Gerhard RichterGrand illusionGerhard Richter, often called the best living painter, begins work on his portraits by projecting photographs on to canvas. His subjects soon become ghostsAccording to legend, it was the painter Hippolyte Délaroche who, on seeing the first daguerrotypes exhibited in Paris in 1839, let out the notorious cry of despair La peinture est morte! That painting was dead or dying soon became a critical cliche, one repeated throughout the 20th century. Read More...
History booksReviewThis is an evocative biography of Britain’s greatest civil engineer, who can take the credit for much of the industrial revolution’s architectureTogether with victorious generals and admirals, self-made engineers were the heroes of Victorian Britain, exemplary figures to generations of schoolchildren, industrial apprentices and autodidacts. Writers such as Samuel Smiles established the public reputation of these men via popular biographies, in which incidents in childhood often prefigured their later triumphs. Read More...
Other livesDramaObituaryNick Laughland obituaryIf you have watched prime-time television drama over the past three decades it’s almost certain you will have enjoyed the work of the director Nick Laughland, who has died aged 69 of complications arising from a long-term illness. His CV reads like a chart-list of the most-loved TV series of the past 30 years: Lovejoy, Boon, Playing the Field, Where the Heart Is, New Tricks, Wild at Heart, Midsomer Murders. Read More...