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Climbable sculpture in Hudson Yards in Manhattan closed in 2021 after four people died by suicideThe Vessel, the huge climbable centerpiece of New York’s upmarket Hudson Yards development that saw a number of suicides, is set to reopen later this year with new safety features, according to developers.The 150ft sculpture, designed by Thomas Heatherwick and built at a cost of $260m, was closed three...

Tributes paid to music producer who helped write TLC’s Waterfalls and worked on albums by OutKast and CeeLo GreenRico Wade, one of the architects of Atlanta’s “dirty south” hip-hop sound, who co-produced albums by OutKast, Goodie Mob and CeeLo Green and who co-wrote TLC’s 1994 hit Waterfalls, has died. He was 52.Atlanta mayor Andre Dickens paid tribute to Wade, saying he had “led in...

Despite his lack of faith, the author believes ‘something happened that was not supposed to happen’ on the day he was attackedSalman Rushdie has revealed an abiding sense that his survival after a brutal knife attack two years ago was a miracle, in spite of his lack of spiritual faith. “I do feel that something happened that was not supposed to happen and I...

Technician, who hung his own picture in an exhibition about art world glitches, has been sacked and given a three-year banThe first picture that greeted visitors to the first-floor exhibition space in Munich’s Pinakothek der Moderne gallery on 23 February may not have immediately grabbed their attention.The 60cm by 120cm artwork was a retro-looking photograph of a family of four, with the background and...

Actor in Disney+ series Andor will appear onscreen alongside Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson next yearVarada Sethu will join Doctor Who as one of the Doctor’s two companions for Ncuti Gatwa’s second series in the role, it has been confirmed.She will appear onscreen in 2025, alongside the former Coronation Street actor Millie Gibson after speculation over her character Ruby Sunday’s future on the sci-fi...

An arts organisation has been seeking out and recording the region’s traditional music and is teaching the lyrics to young singersIn the Jordanian town of Tafilah, a six-year-old boy softly hummed a song. His family were astonished, and his 82-year-old great-grandmother, Jawaher Al Ahmad, overheard and began to cry. She asked the child who had taught him the “hajini”, or Bedouin folk song, and...

Le Violon d’Ingres print produced under artist’s supervision was among friend’s collection auctioned in ParisIt is one of the most recognisable images of the surrealist movement: a black and white photograph by Man Ray of Kiki de Montparnasse with f-shaped sound holes painted on her back representing a violin.Le Violon d’Ingres, which was produced in 1924 and signed by the US artist, set a...

Staff member put work on display at Munich’s Pinakothek der Moderne ‘in hope of achieving his breakthrough’Europe live – latest updatesAccording to a quote commonly – if wrongly – attributed to the artist Andy Warhol, everyone will have their 15 minutes of fame. At Munich’s Pinakothek der Moderne museum earlier this year, one technician and aspiring artist got to bask in the limelight for...

Tasmanian tribunal rules Museum of Old and New Art discriminated against NSW man by denying him entry to installationGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastHobart’s Museum of Old and New Art has been ordered to allow “persons who do not identify as ladies” entry to its Ladies Lounge art installation after losing a legal battle.The judgment, handed down...

Ruling means music in Russian republic must ‘conform to Chechen mentality and sense of rhythm’The Russian republic of Chechnya has banned dance music it deems either too fast or too slow, in an attempt to quash a “polluting” western influence on the conservative majority-Muslim region.Musa Dadayev, the culture minister, said “all musical, vocal and choreographic works should correspond to a tempo of 80-116 beats...

Star Wars actor says he believes actors should be free to ‘do anything you want to do’, in a discussion about Laurence Olivier’s performance in OthelloBilly Dee Williams has said that actors should be able to perform in blackface, with the Star Wars actor revealing that he believes, “If you’re an actor, you should do anything you want to do”.Speaking to Bill Maher on...

The 88-year-old director says he is ‘on the fence’ about making another film due to the work needed to get distribution and financial backingWoody Allen has once again hinted at his retirement from film-making, saying that he is “on the fence” about making another film after the US release of his latest, Coup de Chance.In an interview with Air Mail, the 88-year-old director was...

