Visual Arts and Culture

Alexander McQueen and Mulberry made significant returns to London Fashion Week, showcasing their spring/summer 2027 collections. Key trends included the "messy girl" aesthetic, which rejects quiet luxury in favor of deliberate chaos, and "gardening-core," featuring unpolished, kitchen-garden-inspired looks.

The British Museum has banned photography of the Bayeux Tapestry because visitors stopping to take pictures were slowing the flow of the sold-out exhibition and delaying other ticket-holders. Visitors are admitted in groups every 40 minutes and must keep moving along the 68m embroidery, which is on display in London until July 2027.

Mahjong has surged in popularity across the US in 2026, with social clubs, leagues, and pricey accessories driving a booming consumer market valued in the tens of millions. This resurgence, especially among suburban women and young Asian Americans reconnecting with their roots, has also sparked debate over cultural appropriation and who profits from the game.

Wars in Ukraine, Gaza, Sudan, and elsewhere are destroying cultural heritage sites like Odesa's Unesco-protected buildings, Gaza's Great Omari Mosque, and Iran's Golestan Palace, sparking demands for accountability. Despite strong legal frameworks and evidence such as satellite imagery, no state actor has ever been tried for cultural destruction, with jurisdiction and political will remaining the key obstacles to justice.