Earth continues to get brighter every year, scientists have found: Nasa-funded researchers at the University of Connecticut studied more than 1.1 million satellite images taken over a nine-year period to establish that the planet's artificial light increased by a net 16% between 2014 and 2022. But the researchers found that the location and intensity of the progression has become increasingly volatile because of covid, regulations on light pollution, and a faltering global economy. Light pollution has been linked to human health issues ranging from sleep disorders and anxiety to obesity, as well as disruptions to wildlife and ecosystems. It is, of course, also a problem for night-sky photographers.

  In the quiet, limestone-clad reaches of the Upper East Side, a profound conversation is taking place between the two and the three-dimensional. Matisse: The Pursuit of Harmony, which recently opened at Acquavella Galleries, marks the first solo outing for the French artist in New York City in over five decades. But don't expect a mere survey of the master of color. I made sculpture because what interested me in painting was the clarification of my ideas. I changed medium and worked...