Wolfgang Tillmans, Freischwimmer 229 (2012), via Regen Projects

As the month of December approaches for the art world, attention turns once again to Miami Beach, as the 14th American edition of Art Basel brings its only U.S. franchise back to the Miami Beach Convention Center, along with 267 galleries from around the globe, a strong selection of talks, events and projects, as well the numerous satellite fairs, one-off exhibitions, and of course, the parties up and down Collins Ave and the surrounding areas. (more…)

Teresita Fernández, Viñales (Reclining Nude) (2015), Rae Wang for Art Observed

Conceptual artist Teresita Fernández continues her incisive investigations into the connections between the subterranean and the cosmos, materialization and transcendence in her new solo exhibition, on view at Lehmann Maupin in New York.  Fernández’s work often focuses on the transformation of unconventional materials into malleable forms, imbuing them simulataneously with a human narrative and historical geography. Here, the artist draws in on the uncanny semblance between the interiors of malachite mineral rocks originating from the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the karstic landscape of the Viñales Valley in rural Cuba.

(more…)

Caroll Dunham, Now and Around Here (1) (2011-2015), all photos via Osman Can Yerebakan for Art Observed.

A new body of work by painter Carroll Dunham is currently on view at Gladstone Gallery, resuming the artist’s ongoing investigation of the bather motif, which he has pursued, modified and continued to explore since 2009.   The large scale paintings on view depict lavish nude figures positioned amidst phantasmagorical landscapes, loyal to Dunham’s exuberant signature painting style. The artist’s work here does little to depart from his familiar forms and techniques throughout the series, and instead focuses on delivering his particular set of arresting images with a degree of uncompromising consistency.  Even so, some fresh elements in these works, such as male nudes and animals join the spectrum. (more…)

Jennifer Bornstein, Left Hiking Boot (2015), via Rae Wang for Art Observed

Jennifer Bornstein’s work has consistently dealt with the notion of obsolescence. This month, at Gavin Brown’s Enterprise, the artist continues this pseudo-forensic body of work, that records the legacy of her father, a scientist specializing in collagen research.  Through her most recent body of work, Bornstein turns her father into the subject of study, evoking his presence and his work through a mixed-media installation of works on paper, plaster sculptures and film projection.

Jennifer Bornstein, Extension Cord (2015), via Rae Wang for Art Observed

(more…)

Frieze London has announced Swiss curator Raphael Gygax as the new curator for its Projects section.  Gygax currently serves as Curator at Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst, Zurich. (more…)

The exhibitor list for the 2016 edition of Material Art Fair has been announced, continuing its focus on young, experimental galleries while tripling in size this year.  “The layout is super important because it won’t replicate any other art fair,” says co-founder Daniela Elbahara.  “It will be quite different and a little bit like a labyrinth.” (more…)

Billionaire Paul Allen’s Pivot Art + Culture space in Seattle is closing this March, with plans to use the space only occasionally as a gallery, flying in the face of previous plans to turn the exhibition space into a broadly-focused year-round art center. (more…)

The Nahmad Family is currently facing a lawsuit from the estate of a Paris dealer claiming that the family owns a Modigliani work formerly seized by the Nazi’s from the collection of Oscar Stettiner.  The suit claims that the Nahmad’s are allegedly holding the painting through a shell company called the International Art Center.  “This is one large enterprise that is a scheme to move these things around, and they are all alter egos for one another,” says lawyer Joel M. Aurnou, who represents the estate. (more…)

The estate of David Smith is moving to Hauser and Wirth, the New York Times reports.  “There is an important potential to bring him back into a context of relevance in terms of a contemporary discussion,” says Marc Payot, Hauser & Wirth’s partner and vice president.  “We will engage with a younger generation.” (more…)

Jon Rafman (Installation View) at Zabludowicz Collection, London. Photo: Thierry Bal

For his first major exhibition in the UK, multimedia artist Jon Rafman is exploring the differing spheres of reality and existence at the Zabludowicz Collection in London.  The Montreal-based artist is typically known for his practice focusing on the relationship between technology and human consciousness.  Here he takes his practice to a new dimension and scale, manipulating the space to create an interactive environment where viewer’s are able to ponder the real and the virtual, exploring technology with contemporary consciousness. (more…)

Hauser Wirth and Schimmel is set to open this March, featuring a show of female sculptors, the LA Times reports, including Louise Bourgeois, Eva Hesse, Yayoi Kusama, and others.  The show is inspired by gallery founder Ursula Hauser.  “I come from the museum world, where it’s always best to start with what’s in a collection, with the history of an institution and build out from there,” Schimmel says. “This came from a real personal recognition that these are artists who [Ursula] deeply related to, but were under-appreciated.” (more…)

British artist Sonia Boyce is creating a database of artworks by black artists held in public UK collections, seeking to create a comprehensive record of their presence across the nation’s museums and galleries.  “It’s a big job; no one has done this before,” Boyce says. “One of the problems for anyone trying to do research in this area is that the information is there, but it’s hidden. This project will leave a trail for future scholars.” (more…)

