As President Xi Jinping’s anti-graft actions continue, the Chinese Government is looking for additional ways to crack down on corruption in its party hierarchy, with a main target being art and literary prizes.  “The ministry of culture will carry out a comprehensive rectification of literary and art awards. A number of awards will be cancelled or streamlined, with an overall reduction of more than 60 per cent,” the Communist Party said in a statement. (more…)

As the fallout over Brazil’s scandal regarding oil giant Petrobas’s continues, the Oscar Niemeyer Museum in Curitiba is receiving 139 works from the collections of Petrobas heads and other involved parties, including pieces by Salvador Dali and Joan Miró.  The majority of work comes from the collection of Petrobras’ former director of services Renato Duque, who stands accused of siphoning off over $3.8 billion from Petrobras. (more…)

In a recent discussion during the 2015 World Economic Forum in Davos, noted economist and NYU Professor Nouriel Roubini has called for more rigid regulation of the art market.  Roubini is known for predicting the explosion of the US subprime housing market, and noted the art world’s frequent anonymity among buyers as one contributor to the ongoing use of the market to launder money.  “While art looks as if it is all about beauty, as a business it is full of shady stuff,” he said. “We should correct it or it will be undermined over time.” (more…)

As Christie’s concludes its first auction in mainland China, The Economist has released an article forecasting a rocky road ahead for foreign auction houses entering China’s already competitive market.  With 70 auction houses already operating inside the country, high taxes and rampant concerns over counterfeiting and rigged auctions, the way will not be easy for major international companies looking to cash in on China’s growing market. (more…)