Get curated editors’ picks, peeks behind the scenes, film recommendations and more.
Looking for a nude life model, the UK artist Wilfrid Wood first met Theo Adamson through the gay dating and hookup app Grindr. Eventually, Adamson became the subject of hundreds of Wood’s drawings, as well as his boyfriend. The charming short documentary Drawings of My BF explores the intermingling intimacies the two share as both lovers and artistic collaborators. With an understated touch, the UK filmmaker James Cooper captures Wood creating portraits of Adamson in styles that range from almost jarringly simple to rich and intricate. They’re all connected, however, by the sense of intimacy between artist and muse each seems to convey. Wood’s many drawings of Adamson first went on display at an art show in London in 2019, and were also released as a book.
Drawings of My BF originally appeared on nytimes.com.
Director: James Cooper
video
Language and linguistics
Closed captions suck. Here’s one artist’s inventive project to make them better
8 minutes
video
Thinkers and theories
A rare female scholar of the Roman Empire, Hypatia lived and died as a secular voice
5 minutes
video
Architecture
The celebrated architect who took inspiration from sitting, waiting and contemplating
29 minutes
video
Anthropology
Why are witchcraft accusations so common across human societies?
4 minutes
video
Subcultures
Drop into London’s eclectic skate scene, where newbies and old-timers find community
5 minutes
video
Technology and the self
A deepfake porn victim confronts the pain of having her likeness stolen and vandalised
19 minutes
video
Wellbeing
Born in China, Zee seeks a gender-affirming life in the American Midwest
11 minutes
video
Rituals and celebrations
A whale hunt is an act of prayer for an Inuit community north of the Arctic Circle
8 minutes
video
Music
The peculiar beauty of a song caught between composition and improvisation
3 minutes