Exhibition of the week
Anna Boghiguian
Last chance to see the Egyptian-Canadian artist’s response to the industrial history of Cornwall with Marxist papier-mache, artist’s books and paintings.
Tate St Ives until 6 May.
Also showing
Edvard Munch
Symbols of sorrow and anguish that have beauty in their truth.
British Museum, London, until 21 July.
The Renaissance Nude
Sensual depictions of bodies by some of the greatest artists of all time – what’s not to like?
Royal Academy, London, until 2 June.
Sean Scully
Thoughtful dialogue with JMW Turner by an abstract artist whose every brushmark feels hard won.
National Gallery, London, until 11 August.
Mary Quant
Time travel to London’s King’s Road circa 1965 and experience the thrill of the new as it was defined by this revolutionary designer.
V&A, London, until 16 February.
Masterpiece of the week
The Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian, completed 1475, by Antonio and Piero del Pollaiuolo
A handsome near-naked youth looks dreamily heavenward as arrows and crossbow bolts are fired into his flesh. The story of Saint Sebastian has long been a homoerotic theme in art. This early Christian refused to recant his faith, so Roman soldiers shot him full of arrows. Miraculously, he survived the ordeal. In this version of the story painted for one of the most prestigious churches in Renaissance Florence when the young Botticelli and Leonardo da Vinci were also working there, the elegance of Sebastian’s pose contrasts with the cruel work of the soldiers as they load and fire meticulously depicted weapons. They too reveal fine muscular frames as they bend and stretch. The landscape beyond looks like the Arno valley where Florence lies. A Roman ruin pays homage to the classical world while foretelling its doom. Christian martyrdom has rarely been painted with such cool curiosity about bodies and weapons.
National Gallery, London.
Image of the week
Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris
France’s principal place of worship, and one of the world’s top tourist attractions, was devastated by a fire that started in the early evening of 15 April. The roof and spire were destroyed, but initial fears that the entire building might collapse were allayed by extraordinary efforts by massed fire-fighters. Our writers assessed Notre Dame’s impact on all aspects of culture. And France suggested there will be a competition to redesign its spire. Meanwhile, the makers of video game Assassin’s Creed Unity, set in the cathedral, have pledged €500,000 and their expertise in reconstruction efforts and archaeologists are sharing digital 3D models of other heritage sites in case of future disaster.
What we learned
Sony announced the winners of its world photography awards …
… with the top prize going to Federico Borella
A new Bauhaus Museum has opened in Weimar to celebrate the design school’s centenary
The great artists might have mastered Instagram
Kirsha Kaechele served a strange feast to gallery-goers
The V&A is revving up to celebrate cars …
… and will name a gallery after Sir Elton John and David Furnish
TV is on the trail of an art forger
Pål Hansen dug deep for the Windrush legacy
We took a closer look at the extinction logo
Nepal turned a bright shade of red …
Andres Serrano has created a Donald Trump museum in New York
Spanish sculptor Eduardo Chillida has a new museum in San Sebastián
Decca record covers were groovy
Stolen Van Gogh paintings are back on display
Richard Jones captured the face of Welsh mining
Michelle Sank’s image of a muscle man in a rabbit onesie is visual anthropology
Ellen Gallagher’s Bird in Hand painting contains torn-up maps and beauty ads
Basquiat and Haring are heading to Melbourne
Erwin Olaf, photography’s Dutch master, is turning 60
Photographer Nat Finkelstein wasn’t all that bad
Carlos Javier Ortiz looked deeper at Chicago
We remembered photographer Graham Keen …
… and Icelandic painter Karólína Lárusdóttir
Don’t forget
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