Each week, there’s an avalanche of new albums, films, books, theater, and art to take in—from monumental new voices in culture to guilty pleasures worth indulging in. We’re here to help narrow down what deserves your attention. This week’s picks are below.
The Exhibit: Brooklyn-based painter Mickalene Thomas’ first solo museum exhibition, Origin of the Universe, has just opened at the Brooklyn Museum. Visitors can get an eyeful of her bright, energetic, rhinestone-flecked paintings of interiors, landscapes and beautiful, 1970s-inspired women (see “Din Une Tres Belle Negresse 2,” above.) Get to know Thomas’ work now, before her November show at the Lehmann Maupin gallery goes up.
The Movie: Director Andrea Arnold, whose last offering was the 2009, BAFTA-winning Fish Tank, is back with a new film based on a long-beloved story: her take on Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights. The film, which follows in the footsteps of a number of adaptations on film and stage, features newcomer James Howson as Heathcliff and Skins alum Kaya Scodelario as his beloved Catherine.
The Album: Total Loss, Tom Krell’s second record under the moniker How To Dress Well, is a stunning, melodic example of how the trendy indie-rock and R&B hybrid can be done very, very well. Krell’s minimalist, downtrodden tracks might not have the joy de vivre that some of his obvious influences were known for, but despite the dark clouds, his work is decidedly worth your attention.
The Play: Paul Rudd and Michael Shannon come to the Broadway stage in Grace, an inventively arranged show about a couple that moves to Florida to open a chain of Gospel-themed motels, but manages to find a different fate—in the form of Shannon and Edward Asner—along their way.
