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Sometimes you have to dig around a bit to understand what is going on in a painting, particularly some of JMW Turner’s.

Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775–1851), The Opening of the Wallhalla, 1842 (1843), oil on mahogany, 112.7 x 200.7 cm, The Tate Gallery (Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856), London. © The Tate Gallery and Photographic Rights © Tate (2016), CC-BY-NC-ND 3.0 (Unported), http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/turner-the-opening-of-the-wallhalla-1842-n00533

Here, my puzzle is The Opening of the Wallhalla, 1842 (1843), which shows a classical building resembling the Parthenon in Athens, and a huge crowd of people gathered on the opposite bank of the river below it. Valhalla is, of course, the mythical majestic hall to which half of the Vikings went when they died in battle, in preparation for Ragnarök.

The Walhalla (to spell it correctly) which Turner shows is a very long way from the lands of the…

Last night #RBB (Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg) – for obvious reasons our favourite German TV station – treated its viewers to another episode of its highly appreciated documentary series Geheimnisvolle Orte (Secret, or Mysterious, Places).

This time it is all about the KaDeWe: since its opening in 1907 Berlin´s Kaufhaus des Westens (the Department Store of the West) remains an elegant temple of shopping, the Mecca of jet-setting keen buyers.

Adolf Jandorf and family in their villa in Tiergartenstraße, 1908 Berlin (image by R. Siebert).

Its story is a rich tapestry of anecdotes and historically significant moments. Its fate reflects that of Berlin itself almost one-to-one: the Wilhelminian show-off opulence, braggadocio and drama, the Weimar Republic “wild & wasteful” craze and sudden financial slump, the Nazi-era tragedy of the Jewish management and staff, followed by the Second World War wreckage and the resurrection; division of Berlin and the 1960s anti-capitalist, anti-authoritarian, anti-government…

Later this month, we will be remembering the life and work of Hilaire Germain Edgar Degas, who died a century ago. Degas is not my favourite artist of the group known as the French Impressionists, but is one of the most fascinating painters, draughtsmen, and print-makers of the nineteenth century.

Over the next three weeks or so, I will look at different areas of and themes in his art; rather than attempt a full biography and chronological account of his paintings, this article gives a concise summary, written around twelve of his key works, as an introduction to more detailed articles later.

Edgar Degas was born in Paris on 19 July 1834, into an affluent family. His father was a banker from Naples, Italy, and his mother’s family were merchants in New Orleans. In the summers of his childhood, the family visited Saint-Valery-sur-Somme, on the northern coast of France. His…

Tineke Stoffels

Seeds, petals, loafs of bread, egg shells, orange peels, pots of honey, jars of oil arranged and exhibited carefully in indoor spaces – photographer Tineke Stoffels (born 1957, Den Helder, the Netherlands) captures the beauty of everyday objects in a style that resembles the still life paintings of the Dutch Golden Age. “One often wonders upon seeing my work,” writes the artist, “whether it’s a photograph or a painting. For me it’s both.”

Tineke’s stunning portfolio is divided into series: “Uyt Eenen Tijt”, “Momento Mori”, “Terroir”, “Recettes Provençales”, et cetera. Each project looks at specific themes, which may be a celebration of local cuisine, a reminder of the transience of life, the splendour of imperfection or the importance of temperance.

“Photography for me as a means of expression is the ideal combination of technology and design,” writes Tineke. “Because I think mainly in pictures, the camera helps me…