Rebecca Mead
Rebecca Mead joined The New Yorker as a staff writer in 1997. She has profiled many subjects, among them Lin-Manuel Miranda, Margaret Atwood, Jesse Armstrong, and Mary Beard. She is the author of several books, including “My Life in Middlemarch,” a New York Times best-seller, and “Home/Land: A Memoir of Departure and Return.” She has served as a McGraw Professor of Writing at Princeton University and was the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, in 2020. She lives in London, and has written about cold-water swimming in the U.K., scandals at the British Museum, and the Cerne Abbas Giant.
Jenny Saville, the Body Artist
The British painter has dedicated her career to depicting human flesh, especially that of women, with deep empathy.
Jonathan Anderson’s Confidence and Ambition
From the daily newsletter: the superstar designer leaving Loewe. Plus: the last time pro-Palestinian activists faced deportation; the precarious future of an end to the war in Gaza; and a radical writer for calamitous times.
What Will Jonathan Anderson Transform Next?
The Irish designer turned Loewe into fashion’s most coveted brand by radically reinterpreting classic garments. Now he seems poised to make over Dior.
Menopause Is So Hot Right Now
From the daily newsletter: menopause strikes again. Plus: Bill McKibben on Canada as an outpost of sanity; why Americans are unmoved by rhetoric; and the surprises of the baseball movie “Eepuhus.”
Menopause Is Having a Moment
If you’ve got ovaries, you’ll go through it. So why does every generation think it’s the first to have hot flashes?
The Flirt Behind “Chicken Shop Date”
Amelia Dimoldenberg’s show has become one of YouTube’s more enduring hits by giving the celebrity interview a screwball spin.
When the United States Tried to Get on Top of the Sex Trade
Why should American exceptionalism end at the red-light district?
The Intensely Colorful Work of a Painter Obsessed with Anime
In a London warehouse pumping with dance music and movie soundtracks, Jadé Fadojutimi paints exuberant canvases all night long.
A Queen Elizabeth II Bookshelf
From the daily newsletter: A few recommendations for media about the monarchy. Plus: J. D. Vance got what he wanted; defending trans lives in a deep-red state; and the A.I. slop problem.
The Unrivalled Omnipresence of Queen Elizabeth II
A new biography of the late British monarch is also a book about the dream life of her subjects.
The Exhilarating Brilliance of Maggie Smith
Success came early for the late British actor, who throughout her career continued to captivate audiences with her edgy, glinting gifts.
Can Your Stomach Handle a Meal at Alchemist?
At the Copenhagen restaurant, diners are served raw jellyfish—and freeze-dried lamb brain served in a fake cranium—while videos about climate change swirl on the ceiling. Is it “gastronomic opera,” or sensory overload?
The Forgotten History of Sex in America
Today’s battles over issues like gender nonconformity and reproductive rights have antecedents that have been lost or suppressed. What can we learn from them?
Gillian Anderson’s Sex Education
She became famous playing buttoned-up Agent Scully. But in midlife her characters often have a strong erotic charge—and now she’s edited “Want,” a book of sexual fantasies.
An Artist Flowering in Her Nineties
Isabella Ducrot, a painter in Rome, didn’t really pick up a brush until her fifties. Four decades later, galleries and museums throughout Europe are celebrating her work.
Fitzcarraldo Editions Makes Challenging Literature Chic
In ten years, the London publishing house has amassed devoted readers—and four writers with Nobel Prizes.
The Man Who Reinvented the Cat
The curious career of the illustrator Louis Wain tells the story of how our feline friends came in from the alley and took up their place at the hearth.
Chatsworth, Revisited
“Picturing Childhood” highlights the private, familial side of a storied estate.
The British Museum’s Blockbuster Scandals
While facing renewed accusations of cultural theft, the institution announced that it had been the victim of actual theft—from someone on the inside.
Jenny Saville, the Body Artist
The British painter has dedicated her career to depicting human flesh, especially that of women, with deep empathy.
Jonathan Anderson’s Confidence and Ambition
From the daily newsletter: the superstar designer leaving Loewe. Plus: the last time pro-Palestinian activists faced deportation; the precarious future of an end to the war in Gaza; and a radical writer for calamitous times.
What Will Jonathan Anderson Transform Next?
The Irish designer turned Loewe into fashion’s most coveted brand by radically reinterpreting classic garments. Now he seems poised to make over Dior.
Menopause Is So Hot Right Now
From the daily newsletter: menopause strikes again. Plus: Bill McKibben on Canada as an outpost of sanity; why Americans are unmoved by rhetoric; and the surprises of the baseball movie “Eepuhus.”
Menopause Is Having a Moment
If you’ve got ovaries, you’ll go through it. So why does every generation think it’s the first to have hot flashes?
The Flirt Behind “Chicken Shop Date”
Amelia Dimoldenberg’s show has become one of YouTube’s more enduring hits by giving the celebrity interview a screwball spin.
When the United States Tried to Get on Top of the Sex Trade
Why should American exceptionalism end at the red-light district?
The Intensely Colorful Work of a Painter Obsessed with Anime
In a London warehouse pumping with dance music and movie soundtracks, Jadé Fadojutimi paints exuberant canvases all night long.
A Queen Elizabeth II Bookshelf
From the daily newsletter: A few recommendations for media about the monarchy. Plus: J. D. Vance got what he wanted; defending trans lives in a deep-red state; and the A.I. slop problem.
The Unrivalled Omnipresence of Queen Elizabeth II
A new biography of the late British monarch is also a book about the dream life of her subjects.
The Exhilarating Brilliance of Maggie Smith
Success came early for the late British actor, who throughout her career continued to captivate audiences with her edgy, glinting gifts.
Can Your Stomach Handle a Meal at Alchemist?
At the Copenhagen restaurant, diners are served raw jellyfish—and freeze-dried lamb brain served in a fake cranium—while videos about climate change swirl on the ceiling. Is it “gastronomic opera,” or sensory overload?
The Forgotten History of Sex in America
Today’s battles over issues like gender nonconformity and reproductive rights have antecedents that have been lost or suppressed. What can we learn from them?
Gillian Anderson’s Sex Education
She became famous playing buttoned-up Agent Scully. But in midlife her characters often have a strong erotic charge—and now she’s edited “Want,” a book of sexual fantasies.
An Artist Flowering in Her Nineties
Isabella Ducrot, a painter in Rome, didn’t really pick up a brush until her fifties. Four decades later, galleries and museums throughout Europe are celebrating her work.
Fitzcarraldo Editions Makes Challenging Literature Chic
In ten years, the London publishing house has amassed devoted readers—and four writers with Nobel Prizes.
The Man Who Reinvented the Cat
The curious career of the illustrator Louis Wain tells the story of how our feline friends came in from the alley and took up their place at the hearth.
Chatsworth, Revisited
“Picturing Childhood” highlights the private, familial side of a storied estate.
The British Museum’s Blockbuster Scandals
While facing renewed accusations of cultural theft, the institution announced that it had been the victim of actual theft—from someone on the inside.