Hand carving playing tiles for the popular Chinese game used to be a source of income for many, but the introduction of much cheaper machine-made sets whittled away at their customer base and turned their work into a rarity.

With the theme Expanding Awareness, the 2022 ARTJOG Festival highlights the work of artists from all walks of life, including the young and disabled, to emphasize inclusiveness and shared humanity.

Khaled Bahlawan hammers nails into a traditional wooden boat he built by hand, toiling under the scorching sun on Syria's Mediterranean coast to preserve a disappearing ancient skill.

A deadly virus has swept through Zurich's zoo, killing three Asian elephants in a month and leaving experts stumped as to how to stop its spread.

A joint Indonesian-Australian exhibition uses historical objects to rethink the ties and connections between the two countries, as well as their colonial histories.

Made from recycled military truck or aircraft tyres, Vietnam's hand-made rubber sandals have travelled vast distances over the decades.

Iulia Coleasa, an 81-year-old who relies on her small plot for food, traveled 15 kilometers in searing heat to a monastery in southern Romania on Sunday to join a service praying for rain.

Erasmus Huis Jakarta presents an expo on sustainable buildings for a better world. 

He is the creator of one of the world's best-known manga, but One Piece author Eiichiro Oda shuns stardom with a carefree attitude that evokes the beloved hero of his work.

'Twenties' is a column in which we give our top 20 list of anything and everything of interest, from food and history to pop culture, lifestyle and more.

As a teenager stuck in Hong Kong's pressure-cooker school system, Eric Yip found his escape in writing poetry -- never dreaming that one day he would win a top prize halfway across the world.

An exhibition highlighting contemporary artists as storytellers focuses on the long tradition of paper manipulation.

Kyrgyzstan is seeking to attract more tourists by promoting its traditional kumis - fermented mare's milk - which locals drink and bathe in and say is good for their health.

Documenta, which every five years turns the sleepy German city of Kassel into the centre of the art world, features more than 1,500 participants and for the first time since its launch in 1955, had been curated by a collective, Ruangrupa.

Just like any other Portuguese bullfight, the rider circles around the charging bull's horns, before bending down to plant a bandarilha in its spine -- except that no blood is spilled here.

The director general of Documenta, one of the world's biggest art fairs, was forced to resign following outrage over anti-Semitic exhibits upon opening in Germany last month.

Music schools are popping up in Saudi Arabia’s big cities as some social restrictions are relaxed, including group music lessons.

A gallery in Scotland said on Thursday it was "thrilled" to announce the discovery of a previously unknown self-portrait of Vincent Van Gogh, with his ear intact, hidden behind another painting.

At 52, he is one of the most famous art sleuths in the world, trusted by both thieves and police for his unprecedented access to the criminal trade in stolen art.

In Jordan’s capital city of Amman, a group of Syrian refugees performs the country’s centuries-old ‘Arada’ dance for various celebrations.

Lebanon's international music festivals kicked off at the weekend with a performance in the Roman ruins of Baalbek, the first performance there since the country's economic crisis.

Artist Agus Suwage displays his artwork of selfies, nuanced with political history, at the Macan Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art.

In Tripoli's Old City, young Libyans weave delicate patterns with threads of silver and gold to create traditional filigree jewelry, reviving an art almost lost through decades of dictatorship and war.

A former teacher in Indramayu, West Java, uses puppet shows to raise awareness on rhinos and forest conservation among children.

Kazuki Takahashi, author of the popular "Yu-Gi-Oh!" manga series, has been found dead after an apparent snorkeling trip in Japan, a coast guard official said Thursday.

Spain's famous bull-running festival, which dates back to medieval times, features concerts, religious processions, nightly fireworks, and round-the-clock drinking.

Paleontologists said they had discovered a new giant carnivorous dinosaur species that had a massive head and tiny arms, just like Tyrannosaurus rex.

The anonymous face of a new arrival towered over Prince William at the unveiling of a national memorial to the "Windrush" generation of Caribbean migrants in London last month.

Former teacher Samsudin is educating the kids about the plight of the critically endangered Javan rhino –- the world's rarest –- using cardboard figures, comical expressions and exaggerated voices to spread his message of conservation one story at a time.

Harumichi Shibasaki was nearly 70 when he began making YouTube art tutorials from his quiet home in the Japanese countryside. Five years on, he has 1.4 million subscribers.