After impressionism inventing modern art

Exhibition of the week William Nicholson Pallant House ...

Although some perceived the advent of the locomotive as a threat to the countryside, by allowing artists a quick and easy way to travel, it broadened their choice of painting horizons, discovers Carla Passino

No chance to travel? No problem: from Italy with Pompeo Batoni to the US with Edward Hopper, you can tour the world with artists instead, suggests Maev Kennedy

Gustav Klimt’s Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer made headlines when it was sold last month, but behind the dizzying price and the magnificent artwork hides the story of an ingenious ruse to escape Nazi persecution

The secret meaning of Vermeer’s art

The National Gallery’s announcement of a new wing and more modern art–enabled by an unprecedented £375 million fund–promises to reignite a historic rivalry with Tate. Will Hosie investigates