The Art Newspaper profiles Empty Gallery, a new exhibition project in Hong Kong that shows work in a black space with little to no lighting.  “Hong Kong is so fast; the language of advertising is so strong and loud and intense. We’re amped up all the time,” founder Stephen Cheng says of his space, which he feels helps slow down the pace of his visitors. “It helps you give art a chance to communicate.” (more…)

Kader Attia is accusing a pair of French rappers of plagiarism for using imagery similar to a 2007 work of his in their music video.  “As artists, we have to defend ourselves against unauthorized commercial uses of our artworks,” he says. “We are constantly plagiarized by the music industry, or in advertisement, or fashion.” (more…)

The Denver Art Museum has received a $25 million gift, which will go towards renovating the institution’s building.  “The North Building is considered one of the most significant objects in the museum’s collection, and our family is honored to support the much-needed rehabilitation required to bring it into the 21st century,” says chairman J. Landis Martin, who donated the funds. (more…)

The Guardian performs some data analytics on the Turner Prize this week, charting how the award has moved towards closer gender parity in recent years.  Both the number of female winners and judges has increased in the past ten years, reaching almost even numbers of both men and women.   (more…)

The Art Newspaper forecasts the impacts Big Data is set to make on the art market, as major companies continue to acquire a series of databases and data analytics firms.  “We have developed an extensive customer relationship management program to take new buyers and make more offers to them,” says Sotheby’s Tad Smith. “If you underbid for a particular painting in an auction and you don’t get it, I would like for you to have an opportunity to buy something very similar within 24 hours.” (more…)

The New Museum has added Isolde Brielmaier, Victoria Mikhelson, and Michael Xufu Huang to its Board of Trustees, adding a trio of individuals with broad experience and perspective in the art world.   (more…)

The New York Times has a new feature this week, meeting with collectors to discuss their interests and focus in collecting.  Its first piece is with Miami-based collector Ella Fontanals-Cisneros, who begins by describing the first time she fell in love with an artwork.  “I couldn’t understand the feeling,” she says. “I was standing in front of the painting and my heart was beating very strong. I was connected to the energy of the piece.” (more…)

Edoardo Paolozzi will be the subject of a major retrospective at Whitechapel Gallery next year, the Art Newspaper reports.  Paolozzi’s work and his ties to the Independent Group were instrumental in the development of British Pop Art, even as his “taste for European intellectualism, which is an ocean away from the celebrity sitters chosen by Andy Warhol,” set him apart from his American counterparts, according to a gallery spokesperson. (more…)

The U.S. Justice Department is targeting art works and other holdings for seizure in its case against Malaysian financier Jho Low, including some of the high-profile pieces purchased by the financier with money from the disputed 1MDB fund.  The billionaire’s holdings include works by Monet and Van Gogh. (more…)

Brett Gorvy is leaving Christies, the New York Times reports, and will join Dominique Lévy’s Gallery uptown under the new name Lévy Gorvy.  “At the age of 52, you have one more opportunity,” Gorvy says. “Even though I hate change, there’s a certain moment when you know in your heart that the time is right.”   (more…)

The Elmgreen and Dragset-curated 2017 Istanbul Biennial will center around the theme “A Good Neighbor,” Artforum reports.  The show was announced at a press conference and performance featuring 40 questioners inquiring as to what constitutes a good neighbor.  The show will notably feature a series of worldwide billboards devoted to the concept.  (more…)

Leo Villareal has been selected for a £20 million project to illuminate the bridges of London, the second major bridge illumination project by the artist.  “Their scheme is beautiful, ambitious and realizable but always considerate to the environment, lighting levels and energy conservation,” says Hannah Rothschild, chair of London’s National Gallery. (more…)

Francis Alÿs has been tapped for the Iraqi Pavilion at the Venice Biennale next year, inspired by his time on the frontlines of the conflicts in Mosul.  “The main line of enquiry for his new work will be the role of the artist in war, whilst he will also examine themes of nomadism,” says a spokeswoman for the Ruya Foundation, which organized the exhibition.   (more…)

