From sleepy sixteenth-century village to twenty-first-century internet sensation, Sułoszowa in southern Poland (population six thousand) earned millions of online fans after this aerial image of the one-road town went viral in 2020. It was the field system of narrow strips of farmland attached to the back of each house that …...Read More

All images courtesy of François Prost, shared with permission Quirky Facades of Japan’s Love Hotels Feature in François Prost’s Vibrant Portraits BooksDesignPhotography Kate Mothes Share Pin Email Bookmark “Love hotels are a unique and deeply ingrained part of Japanese culture,” says photographer François Prost. “These venues have a very ‘talkative’ …...Read More

All images courtesy of Maho Motoyama Paper Christmas Trees by Maho Motoyama Take Holiday Boxes to a New Level CraftDesign Kate Mothes Share Pin Email Bookmark From single sheets of green paper, Los Angeles-based designer Maho Motoyama devises a veritable forest of Christmas tree-shaped boxes. Ranging from a few basic …...Read More

“Dream Backpack 1” (2023), volcanic rock and objects collected from a ritual of retracing the artist’s original migration route, 16 1/4 x 12 1/4 x 4 1/2 inches. All photos by JSP Art Photography, courtesy of Guadalupe Maravilla and P·P·O·W, shared with permission Guadalupe Maravilla’s Volcanic Rock Sculptures Invoke Resilience …...Read More

All images © Todd Antony, shared with permission Our Favorite Stories of 2024 ArtColossalHistoryPhotographySocial Issues Colossal Share Pin Email Bookmark As we look back at the hundreds of remarkable initiatives, artworks, discoveries, and events we’ve chronicled throughout 2024, we’re continually awed by the creative work we’re able to write about …...Read More

Highly commended: Marti Phillips, “Are You Kidding.” All images © the photographers, courtesy of the Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards, shared with permission Silliness and Style Take Top Honors in the 2024 Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards NaturePhotography Kate Mothes Share Pin Email Bookmark A red squirrel diving headlong into a tree …...Read More

A Bizarre Animation Imagines Botanical Growth Gone Awry AnimationFilmNature Grace Ebert Share Pin Email Bookmark What if succulents sprouted in squiggles? Or cacti turned orange and floated to the sky like balloons? An imaginative animation by Hiroshi Takagishi pushes botanical specimens and their potential evolution to peculiar extremes. Inspired by …...Read More

Monarch butterflies in El Rosario Sanctuary can be quite active in the heat of the day. To quench their thirst, hundreds swarm to the ground near a small stream, where they sip liquid and important minerals from the wet soil—a behavior called puddling. All photos © Jaime Rojo, courtesy of …...Read More

Seonna Hong, “Rest as an Act of Defiance” (2024), acrylic, oil pastel, and tape on raw canvas, 51 x 65 inches. All images courtesy of The Jaunt and Hashimoto Contemporary, shared with permission Three Women Artists Gather for The Jaunt and Hashimoto Contemporary’s ‘Winter Camp’ Art Kate Mothes Share Pin …...Read More

All images courtesy of Volker Schlecht and MobyDOK Biologist Karen Lips Investigates Vanishing Tree Frogs in ‘The Waiting’ AnimationNatureScience Kate Mothes Share Pin Email Bookmark “We might call that a cold case, right? There’s no evidence, there’s no murder weapon… It’s a crime scene, but the culprit—the criminal—has left.” Biologist …...Read More