Art & Design

IPhone Photo Award Winners Capture Tender Moments, Stark Contrasts And A Magical Sky

5:51pm July 31, 2021

by Adela Wu

The winning images from this year's iPhone Photography Awards feature a man connecting with his horse, two rugged shepherds holding soft lambs and a figure looking into a brilliant night sky.

A man covers himself from rain with an umbrella as he walks by the Baltimore Museum of Art on April 21, 2020. An upcoming exhibit at the museum will be curated by security guards.

Arts

At This Baltimore Museum, Security Guards Will Be The Ones Curating The Exhibit

11:31am July 29, 2021

by Jonathan Franklin

Opening in March 2022, the new "Guarding the Art" exhibit will feature hidden gems selected by the museum's own security guards.

Queue Listen Now

People mourn their ancestors and the deceased at a cemetery in Quanzhou during the traditional Qingming Festival, or "Tomb-sweeping Day."

Iranian Railway, Ancient Chinese City Among New UNESCO World Heritage Sites

6:12pm July 26, 2021

by Neda Ulaby

What do a railway in Iran, a mountainous national park in Thailand and a spa town in the Czech Republic have in common? They're all part of a newly announced group of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Arts

Baltimore Museum Of Art Tries Something New To Include More Diverse Perspectives

5:38am July 26, 2021

Who are the curators for the exhibit opening in March? The folks who spend the most time with the art, and gently remind people not to touch it — 17 members of the museum's security team.

Lee Miller, Self-Portrait with Headband (variant), 1932 gelatin silver print, Lee Miller Studios Inc., New York

Arts

Behind The Lens, These Women Created Photographs That Leap Over Decades

5:00am July 25, 2021

by Susan Stamberg

Two current museum exhibitions — The Woman Who Broke Boundaries at the Dali Museum and The New Woman Behind the Camera at the Metropolitan Museum of Art — celebrate women photographers.

Shari Davis presentation on the TED MainStage, as part of TED2020: Uncharted. July 02, 2020. Photo courtesy of TED.

Shari Davis: What If You Could Decide How The Government Spends Public Funds?

9:52am July 23, 2021

Public places don't always fully meet the needs of a community. Shari Davis explains how participatory budgeting can give us all a voice in creating safer and more equitable public spaces.

Queue Listen Now

Arts

Matthew Mazzotta: How Can We Redesign Overlooked Spaces To Better Serve The Public?

9:52am July 23, 2021

Artist Matthew Mazzotta says every community needs public spaces to gather, discuss, and address issues. He works with towns to reimagine overlooked buildings and give them a new public purpose.

Queue Listen Now

Books
Arts

Author Rae Nudson On Beauty Culture

5:23pm July 11, 2021

NPR's Danielle Kurtzleben speaks with Rae Nudson about her new book All Made Up: The Power and Pitfalls of Beauty Culture, From Cleopatra to Kim Kardashian.

We asked NPR readers to share the items they can't live without in the pandemic. From left to right: Kenji Hall with his traditional Japanese pot, Trish Kandik with her foster dog Penelope and Lauren Morton with a takeout container of Indian food.

PHOTOS: What Item Is Giving You Joy In A Pandemic? Your Beautiful And Quirky Answers

7:44am July 11, 2021

by Suzette Lohmeyer

We asked NPR readers to share photos of the objects they can't live without during the pandemic. Their responses are funny, surprising — and some might make you tear up.

A model walks the runway during the Zuhair Murad Couture Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2021/2022 show as part of Paris Fashion Week on July 7, 2021.

Arts

Paris Fashion Week Returns, Making The Case For In-Person Haute Couture

8:39am July 09, 2021

by Allyson Portee

Paris Fashion Week returned with 33 in-person shows and 24 digital presentations. As audiences gathered along runways in the French capital, the haute couture industry faces an fragile future.