The UK will not lose A-Level Art History, following a major public outcry, the Art Newspaper reports.  “The response from the public, from teachers and from young people shows many people have a real passion for these subjects,” says Rod Bristow, the president of the Pearson exam board, which is making the program part of their exam offerings.  “We’re happy to help make sure they remain available.” (more…)

The LA Times reports that Steven Mnuchin, son of gallerist Robert Mnuchin and newly appointed Secretary of Treasury, has announced that he is stepping down from MOCA’s Board of Trustees.  “Since I’ll be focusing my full-time efforts as nominee for Secretary of Treasury, I’ve decided to resign from MOCA’s Board of Trustees,” he said. “I have very much enjoyed my seven years on the Board at MOCA, one of the country’s most important contemporary art institutions.”  (more…)

Sotheby’s has purchased Orion Analytical, an anti-forgery firm run by James Martin, as part of a new Scientific Research Department at the auction house, continuing recent efforts to build an advisory firm inside the company.  “Sotheby’s has had the pleasure of working with Jamie for the better part of the past two decades, and over time it became increasingly clear that rather than work on a one-off basis we could create something unique within Sotheby’s that would further distinguish us in the marketplace and at the same time help to make the art market a safer place,” CEO Tad Smith says. (more…)

The New York Times reports on a lawsuit between a group of New York dealers and Sotheby’s stemming, from Yves Bouvier’s sale of a Da Vinci painting to Dmitriy Rybolovlev at over $120 million.  The dealers reportedly sold Bouvier the work at $80 million shortly before the Swiss dealer turned around and resold the work to Rybolovlev at a substantial markup, and are suing the auction house for misleading them over the work’s value.  “Apparently experiencing seller’s remorse, [the dealers] are trying to gain the benefit of a subsequent sale price that Sotheby’s had nothing to do with,” a lawyer for the auction house said. (more…)

The Artist Pension Trust has merged with MutualArt.com, with plans to use their shared resources to create a new sales platform for art.  “There are innate characteristics to art and its market that mean that, for the foreseeable future, the majority of sales will happen offline,” says Al Brenner, chief executive of the merged MutualArt Group. (more…)

Art News reports on the increasing pressure on mid-size galleries, as the large-scale exhibition spaces and rising real estate prices increasingly push smaller spaces and dealers out of the field.  “The conglomerate gallery model—there’s no doubt it’s going to annihilate a lot of mom and pops,” James Fuentes says. “That’s just the reality of it.” (more…)

Curator Mark Beasley will join the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, D.C., as the museum’s first curator of media and performance art.  “Mark Beasley is one of the few experts of his kind, and as one of the leading curators of our time, his work has helped to shape this field over the past 15 years,” Melissa Chiu said. (more…)

Marina Abramovic is featured in the Financial Times’s ‘Lunch with the FT’ this week, dining with Jan Dalley while discussing her life and work.  “Now that I’m nearly 70 — 70!” she says, “I just want to be hilarious. Tell jokes. In my country, jokes are always about survival. Heavy.” (more…)

MoMA is set to open an exhibition celebrating the East Village’s Club 57, an alternative space frequented by Keith Haring, Kenny Scharf and Jean-Michel Basquiat, among others, next October, the Art Newspaper reports.  The show will be co-curated by actress and artist Ann Magnuson, who was a mainstay at the club.   (more…)

An article in the Wall Street Journal analyzes the broader health of the art market this week, and looks towards 2017 as auction houses aim to continue sales growth.  The piece looks at current sales, and compares the results at Sotheby’s and Christie’s to regional competitors like Beijing Poly International. (more…)

John Baldessari is interviewed in The Verge this week, discussing his design for the new BMW Art Car, which debuted this week at Art Basel Miami Beach.  “I’ve never designed anything three-dimensional,” he says. “Working on it from all different directions, I was happy with how it came out.” (more…)