It is easy to minimize the importance of symbols in culture. Art tends to focus on existential symbolism, leap-frogging over the ways in which we interpret symbols constantly, in the form of letters, ...

TERESE TSE Bartholomew, a curator at the Asian Art Museum for 38 years, has been searching for hidden meanings in Chinese art for much of her life. “When I look at a piece of art or an object, I want ...

In late 19th century Paris an artistic movement to explore the mystical, from incubi to chimeras and femininity to saints as well as an assortment of mythological creatures was on the rise. What first ...

The ibex is far from a humble mountain goat—it’s one of history’s most enduring artistic symbols. So prolific is its presence in prehistoric art, in fact, that a new study suggests the animal held ...

“Witchcraft” offers a deep dive into the many facets of a centuries-old tradition in the Western world, weaving more than 400 classic and contemporary artworks with essays and interviews by what ...

From prehistoric rock art to Beyoncé's pregnancy photographs, symbolism and art are a key aspect of human behavior and have been since the very beginning—but how it evolved has so far mystified ...

The injunction of a group show centered around the multivalent flower is to wander the field and pluck what suits you. Left: Gabriella Hirst, "How to Make A Bomb" (2015–ongoing), digital print ...