Louvre Abu Dhabi scoops up 300 masterpieces from France
Monet, Leonardo, Van Gogh and Matisse among artworks to go on display at the £400m Arab museum when it opens in December 2015
Art and design
The Turner prize show: voices, videos and erotic tickling sticks
Has the Turner prize lost its power to shock? No – thanks to James Richards’s sphincter shots. But it’s Tris Vonna-Michell’s spellbinding spoken-word travelogues that deserve to win
Ai Weiwei, Modern Toss, The Turner Prize: this week’s new exhibitions
From Ai Weiwei’s show at Blenheim Palace to The Turner Prize in London, Skye Sherwin and Robert Clark find out what’s happening in art around the country
Killer Heels: the art of the stiletto – in pictures
From traditional Japanese stacked sandals to weird rubber creations by Zaha Hadid and Prada tongues in flames, high-heeled shoes tower provocatively above all other footwear in women’s – and men’s – imaginations. A new exhibition traces their first steps in the 16th century through to modern designers’ erotic flights of fancy
- Killer Heels is at Brooklyn Museum, New York, from 10 September to 15 February 2015
What is art for? Alain de Botton’s animated guide – video
In this exclusive video for the Guardian, philosopher Alain de Botton gives his top five reasons why art is such a vital force for humanity. Are we wrong to like pretty pictures? Why is some art painful to look at? Can art heal your feelings of urban alienation? Relax, watch and find out
London fashion week: Sam Taylor-Johnson show reveals ‘spirit’ of Chanel
Second Floor exhibition aims to create psychological portrait of late designer in form of 34 photos of preserved Paris apartment