
The golden age for wandering artists shines bright in this exhibition
Paul Jacoulet was born in an exotic location and made his life there, while Ian Fairweather fled in search of the exotic.
Creative thinking for a cultural powerhouse
We’re fourth in the world for creative thinking, but a cultural strategy could take us to the top.
The original croc hunter: Art, soul and spirit of an adventurer
Crocodile hunter, sanctuary keeper and art collector George Craig lived a daring life to the full.
First-time entry fees for modern art lovers
Entry to the Museum of Contemporary Art will cease to be free in 2025, with general admission set to start costing art-lovers $20 from the end of January.
Taylah Hasaballah’s paintings are built to decay
With her upcoming Sydney exhibition DIG, Hasaballah challenges art’s obsession with permanence, using chemical reactions and environmental influences to shape paintings that evolve over time.
A new exhibition brings the city of the dead to life
This enthralling exhibition at the National Museum, called simply Pompeii, throws light on the people whose lives were cut short in one brief, terrifying moment.
Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/arts/visual-arts