British realist cinema tends to be synonymous with the kitchen sink drama of the 1960s, but this season of Now Showing sets out to broaden the scope. We’re showcasing a series of realist classics from these islands that don’t feature domestic arguments set in Northern kitchens but which interrogate the nature of representation itself. From the quiet serenity of turn-of-the-century Wales to the Technicolour vibrancy of the Swinging Sixties, these films examine how British filmmakers have used the medium to explore identity, class, race and gender; not just documenting the world as it is, but questioning how we perceive it. Here, realism reflects a constant negotiation between what we see and what we feel, against the changing backdrop of these strange isles.

What often springs to mind when we think of world expos are robots and androids, people in mascot costumes, and perhaps even rocks from outer space. While this year’s Expo in Osaka - something of a sequel to the landmark 1970 edition - certainly includes its fair share of technological marvels, there’s thankfully more at play. The dominant themes are sustainability and the health of our planet.

A survey of the national pavilions reveals a key, unifying message: our history is our future. Rather than discarding heritage and ancestral wisdom, the Expo proposes we see them as vital foundations for building a better world. At the French pavilion, a gargoyle salvaged from the fire-ravaged Notre-Dame Cathedral is displayed with reverence. In the Chilean pavilion, visitors are greeted by vibrant tapestries woven by 200 Mapuche women. At the Uzbekistan Pavilion, a moving platform transports visitors into the “Garden of Knowledge” – a tribute to the ancient Silk Road caravanserais that once connected cultures across continents.

Architect Sou Fujimoto’s Grand Ring - perhaps the Expo’s most iconic structure – sets the tone by echoing the enduring strength of Japan’s ancient shrines and temples, many of which have withstood centuries of earthquakes. Nature takes centre stage here, quite literally: the sky is framed by Fujimoto’s colossal two-kilometre-wide timber halo. Climb to its summit to watch cargo ships drift through Osaka Bay or find a moment of quiet far above the cacophony of the temporary dreamscape below. This city of wonders has been built on Yumeshima, a man-made island aptly named “the island of dreams.”

There is, too, a sense of progress in the growing visibility of women at the helm. Beirut-born, Paris-based architect Lina Ghotmeh and Baghdad-born, Stuttgart-based architect Shirin Brückner are behind two of the most compelling pavilions. Gayane Umerova, commissioner of the Uzbekistan Pavilion and mother of three, leads heritage preservation efforts at home as Chairperson of the Uzbekistan Art and Culture Development Foundation. And quietly orchestrating the Expo’s architectural centrepiece is curator Yuko Hasegawa, who brought in SANAA to design a barely-there, slightly retro-y, steel mesh canopy - a gridded, cloud-like structure floating above a tranquil woodland clearing.

The lasting impression from their work is one of restraint, elegance, and clarity. Lightness of touch, it seems, is the order of the day. Could some of these structures be preserved for future generations to encounter? I dare to hope.

Yuki Sumner is a writer and researcher specialising in architecture and design. With over 20 years of experience contributing to international publications, she offers a critical and insightful perspective on contemporary design and the built environment.

A new exhibition in Florence celebrates 20 years of the Max Mara Art Prize for Women, a groundbreaking prize that has given flight to two decades of creativity.

The second annual Miu Miu Literary Club was held in Milan this month. What does it have to teach us about womanhood today?

This year, TANK visited the Huawei Innovative Product Launch to meet the foldable Mate XT. This tri-folding phone was presented in a rainy, busy Kuala Lumpur. Video by Sohrab Golsorkhi-Ainslie

In celebration of International Women’s Day, HER DIOR takes a look back at Maria Grazia Chiuri’s reign as Dior’s first female creative director. Chiuri opened her first Dior show in 2016 with the title of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s book We Should All Be Feminists emblazoned on a T-shirt, marking the beginning of Chiuri’s interrogation into the relationships between fashion, art and femininity. In her woman-oriented design and many collaborations with female artists, Chiuri attempts to overturn a long history of relegating women to the role of muse.

AUTOBIOGRAFIA DI UNA BORSETTA is a new short film by the acclaimed British director Joanna Hogg. The film is the latest in series of short films by women directors commissioned by Miu Miu as part of their Women's Tales series, now in its 15th year. Here she talks to the writer and curator Shumon Basar about this unique film and her process as a singular voice in the film industry. You can see the film in full  here.

