Arts

Arts

Leonardo da Vinci drawings make first U.S. appearance at an exhibit in D.C.

5:14am June 21, 2023

A collection of drawings by Leonardo da Vinci makes its U.S. debut in Washington, D.C. — not at a museum, but at a public library. The Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library hosts the exhibition.

Strangers are helping finish craft projects when the original crafter can't

4:52pm June 20, 2023

by Martha Bebinger

Dedicated crafters often leave projects unfinished when they die. Now, there's a group that pairs those half-knitted hats and partly-stitched quilts with new crafters who can finish them for families.

Jenny Xie tackles a fraught mother-daughter relationship in novel 'Holding Pattern'

4:39pm June 20, 2023

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly talks with Jenny Xie about her first novel, Holding Pattern. It takes a familiar story — a young adult who decides to move home — and flips it on its head.

'The Brightest Star' tells Anna May Wong's life story from her imagined perspective

4:39pm June 20, 2023

NPR's Ailsa Chang talks with author Gail Tsukiyama about her new novel The Brightest Star, a fictional account of the life of actress Anna May Wong.

Arts

After 20 years, Triad Stage exits stage left

3:33pm June 20, 2023

by David Ford

Triad Stage, which offered professional theater productions in the Piedmont for two decades, is shuttering its doors.

Books
Arts

Pain and pleasure do the tango in the engrossing new novel 'Kairos'

1:58pm June 20, 2023

by John Powers

A young student in East Berlin falls in love with a much older writer in the run-up to the fall of the Berlin Wall. It is a love story and a rich portrait of people watching their country disappear.

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Arts

'Road to Surrender' revisits the final weeks of World War II

1:57pm June 20, 2023

by Dave Davies

Author Evan Thomas tells the story of American leaders wrestling with the terrifying dilemmas of nuclear weapons and of determined Japanese leaders confronting the humiliating prospect of defeat.

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Max Park, pictured after winning a December 2021 competition, recently set a world record for solving a 3x3x3 Rubik's cube in 3.13 seconds.

He once had motor skill challenges. Now he's the world's fastest Rubik's cube solver

5:00am June 20, 2023

by Emma Bowman

What puzzles most people — like solving a Rubik's cube — makes sense to Max Park. And the world of speedcubing has helped the autistic 21-year-old crack the code on what might come easy to others.

Pixar's 'Elemental' bombs at box office

5:07pm June 19, 2023

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly talks with critic Keith Phipps about the poor performance of Pixar's new movie Elemental and what it says about the movie industry.

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How an AIDS patient encouraged a physician to take a chance on his own dream

4:50pm June 19, 2023

In 1985, a specialist in infectious diseases had developed a reputation for treating patients living with AIDS. And he grew close with many of his patients, including a man named Frank.