The must-see Bayeux masterpiece, Colombia’s chronicler and a Manchester odyssey – the week in art
This week's Guardian art roundup highlights the arrival of the Bayeux tapestry at the British Museum from 10 September, showcasing the medieval masterpiece's vivid depiction of battle, betrayal and everyday medieval life, alongside a National Gallery comparison with Francesco Pesellino's 15th-century painting The Story of David and Goliath. Other exhibitions featured include a retrospective of Colombian painter Emma Reyes at White Cube, recent Van Gogh-tinged works by Jimmy Wright, and Catherine Murphy's surrealist realism at Sadie Coles HQ, plus a textile-focused show at Manchester's Whitworth gallery linking traditions from India and Korea.
The digest also covers wider art news, including the theft of an Egyptian queen's 673-diamond necklace, the enduring controversy over Jackson Pollock's Blue Poles in Australia, the death of engineer Wilem Frischmann aged 95, and sculptor Maurizio Cattelan's forthcoming Berlin show featuring depictions of Hitler and a pope. It also profiles photographer Temi Adegbayibi, 26, whose music photography—rooted in shooting his cousin's band Ezra Collective—has been exhibited at the Royal Albert Hall.
- Bayeux tapestry opens at British Museum, 10 September to July 2027
- Roundup spans Colombian, American and British art exhibitions this week
- Also covers art thefts, a death, and a rising photographer's rise
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The Bayeux tapestry is an embroidered account of the events leading up to the Norman conquest of England in 1066, including the Battle of Hastings. Though often called a tapestry, it is stitched onto linen and also shows details of ordinary life in the medieval period. Its scenes can be compared with later works that tell stories through images, such as Francesco Pesellino’s painting of David and Goliath.
The other exhibitions in the roundup range from Colombian painter Emma Reyes to textile traditions in India and Korea, alongside work by artists including Jimmy Wright and Catherine Murphy. The wider stories touch on how art is made, displayed, valued and debated, from the theft of a historic necklace to the continuing argument over Jackson Pollock’s Blue Poles in Australia.