Can you repatriate a painting? Descendants of Aboriginal painter William Barak ran a crowdsourcing campaign to try to buy back the previously unknown artwork Ceremony.
A electric screen showing Shanghai Pudong financial area in a clear day, is seen amid heavy smog in Shanghai. What can art do to make climate change more real?
Aly Song
Climate change is such a big problem it’s almost impossible for us to really understand. We need artists to mobilise on a huge scale to render the problem comprehensible.
Detail of ‘The Morteratsch Glacier, Upper Engadine Valley, Pontresina,’ by Albert Bierstadt, 1895.
Wikiart
A new field of research aims to deepen, and even quantify, our understanding of artistic style. We use mathematical techniques to help discover novel insights, even in well-studied paintings.
Indian artists such as Bhupen Khakhar may be gaining international acclaim, but more is needed to help build and maintain a strong infrastructure for artists at home.
Many can identify with the phenomenon of feeling a thrill – followed by a chill – when listening to a particularly moving piece of music.
'Pink' via www.shutterstock.com
The conviction of two men in relation to the sale of forged Brett Whiteley paintings indicates that Australia needs to get its act together when it comes to authenticating artworks.
Tableaux Vivants Devonport c. 1892-1893.
Wilson Centre for Photography
It is hard for us to visualise the trends and processes of climate change, which are largely hidden. But posters - with their richly subversive history - are the perfect medium for prompting contemplation and action.
Utopianism is a neglected prism through which to view Africa. It is the space where the intricacies of decolonisation and independence can be properly comprehended.
The decision looks like a reinforcement of the large imbalance in cultural spending between London and the north of England.
Australia’s Aboriginal welfare problem of the 60s enabled widespread theft from Indigenous artists – including designs for the one dollar note.
Reserve Bank of Australia.
Australia’s original $1 note featured artwork taken without permission from Aboriginal artist, David Malangi. He was later given $1000, a medallion and a fishing kit, but archival evidence sheds new light on the affair.
Why is Whistler’s mother one of the most persistently famous images in the world?
James McNeill Whistler, Arrangement in grey and black no. 1 (Portrait of the artist's mother) 1871. Image courtesy of the NGV.
Whistler’s Mother, which arrives in Melbourne on March 25, is one of the most famous portraits in the world. But James Whistler never wanted the sitter’s identity known.
William Yang has, maybe more than anyone else, shaped Sydney’s view of itself. A new book, William Yang: Stories of Love and Death, collects his iconic photographs, with scrawled annotations.
Faced with fake history, Indian artists are digging up the past.
The British Museum owns a number of priceless pieces of Aboriginal art, and claim they’re the best possible home for Australian heritage items.
Paul Hudson
The Dja Dja Warrung bark etchings are hugely significant Aboriginal artefacts. They’re back in Australia for only the second time in 160 years. We look at the complex issue of repatriation.
Honorary (Senior Fellow) School of Culture and Communication University of Melbourne. Editor in Chief, Design and Art of Australia Online, The University of Melbourne