Culture
Art & design
David Hockney said he would keep painting until the very end. He was true to his word
“I’m just going to go on working ’til I fall over,” said the renowned British artist at the opening of his exhibition in Australia in 2016. He did just that.
- by Debbie Cuthbertson
Latest
To Barbie and beyond: How a plastic doll became a design icon
A 1959 first-edition Barbie worth up to $40,000 will be among 150 dolls on display as part of an exclusive Australian exhibition devoted to the plastic figure turned cultural icon.
- by Kayla Olaya
David Hockney, artist renowned for his pool scenes, dies aged 88
The British artist, whose brightly coloured renditions of California made him one of the most celebrated artists of the 20th and 21st centuries, died on Thursday.
- by Jill Lawless
"Unsung hero of architecture'': Michael Dysart
Tim Ross on his podcast @modernister nominated Sydney architect Michael Dysart as one of his all time heroes. Here he talks to Dysart about Urambi Village.
Review
Arts
Beautiful but shallow: The NGV’s new blockbuster is big on celebrity but light on insight
Mostly, the pieces are designed to showcase the wealth of the wearer, and a jewel is nothing if not draped across a powerful figure.
- by Will Cox
Kylie Kwong among consultants dumped as Powerhouse cuts controversial program
The $2.6 million program sparked concerns that consultants were supplanting the roles of professionally accredited curators.
- by Linda Morris
Series
Rising Festival
Rising festival 2026
This year’s festival has kicked off. Here, our writers take a closer look.
These artworks were created for a lost exhibition. Fifty-one years on, they’re finally going on show
In the 1970s Arthur Boyd, the renowned Australian painter, commissioned a series of 20 tapestries that upon completion were never displayed together. This month, that changes.
- by Elizabeth Flux
‘It couldn’t be more relevant’: Shaun Gladwell on Arthur Boyd’s most enigmatic work
The acclaimed visual artist is on fire (literally) in his new commission at Bundanon.
- by Robert Moran
Big stars, bigger bling: How Cartier made Hollywood sparkle
A new exhibition explores the allure of the jewellery brand celebrities love to wear.
- by Lindy Percival
John Laws’ antiques and golden bling sell for millions at auction
Bidding was fast at three live auctions for the broadcaster’s watch collection and fine art, classic furniture, antiquities and French mantel clocks.
- by Linda Morris