Florida Needs a Marge Simpson

March 29, 2023

Good morning. 🌤️ Remember our report from last week about the Florida principal who was forced out of her job over images of Michelangelo’s "David"? It happened after some parents complained that the Renaissance nude statue is "pornographic." What's amazing is that The Simpsons predicted this fiasco during its second season more than 30 years ago. And once again, Marge is the only voice of reason.

Also today: The Met Museum acquires a rare dual portrait of Dutch old master Rachel Ruysch, Ai Weiwei recreates Monet’s “Water Lilies” with LEGO bricks, a Greek museum opens its doors to dogs, and did van Gogh create “Starry Night” because he hated the Eiffel Tower?

— Hakim Bishara, Senior Editor

Dual Portrait of Old Master Rachel Ruysch Holds a Trove of Secrets

The Metropolitan Museum of Art has just acquired the rare painting, which depicts the Dutch artist at work surrounded by her signature flora. | Elaine Velie

SPONSORED

When I Am Empty Please Dispose of Me Properly

Ayanna Dozier, Ilana Harris-Babou, Meena Hasan, Lucia Hierro, Catherine Opie, Chuck Ramirez, and Pacifico Silano explore the myths of the American Dream at Brooklyn’s BRIC House. Learn more.

WHAT'S HAPPENING

Vincent van Gogh, "The Starry Night" (1889), oil on canvas, 29.01 inches x 36.26 inches (image courtesy Google Art Project/via Wikimedia Commons)

Art historian James Hall believes that the celebrations for the inauguration of the Eiffel Tower could have inspired van Gogh’s “Starry Night” painting.

An early episode of the Simpsons might haveforeseen Florida’s “David” outrage, making a dark prediction about conservative politics today.

TheNational Museum of Contemporary Art in Athens is welcoming furry friends and their pawrents for its “World Stray Animal Day” event.

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School of the Art Institute of Chicago Offers Summer Art and Design Courses Online and On-Campus

Emerging and established artists can choose from over 50 Adult Continuing Education courses at one of the most influential art and design schools in the US. Learn more.

LATEST IN ART

Memories So Fair and Bright

Kimetha Vanderveen's paintings are about the interaction of materiality and light, the bond between the palpable and ephemeral world in which we live. | John Yau

Ai Weiwei Recreates Monet’s "Water Lilies" Using 650,000 LEGOS

It’s the artist’s largest LEGO artwork to date. | Sarah Rose Sharp

SPONSORED

Tyler School of Art and Architecture Opens 2023 MFA Thesis Exhibition Series

Students working in diverse disciplines explore temporality, connectedness in time and space, and global reckonings. On view in Philadelphia. Learn more.

MORE ON HYPERALLERGIC

Artists Contemplate Sovereignty in Santa Fe

The Santa Fe Art Institute’s 2024 International Thematic Residency focuses on what sovereignty means for artists from across the world. | Maria Manuela

How Did Early Modern European Craftspeople Pass On Their Knowledge?

A new book about object making critically examines a written history of working with materials. | Nageen Shaikh

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