Public artworks surrounding the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio have been cancelled following budgeting cuts, the Art Newspaper reports. Italian artist Giancarlo Neri’s installation was chief among the cancellations, described by the Brazilian government as “adjustments so that the principles of administrative efficiency and public spending are respected.” (more…)
The Art Newspaper notes an increased pressure on museums and arts institutions to increase the level of diversity in their top positions. “Information can be a powerful agent,” says cultural organization consultant Holly Sidford of Helicon Collaborative. “This is about engaging people in a tough conversation that engenders tremendous emotion and whether cultural institutions are going to be increasingly relevant or irrelevant to future populations. Change only comes about when the organization sees that this work is mission-critical.” (more…)
Lori Hotz, one of Christie’s heads in its post-war and contemporary art department, has left the company, continuing a series of departures from the auction house. “I have had a wonderful four-year run at Christie’s, where we have built a leading global postwar and contemporary art department and achieved significant growth,” Hotz told Bloomberg. “It’s now time for me to help build and develop other opportunities.” (more…)
A long-lost Albrecht Dürer engraving has been discovered at a French flea market, and since has been returned to Staatsgalerie Stuttgar in Germany. The work had been classified as stolen from the French occupation zone in the years following World War II. (more…)
The soon to open ICA Los Angeles has announced that Hammer Museum assistant curator Jamillah James will serve as its new head curator. “She champions the values that ICA LA holds in highest regard—critique of the familiar and empathy with the different,” says Elsa Longhauser, the museum’s executive director. (more…)
Artist Rob Pruitt has collaborated with J. Crew to produce a series of t-shirts. The “Rash Guard” shirts feature his trademark smiley faces and color gradients, and sales will benefit the Skin Cancer Foundation. “Seeing my art on a rash guard is like seeing my art on a human body as opposed to a canvas. I like how it changes from person to person.” (more…)
The Church of the Ascension in Morningside Heights is looking to sell its building at West 108th Street between Broadway and Amsterdam, leaving residents concerned about the future of a Keith Haring mural that snakes throughout the building. “They know the Harings are here but they don’t really care about them,” resident Denis McFarling says of developers who have come to view the building. “They don’t really know how unique they are.” (more…)
The Washington Post writes on the increasing prominence of galleries in Harlem, as a smaller arts scene blossoms uptown. “We have an ever-changing gallery landscape in Harlem. I’ve seen a number of galleries come and go, succeed and fail over the years,” says Harlem-based curator Omo Misha. “We’re seeing another shift now that will be a positive one for the community and the artist community overall. We’re seeing an influx of new galleries opening and the new ones and those already here will be a destination for art.” (more…)
Barron’s looks at the current auction market, and the unexpected surge in Chinese buyers, with the country’s buyers now taking a 35% share of the global fine art market. “I think the current trend is more a result of a maturing Chinese art market that has remained subdued for more than five years and where collectors and investors are again seeing opportunities,” ArtTactic’s Anders Petterson says. “With limited investment options available,” he adds, Chinese’s wealthy are “likely to increasingly look at art as an alternative investment.” (more…)
Juergen Teller is set to curate a show of Robert Mapplethorpe photographs this fall in London, selecting a series of pieces for a show at Alison Jacques gallery that will coincide with what would have been the artist’s 70th birthday.“I am excited to see how Juergen will bring his edge, energy and unique vision to a new reading of Robert’s work,” Jacques says. (more…)
The Art Newspaper recaps the divisive issues surrounding the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, as the controversial evictions that the massive construction projects caused underscore continued inequalities and political unrest in the Brazilian city. The article particularly traces how the artists working with the event are viewing their work and involvement. “It is rather unfortunate that the Olympics are happening now,” says Adriana Varejão. “Athletes are coming from all over the world for this, and I want to welcome them to my city with this work.” (more…)
Creative Time has added seven new board members to its board of directors, among them artist/actor Waris Ahluwalia and Trevor Paglen. “I’m thrilled to welcome such a diverse and internationally recognized new class of board members,” says executive director Katie Hollander. “The depth and breadth of their experience is an enormous asset to us as we continue to expand and consider new opportunities for artists and for Creative Time.” (more…)
Bloomberg has an article on Sotheby’s increasingly broad lending practices, which have grown from $682 million to almost $1 billion in recent years, a point that some consider extremely inviting for those looking to launder money. “One way to launder is to use art as a security for a loan,” says David Hall, former special prosecutor for the FBI Art Crime Team. “The level of scrutiny you’ll receive from a bank is much higher than you will receive from an auction house.” (more…)
Taikang Life, one of China’s largest insurance companies, now owns a 13.5% stake in Sotheby’s, CNN reports. The company is run by Chen Dongsheng, who is also the founder of China Guardian Auctions, the country’s first government-run auction house. Taikang has not disclosed whether it will seek an active position in the company. (more…)
Miami’s Bass Museum is set to reopen during Art Basel Miami Beach in December, drawing its $12 million renovation to a close with a major museum show by Ugo Rondinone. “It used to be that going to a museum was akin to going to church,” she said. “Now museums are places where people gather,” says director Silvia Karman Cubina. (more…)
Gagosian is now representing Jeff Wall, who leaves Marian Goodman after 25 years. “He would like to be seen more widely as an American artist,” says Gagosian director Mark Francis. “I think that may be something we can do well.”
The Tate has been ordered to reveal how much sponsorship money it has received in the last five years from British Petroleum, a victory for activists who have harshly criticized the museum for its role in greenwashing the oil company’s image. “Oil branding of art is a threat to our galleries and our climate,” says Anna Galkina of the activist organization Platform. “Tate has tried to hide how embarrassingly low BP sponsorship fees were. We’re delighted that the information tribunal ruled against Tate’s secrecy.” (more…)
The Tate Modern has announced that it will borrow a major Rauschenberg assemblage, Monogram, which features a full-size stuffed Angora goat bound to a canvas, for the artist’s retrospective later this year. “Rauschenberg is one of those artists who, in the decade after the second world war, truly transformed the nature of artistic practice, smashing through the boundaries of different media,” says Tate Director Frances Morris. (more…)
David Salle has published a collection of his essays and writings on art, written during the past several years in conjunction with his painting work. “I like the challenge of finding a verbal equivalent for certain states of looking,” he says, “and taking apart what it is someone made.” (more…)
Sotheby’s has landed a major collection for its fall auctions, selling works from the holdings of Steven and Ann Ames, including a pair of Gerhard Richter works valued at $20-$30 million each. “They have a Richter from every major period and a de Kooning from every major period,” says Amy Cappellazzo, chairwoman of Sotheby’s fine art division. “That’s an immense and important study about painting.” (more…)
The New York Times reports that billionaire J. Tomilson Hill is opening a museum in Chelsea, where he wants to show his $800 million collection, and to use the space for arts education. “They’re cutting out arts programs in the public schools,” he says. “These are kids who wouldn’t even think The Frick was accessible to them,” Mr. Hill said. (more…)
Three Christie’s employees have left the company, shortly after the auction house announced its sales had dropped last year from $4.5 billion to $3 billion in the past year. “As a private company, we don’t comment on speculation around our employees,” the company said in a statement. “However, like any business, we continue to review the deployment of resources and focus investment on areas of growth so as to best to serve our clients.” (more…)
The New York Times reports on the quiet sale of a major Florine Stettheimer work from the collection of Nashville’s Fisk University, a sale that drew criticisms from many in the field. “Shame on them,” says Lyndel King, director of the Weisman Museum at the University of Minnesota and chairwoman of the Task Force for the Protection of University Collections. “It’s very much against the ethics of our profession.” (more…)