United Kingdom

UK art imports fall 16% for second year in a row as Hong Kong picks up slack

Sector is lobbying UK government to simplify trading procedures, or risk being outpaced by competitors

Newly conserved star atlas, a masterpiece of 17th-century Dutch art, to go on display for first time

The Harmonia Macrocosmica by Andreas Cellarius, one of the most precious volumes in the Blickling Estate's library, was too fragile to be exhibited

Paula Rego paintings replace royal portrait at No 10 Downing Street

In a major re-hang, scenes from Rego’s mural Crivelli’s Garden have appeared in place of portraits of Queen Elizabeth I and Sir Walter Raleigh

British Library slowly resuming service after cyber-attack

One year on, around 1,000 manuscripts are available online again

Art marketanalysis

As the art market gears up for a season of global change, what are the odds of an autumn bounceback?

Amid uneven economic signals, many high-level art sellers are pursuing alternative revenue streams

'Untenable': UK Arts Society chiefs and trustees resign following internal opposition to reforms

A new governance structure was rejected by 70% of voting members at an extraordinary general meeting

Booksreview

'Go, thou, and do likewise': a field guide to Britain’s stone circles delivers both scholarship and romance

An authoritative and engaging read for fans of the UK's mute monoliths—be they academic or sentimental

Banksynews

Banksy unveils gorilla artwork at London Zoo—hours after his rhino was defaced

Depicting an ape breaking animals out of an enclosure, it is the ninth piece in the street artist's animal-themed series across the UK capital

UK general election 2024: what art world figures want from the new Labour government

After a landslide victory for the Labour party, we asked museum directors, artists and art historians what they hoped the new political era could mean for culture

UK general election has art trade on tenterhooks

The almost certain Labour victory could have major impact on art buyers, who were restrained during the summer season

Banksy hits back at UK home secretary, saying the detention of his migrant rescue boat in Italy is ‘vile and unacceptable’

British street artist launched an inflatable boat artwork at Glastonbury to highlight the migrant crisis

'We need strong leaders to stand up for the future of UK arts funding'

Hit by austerity cuts and activist boycotts, who is standing up for the arts?

Anya Gallaccio wins commission for London’s first ever HIV/Aids memorial

The winning proposal features a tree trunk from which rings have been extracted and displayed nearby

British Museum opens new storage and research facility

Known as BM_ARC, the site in Berkshire houses around 1.3 million objects from the London museum and is intended for scholars as well as members of the public

Exploring the rise and fall of British architectural sculpture

A timely study examines the unique confluence of artists and architects in British buildings from the 1850s to the 1950s

UK General Election | ‘End the culture of culture washing': art world figures express hopes and fears for the forthcoming vote

We spoke to cultural historians, former ministers and museum directors about the changes they hope to see for the culture sector—and crucially, who they will vote for

Getting plastered: major conservation work begins on an extraordinary ceiling in Cornwall

Visitors have the unique chance to see the barrel-vaulted ceiling of the Long Gallery at Lanhydrock up close thanks to a scaffolding platform

James Barnor, pioneering Ghanaian-British photographer, to be celebrated on 95th birthday with wide-reaching festival

A series of events—spanning exhibitions, discussions, performances and more—will centre around Accra and Tamale, but some programming will extend across the country

Portrait of Charles I's children revealed to be by inventor of tri-colour printing

The print by Jacob Christoph le Blon, which hung under a staircase of a Norfolk mansion, was thought to be a copy of a work by Anthony Van Dyck

Letter to the editor | ‘Charging fees to enter British museums is not the answer, it is a signifier that culture is for someone else’

Rather than creating another “psychological barrier” to culture, leaders and institutions could be thinking about more fair ways to fund the sector, writes Will Jennings

Exhibitionsinterview

'From the margins to the forefront': Osman Yousefzada wraps Queen Victoria statue in fabric for new show in Bradford

The artist and writer returns to the city where his father first arrived in the UK in the 1960s

Bicentenary appeal seeks to move Byron memorial to prominent site in London's Hyde Park

Group launches £360,000 fund to re-site 1880 statue isolated on UK capital's roundabout

Prizesnews

Young V&A makes shortlist for UK museum of the year prize

The shortlist of five for Art Fund's ₤120,000 award also includes the Craven Museum, Dundee Contemporary Arts, the National Portrait Gallery and the Manchester Museum

UK museums take global lead in sustainability

However arts organisations worldwide trail behind the corporate sector and academia, according to a study, often because of limited resources

Flat decorated with minotaurs and lion heads becomes first Outsider Art work to gain listed status in England

Known as Ron's Place, the property in the Merseyside town of Birkenhead was the home of Ron Gittins, who died in 2019

UK Labour leader Keir Starmer pledges to turn the arts from a ‘luxury’ to a ‘necessity’

The head of the opposition party was speaking at the Labour Creatives Conference in London

UK art market feeling the heat as anti-money laundering legislation ramped up

HMRC has been issuing more regular fines and putting into force intensive checks, making art-related businesses sweat

Brian Griffin, photographer of rock stars and construction workers, has died aged 75

Best known for his album covers for bands including Depeche Mode, the UK photographer was influenced by the heavy industry of the Black Country where he grew up

'Shameful waste of money'? New King Charles portrait causes controversy

Official photograph by Hugo Burnand depicts monarch in full military regalia and will be offered to every UK public body in £8m scheme