Celebrated

• The 1976 US bicentennial served as a cathartic event for a nation recovering from the "long national nightmare" of the Watergate scandal and political instability. • Despite the celebratory mood, the era was marked by a darkening economic outlook following the 1973 oil shock, which triggered inflation and unemployment. • Historian James Robenalt notes that while citizens felt positive about the political recovery, they remained deeply uncertain and unhappy regarding the economy.

• The Asian Banking & Finance Awards 2026 recently honored top banking leaders and institutions for driving innovation and growth across the Asian financial sector. • Key winners included China Bank Capital Corporation for Sustainability-linked Bond of the Year in the Philippines and CIMB for Corporate & Investment Bank of the Year in Malaysia. • Other notable recognitions were awarded to China Construction Bank Corporation (Singapore) for Corporate Client Initiatives and various firms in Thailand and Indonesia for securities and M&A deals.

Exhibition explores how artists mainly known for their paintings helped revive a skill that had fallen out of fashionThey may be best known for their vibrant oil paintings but an exhibition opening in the English West Country is focusing instead on the subtle printmaking skills of artists such as Édouard Manet, Vincent van Gogh and Paul Gauguin.More than 50 prints created mainly by impressionists, post-impressionists and cubists are going on display at the Holburne Museum in Bath. Continue reading...

Exclusive: pendant appears in 1635 painting Sir Thomas Aston at the Deathbed of His Wife that hangs in the Manchester Art GalleryA Hamnet-era mourning jewel has been rediscovered four centuries after it was immortalised in one of Britain’s most enigmatic and celebrated 17th‑century family portraits.The heart‑shaped pendant was depicted in Sir Thomas Aston at the Deathbed of His Wife, the 1635 life‑size, mourning masterpiece that was painted predominantly in black and white by the Cheshire artist John Souch. It hangs in the Manchester Art Gallery. Continue reading...

France’s Marine Le Pen and the Netherlands’ Geert Wilders among speakers praising prime minister at Budapest eventMarine Le Pen has called Viktor Orbán “an exceptional leader” and Geert Wilders hailed “a lion on a continent led by sheep” as Europe’s far-right figureheads rallied round Hungary’s prime minister before an election that polls suggest he may lose.“Hungary has become a symbol in Europe of a proud and sovereign people’s resistance against oppression,” Le Pen, the parliamentary leader of France’s National Rally (RN), told a gathering of EU-sceptical leaders in Budapest on Monday. Continue reading...