Country Life's top 10 arts stories of 2024
From the artist killed on his first day in the war to a masterpiece once sold for £30, these were our most popular arts stories of 2024.
The tragic tale of the artist whose time at the Front Line lasted less than 24 hours
Rex Whistler's fate touched a chord, somehow saying everything about the senseless waste of life and potential of war.
'The most wonderful painting in existence', once sold for £30 and considered less valuable than its frame
Flaming June by Frederick, Lord Leighton, has seen its reputation rise, fall, and rise again in the 128 years since it first went on public display. Carla Passino charted its path.
My Favourite Painting: Jeremy Clarkson
The motoring writer and TV presenter chose a classic Turner image painted in the early years of steam trains.
A few of my favourite things: Matthew Goode
The Downton Abbey actor shared his guilty pleasures — including his true connoisseur's choice of golf clubs.
Exquisite houses, the beauty of Nature, and how to get the most from your life, straight to your inbox.
Curious Questions: When — and why — did we stop wearing hats?
Curious Questions: Who created the 'Your Country Needs YOU' poster?
The story behind Lord Kitchener's imposing — and genuinely iconic — image.
150 years of the Impressionists, being celebrated in Paris and London
In 1874, a group of painters rejected by the official Paris Salon staged its own show and changed the course of art.
When Christian Dior came to Scotland: 'I was even more struck by the beauty of the country, the castles, and the moors, than I had expected'
‘I lingered a little in Scotland,’ wrote Christian Dior in his 1956 memoir, Dior by Dior. ‘I had heard so much about its beauty that I had feared to be disappointed — on the contrary, I was even more struck by the beauty of the country, the castles, and the moors, than I had expected.’
The grand master 'paintings' that are actually the most exquisite floral photographs you'll ever see
Exquisite.
Bert Hardy: The photographer who chronicled mid-century Britain, from the Blitz to Blackpool
‘The ideal picture tells something of the essence of life. It sums up emotion, it holds the feeling of movement thereby implying the continuity of life.’ The words — the philosophy, really — of renowned photojournalist Bert Hardy, who catalogued life at home and abroad in a career that spanned four decades.
Credit: Charlie Waite
'If you get 12 great photographs a year, you're doing well': Charlie Waite on the secrets of landscape photography
The world-renowned landscape photographer Charlie Waite joins the Country Life Podcast.
Clive Nichols: Secrets from the king of garden photography
Britain's top garden photographer Clive Nichols joins the Country Life podcast.
Toby Keel is Country Life's Digital Director, and has been running the website and social media channels since 2016. A former sports journalist, he writes about property, cars, lifestyle, travel, nature.
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18 country houses across Britain, from £400,000 to £4 million, as seen in Country LifeOur look at the homes to come to the market via Country Life this week picks out a charming Kent cottage and an Arts and Crafts house in Leicestershire.
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The greatest flowers make the greatest artA search for still-life subjects led Kate Friend to some of the greatest gardens and gardeners in the country
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The greatest flowers make the greatest artA search for still-life subjects led Kate Friend to some of the greatest gardens and gardeners in the country
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Is the British Museum's attempt to save a Tudor-era pendant with links to Henry VIII proof that the institution is on the up?After years of neglect and controversy, Britain's premier cultural institution seems to be finding its feet again.
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Suit yourself: I’m a 49 year-old man-about-town and I’ve never owned a suitWhen Hugh Smithson-Wright turned up to Country Life's annual Gentleman's Life party sans suit, it sparked a passionate conversation about why the formal fashion just isn't for everyone.
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Meet the British perfumers squeezing landscapes into scentsThe nuances of modern perfumery now allow a single drop to evoke an entire landscape. Amie Elizabeth White explores the native houses hitting the right notes
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This machine is what happens when the Rolls-Royce of motorbikes and the most innovative of watchmakers join forcesBrough Superior and Richard Mille, two brands renowned for perfection, have created something that is exactly that.
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‘Each one is different depending on what mood I’m in, how I'm feeling and how my energy is’ — meet the carver behind Westminster Hall's angel statuesBespoke woodcarver William Barsley makes unique scale replicas of the angels that gaze over Westminster Hall, the oldest part of the palace of Westminster.
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If chess is 'the supreme board game', then it deserves to be played on boards like theseChess sets and backgammon boards are a familiar sight on drawing-room tables, but one expert Highland woodworker is refashioning their forms in beautiful new ways.
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A slick looking off-roader that's a far cry from its rustic rural roots — Volvo EX30 Cross CountryThe latest iteration of Volvo's Cross Country is flashy, fast and stylish. But is that what a Volvo Cross Country is supposed to be?
