A new start: Guy Gunaratne on how painting gives him courage to write more freely
The award-winning novelist says immersing himself in another art form has brought clarity and creativity to his work
On my radar: Sandi Toksvig’s cultural highlights
The comedian and writer on Gainsborough’s family portraits, busting myths about men and women and the snuggest place for some Danish hygge
The photobook about homelessness – without a single rough sleeper
He has photographed his dad’s furniture, teenage shoppers and even vegetable peelings. Now Nigel Shafran has tackled homelessness – by asking rough sleepers to take photos of him
Sunil Gupta’s best photograph: cruising for sex in New York City
‘New York in the mid-70s was a giant open-air gay bar. People were having casual sex with whoever went by. It was literally too many men, not enough time’
Lost portrait of Charles Dickens turns up at auction in South Africa
Margaret Gillies’ 1843 work, found among trinkets, depicts author as young literary star
Home is where the art is: Margaret Drabble on Gainsborough’s family portraits
He was known as an expensive painter who captured high society, but a rare exhibition of Gainsborough’s works at the National Portrait Gallery reveals a poignant story of parental love
From Condom Dave to Theresa the clown: the caustic world of Steve Bell
The Guardian cartoonist has been casting a satirical eye on politics for decades. Now his sharp and funny views on events since 2015 are collected in a new book
Guido Guidi: ‘Many times I’m not looking when I press the shutter’
He photographs the in-between places, the ordinary and overlooked, rarely venturing far from his home in suburban Italy. Why do the results feel so monumental? We meet a modern master
Frankenstein and the gory gang: how the novel blazed a trail for high art horrors
On the 200th anniversary of her terrifying story, we uncover the heartbreak that inspired Mary Shelley – and examine the gruesome masterpieces that followed her monstrous creation
Take that, Charlie Brown! The artists putting the pain into Peanuts
Anxiety, misery, vanity, heartbreak … Snoopy and the gang were always darker than they appeared – which is why artists have reimagined them for our angst-ridden times
Grotesque realism and a blood-soaked blockbuster – the week in art
Edward Burne-Jones’ Arthurian visions arrive at Tate Britain, the British Library celebrates art, words and war, and Michael Chance satirises wealth and power
Ray Smith obituary
Other lives: Artist who expressed himself playfully in words, music and visual arts
The high-fliers club: how Susan Wood captured the original rebel girls
Celebrities, intellectuals, icons: Susan Wood shot the most celebrated women of the 20th century, unaware she was chronicling a revolution. She relives her great assignments – and the hottest gossip
Sex, drugs and social media – Hooked review
Science Gallery, LondonSugar, shopping, cash, drugs, booze and smartphones … this great show details how artists have responded – and succumbed – to addictive vices down the ages
After American Animals: the literary robberies Hollywood is yet to snatch up
With Bart Layton’s new true-crime film, literary robbery stories have finally found Hollywood’s spotlight. There are others lurking in the library