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Pablo Picasso Created How-To-Draw Books For His Daughter

The artist "created them for Maya Ruiz-Picasso when she was aged between five and seven. On some pages, the little girl made impressive attempts to imitate the master. She also graded her father’s work, scribbling the number '10' on a circus scene, to show her approval." - The Observer (UK)

Stranger Things Fans, Here’s How To Expand Your Kate Bush Fandom

"Legions of Stranger Things viewers have been recently indoctrinated into a secular belief system that has already transformed millions of lives. The text that led them there? Kate Bush’s 1985 song 'Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God).'" But there's more. - Los Angeles Times

The Colosseum’s Been Around So Long That It Has Been A Holy Site For Pagans And Christians Alike

Sure, gladiators, but: "The recent restoration of a 17th-century wall painting of ancient Jerusalem on one of the Colosseum’s main interior arches is shedding new light on another centuries-old use of the Roman landmark: as a sacred site for Christian worship." - The New York Times

The Sydney Morning Herald Says It Didn’t Threaten To Out Actor Rebel Wilson

Amid an absolute avalanche of online criticism, the SMH has activists shaking their heads. "The 42-year-old Australian actress, who is known for roles in Bridesmaids and Pitch Perfect among others, said it was a 'very hard situation but trying to handle it with grace.'" - BBC

The Shocking Truth Behind Most Contemporary Architecture

Theaster Gates' design for the Serpentine Pavilion 2022 reveals that there's slavery behind many contemporary building materials, and buildings: "To the greatest extent possible, Black Chapel was built without any materials produced by slave labor." - Fast Company

Angela Lansbury Wins A Lifetime Tony, And All Of The Other Tonys Results As They Happened

As Lansbury wins and Chita Rivera is in the audience, we see how "the theater, for all its physical hardships, can provide actors with pretty good third or fourth acts to their careers." (Of course, for some of the Tonys winners, this is a first act.) - The New York Times

As Climate Change Destroys Paleolithic Cave Art, France Opens A Museum Of Reproductions

The Cosquer cave is "an underground grotto off the coast of Marseille that was once home to more than 500 works of prehistoric art." Now 150 remain, and climate change is rapidly destroying access (and the paintings themselves). But a new museum gives everyone access. - Artnet

The Irish Writer And Artist Who Created Countless East German Books

Elizabeth Shaw had quite a life: "From a childhood living above the Ulster Bank in Belfast's York Street, via the London Blitz to four decades spent as an artist in communist East Germany, hers is a remarkable 20th century life story." - BBC

This Women’s Social Club Changed Literature And Art, But Its Members Kept It Quiet

"Guest speakers, frequently invited, included Margaret Sanger, the poet Amy Lowell, Emma Goldman speaking on 'Anarchy,' and Edith Ellis, a lesbian writer in an open marriage with the scandalous sexologist Havelock Ellis, speaking on the topic of 'Love.'" There were even "husbands' evenings," when men were allowed. - LitHub

A 101-Year-Old Dutch Woman Is Reunited With A Painting Looted By The Nazis

Her father, a doctor who resisted Nazi orders, "had stored the painting in the Amsterdam Bank in Arnhem, thinking it would be safe there. But the Nazis broke into the vaults and seized it, amid widespread looting, destruction and devastation." - The Guardian (UK)

Looks Like Dance Classes Improve Your Memory

That's a summary, but: "Latinos age 55 and over who participated in a culturally relevant Latin dance program for eight months significantly improved their working memory compared with peers in the control group who attended health education workshops." - Neuroscience News

Why So Many Art Critics Find Women’s Bodies Monstrous

In the 1970s, "there was a backlash against reclaiming of the naked body, from feminist polemicists campaigning against pornography, to feminist artists and critics who were concerned that any image of a nude woman would play right into the male gaze." Is social media criticism similar now? - Aeon

Will Jennifer Hudson Get Her EGOT At The Tonys Tonight?

It all depends on the voters, of course, but there's a good chance: "Hudson was a producer for A Strange Loop, which is nominated for best musical." (More Tonys predictions and wishes? The New York Times and Vulture have you covered.) - NPR

Portland Art Museum Repatriates Nine Tlingit Objects To Their Clan In Alaska

Luella Knapp, a member of the clan, said, "As a caretaker of these clan items, it is an honor. Receiving them back, one by one, brings back the spirit of the person who wore them. We are so happy to have them returned to Wrangell’s Naanya.aayí." - Oregon ArtsWatch

Paula Rego, Artist Who Had A Breakout Moment Alongside Hockney, Has Died At 87

A teenaged Rego fled Portugal for London at her parents' urging when dictator Salazar came to power. Her series of paintings about women suffering after illegal botched abortions is considered to have helped Portugal legalize the medical procedure in 2007. - Hyperallergic

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