William Downey, ‘Sarah Bernhardt close-up,’ photography, BNF, Department of Performing Arts. © BnF. Photo credit Paris Musees / Petit Palais / Gautier Deblonde

Paris exhibit celebrates ‘first celebrity’ Sarah Bernhardt

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William Downey, ‘Sarah Bernhardt close-up,’ photography, BNF, Department of Performing Arts. © BnF. Photo credit Paris Musees / Petit Palais / Gautier Deblonde

William Downey, ‘Sarah Bernhardt close-up,’ photography, BNF, Department of Performing Arts. © BnF. Photo credit Paris Musees / Petit Palais / Gautier Deblonde

PARIS (AP) – The pioneering French stage star Sarah Bernhardt was one of the world’s most famous women by the time of her death in 1923 – a status she owed not just to acting talent but her modern instinct for self-publicizing and using the press to brand her image. A century later, the Petit Palais museum in Paris has opened an exhibit on the eccentric, scandalous and multi-hyphenate performer known as “La Divine,” whom many consider the world’s first celebrity. Sarah Bernhardt: And the woman created the star runs until Aug. 27.

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Tina Turner, photographed onstage in April 2009 during her 50th Anniversary Tour. The famed singer died on May 24 at the age of 83. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, photo credit Philip Spittle. Shared under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.

At Tennessee museum, fans remember Tina Turner’s talent, strength, influence

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Tina Turner, photographed onstage in April 2009 during her 50th Anniversary Tour. The famed singer died on May 24 at the age of 83. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, photo credit Philip Spittle. Shared under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.

Tina Turner, photographed onstage in April 2009 during her 50th Anniversary Tour. The famed singer died on May 24 at the age of 83. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, photo credit Philip Spittle. Shared under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.

BROWNSVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Standing in a Tennessee museum, near exhibits of shimmering dresses worn by Tina Turner, Lisa Lyons wiped tears from her cheeks as she remembered the impact the singer and actor had on her life.

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V&A displays Kehinde Wiley portrait of young East Londoner

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Kehinde Wiley, ‘Portrait of Melissa Thompson,’ 2020. Oil on linen, 265.5 by 201.8cm (104 1/2in by 79 1/2in). Copyright Kehinde Wiley. Courtesy the artist and Stephen Friedman Gallery, London. Photo by Todd-White Art Photography.

Kehinde Wiley, ‘Portrait of Melissa Thompson,’ 2020. Oil on linen, 265.5 by 201.8cm (104 1/2in by 79 1/2in). Copyright Kehinde Wiley. Courtesy the artist and Stephen Friedman Gallery, London. Photo by Todd-White Art Photography

LONDON – Portrait of Melissa Thompson, a 2020 work by American artist Kehinde Wiley, is now on display  in the V&A museum’s William Morris Room (room 125) in the British Galleries, alongside William Morris’s Wild Tulip designs that inspired it. The exhibition runs through October 26, 2023.

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Exterior of the Dorchester hotel in London. The famed luxury property is undergoing its largest renovation project in more than 30 years, and will auction obsolete furniture fixtures and fittings in a two-day, on-site sale in early June. Image courtesy of Pro Auction Limited

Furnishings from London’s Dorchester hotel to be auctioned onsite in June

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Exterior of the Dorchester hotel in London. The famed luxury property is undergoing its largest renovation project in more than 30 years, and will auction obsolete furniture fixtures and fittings in a two-day, on-site sale in early June. Image courtesy of Pro Auction Limited

Exterior of the Dorchester hotel in London. The famed luxury property is undergoing its largest renovation project in more than 30 years, and will auction obsolete furniture and fittings in a two-day, on-site sale scheduled for early June. Image courtesy of Pro Auction Limited

LONDON – The Dorchester, the famed luxury hotel in London, is undergoing its largest renovation project since 1989. In redesigning the hotel entrance, the Promenade, the guest rooms and suites and adding a new boutique, Pierre-Yves Rochon is creating a world where guests feel at home and is an institution in its own right, while Martin Brudnizki has revived the world-renowned bar with a touch of 1930s glamour. As the project approaches the phase that involves renovating the guest room areas, specialist hotel asset auctioneers Pro Auction have been appointed to conduct a sale of the Dorchester’s furniture and fittings. The auction will take place at the hotel during two days: Wednesday, June 5 and Thursday, June 6. The sale will commence on June 5 at 10:30 am, with more than 750 lots on offer, from desks and lamps to drapes and side tables.

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Vania Ruiz, ‘Phototropist,’ from the Domestic Wildness series, 2019. Resin, fabric, ink, varnish. Collection of the SCAD Museum of Art, gift of Susan Grant Lewin. Image courtesy of NOMA

Put a ring on it: NOMA hosts innovative jewelry show

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Vania Ruiz, ‘Phototropist,’ from the Domestic Wildness series, 2019. Resin, fabric, ink, varnish. Collection of the SCAD Museum of Art, gift of Susan Grant Lewin.

Vania Ruiz, ‘Phototropist,’ from the Domestic Wildness series, 2019. Resin, fabric, ink, varnish. Collection of the SCAD Museum of Art, gift of Susan Grant Lewin.

