Harriet Sherwood

London

I'm a journalist with the Guardian, mainly writing arts and culture news. Previously: Jerusalem correspondent; foreign editor; home editor.

Articles

One of JMW Turner’s earliest paintings rediscovered after 150 years

3 weeks ago | msn.com | Harriet Sherwood

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One of JMW Turner’s earliest paintings rediscovered after 150 years

3 weeks ago | theguardian.com | Harriet Sherwood

An oil painting of a stormy Bristol landscape has been rediscovered as one of the earliest works of JMW Turner, created when the artist was 17 years old and lost to his canon for the past 150 years. Turner’s signature on The Rising Squall, Hot Wells, from St Vincent’s Rock, Bristol was discovered in the process of cleaning the painting after it was sold last year. At the time of the sale, the work was attributed to a “follower of Julius Caesar Ibbetson”, an 18th-century artist.
Member of UK Jewish body resigns over failure to call out Israel on Gaza

1 month ago | theguardian.com | Harriet Sherwood

An elected representative on the UK’s largest Jewish body has resigned, saying it had “failed to act morally and failed to represent the increasing diversity of opinion within the British Jewish community” amid growing horror at Israel’s renewed assault on Gaza.
Progressive Judaism co-leaders pledge to welcome critics of Israel

1 month ago | msn.com | Harriet Sherwood

Microsoft Cares About Your PrivacyMicrosoft and our third-party vendors use cookies to store and access information such as unique IDs to deliver, maintain and improve our services and ads. If you agree, MSN and Microsoft Bing will personalise the content and ads that you see. You can select ‘I Accept’ to consent to these uses or click on ‘Manage preferences’ to review your options and exercise your right to object to Legitimate Interest where used.
Progressive Judaism co-leaders pledge to welcome critics of Israel

1 month ago | theguardian.com | Harriet Sherwood

Charley Baginsky’s pink hair and piercings do not conform to the popular image of a rabbi, but her personal choices speak to the cornerstone of inclusivity on which a new British Jewish movement stands. In a historic step that could redefine British Judaism, the Liberal and Reform traditions in the UK merged earlier this month to form Progressive Judaism, with each group voting 95% in favour of uniting.
‘Our voice will be louder’: two UK Jewish movements to unite as progressive group

1 month ago | theguardian.com | Harriet Sherwood

Two Jewish movements in the UK have united to form Progressive Judaism, embracing female rabbis, same-sex marriage and mixed-faith couples and representing about a third of British Jews who are affiliated to synagogues. Liberal Judaism and Reform Judaism took the historic step of voting to unite at parallel meetings on Sunday. Each vote easily exceeded the required 75% threshold for the move, with about 95% in favour.
Arts Council England chair says sector at ‘tipping point’ amid funding fears

1 month ago | theguardian.com | Harriet Sherwood

Arts and cultural centres across England are at a “tipping point” as many face closure or restricted operations without continued public investment, the chair of Arts Council England has warned before next month’s government spending review. Sir Nicholas Serota, who runs the body that distributes public funds to arts organisations ranging from national institutions to community-based ventures, said it would be a tragedy if people outside big cities were denied access to the arts.
Where does Pope Leo XIV stand on key issues like sexual abuse, climate and poverty?

1 month ago | theguardian.com | Harriet Sherwood

What is the position of Pope Leo XIV on the issues that face him and the Roman Catholic church? Church unityWithin hours of his election as the 267th pontiff, Leo was being talked about as a bridge builder, a pope that would continue in Francis’s footsteps but without alienating traditionalists in the way his predecessor sometimes did.
Pope Leo holds first mass as pontiff in Sistine Chapel

1 month ago | theguardian.com | Angela Giuffrida |Harriet Sherwood

Pope Leo XIV said he hoped to lead a Roman Catholic church “that illuminates the dark nights of this world” as he held his first mass as pontiff under Michelangelo’s ceiling frescoes in the Sistine Chapel. The surprise election of cardinal Robert Prevost, the first ever US pope, came after a conclave that lasted less than 26 hours, one of the shortest in modern Catholic history. Leo began his homily on Friday during the mass with cardinals in English, before switching to Italian.
Ecstatic crowds flood St Peter’s Square to hail election of new pope

1 month ago | theguardian.com | Harriet Sherwood

Noah from Los Angeles had listened carefully to the first words spoken by Pope Leo XIV from the balcony of St Peter’s Basilica, but his lack of Italian meant he understood none of it. “Wait, you mean he’s American? Really? Wow, that’s exciting,” he said with some surprise on his way out of St Peter’s Square. As he absorbed the news of the first American pope, he said he hoped it would be good news for his country. “We sure as hell need it,” he said.