Smithsonian Institution

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The Seeker

Salvatore Mancini has photographed factories along the Blackstone River Valley to record a local history of the Industrial Revolution.
Salvatore Mancini’s quest for elemental connections
By GREG COOK | June 25, 2010

Photos: 'The Kennedys' at Peabody Essex Museum

Photographs of JFK and his family
"The Kennedys” exhibit at Peabody Essex Museum, through July 18
By RICHARD AVEDON | May 21, 2010

Puppet pageants

In the beginning, there was Kermit. Not Kermit the Frog — not just yet. That would come nearly 15 years later.
The influential art of Jim Henson and Peter Schumann
By GREG COOK | May 07, 2010

Printing matters

An aged poster hangs framed in Patricia Nick’s apartment bearing a handwritten mantra. In faded blue marker, the author scripted “An original print is NOT a reproduction. It is an original work of art conceived and drawn or cut on the plate, block or st
Vinalhaven Press artifacts at June Fitzpatrick
By ANNIE LARMON | April 16, 2010

Fresh fruit and vegetables

The bleakest months of New England winter are ahead of us, so the prospect of leaving your toasty house to see art may not be at the top of your to-do list.
A winter crop of art
By GREG COOK | January 01, 2010

Alternative energy

At the end of August, the seven-month-old Massachusetts Creative Economy Council released its first report on the state of culture here.
GASP marks five years
By GREG COOK | October 16, 2009

Review: Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian

In the three years since last he was on screen, Ben Stiller's bored night guard, Larry Daley, has become a well-to-do hawker of infomercial crap, but he's still not in the right place.
Dusting off the same old display cases
By TOM MEEK | May 22, 2009

Solved?

In the wee hours of March 18, 1990, two men posing as police officers gained entrance to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, tied up the two security guards, and stole 13 pieces of art.
Ulrich Boser takes on the Gardner heist
By JEFFREY GANTZ | March 18, 2009

With friends like these

Warren Harding was obviously not one of our greatest presidents. But during his little more than two years in the White House, he did offer some shrewd insights into life at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
Obama should worry less about befriending the GOP and more about keeping his own party in line
By STEVEN STARK | February 05, 2009

Universal tales

For the 11th consecutive year, the Rhode Island Black Storytellers (RIBS) are bringing stories and tellers from near and far for the eight-day FUNDA Fest (January 18-25).
Diane Macklin makes a difference at FUNDA
By JOHNETTE RODRIGUEZ | January 13, 2009

Real time savers

Breaking news: scientists have eradicated the social malady known as "watch tan." The cure, of course, was the advent of the cell phone.
Whither wristwatches?
By GEORGIANA COHEN | December 17, 2008

Tweak-folk

Released this summer, Nico Muhly's Mothertongue (Bedroom Community) — the latest album by the ambitious contemporary classical music composer, a protégé of Philip Glass — offers listeners a bombastic example of the ongoing collaboration between the comp
Reimagined folk songs by Sam Amidon
By CHRISTOPHER GRAY | December 03, 2008

Interview: The DeCordova’s new director holds forth

Dennis Kois (rhymes with voice) began work as the new executive director of the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park in Lincoln on June 2.
Voice of Kois
By GREG COOK | June 24, 2008

In our nature

Gohlke looks at nature not as something that we gaze on from a distance but as the often defiant or disappointing environment where we live.
Frank Gohlke at the Addison, ‘Pulp Function’ at the Worcester Center for Crafts, and ‘Expanded Sculpture 2’ at 119 Gallery
By RANDI HOPKINS | April 02, 2008

Political art

Tucked inside President Bush’s stinker of a 2009 budget are a series of proposals that would shamefully cut funding for the arts.
The know-nothing Bush administration makes one more attack on the arts. What you can do and why you should do it.
By EDITORIAL | February 13, 2008

Blues redux

Demystifying the origins of the blues has become a cottage publishing industry.
The music’s other life
By TED DROZDOWSKI | February 12, 2008

The long view

Bob Blumenthal’s first book is out, and the wonder is that we didn’t get it sooner.
Bob Blumenthal’s history of jazz
By JON GARELICK | January 29, 2008

Fabulous faker

It was a sublime scene, even though the seven-foot-tall painting was cracked, threadbare in places, patched in others, and dulled by a gray-brown murk.
Zhang Daqian’s imaginary landscapes, plus “A Tradition Redefined”
By GREG COOK | December 31, 2007

Gods and monsters — and David Hasselhoff

The Museum of Fine Arts did big things with Napoleon and Edward Hopper, pictures of prostitutes graced the walls of Boston’s two biggest art museums, and all hell broke loose when the Mooninites invaded.
Art: 2007 in review
By GREG COOK | December 17, 2007

Earmuffs for everyone

The story goes that 15-year-old Chester Greenwood was ice-skating when his ears got unbearably cold.
Celebrations
By DEIRDRE FULTON | November 28, 2007

Environmental issues

For the better part of the last 15 years, local artist, organizer, and composer Jed Speare has been an integral member of Boston’s artistic community.
The Sound Works of Jed Speare
By SUSANNA BOLLE | November 27, 2007

Have words, will travel

Black has written and performed stories about many unsung heroines, from Lucy Stone to Rosie the Riveter, from her grandmother to her mother-in-law.
Judith Black’s tales take you on a journey
By JOHNETTE RODRIGUEZ | September 13, 2007

Type Radio

The UK label Type Records specializes in avant-garde music with a soft, lyrical touch.
Free extended MP3 mixes
By SUSANNA BOLLE | July 30, 2007

Thinking inside the box

Joseph Cornell was the quintessential odd duck.
Joseph Cornell in Salem
By GREG COOK | April 24, 2007

An exile’s journey

Cuban artist María Magdalena Campos-Pons arrived at Boston’s Institute of Contemporary Art one December day in 1991.
María Magdalena Campos-Pons gets a retrospective in Indianapolis
By GREG COOK | February 20, 2007

Hand made

Eight years after Loïs Mailou Jones’s death, School of the Museum of Fine Arts curator Joanna Soltan is proclaiming her to be “among the most significant African-American artists of the 20th century.”
Loïs Mailou Jones and Clare Rojas
By GREG COOK | October 04, 2006

Face painting

When the Smithsonian Institution’s National Portrait Gallery reopens July 1, its collection will include a painting by South Portland artist Brett Bigbee.
Local artist, national finalist
By KIRSTEN TERRY | June 28, 2006

Beyond dollars and square feet

When the Institute of Contemporary Art revealed specifics of the first 11 acquisitions for its permanent collection a month ago, I watched with particular interest.
How will museum expansion in Massachusetts affect the way we see — and talk about — art?
By GREG COOK | April 05, 2006

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