Exhibition of the week: Ming: 50 Years that Changed China
See China on the eve of the first major encounters between east and west in this blockbuster epic that fills the vast new exhibition gallery of the British Museum with everything from portraits of eunuchs to a ship’s bell from the fleet that China sent to Africa.
• British Museum, London WC1B, from 18 September, until 5 January 2015.
Other exhibitions this week
Fiona Banner
An installation about war and technology by this artist who takes her text from the film Apocalypse Now.
• Yorkshire Sculpture Park, West Bretton WF4, from 20 September until 4 January 2015.
John Constable
The great cloud-gazer brings his eyes to bear on works by Dutch and other predecessors in this fascinating exploration of how he learned from art as well as from nature.
• V&A, London SW7, from 20 September until 11 January 2015.
Cerith Wyn Evans
Feel the heat of this often startling and dangerously physical artist of intense passion. But don’t get burned.
• Serpentine Sackler Gallery, London W2, from 17 September until 9 November.
Raqs Media Collective
A counterblast to the way newspapers report reality is offered by this show entitled Corrections to the First Draft of History.
• Frith Street Gallery, London W1F, from 19 September until 31 October.
Masterpiece of the week
Pieter de Hooch – A Woman Drinking with Two Men (c1658)
A young woman holds a glass up to the light from the big windows of a fine and elegant house. Is she looking for something in her drink? For advice on which of the two men courting her to choose, or for moral hints as to correct behaviour? Or is she about to get drunk with them and let it go? Everything is poised on the edge of action and fate in this cool Dutch drama.
• National Gallery, London WC2N.
Image of the week
What we learned this week
How the world’s most famous logos – from CND to Coca-Cola and the Michelin Man – came to life
That the city of Helsinki is battling the Guggenheim megabrand
That Grayson Perry has become an action figure to take on the art world
Why giving photographs “the finger” is a faux pas that will never die
What all animals eyes look like in extreme close-up
The reasons Alain de Botton feels that art is a vital force for humanity
That Anthony Caro’s last sculptures are a dazzling disappointment
The top 10 Scottish artworks of all time
What Batman caves and vomiting dogs have in common
