It is the latest series of camouflage trickery unveiled by artist Liu Bolin, or 'the invisible man', who made his name blending into the background of everyday scenes. Claiming they are a comment on his role in society, the Beijing-based painter, photographer and sculptor goes through swathes of clothes as he smears them in paint to blend into road signs (top left), toy shelves (bottom left), an open square (bottom right), and a rack of Chinese lanterns. ...read
Art big picture gallery
It was identified after a hunch by the show's presenter when the owner of the work took it along to be valued at Newstead Abbey in Nottinghamshire.
Art Headlines
Incredible pictures taken just a yard from erupting volcano by photographer who was forced to flee to avoid being hit by lava
But one intrepid photographer has trekked right up to a molten lava spewing crater in search of the perfect shot. Miles Morgan was just one metre away from the source of the eruptions when he took some of these incredible images of Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii. ...read
The original paparazzo: Exhibition by legendary society photographer Richard Young captures unexpected celebrity moments
It's been forty years since society photographer Richard Young first got his major break. Since then, he's snapped photos of the most famous stars in the celebrity pantheon. Pictured are Johnny Depp and Kate Moss smoking, and Elizabeth Taylor kissing Richard Burton. One of the most important photographers of the twentieth-century according to The Times, Young's diverse portfolio includes Elizabeth II and Diana, Princess of Wales, Joan Collins, Kate Moss, Andy Warhol, Marvin Gaye, Mick Jagger and Stevie Wonder, to name just a few. ...read
MUST READS...Art stories from around the world
Amazing bird's-eye views of Disney World, Universal Studios and SeaWorld... from a helicopter
Jason Hawkes's latest aerial project sees him photograph theme parks in Orlando, Florida, from several hundred feet up in the sky.
Mesmerizing pictures of cave formations reveal a hole new world beneath our feet from New Mexico to Vietnam
The incredible pictures show the natural stalagmites and stalactites within some of the world's deepest caves and they were taken by keen caver Dave Bunnell, 61, from Delaware.
North Korea photojournalist named 'Instagram photographer of the year'
Time has awarded it's Instagram photographer of the year to veteran Associated Press chief Asia photojournalist David Guttenfelder, thanks in large part to his fascinating depictions of life behind North Korea's Bamboo Curtain. Guttenfelder's unique post allows him the world's most intimate access to the rogue state, where despite being forever under the watchful eye of a government minder, he's managed to produce gorgeous, haunting visual documents.
LATEST ALBUM RELEASES
Scroll through for the latest new album releases
Acoustic At The Ryman (Brown)
Big on bushy beards and high-pitched vocals, South Carolinas Band Of Horses shun loud guitars in favour of stripped-down folk tunes and piano ballads on this self-released album. The ten-song set is a greatest hits package, with tracks cherry-picked from the quintets four previous albums and rebooted with rootsy harmonies redolent of Crosby, Stills & Nash.
★★★✩✩
Present Tense (Domino)
UK indie-rock was once edgy and irreverent. These days bands such as Bombay Bicycle Club and Wild Beasts are cut from more sophisticated cloth. The fourth album by Cumbrias Wild Beasts is dominated by lavish electronics. There are echoes of Arcade Fire on Wanderlust and Radiohead on Pregnant Pause. The record peaks with a clutch of swirling, wistful ballads.
★★★★✩
The River & The Thread (Blue Note)
Johnny Cashs daughter embraces a range of rootsy styles on this musical trek through the Deep South. Her sound is rich, with the swampy blues of A Feathers Not A Bird setting the tone. Modern Blue and The Long Way Home boast a more contemporary feel, enhanced by guests such as John Paul White, of alt-country duo The Civil Wars.
★★★★✩
So Long, See You Tomorrow (Island)
Album number four finds this resourceful London quartet broadening their scope. Having previously touched on indie-pop and folk, they now embrace subtle electronics and sublime vocal harmonies. Feel and Overdone use Bollywood samples, while Whenever, Wherever shimmers with invention. Bombay Bicycle Club are hard to pin down and all the better for it.
****
Give The People What They Want (Daptone)
Veteran diva Sharon Jones put her career on hold last summer after being diagnosed with cancer. Now well enough to announce a spring show in London's Roundhouse, the former New York prison guard strikes a defiant tone on this retro-flavoured return. Aided by the funky Dap-Kings, the backing band on Amy Winehouse's Back To Black, she shines on old-school soul stomper Retreat before evoking Aretha Franklin on Get Up And Get Out.
***
Moon (Bella Union)
Former Cocteau Twins member Simon Raymonde hooks up with American singer Stephanie Dosen (once a vocalist with Massive Attack) on this dreamy and poetic album. There are shades of Raymonde's old band on ghostly ballad Amelia. His simple, yet elegant, piano work is ably enhanced by cameos from Radiohead guitarist Ed O'Brien and drummer Phil Selway.
****
Animal Heart (Lojinx)
Despite its brooding moments, Nina Persson's first solo album is a poppy affair. The Swedish singer draws on her experience fronting The Cardigans on a batch of reflective, but upbeat, relationship songs. There are shades of Lana Del Rey on the doleful Silver, while This Is Heavy Metal a spartan piano ballad makes no attempt to live up to its ear-splitting title.
***
Little Red (Columbia)
Former BRIT School student Katy B adds confessional strands to her feel for the dance floor on her second album. Working with top-notch club producers and Robbie Williams's sidekick Guy Chambers, she augments her unfussy vocals with atmospheric beats and dub reggae trimmings. 5 AM is a pulsating house track and Crying For No Reason a vulnerable electro-ballad, while Aaliyah, which revamps Dolly Parton's Jolene, is a sing-off between Katy and Jessie Ware.
****
The Day In Pictures
The best pictures from around the world today
REVIEWS
IN BOOKS TODAY
- When a giant dog with three legs is the best medicine: Haatchi And Little B, by Wendy Holden, and When Fraser Met Billy, by Louise Booth
- The First Fuhrer: He was even MORE brutal than Hitler... so why do we still romanticise Napoleon?: Napoleon: Soldier Of Destiny, by Michael Broers
- Rural bliss? No, Lark Rise whiffed to high heaven: Dreams Of The Good Life, by Jane Shilling
- Let's hear it for this wise old busybody: My Life In Agony, by Irma Kurtz
- Poetic licence and a very French affair: Black Venus, by James MacManus
MUSIC REVIEWS AND FEATURES
- Peerless songs. Great memories. And Freddie's fab leotards. As it sells a record six-millionth copy, why Queen's Greatest Hits is the greatest album EVER
- Sheryl Crow goes back to her roots for 8th album Feels Like Home
- AllSaints Studios New Music Cities unearths more talent in musically rich South London
- Sophie's strictly a rock chic now: Ellis-Bextor's Wanderlust album review
THEATRE
- An epic lesson in history that deserves top marks: QUENTIN LETTS reviews Versailles There is a different fug in Peter Gills new play
- Why this knocks the pants of any movie version: The Full Monty review Patrick Marmion argues why stage is better
- Virginia Woolf's wonder hasn't aged badly: QUENTIN LETTS reviews Orlando Suranne Jones is in the title role
- Superior Donuts: A sticky, sweet and satisfying play from Tracy Letts A play that's as sweet at heart as its crusty leading man
- A Taste Of Honey: Even after 56 years, Honey's a sweet treat First time A Taste Of Honey has been seen at the National
- Translations: Off the map in deepest Donegal Brian Friel's story about the British Army could be mistaken for a quaint period drama
- Rigoletto review: These vulgarities do Verdi few favours Take a rip-roaring melodrama, sing it and play it well and you are more than halfway home