Surrealist painter Paul Delvaux painted his own beach fantasy in 1942 — “The Village of the Mermaids.” The foreground tells one story, and in the distance there’s a surprise. Judith Kampfner went into the vaults of the Art Institute of Chicago to see Delvaux’s painting with curator Stephanie D’Alessandro.
The story you just read is not locked behind a paywall because listeners and readers like you generously support our nonprofit newsroom. Now more than ever, we need your help to support our global reporting work and power the future of The World. Can we count on you?