Mystery artist’s sculptures from classic Scottish books raise £50,000
Money from auction of works left around country to be found by passersby will fund reading charity
Diego Rivera by Francisco de la Mora and José Luis Pescador review – rumbustious hymn to a radical artist
The eventful life of Frida Kahlo’s revolutionary husband makes for a rich, energetic graphic biography
Nicholas Thirkell obituary
Designer who shook up ideas of what a book cover should be and gave the Independent newspaper its distinctive look
Vote with your feet: film, music, art and more to engage you politically
From the heroic Mr Smith using political institutions to clear his name to Naomi Klein’s exposé of the sharp end of globalisation, our critics choose political cultural works that inspire
Bacon in Moscow by James Birch review – darkly funny account of art behind the iron curtain
Spats, KGB threats, dodgy Soviet plumbing… a London gallerist’s vivid memoir of organising a Francis Bacon show in the USSR really brings the artist to life
Mapping fiction: the complicated relationship between authors and literary maps
In a new exhibition, the long, difficult history of literary maps is explored, from James Joyce to Raymond Chandler
Ways of Seeing at 50: how John Berger’s radical TV series changed our view of art
It was an unlikely choice for BBC Two to schedule against Match of the Day. But Berger’s series and book now forms the bedrock of how we interpret art and advertising
‘Me against the world’: why superheroes are so often orphans
Batman, Spider-Man and many others lost parents when young. A new exhibition explores their complex stories
Profusely Illustrated review: Edward Sorel and all the golden ages of New York magazines
A memoir by a man who has drawn caricatures for the greatest editors is a treasure trove of the American mid-century modern
‘He was a handful’ – Hunter S Thompson’s PA and photographer relives her wild job
She cooked his weird dinners, dealt with his volcanic rants, and read his prose back to him from dark till dawn. As Chloe Sells’ photographs of the gonzo writer’s chaotic Colorado cabin are published, she remembers an invigorating, inspirational figure
From stand-in stars to tech titans: The Observer’s faces to watch in 2022
We look at who will be making headlines this year, in both a positive and negative light
From the Beano to Katherine Ryan: 31 ways to beat the January blues
Each week, our critics choose the best music, film, theatre, art and games – so who better to ask to help us through a whole month?
Sexism, slurs and Australian art: women’s struggle to be seen in a male-dominated world
In her new tome Doing Feminism, Anne Marsh charts the trials and triumphs of women who shaped contemporary art
Pandemic park life and a secret knitting cult: the best photography books of 2021
From meditative portraits that nod at the Dutch old masters to an incendiary, epic exploration of the Troubles, these are the volumes that resonated this year
The bumper arts and books quiz of 2021 – do you know your Franzens from your NFTs?
It was another year of enforced stints on the sofa – perfect preparation for our fiendish cultural quiz