Category Archives: Profiles

The Epic Style of Kerry James Marshall

August 9, 2021 New Yorker cover
August 9, 2021

The Epic Style of Kerry James Marshall
by Calvin Tomkins

The artist, a virtuoso of landscape, portraiture, still-life, history painting, and other genres of the Western canon since the Renaissance, can do anything.

The Formidable Charm of Omar Sy

June 21, 2021 New Yorker cover
June 21, 2021

The Formidable Charm of Omar Sy
by Lauren Collins

How the star of “Lupin” pulled off his greatest confidence trick.

How El Anatsui Broke the Seal on Contemporary Art

January 18, 2021

How El Anatsui Broke the Seal on Contemporary Art
by Julian Lucas

His runaway success began with castaway junk: a bag of bottle caps along the road. Now the Ghanaian sculptor is redefining Africa’s place in the global art scene.

Igor Levit Is Like No Other Pianist

May 18, 2020

Profiles
Igor Levit Is Like No Other Pianist
He’s a political activist. His repertory is vast. And, during Germany’s shutdown, he streamed more than fifty performances from home. It’s made him question what a concert can be.
by Alex Ross

Scenes from the Life of Roz Chast

December 30, 2019

Profiles
Scenes from the Life of Roz Chast

In the past four decades, the cartoonist has created a universe of spidery lines and nervous spaces, turning anxious truth-telling into an authoritative art.

by Adam Gopnik

Is the Supreme Court’s Fate in Elena Kagan’s Hands?

November 18, 2019

Profiles
Is the Supreme Court’s Fate in Elena Kagan’s Hands?
She’s not a liberal icon like Ruth Bader Ginsburg, but, through her powers of persuasion, she’s the key Justice holding back the Court’s rightward shift.
by Margaret Talbot

Adam Driver, the Original Man

October 28, 2019

Profiles
Adam Driver, the Original Man
Why so many directors want to work with Hollywood’s most unconventional lead.
by Michael Schulman

How Matthew Lopez Transformed “Howards End” Into an Epic Play About Gay Life

September 9, 2019

Profiles
How Matthew Lopez Transformed “Howards End” Into an Epic Play About Gay Life
“The Inheritance,” opening soon on Broadway, reimagines E. M. Forster’s novel as a lovingly wry portrait of New York’s gay community.
by Rebecca Mead

Rhiannon Giddens and What Folk Music Means

May 20 2019

Profiles
Rhiannon Giddens and What Folk Music Means
The roots musician is inspired by the evolving legacy of the black string band.
by John Jeremiah Sullivan

Showman

September 24, 2018

Profiles
Sam Mendes’s Directorial Discoveries
For screen and stage, Mendes works like a sculptor—continually molding and remolding space, speech, and gesture.
by John Lahr