Art and Antiques

My Favourite Painting: Sir Mark Prescott

Racehorse trainer Sir Mark Prescott chooses a haunting portrait.

In Focus: A show that uses Degas, Picasso and Cezanne to warn us about the post-Brexit world

A pre-lockdown trip to ‘Degas to Picasso: International Modern Masters’ at the Pallant House Gallery leaves you feeling that British Modernism isn’t easy to pigeonhole — not now, and not a century ago. That's the feeling of Charles Darwent after viewing a show that epitomises an international movement.

My Favourite Painting: Tony Hall

Lord Hall chooses a masterpiece by Della Francesca.

Country Life's 10 best arts stories of 2020, from the Hay Wain to a taped-up banana

The world of the arts has been heavily hit by the virus this year, but there were still some great highlights. We look back on the ones which proved most popular.

My Favourite Painting: Sister Teresa Keswick

The lawyer-turned-Carmelite nun chooses Bathsheba at her Bath by Rembrandt.

In Focus: The 100-carat diamond tiara once owned by one of history's greatest spendthrifts

Matthew Dennison takes a look at the life and times of Henry Paget, aka the 'Dancing Marquess', whose legendary shopping sprees saw him blow a vast fortune.

My Favourite Painting: Rupert Uloth

'An alluring lightness of touch overlaid with skill and artistry.'

In Focus: The fine art of cloisonné, the 'appealingly blingy' meeting point of art and metalwork

Flamboyant and colourful, the best examples of cloisonné render flowers, fruits and dragons in a rainbow of multi-hued enamel on metal, enthuses Matthew Dennison.

My favourite painting: James Fox

James Fox chooses his favourite painting for Country Life.

In Focus: The forgotten masterpieces of Fabergé, unearthed in a museum cabinet in Brighton

A chance glimpse of purple and gold in a crowded cabinet led to an extraordinary discovery by Geoffrey Munn: a lost cache of of pieces by the Russian Imperial jeweller, Carl Fabergé. That was just the start of a mystery, as he explains.

My Favourite Painting: Sheherazade Goldsmith

Sheherazade Goldsmith chooses an unusual abstract photograph that challenges what we mean by art.

In Focus: Alfred Wallis, the painter whose art is high seas meets Kindergarten-style folk art

Self-taught mariner Alfred Wallis’s sea paintings enjoyed popularity with Modernists, but did their efforts drown his own voice? As an exhibition opens at Kettle's Yard in Cambridge, Ruth Guilding takes a closer look.

My Favourite Painting: Ned Denny

The poet chooses a wintry Pissarro that captures the season perfectly.

14 perfect Christmas gift ideas for the man or woman who has everything

From beautiful books and artistic accessories to a weekend away in one of the country's most famous castles, these gifts from our carefully-selected partners offer options for everyone — no matter how tricky to buy for.

My Favourite Painting: Emma Bunce

The head of the Royal Astronomical Society chooses Vincent van Gogh's classic image,The Starry Night.

In Focus: The dusty old drawing set to make £200 at auction... and how it eventually sold for £400,000

My Favourite Painting: Cressida Cowell

Children's author Cressida Cowell picks one of the great depictions of St George's defining moment.

In Focus: How ‘Life in the freezer’ has been recorded in art

The British Museum's ‘Arctic: Culture and Climate’ exhibition prompts Clive Aslet to discover how the indigenous life and culture of the northern polar region have been shaped by Earth’s most extreme and dramatically changing climate.

My favourite painting: William Agnew

William Agnew chooses his favourite painting for Country Life.

In Focus: The Glasgow Boys, the Scottish painters inspired by an iconic French Naturalist

Mary Miers revisits the work of a group of rebellious young artists who challenged the artistic establishment and became an international sensation — and who are now the subject of a new exhibition. Pictures courtesy of the Fleming Collection.