NEW ORLEANS – The New Orleans Museum of Art (NOMA) is now hosting Ring Redux: The Susan Grant Lewin Collection, an exhibition presenting 100 innovative rings by designers who have reinvented this enduring jewelry form with a distinctly contemporary sense of experimental craft. It will remain on view through February 4, 2024, in the Elise M. Besthoff Charitable Foundation Gallery on NOMA’s second floor.

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La Carriere, a French Riviera estate that belonged to Princess Margaret of Denmark will be auctioned on May 16. Its list price, prior to auction, was $12 million. Photos courtesy Concierge Auctions and TopTenRealEstateDeals.com.

Royal couple’s stunning French Riviera estate to be auctioned May 16

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La Carriere, a French Riviera estate that belonged to Princess Margaret of Denmark will be auctioned on May 16. Its list price, prior to auction, was $12 million. Photos courtesy Concierge Auctions and TopTenRealEstateDeals.com.

La Carriere, a French Riviera estate that belonged to Princess Margaret of Denmark, will be auctioned on May 16. Its list price, prior to auction, was $12 million. Photos courtesy Concierge Auctions and TopTenRealEstateDeals.com.

VILLEFRANCHE-SUR-MER, France – The Cote d’Azur estate where Princess Margaret of Denmark and her husband, Prince Rene of Bourbon-Parma, made their home has recently been listed for sale at a no-reserve auction on Tuesday, May 16. Overlooking the French Riviera, the one-of-a-kind residence is known as La Carriere. It dates back to the 1920s, and is a majestic manor house built into the stone walls of a fortress. The stunning villa melds rustic charm with modern luxury, while the walls provide the ultimate in privacy and security. The list price, prior to auction, was $12 million.

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A vista within the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument, photographed in May 2015. An appellate court recently upheld its designation as a national Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, photo credit Bob Wick of the Bureau of Land Management. Shared under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.monument.

Appellate court upholds expanded Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument

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A vista within the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument, photographed in May 2015. An appellate court recently upheld its designation as a national monument. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, photo credit Bob Wick of the Bureau of Land Management. Shared under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.


A vista within the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument, photographed in May 2015. An appellate court recently upheld its designation as a national monument. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, photo credit Bob Wick of the Bureau of Land Management. Shared under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.

SEATTLE – On April 24, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the expansion of the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument made by President Obama in January 2017. President Clinton designated the monument in 2000 under the Antiquities Act as a biological crossroads and ecological wonder known for its incredible diversity of wildlife and plant species. Cascade-Siskiyou, located in southwestern Oregon and northwestern California, is the only national monument in the United States specifically established to protect biodiversity. The court decision confirms protection of this special area of federal land and is a major victory for the monument and the plants, fish, and wildlife that depend on the monument’s ecological integrity.

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The Richard Gilder Center for Science, Education and Innovation at the American Museum of Natural History, photographed at dusk. The Gilder Center will formally open to the public on May 4. Image courtesy of the American Museum of Natural History, photo credit Iwan Baan

Ants march, whales swoop at Museum of Natural History’s awe-inspiring new wing

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The Richard Gilder Center for Science, Education and Innovation at the American Museum of Natural History, photographed at dusk. The Gilder Center will formally open to the public on May 4. Image courtesy of the American Museum of Natural History, photo credit Iwan Baan

The Richard Gilder Center for Science, Education and Innovation at the American Museum of Natural History, photographed at dusk. The Gilder Center will formally open to the public on May 4. Image courtesy of the American Museum of Natural History, photo credit Iwan Baan

NEW YORK (AP) – The American Museum of Natural History in New York is set to open its new building, a sweeping piece of architecture designed to connect visitors with their place in the natural world.

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The Frederic Chopin Museum in Warsaw, Poland, photographed in May 2022. The museum will reopen on April 29 following renovations. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, photo credit Adrian Grycuk. Shared under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Poland license.

Refurbished Chopin museum reopens in Warsaw with new items

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The Frederic Chopin Museum in Warsaw, Poland, photographed in May 2022. The museum will reopen on April 29. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, photo credit Adrian Grycuk. Shared under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Poland license.

The Frederic Chopin Museum in Warsaw, Poland, photographed in May 2022. The museum will reopen on April 29 following renovations. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, photo credit Adrian Grycuk. Shared under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Poland license.

WARSAW, Poland (AP) – A museum to Polish pianist and composer Frederic Chopin reopens in Warsaw on April 29 after months of renovations to improve the presentation of the exhibits.

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Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, photographed several weeks after the April 2019 fire that ravaged the 12th-century structure. French officials said the reconstruction work is moving apace, and the cathedral should be ready to reopen by December 2024. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, photo credit Victor Perea Ros. Shared under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.

Paris: Notre Dame Cathedral set to reopen in December 2024

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Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, photographed several weeks after the April 2019 fire that ravaged the 12th-century structure. French officials said the reconstruction work is moving apace, and the cathedral should be ready to reopen by December 2024. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, photo credit Victor Perea Ros. Shared under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.

Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, photographed several weeks after the April 2019 fire that ravaged the 12th-century structure. French officials said the reconstruction work is moving apace, and the cathedral should be ready to reopen by December 2024. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, photo credit Victor Perea Ros. Shared under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.

PARIS (AP) – The reconstruction of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris is going fast enough to allow its reopening to visitors and faithful at the end of 2024, less than six years after a fire ravaged its roof, French officials say

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