Author: NY TIMES

Something about “Taking Venice,” Amei Wallach’s new documentary about the 1964 Venice Biennale (in theaters), feels almost like science fiction, or maybe fantasy. Imagine the U.S. government taking such a keen interest in the fine arts that there may or may not have been an attempt to rig a major international prize for an American artist. A painter, no less!History buffs already know that during the Cold War, American intelligence agencies were heavily involved in literature, music and the fine arts, seeing them as a way to export soft power around the world and prove U.S. dominance over the Soviet…

The street performers first appeared a few years ago along busy intersections of Islamabad. Coated head to toe in eye-catching gold paint, they stood perfectly still, leaning on glimmering canes and tipping their top hats open. Some cracked a smile or offered a slow nod when they earned tips from passers-by.Perhaps in a different place, the emergence of mimes on the street looking to earn a few dollars might go unnoticed. But this is Pakistan, where things under the security state often are not as simple as they seem. So as the number of golden performers grew, so, too, did…

The black-dappled white panther, sometimes curling around the wrist as a bracelet, sometimes crouched low as a brooch or glaring from a choker, is Cartier’s most emblematic animal.But it is not the only one.Tigers striped with black spinels and emerald-studded crocodiles gripping dials in their teeth were among the many animal-inspired timepieces Cartier put on display at the recent Watches & Wonders fair in Geneva, serving as a prelude to the brand’s Nature Sauvage high jewelry collection to be introduced later this month.In an email, Pierre Rainero, Cartier’s image, style and heritage director, highlighted what he called the “visual richness”…

One of NPR’s most prominent hosts asked the company’s top editor on Thursday to disclose the identity of an anonymous funder who is helping pay for a new layer of editing several weeks after the radio network faced a prominent accusation of having a liberal bias in its coverage.Michel Martin, a host of NPR’s “Morning Edition,” pressed Edith Chapin, NPR’s chief content officer, to identify the source of the funding in an editorial meeting at the network’s Washington headquarters, according to four people with knowledge of the exchange.Ms. Chapin declined to elaborate on the source of the money but said…

‘Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga’The latest installment in George Miller’s apocalypse thriller series premiered at Cannes this week. It tells the origin story of the Imperator Furiosa, the breakout character from the 2015 “Fury Road,” played then by Charlize Theron and now by Anya Taylor-Joy.From our review:Furiosa’s reticence is strategic, as well as a trait she shares with Mad Max himself, the model for her taciturn avenger. While Furiosa is hiding in plain sight in the Citadel, her circumspection protects her, but it also accentuates her existential plight. She’s alone, spiritually and in every other respect, at least before meeting…

Jürgen Klopp’s week has been one long goodbye. On Tuesday, Klopp, Liverpool’s soon-to-be former manager, was at Anfield, the stadium that has sung his name and thrilled at his team for the last nine years, bidding farewell to hundreds of members of the club’s staff. On Thursday, he and his players shared one last barbecue at Liverpool’s training facility on the fringe of the city.In between, there have been countless jerseys to sign — “I don’t know how many, but everyone has one now,” he said — and endless hands to shake. There is still the looming specter of Sunday,…

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Scottie Scheffler’s score dropped, but the leaderboard remained crowded after the third round of the PGA Championship on Saturday. Collin Morikawa and Xander Schauffele (15-under) will head to Valhalla Golf Club, tied for the lead and in the final pairing playing together, but seven other players were within four strokes of them.Schauffele, who is seeking his first major championship, has led every round of the PGA Championship but is sharing that score with Morikawa, who is looking for third in a major for the first time. After shooting a 68 on Saturday, the latter shot a 67.Sahith…

“If I’m independent today, it’s thanks to him,” Mr. Akkad said. “I don’t need to depend on anyone else for a shape.” He sculpts and produces all his jewels himself, although he works with a master gem-setter for mounting stones — always without prongs — and a polisher to finish the pieces.His bold, sculptural style has made Mr. Akkad an insider favorite.“When you look at Walid’s work, you can see this high jewelry mastery, with perfect execution and stones, but there’s something else to it,” Esther de Beaucé said by phone. She now owns Galerie MiniMasterpiece in Paris, which specializes…

It would have been the greatest insult to rock the Upper East Side on any normal night, but instead the private equity heir Holly Peterson could only laugh. Why had a Sotheby’s official denied her access to a bidding paddle?In February 2022, Ms. Peterson, an author and art collector, was surrounded by a new clientele: the crypto nouveau riche, who made a temporary home of the art market. Their purchases occurred through the trendy innovation of NFTs, or nonfungible tokens, which registered the ownership of often digital artworks on the blockchain. Collectors then used the NFTs as rapidly appreciating investments…

Samm-Art Williams, who made his mark in several fields — as an executive producer of the sitcom “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” as an actor on both stage and screen and as a Tony-nominated playwright for “Home,” died on Monday in Burgaw, N.C. He was 78.His death was confirmed by his cousin Carol Brown. She did not cite a cause.An imposing 6-foot-8 (a lefty, he once served as a sparring partner to Muhammad Ali), Mr. Williams appeared in films including Brian De Palma’s Hitchcock homage, “Dressed to Kill” (1980), and the Coen brothers’ neo-noir, “Blood Simple” (1984). He had a…