THE MAGAZINE
Holy Cow! A Semi-Skimmed History of Milk in Visual Culture
Milk might seem like an ordinary item on the weekly grocery list, but over the course of ten thousand years, the legendary white liquid has been twisted into a rich and everchanging cultural symbol.
Winter with Van Gogh, Monet and Stieglitz
Snow has long fascinated artists for its ability to transform the familiar into something fleeting and uncertain. In the nineteenth century, painters and photographers turned to winter cityscapes to explore the growing tension between industrial life and the natural world. Through works by Van Gogh, Monet, and Stieglitz, this article reflects on snow as both a poetic presence and a quiet reminder of nature’s endurance.
On Artists and New Year Resolutions
Across time, artists have used painting to declare identity and ambition to the public. From Dürer to Picasso to Kehinde Wiley, TWoA follows how resolution and intention—once made visible—have reshaped the art-historical canon itself.
The Art of Astrology, Pre Co-Star
Long before Co-Star, Europe’s wealthiest men were proudly inscribing their natal charts onto walls, ceilings, and frescoes. From Chigi’s astrologically coded villa in Rome to the Medici palaces of Florence—and later, the cosmic visions of Cocteau and Dalí—astrology has shaped art and architecture for centuries. TWoA traces how Renaissance elites and modern masters alike used the zodiac to script power, meaning, and identity across eras. Read on to find out how.
Uncanny Valley: The Art Behind TikTok’s Creepiest Trend
If TikTok’s fascination with the “uncanny valley” has caught your eye, you’ll find its roots deeply embedded in Eastern European Surrealism. Explore how this haunting art movement channels real trauma through unsettling, dreamlike imagery.
A Tale of Autumn
Ever felt inspired by autumn? Good. So were Osslund, Tchaikovsky, and Rohmer, among many others. Read this article to find out how the season appears in art, music, and film, and why its briefness makes artists notice things they ignore the rest of the year.
What a Farm Wife Painted: On Grandma Moses, the Pioneer of American Primitivism
Seventy-eight may seem like a late start. But for Grandma Moses, it was the beginning of a prolific career as an artist. Read the article to find out how she went from a farm wife to one of Americas most prolific primitive painters.
A Murderous Artist Pardoned by the Pope: Benvenuto Cellini and the Art of Punishment
Renaissance artist Benvenuto Cellini was an award-winning goldsmith and sculptor lauded by Pope Clement VII—and also a man who killed more than once. He supposedly decapitated his brother’s murderer and stabbed his rival Pompeo de Capitaneis to death. Did he receive the punishment he deserved? No. Read on to find out why.
Taking the Scenic Route: A Timeline of Landscape Painting
How do artists choose to see the world, and what do their landscapes reveal about us in return? From ancient frescoes to Turner’s tempest and Lucas Arruda’s meditative pseudo-horizons, this timeline traces how painters have reimagined nature across centuries. Read on.
A Tale of Two Portraits: Degas and the Anatomy of Family Life
Degas treated the family portrait as an incision point—clean, controlled, and made to reveal. Through The Bellelli Family and Henri Degas and His Niece, he turns the domestic interior into a stage where the anatomy of family life—resentment, duty, longing—can finally bleed out.
The Swing of the Affair: Fragonard, Infidelity, and the Art of Heedlessness
What if the most iconic Rococo painting is really a masterclass in cheating? TWoA dives into the hidden symbols, erotic secrets, and deliciously scandalous backstory behind Fragonard’s The Swing—a painting that turns infidelity into an art form. From kicked-off shoes to voyeuristic lovers in the bushes, discover why this flirtatious masterpiece still seduces viewers and exposes our own appetite for mischief.