Shah Muhammad Rais was devastated when Taliban destroyed his shop, but now he is sending books to Afghanistan via the internetShah Muhammad Rais first opened his bookshop in the Afghan capital in 1974. By 2003, when his story was made famous by the bestselling book The Bookseller of Kabul, the business had collected about 100,000 books, in different languages, about literature, history and politics....

The author of Giles Goat-Boy and The Sot-Weed Factor was part of a wave of writers in the 1960s who challenged standards of language and plotJohn Barth, the playfully erudite author whose darkly comic and complicated novels revolved around the art of literature and launched countless debates over the art of fiction, has died aged 93.Johns Hopkins University, where Barth was an emeritus professor...

Alex Lidagovsky was forced to leave Ukraine with his family when his studio was bombed during the Russian invasionA Ukrainian sculptor who fled to the UK when his studio was destroyed has been accepted into the Royal Society of British Artists.Alex Lidagovsky was forced to leave Kyiv with his wife, Dasha Nepochatova, and 16-year-old stepdaughter after the Russian invasion began on 24 February 2022....

Questions surround ownership of demo tapes reportedly left by soul artist as a thank-you to his Ostend hostsA collection of cassette tapes containing a host of unreleased Marvin Gaye songs has been found in the Belgian city of Ostend.It has potentially lain hidden in Belgium for over 40 years, according to the BBC. Continue reading...

Watchdog examining claims key details have not been disclosed about altar tablets that museum is facing calls to returnThe information watchdog is investigating the British Museum over claims it has been overly secretive about some of the most sensitive items in its collection – a group of sacred Ethiopian altar tablets that have been hidden from view at the museum for more than 150...

Maxine Peake and Sarah Schulman among signatories of open letter asking singer to withdraw from contest More than 450 queer artists, individuals and organisations have called on the UK’s Eurovision contestant, Olly Alexander, to boycott this year’s competition in solidarity with Palestine.The actor Maxine Peake and the novelist and playwright Sarah Schulman are among the signatories of the open letter calling on the singer...

More than half of the borrowed words relate to cooking, while Kintsugi, the increasingly popular art of repairing broken pottery with gold lacquer is also includedKatsu, donburi and onigiri are among 23 Japanese words added to the Oxford English Dictionary in its latest update.More than half of the borrowed words relate to food or cooking. Santoku, a knife with a short, flat blade that...

Insight report based on data from UK Musicians’ Census also found 33% said they had been sexually harassed in the industryMore than half of women have experienced gender discrimination while working as a musician, with a third reporting being sexually harassed, a report has revealed.Female musicians are more than eight times more likely to have experienced gender discrimination than their male colleagues, at 51%...

The festival, due to be headlined this year by Kylie Minogue, Arcade Fire and G-Flip, will not be going ahead in JulyGet our weekend culture and lifestyle emailSplendour in the Grass, one of Australia’s oldest and largest music festivals, has been cancelled this year due to “unexpected events”, organisers have said.The news of this year’s cancellation comes just seven days after tickets went on...

Federal investigation comes amid multiple lawsuits including singer Cassie accusing him of rape and physical abuseThe rapper and mogul Sean Combs is facing mounting legal troubles after federal agents searched his properties in Los Angeles and Miami as part of a sex-trafficking investigation.On Monday morning, US Department of Homeland Security agents in tactical gear and armored vehicles raided two of Combs’ mansions as part...

From expensive rent to efforts to keep up with fashion, a young man’s missives on display in Cumbria are relatable to todayWhen Ben Browne set off on horseback from his small village in the north of England for the bright lights of London in 1719, his concerns were not so different from those of today’s young people. Mainly: please send money, everything is so...

Imogen Wade’s The Time I Was Mugged in New York City impresses judges for ‘lyricism in the account of an abduction’• Scroll down to read the winning poemA poem inspired by the author’s experience of being mugged has won the first prize of £5,000 in the National Poetry Competition.The Time I Was Mugged in New York City by Imogen Wade tells the story of...