Apollo's wandering eye on the art world. Look out for regular posts taking a rakish perspective on art and museum stories. Got a story for Rakewell? Email rakewell@apollomag.com. Follow @Rakewelltweets.

The luxury brands giving the Olympics a certain je ne sais quoi

The LVMH stable, from Louis Vuitton to Chaumet, is ensuring that Paris 2024 will get a gold medal for aesthetics, as sport gets increasingly stylish

26 Jul 2024

Bacchus sets the pulse racing in Florence

A tourist has been caught in the throes of passion with a statue of the god of wine, but perhaps she was merely giving into the effects of Stendhal syndrome

19 Jul 2024

Let the games begin – Gladiator II is on the way

A three-minute-long trailer for Ridley Scott’s sequel to Gladiator drops tantalising clues about what kind of spectacle to expect in November

14 Jul 2024

The Rubik’s Cube throws up a new conundrum

The famous puzzle turns 50 this year, but the exact date of its birthday is a mystery that brings into question the very nature of time itself

5 Jul 2024

Kendall Jenner is let loose in the Louvre

Was the reality star consciously emulating the Italian mannerists when she embarked on a night-time tour of France’s most hallowed museum sans footwear?

28 Jun 2024

Donald Sutherland’s brush with Gauguin

Obituaries of the actor are rightly lauding his work in M*A*S*H, Don’t Look Now and JFK, but fail to mark his indelible performance as one of the leading post-Impressionists

21 Jun 2024

Dior cruises through Scotland’s chequered history

The fashion megabrand has used Drummond Castle in Scotland as the backdrop for a new campaign – but was it fully clued up about the site’s colourful history?

7 Jun 2024

Once upon a time in Tasmania for the Wu-Tang

The Museum of Old and New Art is offering a rare chance to listen to the only copy of Once Upon A Time in Shaolin in existence, but what will happen to the album next?

2 Jun 2024

Bridgerton takes liberties with the past – and Liberty takes liberties with Bridgerton

Bridgerton provides all manner of pleasures on screen, but can a real-life partnership with Liberty come up to snuff?

24 May 2024

Cashville skyline – an abstract Bob Dylan is up for auction

The musician once gave this painting away for free, but the times, they have a-changed and he not busy being born is busy buying

18 May 2024

Kendrick, Drake and the art of the feud

The rappers remain locked in a vicious musical battle, but how does it compare with other artistic rivalries over the years?

10 May 2024

Is the Pope an art fan?

The Pontiff touched down in Venice this week, but God knows what he thought of the art on display at the Biennale’s Vatican pavilion

3 May 2024

Who will make a killing from Messi’s contract?

The maestro’s first contract with FC Barcelona, written on a napkin, has been withdrawn from auction after a dispute between his current and former agents

26 Apr 2024

What Liz Truss could learn from the Bank of England

The out-lettuced PM has little time for culture in her memoir-cum-manifesto – unlike her Establishment enemy, the Bank of England

21 Apr 2024

The basic instincts of Benjamin Franklin

The founding father who was careful to cultivate his public image is played with gusto by Michael Douglas in a new TV biopic

14 Apr 2024

James Cameron’s titanic bid to save the oceans

Can four high-priced works of art help conserve marine life? The Canadian film-maker certainly thinks so

5 Apr 2024

Kim Kardashian’s bad table manners

The reality star may think of herself as a ‘furniture person’, but the Donald Judd Foundation disagrees – and is suing her for allegedly buying fake tables

28 Mar 2024

Peter Blake’s can-do attitude

The godfather of Pop has designed a range of Budweiser cans – and he’s not the only creative type who has taken to drink

22 Mar 2024

Van Gogh’s potatoes are no small fry

The Dutch artist was a dab hand at painting spuds, but why haven’t more artists been inspired by the terrific tuber?

15 Mar 2024

Jane Austen threatens to sully Winchester

A proposed statue of the author has caused a fuss among local residents, but does anyone really like public sculptures anyway?

8 Mar 2024

The V&A enters its Swiftie era

The museum has announced an opening for a Taylor Swift ‘superfan’ – but this bid for commercial appeal doesn’t seem to be reflected by the salary on offer

1 Mar 2024

The Fab Four get the Rashomon treatment

On hearing that Sam Mendes is set to direct four Beatles biopics – one for each band member – your roving reporter wonders if it’s all too much

23 Feb 2024

Amazon gets the art world wrong again

The streamer’s latest romcom, ‘Upgraded’, stretches artistic licence to its limits

9 Feb 2024

All hail Flaco, the owl who rules Manhattan

The Central Park Zoo escapee was born in chains, but everywhere from the Upper West Side to the East Village he is now free

4 Feb 2024