Posts by Forbes Washington DC
Sotheby’s Marks America’s Semiquincentennial With an Exhibition of 250 Years of Art, Culture and Mythmaking
The sale of the one-of-a-kind Fire Horse Stetson will benefit Gold House. Estimate: $100,000-150,000. Courtesy Sotheby’s and Stetson Timed with the semiquincentennial anniversary of the founding of the United States, Sotheby’s is opening “250 Years of American Art and Culture,” a new blockbuster exhibition for its Breuer auction house/museum series: an extensive cross-category show exploring…
Read MoreThe Pants That Fade on Purpose: A Brief History of Nantucket Reds
Every June, the Hy-Line ferry from Hyannis unloads onto Nantucket’s Straight Wharf carrying coolers, garment bags and a statistically improbable number of men dressed like undercooked salmon. Their trousers occupy a color spectrum somewhere between faded watermelon and a spectacularly healing sunburn. The initiated call them Nantucket Reds, and they’ll insist the whole point is…
Read MoreA Rare Comet Made History as the Third Known Interstellar Object to Fly Through Our Solar System. Studies Are Now Revealing the Mysterious Conditions in Which It Formed
/https://tf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com/filer_public/b2/0d/b20db74d-3a38-49aa-b8c2-26e38cfd4944/noirlab2525b.jpg?w=1024&resize=1024,1024&ssl=1 "A Rare Comet Made History as the Third Known Interstellar Object to Fly Through Our Solar System. Studies Are Now Revealing the Mysterious Conditions in Which It Formed")
In the latest research, telescope observations of 3I/ATLAS examine its chemical structure and suggest that it took shape in a peripheral region of a relatively calm planetary system Jay Bennett | Former Associate Web Editor, Science June 29, 2026 12:02 p.m. Interstellar object 3I/ATLAS, imaged here with its broad coma of gas and dust, has…
Read MorePainter Justin Bua Might Just Be Art’s Most Outspoken Defender of Skill
Justin Bua has spent three years calling out what he sees as the art world’s most enduring con. Photo: Steven Lam. Instagram @stevenlamphoto Justin Bua’s disembodied head is floating at the bottom of my phone’s screen, his tousled grey hair framed against a video of an artist smashing a mirror with a hammer. “What you…
Read MoreChristie’s and Phillips Kept London’s June Auctions Moving But Not Flying
Christie’s sales on June 25 brought £25.7 million ($34 million), with the sale of the Zabludowicz collection achieving £15.5 million ($20.5 million). CHRISTIE’S IMAGES LTD. 2026 The London sales opened with a record-setting £393.4 million night for Sotheby’s, led by the benchmark-shattering £273.6 million Lewis sale, which became not only the most expensive single-owner collection…
Read MoreSpeed Limits for Ships Protect Endangered Right Whales From Vessel Strikes. Could the Animals Survive Without Them?
/https://tf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com/filer_public/cb/72/cb726792-ecc1-446c-b20b-ce1ce610ebe3/ezgif-7013df4c21cb050d.jpg?w=1024&resize=1024,1024&ssl=1 "Speed Limits for Ships Protect Endangered Right Whales From Vessel Strikes. Could the Animals Survive Without Them?")
Since 2008, rules requiring ships to slow down to avoid collisions with North Atlantic right whales have reduced fatalities of the critically endangered animals. Now, NOAA is calling the regulations into question, raising concerns for the mammals’ future Olivia Ferrari | Correspondent June 26, 2026 2:00 p.m. A North Atlantic right whale swims with dolphins…
Read MoreThe Luxurious All-Inclusive Hotels Defying Dining Expectations Across the U.S.
Watered-down drinks, stale service and perpetually disappointing buffets are just a few things that come to mind when picturing the traditional all-inclusive resort. For decades, budget-friendly travelers have been enticed by the all-inclusive model made popular by brands like Club Med, seeing it as a way to make travel more accessible. And in many ways,…
Read MoreThe World Cup Is Testing a Core Assumption of the Streaming Era
As personalized feeds dominate digital life, World Cup watch parties reveal growing demand for shared, real-world experiences. Courtesy Eventbrite For much of the streaming era, platforms have been designed around personalization: algorithmic feeds, curated recommendations on what to watch, who to follow, what to buy and where to go, all optimized for individualized relevance. That…
Read MoreAt Basel Social Club, the Office Becomes a Playground of Anti-Productivity
Silvio Larusso’s provocative text installation sets the tone. Courtesy of the artist and Basel Social Club. Photo: Silke Briel As the art world has grown accustomed to the boutique fair format, an increasing number of satellite events are, ironically, trying to counter fair fatigue with more contained, context-specific models. There’s also the experiential factor: unique…
Read MoreA Vietnam Veteran Collected Fossils for 66 Years. One, Mislabeled ‘Baby Lamprey,’ Made Paleontologists Reconsider How Vertebrates Moved From Water to Land
/https://tf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com/filer_public/77/df/77df2952-db82-4627-80ba-c8bd8ba4ad0c/illustration_by_berit_goding.jpg?w=1024&resize=1024,1024&ssl=1 "A Vietnam Veteran Collected Fossils for 66 Years. One, Mislabeled ‘Baby Lamprey,’ Made Paleontologists Reconsider How Vertebrates Moved From Water to Land")
The fossil turned out to be a hatchling of a crocodile-like creature, and it suggests, according to a new study, that early animals did not use metamorphosis to evolve to dwell on land Eli Stark-Elster | AAAS Mass Media Fellow June 18, 2026 2:15 p.m. Two fossils of juvenile embolomeres—crocodile-like creatures, illustrated here—suggest that they…
Read MorePerforma’s Broadway Benefit Brought Fresh Magic to an Old Format
Fragments of Barbara Kruger’s Untitled (Questions). Courtesy Performa, photo: Elyse Mertz There was a certain New York magic last Wednesday night—an unknown and unexpected thrill in the air. Knicks fans held their breath for Game 4, and a few blocks away, at the Town Hall theater near Times Square, Performa: Live on Broadway—a one-night-only, vaudeville-inspired…
Read MoreShinyHunters Claims Council of Europe HR Data, Threatens Leak
ShinyHunters has put the Council of Europe on the clock, claiming it stole 297GB of sensitive data and threatening to publish it unless its demands are met. The cyber extortion group says the data includes payroll records, medical information, employee data, and thousands of resumes spanning 16 years. The group has given the Council of…
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