NASA moves permanent moon base plans forward.
NASA is accelerating plans to build a permanent Moon base, committing roughly $20 billion over the next seven years as part of a major overhaul of its Artemis program. The agency is shifting focus away from its planned lunar Gateway space station, instead prioritizing surface infrastructure that can support sustained human presence and long-term habitation. Envisioned as a multi-phase project leading to continuous astronaut operations by the late 2020s, the initiative is driven by both scientific goals and geopolitical competition, particularly with China’s lunar ambitions.
For more than two decades, artist Joe Macken has built a handmade, miniature model of New York City—now on display.
Joe Macken has created a vast, handmade miniature model of New York City, built over more than 20 years using simple materials like balsa wood, cardboard, and glue, meticulously recreating nearly every building across the five boroughs. Spanning roughly 50 by 27 feet at a 1:2400 scale, the project includes hundreds of sections and close to a million individual structures, capturing both historic and contemporary elements of the city skyline. Originally a personal passion project that gained traction online, the work is now on public view at the Museum of the City of New York, highlighting the power of obsessive craftsmanship and grassroots creativity.
Following a delay, Precious Okoyomon’s Whitney Biennial installation is now on view.
Precious Okoyomon’s installation “Everything wants to kill you and you should be afraid” (2026) was initially pulled from the Whitney Biennial’s lobby presentation due to spatial constraints, before reopening on the museum’s eighth floor in a more fully realized form. The work features around 50 stuffed animals and dolls—some from the artist’s childhood—suspended by nooses, blending unsettling imagery with moments of beauty through natural light and careful staging.
BTS performed their new single, “Swim,” at the Guggenheim Museum.
BTS staged a special performance at the Guggenheim Museum in New York for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, transforming the iconic spiral rotunda into a cinematic performance space. The appearance—part of their two-night takeover on March 25–26—marked the group’s first full U.S. late-night performance since reuniting after military service, promoting their new album ARIRANG. Blending K-pop spectacle with a landmark art institution, the collaboration highlighted the growing crossover between contemporary art spaces and global pop culture staging, reaching millions of viewers worldwide.
OpenAI shutters Sora and cancels $1 billion Disney deal.
OpenAI has shut down its Sora video-generation app and API less than a year after launch, abandoning its push into consumer-facing A.I. video tools as part of a broader strategic reset. The move also ends its high-profile $1 billion licensing deal with Disney, which had allowed the use of more than 200 characters within the platform. Citing high costs, legal concerns around copyright and deepfakes, and a shift toward enterprise A.I., robotics, and “world simulation” research, the decision reflects a pivot away from experimental media products toward more scalable, long-term priorities.
Today’s attractive distractions:
A major exhibition in The Hague celebrates 40 years of Inez & Vinoodh.
The petition to keep the High Line’s pigeon continues to gain traction.
A look at Norway’s century-long observation of the Northern Lights.
French designer Mossi Traoré hired a courtroom illustrator to showcase his latest collection.
