| The art of making “Egyptian blue” — that distinctive shade seen in so many of those millennia-old tombs, statues, and wall paintings — was lost by the time of the Renaissance. But scientists just brought it back — read Staff Writer Maya Pontone’s report on the dozen recipes researchers concocted for the prized hue. Speaking of breathing new life into things, Claudia Ross reviews an exhibition at The Box in Los Angeles that examines how the fires reshaped art and life in the region, positing one way forward. Next, you’ve heard of the female gaze, but what about the lesbian gaze? Photographer Alice Austen, Alexis Clements writes in her book review, offered “tantalizing glimpses of intimacies” throughout a tumultuous life. Finally, that Friday morning treat: Associate Editor Lakshmi Rivera Amin’s Required Reading and A View From the Easel columns. Don’t miss the studio of the hilariously deadpan Detroit-based artist Shirley Parish, who really, really likes lofts. Or artist Trixie Pitts, who loves her Nashville studio, but misses their New York City advisor, Larry Poons, “and all his cryptic comments.” — Lisa Yin Zhang, Associate Editor | 