The Tehran Museum has announced a historically significant exhibition of the work of Wim Delvoye, the first time the museum has used its entire space, comprising nine galleries and outdoor space, for a show focusing on a non-Iranian artist.  “They are very professional; they are easier to work with than the Louvre,” the Belgian artist said of the museum. (more…)

The New York Times notes an increased interest in artists over recent years in concerns of space, perception and dimensionality, drawing lines between the study of quantum physics, spatial politics, and work by artists like Rachel Whiteread and Matthew Ritchie.  “The formulation of the laws of perspective in the 14th century gave artists permission to see everything in a new way,” Ritchie says. “Now your sky isn’t flat. You’ve got a proper sky with depth, and now your angels can get up to some real mischief.” (more…)

The Tate Modern has appointed two new curators, Clara Kim and Nancy Ireson.  Kim takes on the role of Daskalopoulos Senior Curator in International Art (Africa, Asia, and Middle East), with Ireson apointed as a curator of international art. (more…)

The New York Times profiles Sheena Wagstaff, The Met’s new head of Modern and Contemporary Art and former Tate Modern Chief Curator, in her mission to transform the museum’s offerings for more recent work, focused around its new exhibition space at the Breuer Building, former home to the Whitney.  “My work at the Tate Modern, along with my colleagues, too, was very much about re-addressing the Western canon, re-addressing the idea of what modernism actually means, and broadening and expanding that scope,” she says. (more…)

The dual galleries Feuer/Mesler and Mesler/Feuer are consolidating their exhibition spaces downtown, moving all operations to their Chinatown space at 319 Grand Street.  “It’s a really great time for the gallery,” Joel Mesler says.  “We have the possibility in the next few months to make a thoughtful expansion. The Lower East Side has changed so much, and we actually prefer that location.” (more…)

A number of Parisian cultural institutions are reporting sizable drops in attendance following the attacks in the French capital this month.  The Louvre has reported a 30% decrease in attendance, and the Centre Pompidou has seen a 50% drop.  “1000 visitors per day versus the 2000 per day that had been coming to see the current Wifredo Lam exhibition,” says Benoît Parayre, director of communication. (more…)

A recent UK survey has found that the arts are widely dominated by those with a middle-class upbringing, due mainly to the precariousness of early years in the field (often requiring free labor among other financial sacrifices) that lower class artists are less likely to be able to take.  “What’s most alarming is how things are going to get harder for young people in the arts who haven’t got family support, because of how much more precarious the situation is looking like it will become,” says Hadrian Garrard, the director of Create, an organization which conducted the survey in conjunction with Goldsmiths. “The scale of people who have worked for free or are working without a contract is pretty scary. And given how much more expensive it is to live in London, it is more and more likely that people without money will just not be able to follow careers in the arts.” (more…)

Robert Irwin has been commissioned for a full-room installation at the Hirshhorn, bringing more than 100ft of scrim to respond to the museum’s uniquely circular architecture.  “The 1960s is a crucial decade in the history of contemporary art, and Irwin’s investigations into the ways our perceptual processes are shaped and framed were at the forefront of the developments unfolding then,” says Evelyn Hankins, the Hirshhorn curator in charge of the exhibition. (more…)

The Venice Biennale has closed its doors this week, closing on a total visitor count of 500,875, with 2,899 average visitors per day.  The attendance figure marks a 5.45% from the 2013 edition of the event.   (more…)

Huma Bhabha, Untitled (2015), all photos courtesy Clearing Brussels

New York-based artist Huma Bhabha is holding an exhibition of new work at Clearing Brussels, continuing her focus on found materials and their negotiations with the experiences and memories  of the cultural and historical past.  This series, including works on paper, photo-collage, and sculpture, references modern human construction from urban landscapes to utopian architecture to figure-based monuments. The artist’s work explores the different environmental relationships that have occurred over time and continue to linger in contemporary society, occasionally indicating a certain fusion of divergent materials that have been produced in Bhabha’s studio as the artist studies a more intimate understanding of modern debris. (more…)

Martin Puryear, Face Down (2008)

The Morgan Library & Museum is hosting Multiple Dimensions, an exhibition featuring seventy drawings Martin Puryear has produced over the course of his decades spanning career, accompanied by a selection of medium size sculptural work.  Set to travel to the Art Institute of Chicago and later to the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the exhibition sheds light on another thread in the artist’s grandiose practice as he prepares for his upcoming Madison Square Park Commission in 2016. (more…)

Following the Detroit Institute of Art’s preservation of its collection as part of the city’s “Grand Bargain” to leave bankruptcy, the museum is facing the challenge of building up a $400 million endowment by the time tax funding expires in seven years.  “Now that we can tell the story about the role we played, along with foundations and the state, in creating and successfully bringing the grand bargain to fruition, that’s an impactful message to take to prospective donors,” says DIA Board Chairman Gene Gargaro. (more…)