Exhibition of the week
Jeff Koons
The master of pop art takes on the old masters.
• Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, 7 February until 9 June.
Also showing
Robots
Real robots meet sci-fi dreams in a survey of our passion to make machine versions of ourselves.
• National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh, until 5 May.
Greg Gilbert
This exhibition showcases drawings that record and transfigure the artist’s experience of severe illness.
• Southampton City Art Gallery, until 6 May.
Christian Dior
Sumptuous survey of the fashion designer and the romantic spell his clothes cast.
• Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 2 February until 14 July.
Tracey Emin
An ambitious display of new paintings, drawings, film and sculpture by the biggest figure in modern British art.
• White Cube Bermondsey, London, 6 February until 7 April.
Masterpiece of the week
A boy holds up a torch that casts a sharp light on faces gathered in the night. And it is a terrible night, for this is the night Salome danced for King Herod and demanded the head of John the Baptist on a platter. The executioner looks impassive. He’s just doing his job. Salome and her mother, Herodias, appears to be shocked by what he has done, as if they never really expected the prisoner to be murdered at their request. In the middle of this uneasy group, the pale head of John the Baptist hangs passively. It is a horrific object but also an image of calm acceptance: this man died bravely.
• National Gallery, London.
Image of the week
These drawings from the Royal Collection – dispersed around Britain – are like pure, clear windows on to the extraordinary mind of this enigmatic and visionary genius, writes Jonathan Jones in his five-star review of a new exhibition.
What we learned
Susan Hiller, installation pioneer, died aged 78
… and unquenchable curiosity should be what we learn from her example
Katie Paterson sees cosmic magic in Turner
Olafur Eliasson is bringing his tunnel of fog to Tate Modern
Pop star Greg Gilbert explained how his art has helped him fight cancer
Netflix’s foray into arty horror, Velvet Buzzsaw, is flawed but fun
Women artists are claiming galleries’ attention at last
Simon Terrill applies Crowd Theory to his community art projects
… and in a dispatch from Perth, we learned about creativity in isolation
Bruce Gilden revealed personal tragedy informs his unflinching portraits
A carved Royal Navy figurehead has been listed as a work of art
Performance is the key for architect Liz Diller
The Parthenon Marbles found a way to provoke afresh, writes Jonathan Jones
… while culture figures respond to Jones
An audacious art theft was foiled in Moscow
… but in Paris, the criminals got away
Auctioneer Jeremy Cooper sent a postcard from the art world
Gauri Gill held a mask up to an intriguing Indian festival
We got a sneak peek at the work of the KGB
Jasmine Vink is Australia’s photographer of the year
Etinosa Yvonne Osayimwen explores Nigeria’s legacy of violence
A rare Lucian Freud portrait of a Guinness heir is up for sale
Madrid is celebrating the Prado’s 200th anniversary with a dark feast of Goya
Dior is fashioning a fine show at the V&A
The Queen’s collection gives the thumbs-up to Leonardo da Vinci
Even plants can propogate fake news
Danish Painter Tal R’s House Red evokes nostalgia for home
We remembered ceramics artist Maggie Angus Berkowitz
Don’t forget
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