Arts & Culture

Last week, Twitter and Facebook fans of Smithsonian.com were invited to send in their questions for the new Smithsonian Secretary.

Ask Skorton Anything

The Smithsonian’s New Secretary David Skorton Takes Questions From the Crowd

The secretary is creating a new teen advisory board, networking with D.C. arts and science leaders and getting to know the collections

Smithsonian Journeys Travel Quarterly: Venice

What to Read, Watch and Download Before Your Trip to Venice

Know before you go

Eateries like La Palma in San Francisco's Mission District are revered by some communities, but off-the-radar for others

Find Flavor Around Every Corner (and Off the Beaten Path) With These Culinary Walking Tours

From beloved institutions to hole-in-the-wall eateries, great food is everywhere

Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Philippe Petit in The Walk

What Happens to Your Body When You Walk on a Tightrope?

It's more than just an insane amount of courage that gets people on the tightwire

Invisible, 1971, by Giovanni Anselmo

Playful Artworks at the Hirshhorn Get the Better of One Mystified Observer

A group of international mid-century artists built a number of kinetic experiments into their abstract art

A marionette performs atop a Matsuri float

In Japan, Autumn Means a Parade of (Not-at-All-Creepy) Robot Puppets

A 350-year-old festival in Takayama celebrates creativity — and contains the seeds of modern robotics

The title of Gardner's photograph (taken with Timothy O'Sullivan) Field Where General Reynolds Fell, Gettysburg, July 1863 was added later to capitalize on the famous general's heroism.

Alexander Gardner Saw Himself as an Artist, Crafting the Image of War in All Its Brutality

The National Portrait Gallery’s new show on the Civil War photographer rediscovers the full significance of Gardner's career

Pacchanta's Maria Merma Gonzalo practices weaving techniques that have changed little in 500 years.

In a Small Village High in the Peruvian Andes, Life Stories Are Written in Textiles

Through weaving, the women of Ausangate, Peru, pass down the traditions of their ancestors

A local girl celebrates her first communion at the main church in Vilcabamba, an Ecuadorian village that retains its small-town feel despite an influx of foreigners in search of Shangri-La.

Smithsonian Journeys Travel Quarterly: Inca Road

Hailed as a Modern-Day Shangri-La, Can This Ecuadorian Town Survive Its Reputation?

Vilcabamba is an idyllic little town—and that's its problem

Where the Nazis Hid $3.5 Billion of Stolen Art

In 1945, the Nazis hid their stolen art in a sealed salt mine. But when U.S. troops arrived, they found that the opening to the mine had been destroyed

Demonstrators express support for The Perfect Moment, an exhibition by Robert Mapplethrope that included nude and sexually graphic photos.

When Art Fought the Law and the Art Won

The Mapplethorpe obscenity trial changed perceptions of public funding of art and shaped the city of Cincinnati

How to Harvest and Dry Herbs

A guide to keeping a little bit of summer in your meals far into winter

“People who want to have fun,” Starr Hagenbring says. “These are fun, beautiful clothes. Seeing beautiful things makes you happy, and that’s what I do."

Wearing Your Art On Your Sleeve

These three artists come from a long tradition of creating wearable art. See many more at the Smithsonian's upcoming Craft2Wear show this weekend

A dry farm field.

The Deep South, As Seen Through the Eyes of Renowned Photographer Steve McCurry

A new book written by travel writer Paul Theroux features images that chronicle life in this part of the country

Matt Damon stars as Mark Watney, the titular "Martian" who gets left for dead on the red planet.

The Secret of "The Martian" Success? Scientific Peer Review

Andy Weir's tale of a stranded astronaut got its start as a blog, complete with reader comments that helped shape the plot

Edward Burtynsky, Oil Spill #10 Oil Slick at Rip Tide, Gulf of Mexico, June 24, 2010, chromogenic print

Age of Humans

This Stunning Contemporary Art Captures Terror, Wonder and Wit in the Anthropocene

Smithsonian art historian Joanna Marsh selects nine works that tell stories about life in the age of humans

Age of Humans

The Age of Humans: Living in the Anthropocene

A special look at the ways humans are transforming the planet and the projects that may shape a more sustainable future

A Guide to Buying Ethical Coffee

How to make sense of the beans that promote sustainable agriculture and humane worker rights

What gives your local Chardonnay that je ne sais quoi? It just might be the regional microbes.

New Research

Wine Gets Some of Its Unique Flavors From Regional Microbes

Small genetic differences in a single species of yeast produce distinct mixes of chemicals that contribute to terroir

"What About Grandma"

Awkward Family Photos Is Playing in Peoria

Like a long family road trip, the hilarious exhibition of awkward photos featuring kith and kin makes a stop in Illinois

Page 149 of 355