Kenneth Gross on the unique vision of innocence at play in Paul Klee's puppets, and the poetry of Rainer Maria Rilke:
The Public Domain Review
Of Angel and Puppet: Klee, Rilke, and the Test of Innocence
Built for his son from the scraps of daily life — matchboxes, beef bones, nutshells, and plaster — Paul Klee’s hand puppets harbour ghosts of...
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Cattleya Orchid and Three Hummingbirds, 1871.⠀ ⠀ One of several hummingbird / orchid paintings by Martin Johnson Heade. This and a couple of other Heade works available as prints in our online shop here: https://publicdomainreview.org/shop/fine-art-prints/artist/martin-johnson-heade image
Entering the US public domain in 2026: Hermann Hesse's Narcissus and Goldmund. More info behind window 7 of our advent-style countdown calendar for works entering the #publicdomain on Jan 1st:
The Public Domain Review
What Will Enter the Public Domain in 2026?
At the start of each year, on January 1st, a new crop of works enter the public domain. Find our highlights of what lies in store for 2026 here.
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Harry Macdonough (tenor) and Joseph Belmont (bird song) perform Reginald De Koven's "Robin Redbreast" in 1907:
The Public Domain Review
Robin Redbreast (1907)
A song about the rouge chested bird composed by Reginald De Koven, featuring some wonderful whistling to mimic the bird's call.
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Happy #StNicholasDay! Born in Patara (in what is now Turkey), the saint known for his secret gift-giving became over time the inspiration for today's figure of Santa Claus. See the visual journey undertaken in our "Pictorial History of Santa Claus" —
The Public Domain Review
A Pictorial History of Santa Claus
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Published by Nonesuch Press in 1924, these Genesis-inspired woodcuts by Paul Nash depict the creation of the world as a jerky, frightening cataclysm:
The Public Domain Review
“Light from the Darkness”: Paul Nash’s *Genesis* (1924)
Woodcuts inspired by the biblical Genesis, which depict the creation of the world as a jerky, frightening cataclysm.
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Entering the public domain in 2026, in countries with a "life+70 yrs" copyright term: The works of Albert Einstein. More info behind window 3 of our advent-style countdown calendar for works entering the #publicdomain on Jan 1st:
The Public Domain Review
What Will Enter the Public Domain in 2026?
At the start of each year, on January 1st, a new crop of works enter the public domain. Find our highlights of what lies in store for 2026 here.
 #PDin2026 image
Front cover to The Cubies’ ABC, an alphabet book published in 1913 devoted to a satirical takedown of Impressionists, Cubists, Futurists, and all other pretenders to the crown of Art. More here:
The Public Domain Review
The Cubies’ ABC (1913)
A satirical alphabet book mocking Cubists, Futurists, and other masters of modern art.
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Between 1905 and 1911, the sheet music covers of Gotham-Attucks Co. — a song-publisher managed by some of the most famous Black writers and performers of the day — revolutionised how Black popular music was shown to the public:
The Public Domain Review
Sheet Music Covers for the Gotham-Attucks Company, ca. 1905–1911
Beginning in 1905, one star-studded song-publishing company would push the aesthetic limits of how Black popular music was shown to the public.
 #BlackHistoryMonth
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The bloody throes of a boar hunt as a medieval fortress rises like derelict tower blocks in the distance? Must be the festive month of December! The last entry in the Labors of the Months section from the Très Riches Heures manuscript, 15th century:
The Public Domain Review
Labors of the Months from the Très Riches Heures
Images representing the months from probably the most important illuminated manuscript of the 15th century.
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