A masterwork piece by Joseph Turner, depicting a view of the city of Rome from Mount Aventine, will go on sale at Sotheby’s in London this December.  The piece, estimated to sell for £20 million, has remained in the same family for nearly two hundred years, and was only sold once before, setting a then-record auction price of £6,000.  “This painting, which is nearly 200 years old, looks today as if it has come straight from the easel of the artist; never relined and never subject to restoration, the picture retains the freshness of the moment it was painted: the hairs from Turner’s brush, the drips of liquid paint which have run down the edge of the canvas, and every scrape of his palette knife have been preserved in incredible detail,” says Sotheby’s Old Masters head Alex Bell. (more…)

Galleria d’Arte Moderna di Roma Capitale, Rome’s contemporary and modern art museum, is planning a new extension of the institution, which will feature works exclusively on loan from its next door neighbor, the Gagosian Gallery.  The museum is also planning an outdoor exhibition space that will feature sculptures by artists like Jeff Koons and Franz West. (more…)

The Telegraph reports that “Piggyback” (1997), a sculpture by Jake and Dinos Chapman has been removed from the MAXXI contemporary art museum in Rome by Italian officials. The sculpture depicts two nude girls, one straddling the other’s shoulders, and had been flagged by the Italian Observatory on the Rights of a Child as “paedopornographic”. Although MAXXI elected to remove the sculpture from public display, the museum maintained their support of the brothers’ and other artists’ freedom to create controversial art.  (more…)

The Museum of Contemporary Art in Rome (Macro) is reportedly facing a financial crisis, after government officials slashed the museum budget from from €350,000 in 2013 to €61,000 this year.  “The exhibitions are programmed, and funded, until spring 2015… We spend very little on the shows as we have several sponsors,” says former president Alberta Campitelli. (more…)

Artist William Kentridge will bring a massive wall installation to the banks of the Tiber River in Rome later this year, part of a commission by the Maxxi Museum.  The work, Triumphs and Laments, will depict scenes from Rome’s 2,000 year history through wall murals, made by removing layers of pollution from the river embankment.  As smog continues to accumulate in the city, the work will slowly disappear. (more…)

Giuseppe Penone, Scrigno (2007), all images courtesy Gagosian Gallery

On view at Gagosian London is an exhibition of Giuseppe Penone’s large scale works from 2006-2008 as well as some more recent pieces. Entitled Circling, the exhibition includes 2 major works, Scrigno (Casket), 2007, and Sigillo (Seal), 2008, depicting the structure of trees, specifically: “the tree as a being that memorializes the feats of its existence” The display will remain on view through May 31, 2014.

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The Museo nazionale delle arti del XXI secolo in Rome has announced critic and curator Hou Hanrou as its new artistitc director.  The Chinese-born Hanrou will take up the position in September, assuming responsibility for the museum’s diverse blend of programming during a time when the museum is struggling to keep its head above water in a difficult European economy. (more…)

In an effort to increase attendance and community engagement, the recently opened Maxxi Museum (National Museum for the Art of the 21st Century) in Rome is branching out, hosting lectures and classes on a variety of subjects in design, art, fashion, and music. “We need the public to animate this space,” said Giovanna Melandri, president of the foundation that runs the Museum. (more…)

Empire State (Installation View), via Palazzo Delle Esposizioni

“Empire State,” a classic nickname denoting New York’s central position in the art world, takes a new spin in Rome this summer, thanks to the curatorial talents of Alex Gartenfeld and Norman Rosenthal. (more…)

Curators Alex Gartenfeld and Norman Rosenthal are preparing to unveil an exhibition in Rome next month, looking at the city of New York through the framework of the capital of the ancient Roman Empire.  Titled Empire State, the show brings 25 New York artists to Rome for a show exploring the creative essence within the two iconic metropolises.  “Instead of just celebrating a city, I hope it’s an exhibition that questions what it is to be an art center today, and what sort of cultural cachet a city wields by having these art institutions. I think a lot of cities, Rome included, are thinking about what it means to be a contemporary art center. That’s where empire becomes this very relevant theme.”  Says Mr. Gartenfeld. (more…)

Tracey Emin, Floating, (2012), via Galleria Lorcan O’Neill

Currently open in Rome, Galleria Lorcan O’Neill’s fourth presentation of Tracey Emin’s work is a mature, low-key, yet penetrating selection of the artist’s diverse practice, showcased in both of their spaces on Via Orti D’Aliberti.  Emin has recently been appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), as well as a professor of drawing at the Royal Academy (RA) along with Fiona Rae, making them the first two women to be elected into the academy.  Given her entrance into these exclusive circles as an official representative of British culture, the Italian location of this show offers an interesting reevaluation of Emin’s art.
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Cecily Brown, The Green, Green Grass of Home (2010). All Images via Gagosian Gallery.

Gagosian Gallery in Rome is currently exhibiting a series of paintings by New York-based, London-born artist Cecily Brown. The exhibit examines the human experience, captured in lavish colors, radical abstractions, and voluptuous forms. Brown brings a rich history of painting to her work,  as she channels everything from the sensuality of Rubens to the expressionism of Willem de Kooning.

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Takashi Murakami at Gagosian Gallery Rome, Installation View, via Gagosian Gallery

Currently on view at Gagosian Gallery in Rome are two epic paintings by renowned Japanese artist Takashi Murakami. Dragon in Clouds- Red Mutation (2010) and Dragon in Clouds- Indigo Blue (2010) each comprise of nine panels, measure eighteen meters in length and depart from the artist’s usual technicolor palette to revert to more traditional Japanese influences.  Cloud and Dragon paintings are known as UnryÅ«zu and were great influences for the 18th century Japanese artist Soga Shōhaku who has been a source of artistic inspiration for Murakami.

Dragon in Clouds- Red Mutation (2010) by Takashi Murakami, via Gagosian Gallery

More text and images after the jump…

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Echolalia (2010) by Franz West, via Gagosian Gallery

I see my works as quite compatible with a l’art pour l’art philosophy. One may think that I try to take the art object out into the world since my works sometimes appear to have a practical function, but really it’s the other way around: things in the world can, under certain special circumstances, enter the realm of art.

-Franz West

Currently on view at Gagosian Gallery in Rome is Franz West’s “Roman Room,” an exhibition of new sculpture by the Austrian-born artist. In this body of work, West transforms basic shapes into irregular, large-scale structures. He incorporates visual elements derived from performance art, as well as classical art and sculpture.

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I Musici, 1595. All images via Scuderie del Quirinale

The Scuderie del Quirinale’s Caravaggio exhibition is one of several special events marking the 400th anniversary of this famous Italian artist’s death. Showcasing many of Caravaggio’s most representative paintings, the exhibition features works from prominent collections worldwide including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Hermitage in St. Petersburg, Staatliche Museum in Berlin, and Italian institutions such as the Uffizi and Borghese Galleries.

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