Who’s the Best British Romanticist of Them All?

Daily Newsletter

Tate Britain’s British landscape face-off, influencers apply for artist visas, remembering Kathleen Goncharov, and Ayoung Kim’s digital stargazing.

For my first art show of 2026, I visited a behemoth exhibition focused on the friendship between in-laws Berthe Morisot and Édouard Manet at the Legion of Honor in San Francisco. It felt like a good omen for the start of the year — hopefully one of friendship, exchange, and growth. History is littered with lore of legendary artistic friendships and even of rivalry, including Manet’s own relationship with Degas and the dynamic between Matisse and Picasso. (The former was the subject of a show at The Met in 2023.)

Our London critic Michael Glover, however, isn’t convinced that an exhibition at Tate Britain earns the right to apply the term “rivalry” to J.M.W. Turner and John Constable, two giants of Romanticism. Witty as ever, he asks the question that’s on so many of our minds at art museums these days: “Is there any truth in it? Or is it a crude PR exercise to lure us through the door?”

If nothing else, I hope this year grants all of us the wisdom to know the difference. Enjoy, and have a lovely Wednesday!

Lakshmi Rivera Amin, associate editor


J.M.W. Turner and John Constable seem to define between them much about the nature of art in England at the turn of the 19th century, but do they have anything in common? Michael Glover has some thoughts.


CTA Image

New York City Ballet Art Series Presents Thibaut Grevet

 The French director and photographer’s work will be on view at three special performances in January and February. 

Learn more


News

Actors Krista Kalmus, Jillian Murray, and Dean Geyer at the Museum of Selfies in Glendale, California, in 2018 (photo by Tiffany Rose/Getty Images)

CTA Image

Taxes for Humans: A Radical Reimagining of Financial Empowerment

For artists, freelancers, and the self-employed, tax season can feel like a looming cloud. A new book by artist-turned-tax-specialist Hannah Cole offers an antidote.

Learn more

From Our Critics

Film still from Ayoung Kim, “Delivery Dancer’s Arc: Inverse” (2024) (image courtesy the artist and ACC)

Ayoung Kim Is Stargazing in a Digital World

Her exhibition at MoMA PS1 synthesizes live-action footage, video game engines, and generative AI to create an interlocking series of speculative narratives | Lisa Yin Zhang

Mapping a Feminist Cosmos

Without didacticism, Sandra Vásquez de la Horra makes visible the connection between the exploitation of the natural world and the subordination of women. | Tara Anne Dalbow


Victoria Hamlin on “The Best Art Shows Around the World in 2025” (and a debate we editors have yearly!)

I pored over your reviewers choices, learned from and thought about them all. Interesting and engaging. But I do wish there was a different way to look at the past year, besides choosing “the best”. I don’t even know what “best” means. It seems such an easy, hierarchical structure. Can’t we think more outside the box when we examine the global art production of this past year? I was a tad disappointed. But seriously, I love Hyperallergic, and thanks for all you do.


From the Archive

Edgar Degas, “Monsieur and Madame Édouard Manet” (1868–69), oil on canvas (photo courtesy Kitakyushu Municipal Museum)

The Dance Between Manet and Degas

What’s fascinating about Manet/Degas at The Met is the degree to which the work of each artist seemed to possess whatever the other lacked. | Thomas Micchelli

Hot this week

‘Industry’ Considered Casting Jennifer Jason Leigh as Harper’s Mom

Harper Stern’s (Myha’la) childhood casts a dark shadow over...

Juxtapoz Magazine – Laurent Proux “Out Of The Blue” @ GNYP Gallery, Antwerp

If you happen to be Antwerp this week, and...

Sally Beauty to Host Colorfest Event in Los Angeles

As experiential events ramp up in beauty, Sally Beauty...

‘The Heart Is a Muscle’ Director on Moving From ‘Trauma’ to ‘Healing’

After launching last year in Berlin and being tapped...

Topics

‘Industry’ Considered Casting Jennifer Jason Leigh as Harper’s Mom

Harper Stern’s (Myha’la) childhood casts a dark shadow over...

Sally Beauty to Host Colorfest Event in Los Angeles

As experiential events ramp up in beauty, Sally Beauty...

Heated Rivalry, Stranger Things Among Winners at GLAAD Media Awards

GLAAD got in on awards season on Thursday night,...

GLAAD Media Awards 2026 Winners List

The HBO Max/Crave phenomenon Heated Rivalry skated off with...

SNL Creator Lorne Michaels Biopic Documentary ‘Lorne’ Official Trailer

SNL Creator Lorne Michaels Biopic Documentary 'Lorne' Official Trailer by...
spot_img

Related Articles

Popular Categories

spot_imgspot_img