A new retrospective of Ed Ruscha's career proves the Californian artist was one of the most inventive, unusual and imaginative American artists of the 20th century, says Nicola Jeffs.

Manchester City Council will revitalise the 164-year-old Theatre Royal as the new home for the popular local Library Theatre Company as part of ambitious plans to transform the historic centre of the city.

Prescriptions for Hitler's deputy Rudolph Hess and a Nazi spy executed at the Tower of London are among an unusual crop of items acquired this week by the Royal Armouries.

A shot of a Spanish wolf hunting for livestock by moonlight and a Scottish teenager's picture of battling birds are among the winners of the Natural History Museum's annual wildlife photography competition.

The Lady Lever Art Gallery in Liverpool is uncovering a remarkable collection of Edwardian family photographs that offer a fascinating glimpse into the daily lives of the Urton family from 1900 to the 1920s.

Arts Council England Chief Executive Alan Davey has warned any future government that any plans to cut arts funding in response to the economic recession would "affect the kind of country we are."

Culture24 has been named on the shortlist for a new Website of the Year Award after the public nominated the new-look website for the Good Web Guide competition.

The Present Remembered, at Abbot Hall in Cumbria, features work from the past five years, but Andrzej Jackowski's works also recall a displaced childhood and traumatic parental separation.

Martin Parr, Curator of the 2010 Brighton Photo Biennial, has promised a festival of photography full of surprises and adventures that will make the "notion of spontaneity an absolute virtue."

One of 20th century Britain's most radical social reformers is remembered at National Museum Cardiff. The bronze bust of Leo Abse has been made by his second cousin Luke Shepherd.

From limestone to glacial boulders, Peter Randall-Page appears to breathe life into his raw materials. Mark Sheerin checks out his monumental new show at Yorkshire Sculpture Park.

The Uncommon Reader: Fifty Years of Textual Intercourse is a new show at The Oxfordshire Museum looking back at the text-based imagery of contemporary artist Tom Phillips RA.

Wild Thing, the new show opening at the Royal Academy of Arts this weekend, positions Henri Gaudier-Brzeska's sculptures alongside work by Jacob Epstein and Eric Gill. Melanie Abrams heads to Paris for a look at Brzeska's transformative work.

A new show at Milton Keynes Gallery highlights Nasreen Mohamedi's contribution to 20th century avant-garde art and her constructivism with a South Asian sensibility.

Historic coastal defence fortification, Fort Nelson in Portsmouth, has won 'a vital shot in the arm' after Lottery chiefs agreed to provide £2 million towards improvement works at the popular military site.

Romuald Hazoumé's infectious personality and diverse practice have won the Benin artist a string of awards in his bid to share the story of his West African home. He tells Culture24 about his love of petrol cans as his new

Curators at the Science Museum in London have asked experts from the Uffizi Gallery in Florence to help identify the owner of one of the world's earliest watches after research revealed it may have belonged to a member of the

The deadline is approaching for Northern Ireland's newest portrait prize, the 2010 Davy Portrait Awards.

The world's oldest aircraft carrier, the First World War era 1918 Thorneycroft Seaplane Lighter, is among rare items going on show as the Fleet Air Arm opens up its reserve collection on October 29.

Culture24 rounds up the surreal, sculptural and stimulating as this year's Frieze Art Fair draws to a close.