A general view of the 'Y-block' office building, adorned with a concrete mural by artists Pablo Picasso and Carl Nesjar, as workers begin taking down the mural before the building is torn down, in central Oslo, Norway July 27, 2020. REUTERS

Picasso mural torn from Oslo building

To the outrage of preservationists and art-world figures, the work was removed into storage from the side of government offices facing demolition in Oslo

The author Hilary Mantel at her home near London, Feb 20, 2020. “The Mirror and the Light,” the conclusion to Mantel’s Thomas Cromwell trilogy, is one of 13 books nominated for this year’s Booker Prize, the prestigious British literary award. Ellie Smith/The New York Times

Mantel, Tyler in running for Booker Prize

‘The Mirror and the Light,’ the conclusion to Mantel’s Thomas Cromwell trilogy, is one of 13 books nominated for this prestigious British literary award

President Donald Trump in President Andrew Jackson's study during a visit to the Hermitage, Jackson's home, in Nashville, Tenn, Mar 15, 2017. A paper titled “Andrew Jackson in the Age of Trump,” accusing scholars of “historical malpractice,” upended an academic society and stirred arguments about racism, history and the limits of debate. Stephen Crowley/The New York Times

Paper on Jackson, Trump causes turmoil

A paper accusing scholars of ‘historical malpractice’ upends an academic society and stirs arguments about racism, history and the limits of debate

A photo provided by Edward Borlase shows the auditorium of the Theater Royal Plymouth, viewed from backstage, in Plymouth, England. (Edward Borlase via The New York Times)

Cultural life is back in Europe

But in Britain, star artists are begging the government to rescue the arts sector. Will it listen?

The plinth of the statue of Edward Colston in Bristol, England, now surrounded by messages of support for the Black Lives Matter movement, Jun 11, 2020. The New York Times

What happens to
toppled statues?

It will have implications for how we remember the history

The statue of Theodore Roosevelt outside the Museum of Natural History in New York, Jun 19, 2020. The equestrian memorial to Roosevelt, which has long prompted objections as a symbol of colonialism and racism, will be coming down. Caitlin Ochs/The New York Times

NY Museum to remove Roosevelt statue

The equestrian memorial to Roosevelt has long prompted objections as a symbol of colonialism and racism

Matthew Nsubuga, right, and other customers check out titles in BookMongers of Brixton, a used-book store, in London, June 15, 2020. Charming neighbourhood shops and slick chain outlets in London welcomed back customers, who snatched up titles as eclectic as the city itself. (Tom Jamieson/The New York Times)

Readers return as London bookstores reopen

Charming neighbourhood shops and slick chain outlets welcomed back customers

British author JK Rowling, creator of the Harry Potter series of books, poses during the launch of new online website Pottermore in London Jun 23, 2011. REUTERS

Harry Potter fans reimagine their world without its creator

A slice of fandom divides itself from JK Rowling

A man sleeps on a bench in front of Black Lives Matter protest signs near the White House in Washington, US, Jun 10, 2020. REUTERS

Poets criticise poetry foundation’s response to US protests

In an open letter, more than 1,800 people criticise the foundation’s remarks and call on it to dedicate more proceeds from its $250 million endowment to antiracism efforts

The hitchhiker’s guide to second-wave feminism
Beauvoir’s new fiction coming soon
Murals remember people killed by police
And in the next Zoom room, a rat doing a striptease
JK Rowling publishes fairy tale for children
In search of time lost and newly found
Italian woman wins Picasso painting
Bookworms in anguish
as pandemic wears on
These books explain the mysteries of the home
A novelist breaks the
women's code in Japan
Artists in retreat wonder if the isolation is too much
Murals of hope
in grim times
The rise of the coronavirus nature genre
JK Rowling says recovered from 'coronavirus'
Long-silenced victim of a paedophile writer gets to tell her story
Early Van Gogh painting stolen
Supporter of Matzneff says he was unaware of paedophilia
Paedophile writer Matzneff is charged
bpl offers 25% discount at book fair
Blind Bulgarian artist finds a way to keep painting
10 named for Bangla
Academy awards
‘American Dirt’: An epic on immigration