The Guggenheim Museum’s upcoming show on Futurist art will feature a number of rarely seen murals, on loan from the central post office of Palermo, Sicily.  Created by Benedetta, the works have never left Italy, and have hung in the same place since they were commissioned in the 1930’s.  “It’s the grand finale of our exhibition,” says curator Vivien Greene. “It’s such a beautiful way to end the show. It ends it on a really positive note. Instead of lingering more on the end of the war, when poor Italy is so beat up it’s so depressing, I thought, ‘Let’s have a finale that shows you at your best.’ ” (more…)

Hyperallergic reports on Congress’s 2014 Omnibus Appropriations Bill, which was released yesterday with the National Endowment for the Arts seeing a funding amount of $146.02 million, only slightly down from last year’s $146.26 million. The funding amount comes after a fractious several months of negotiations, including a proposed cut of 49% to the NEA by the House last year.  The Arts in Education Program was also rewarded a similar amount of $25 million, which is up from last year’s $24.6 million. (more…)