Pan-Africanism in London, the health benefits of art, Barbara Hepworth—podcast

Installation view of Project a Black Planet: The Art and Culture of Panafrica at the Barbican, 2026
© Thomas Adank, Barbican Art Gallery
From breaking news and insider insights to exhibitions and events around the world, the team at The Art Newspaper picks apart the art world’s big stories with the help of special guests. An award-winning podcast hosted by Ben Luke.
The exhibition Project a Black Planet: The Art and Culture of Panafrica began its life at the Art Institute of Chicago before travelling to Museu d’art contemporani de Barcelona (Macba) in Barcelona and now to the Barbican in London, in each case changing in relation to the particular circumstances of its location. One of the show’s curators is Elvira Dyangani Ose, the director of the Barcelona museum, and Ben Luke speaks to her about the show.
Installation view of Project a Black Planet: The Art and Culture of Panafrica at the Barbican, 2026
© Thomas Adank, Barbican Art Gallery
Among the books shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction in the UK, which was awarded this week, is Daisy Fancourt’s Art Cure: The Science of How the Arts Transform Our Health. Ben discusses her research and how it can be implemented.
Daisy Fancourt, Art Cure: The Science of How the Arts Transform Our Health (2026)
Courtesy Cornerstone Press
And this episode’s Work of the Week is Sculpture with Colour (Oval Form) Pale Blue and Red (1943), by Barbara Hepworth. It features in Hepworth in Colour, a new exhibition at the Courtauld Gallery in London, and The Art Newspaper’s digital editor, Alexander Morrison, speaks to the show’s curator, Alexandra Gerstein, about the work.
Barbara Hepworth, Sculpture with Colour (Oval Form) Pale Blue and Red (1943)
© Bowness, Image © The Hepworth Wakefield. Photo: Mark Heathcote
Plus, Van Gogh’s self-portraits in London, and the story of when Dalí met Freud
We ask The Art Newspaper's art market editor about the mood in Basel, discuss the Dutch museum tackling the difficult topic of human remains, and speak to Jo Applin, the co-curator of the Courtauld's newest show
Exploring the trailblazing German artist’s early work, Sheikha Hoor Al Qasimi on creating a world-class event in her home city and a hidden image at the Courtauld
A tour of a show of drawings by the renowned British artist, plus Bruguera discusses concerns over artist censorship in Germany in relation to the Israel-Hamas war, and a chat about an Indian painting from Howard Hodgkin’s collection

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