Across ten days in Belmond hotels and the brand’s iconic long-distance trains, Sohrab Golsorkhi-Ainslie and Alice Ray document Peru, a country populated with indigenous traditions and colonial ghosts.

A suitably grand stage for the American artist Jeff Koons. Koons embraces his Art World patrician status with an exhibition displaying his work alongside Picasso’s, in the stunning setting of the grand Andalusian palace.

The village of Shiptonthorpe, in the East Riding of Yorkshire, has been inundated with a spate of poison pen letters. What does the phenomenon say about village life more broadly? Francisco Garcia reads the opening of his feature, from TANK’s spring issue. 

Caroline Issa reads the eidtors letter from the Spring Issue of TANK, on the coronation of the felon in chief and nerds flexing as jocks future of AI and the misremebering victims of the past.

“Community” is everywhere. From fashion to politics, there seems to be an inescapable consensus that, in our troubled times, community is what will save us. Find your tribe, build networks of mutual aid, transcend your personhood on the dancefloor. But when a term is used so readily by left and right, brand consultant and activist alike, what does it really mean? Is there a dark side to our community fetish? In this issue of TANK, we consider community in all its forms, what it offers us politically and – ultimately – what lies beyond it.

The new Miss Z pump is given a 2020s upgrade with an elongated toe and sculptural heel. And don’t worry if you’re planning to stay out till the birds are singing, as the sole is now treated with new technology to make it “Everlasting Red”. Directed by Tais Sirote.

Windows, mirrors, water and reflections. Shot by Otto Masters and styled by Eve Bailey.

A dreamscape of ethereal pastels and opalescent shine marks out Dior Beauty’s new Glowmania collection, applied here by Mari Kuno and shot by Ayaka Endo.

Paper crowns and packets of crisps – come and play with the best of the spring season. Styled by Cecilia Broschi and shot by Alessandro Oliva.

Across its 155-year history, Penhaligon’s has approached scent as a kind of alchemy in which past, present and future coexist. 

The cyclist has long inspired Johanna Parv’s modular designing, and this season reaches almost terminal velocity. Parv has perfected the art of introducing the technical to the glamorous, with sleek, synthetic drapery and ventilation slits and zips. Stay for the heavy breathing – whether it’s induced by a long bike ride or something altogether more sexy is up to you.

A model levitates, holds a uncomfortable-looking pose, and is squashed into a balls of plasticine. This is the moment before it all slides into proper debauchery – a feeling often exuded by Popova’s ravey, loungey, unapologetically hedonistic design.

London-based menswear designer Luke Derrick designs for “men who want to wear a suit but don’t want to spend any time ironing”. His new campaign of his existing collections, however, looks as sharp as anything, and is a masterclass in lazy elegance and reluctant machismo. 

The Ds squared – Dean and Dan Caton – were yanked out of the back of a police van to accept the applause for their runway show, which featured Doechii fresh from her Superbowl success and Naomi Campbell walking in black leather. A pitch-perfect way to celebrate 30 years.

For Milan Fashion Week, Danish/Italian uniform company Older joined forces with FACETASM, the anarchic Japanese ready-to-wear brand, for a capsule collection that blurred the lines between functionality and aesthetics. Worn by staff in two locations across the city, the collection looked to question how fashion interacts with its immediate surroundings. 

“We are in a very black moment,” said Muccia Prada gravely, of her relatively dark and un-showy Milan show. What we see on the Prada runway is often linked to externalities like art or politics, the connections are often noted by Mrs Prada herself – in this instance, something rangy and roomy (required perhaps for enabling us to be moving fast on this occasion).

Gucci sent out models for both mens and women's collection in looks designed by the in-house team, with creative director Sabato de Sarno having left the post last month. Perhaps the taunt, edgy live score by composer Justin Hurwitz corresponded to an underlying sense of strain and anticipoation in a collection of many highlights but lacking a central threme.

The Kampala-based metal innovator discusses collaboration and his new album The Adept.

The End of the Road founder on 20 years of the UK's most acclaimed festival.

TANK caught up with the duo running Amniote Editions, Europe's most forward-thinking record label.

The composer and multi-instrumentalist on his new album Magic Seeds.

A new mix from the prolific producer brings 80s DIY aesthetics to the fray.

The New York industrial rockers spell it out for us. 

The Danish poet and songwriter on love, loss and Luton Airport.