Exhibition of the week
Nature in Focus
To celebrate the 60th anniversary of its wildlife photographer of the year competition, the Natural History Museum takes a look at how photography enhances our knowledge of nature.
• Natural History Museum, London, until 19 July 2025
Also showing
Home
Uneasy photographs of life and death in Ukraine under Russia’s unprovoked attack.
• Stills Gallery, Edinburgh, until 5 October
Hayley Barker
A surreal depiction of the Ringing Stone, a curious boulder whose acoustic properties have been revered since prehistoric times, adds folk horror to this painterly show.
• Ingleby Gallery, Edinburgh, until 31 August
LAIKA: Frame x Frame
The secrets of stop-go animation are revealed by this retrospective of the studio behind Coraline and Box Trolls.
• Blue Room, BFI Southbank, London, until 1 October
Noémie Goudal
Photography and sculpture exploring the mysterious nature of space.
• Mostyn, Llandudno, until 7 September
Image of the week
Mark Zuckerberg raised eyebrows by commissioning a giant sculpture of his wife, Priscilla Chan. In a photo of the statue, posted to Instagram, the Facebook CEO and co-founder said he was “bringing back the Roman tradition of making sculptures of your wife”. The large sculpture was made by Daniel Arsham, a New York-based artist who has collaborated with brands including Tiffany and Dior. Chan is rendered in green and appears to be mid-stride, with a large silver cloak flowing behind her. Read the full story.
What we learned
From Cyprus to the Berlin Wall, we found the top spots for al fresco art in Europe
NYC’s Met Museum has gone big on Japanese poetry, calligraphy and painting
A survey has suggested that arts and crafts give greater life satisfaction than work
Monet’s inspirations can be seen all over central France
French customs officers thwarted the €1.3m sale of a fake Leonardo da Vinci painting
Nek Chand, who handbuilt a 25-acre outsider masterpiece, never felt he was an artist
Banksy artworks are popping up everywhere. These are the best (and worst)
Chile’s political struggles are played out in public art and graffiti
Masterpiece of the week
Orpheus by Roelandt Savery, 1628
Orpheus charms the animals with music in this painting by an artist who was fascinated by nature. Painting at a time when the curiosity of the Renaissance was giving birth to modern science, Savery spent part of his career at the court of the eccentric emperor Rudolf II in Prague, where natural wonders were collected and the astonomers Tycho Brahe and Johannes Kepler employed. His most famous painting today is The Dodo – – one of the few images of this now extinct bird that may record its living appearance. There doesn’t seem to be a dodo in this idyllic, blue-tinged landscape but lions, a pelican, an elephant, swans, deer, cattle, goats and a peacock are among the many creatures drawn together by the sweet music of Orpheus. They are all at peace: a hunting dog seems to want to make friends with a stag.
• National Gallery, London
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