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The best the Bay Area has to offer, from the writers and editors of KQED Arts & Culture.

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A small figurine faces forward and lays bricks at the center of a diorama.

The Oakland Library Wants YOU ... to Make Weird History Dioramas

A book cover featuring an illustration of two women and two men walking along a beach, viewed from behind and above.

‘These Summer Storms’ Is a Steamy Take on Rich People Behaving Badly

painting with Elvis, sardine recipe and Grease logo overlaid

At Pacific Saw Works, Puzzling Paintings Make Surreal Sense

A 20-something white woman with dark messy hair tied back, stands in the street holding up and intently staring into the face of a kitten.

‘Sorry, Baby’ Conveys the Everyday Ordinariness of Terrible Things

artwork of color prints mounted on metal strips over brown leather hides

A Show of Queer Desire Pairs Abandon and Restraint

An illustration showing four young people in a field flying books like kites.

The Best Fiction of 2025 So Far, According to NPR Staffers

Here Are the Nonfiction Books NPR Staffers Have Loved So Far This Year

An Ode to the Only County Fair With Lakeside Concerts

The back of someone's head is visible as they turn to look at a giant, roaring dinosaur in the distance.

‘Jurassic World Rebirth’ Is a Clever and Colossal Comeback

A Black woman with cropped white hair looks lovingly at a white woman with short grey hair and glasses, who is returning her gaze.

Photos: Decades in, These Women’s Love Was ‘Hidden Once, Hidden Twice’