Arts

When you think of comic books, you might conjure up images of geeky adolescent boys, superheroes in stretchy tights and flimsy little booklets. But there's way more to this game-changing, generation-spanning art form than that. What's the real story of comic books? What do comic book fans look like today?

By Nathan Chandler

Comic books have been around forever, but suddenly, all anyone can talk about is graphic novels. But what are they, exactly? Are they the natural evolution of comic books, or a brand new medium? Find out in How Graphic Novels Work.

By Nathan Chandler

A performer slides into a massive cannon barrel and is shot high into the air. She lands safely in a net some distance away, and the crowd goes wild. Who are human cannonballs, and who came up with shooting people out of cannons in the first place?

By Nathan Chandler

Accomplished ballet dancers make their graceful feats look effortless. Of course, that means we don't notice the hard work that make them look easy -- or the terms to match those moves. Want to learn the meanings of those fancy French words?

By Linda C. Brinson

Cubism represented a clear-cut, intentional break with art as visual realism. How did Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque revolutionize the way artists looked at the world?

By Julia Layton

Salvador Dali's paintings are among the most easily recognizable in the world. Oozing pocket watches, bleak expansive landscapes, erotic and grotesque nudes -- they're mind-bending exercises in subconscious exploration. But who was Dali, and how real was his eccentric life story?

By Jessika Toothman

Pablo Picasso was arguably the most famous visual artist of the 20th century -- he produces tens of thousands of works and even helped start a stylistic movement. What was the artist like, and how do historians define his styles?

By Julia Layton

One of the most well-known, and American, artists of the 20th century is undoubtedly Jackson Pollock. Even if you think of his famous "drip" technique as something so simple a child could do it, his fame has been cemented in the American consciousness.

By Meghan E. Smith

Although people now celebrate his bright colors and abstract figures, Henri Matisse was viewed as a radical in his own time -- when he turned the art world upside down. How did a quiet man from a small town become one of the most important French painters of the 20th century?

By Melissa Sandoval

Her self-portraits are unmistakable -- they feature that same dark, brooding visage, crowned by a single eyebrow. But what do they mean? And, who was the woman behind the art?

By Patrick J. Kiger

Most artists are renowned for capturing reality; M.C. Escher became famous for bending it. The creator of such visual stunners as "Relativity" and "Castle in the Air" had more in common with the mathematicians than the visual artists of his time.

By Stephanie Watson

Chances are you've probably read a poem or two in school, had to memorize a poem at some point, or maybe even wrote a poem yourself. But what exactly is poetry?

By Caitlin Uttley

Three things make books valuable: supply, demand and condition. Most collectors seek out these works because of their associations with famous authors and historical events. Some want them because they're really, really old.

By Ed Grabianowski

Everyone dreams of finding that rare first edition in Grandma's attic, but how would you know such a treasure if you found one? Book appraising takes years to master, but we've laid out the basics here.

By Dave Roos

The answer to this question may depend on how you define the word "book."

By Eric Baxter

If you've been to a Broadway show in the last four decades, there's a good chance you bought a discounted ticket at a TKTS booth. If so, you can thank the Theatre Development Fund for your low-cost ticket.

By Christopher Lampton

The Metropolitan Opera was established more than 100 years ago and hosts more than 200 performances each season. Find out how the Met got its start, and how technology has kept the performing arts alive.

By Christopher Neiger

It's not the oldest professional musical organization in America, or the largest, or even the first symphony orchestra to be based in the nation's capital. But the National Symphony Orchestra is a cornerstone of America's orchestral composing and performing arts scene.

By Lawrence Schumacher

For the past 70 years, the American Ballet Theatre has brought the best in dance theater to people around the world. What's the storied (and sometimes stormy) history of the ABT?

By Martha Barksdale

Lion tamers have a habit of putting their heads inside lions' mouths, which are made to crush the spines of bulls. So you can imagine what those jaws could do to a person's skull.

By Debra Ronca

Every weekend, the antique hunters come out. They prowl the aisles of shows, scrutinize the offerings at sales and occasionally even wave cards at an auction. But what makes an antique an antique? And why are they so expensive?

By Heather Kolich

Making stained glass is the ancient art of creating colored glass to use in decorative ways. Although the first colored glass may have been used as jewelry or even currency, you probably see stained glass predominantly in windows today.

By Sara Elliott

Your favorite plays go off without a hitch because of a hard-working stage manager. Read this article to learn more about the responsibilities of a stage manager.

By Diane Dannenfeldt

The practice of blowing glass may seem hip and modern if you've recently hit up an art exhibition by Dale Chihuly or Harvey Littleton. But the history of glassblowing is actually long and rich, dating back to the Roman Empire.

By Jessika Toothman

Not all art heists are worthy of the silver screen, but some stand out for their ingenuity -- or bravado. So how do thieves walk away with near-priceless works?

By Julia Layton & Matt Cunningham