The New York Times notes Hauser Wirth & Schimmel’s efforts to preserve the original graffiti and murals painted on its new Los Angeles home.  “You can walk in this neighborhood, which you can’t in a lot of other parts of L.A., and we wanted to integrate that and open it up, so people can cut through,” says senior director Stacen Berg. “Maybe they never go into the galleries, but they still interact with something, even if they’re just on their way to get coffee.” (more…)

An article in The Guardian this week sees a group of Iranian artists living abroad discussing what their national heritage means for their art, both in terms of their own practice, and the expectations that many have for their work’s content as a result, often dealing with subtle demands to acquiesce towards ideological expectations.  “The problem now about working in the US is that you are faced with this duality, with this dilemma,” says artist Nicky Nodjoumi.  “Either you are truly an artist without the notion of being from Iran; but at the same time if you are Iranian you have to show some symbol of identity in order to be accepted in the art scene. Not as a universal artist but as an Iranian artist.” (more…)

Despite military oppression and censorship in Thailand, Reuters reports on an increasingly strong art scene developing in the nation’s capital, Bangkok.  “It’s because they can’t talk about it that they’re creating,” says Gili Back, a cafe and gallery owner.  “You’ll see a lot more graffiti and street art where people are having their say on walls.” (more…)

Emmanuel Perrotin is opening a gallery space in Seoul, South Korea, the Art Newspaper reports.  “The space will be inaugurated with an exhibition of French artist Laurent Grasso’s work on 28 April, followed by a solo show dedicated to Kaws in June,” a gallery spokeswoman told the publication. (more…)

Yayoi Kusama is debuting new work at the Honolulu Biennial, a series of snail sculptures adorned with her signature dot patterns.  “Hawaii is the place I have been admiring at a distance,” the artist says. “I have never visited, but I think it dynamically stimulates my dreams, and I am eager to absorb Hawaii’s beauty fully into my mind.” (more…)

As the Moscow Subway system opens its 200th Station, Deutsch Welle takes a look at the impressive architecture and art exhibitions installed within its expansive, efficient structure, including a massive tribute to artist Piet Mondrian in the newly completed Rumyantsevo station. (more…)

Vanity Fair has an expansive article on the issues at the heart of the Picasso estate, noting the massive body of work the artist left behind (all without a will), the frequent conflicts among family members to maintain and manage his works, and the lack of proper authentication resources over the artist’s work.  “The heirs have decided not to publish for the time being a catalogue raisonné as objects surface still which were not catalogued,” says one dealer, nothing that authentication requests “are very often not professionally formulated. On the average 900 requests are filed yearly. Verifications of the information provided sometimes can be labor-intensive. Artworks need often to be examined in the flesh.” (more…)

For the 9th consecutive year, the British Museum has topped the list of the UK’s most visited attractions, the BBC reports.  “More people visited the V&A, the Natural History Museum and the Science Museum, combined, than visited Venice,” claims Bernard Donoghue, director of the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions. (more…)

Tomás Saraceno is featured in the Financial Times this week, detailing his work with the minuscule movements and actions of spiders that he magnifies through scanning and amplification techniques, including a recent project where he created amplified “jam sessions” between spiders and human participants.  “When spiders pluck the strings of their webs and beat on leaves, they make tiny vibrations. You have percussion, strings, an entire orchestra,” he writes.  “I invited musicians and writers to perform their work in the studio to see how the spiders communicated with them. Sometimes the spiders were shy and made little sound in response but sometimes they got very excited by what was going on around them.” (more…)

Mikhail Piotrovsky, the director of the State Hermitage Museum, has expressed his desire to help rebuild the historical site of Palmyra, destroyed by ISIL rebels last year, using museum artifacts and working in conjunction with other museums to help restore the site.  “Ancient culture was destroyed by Christians—it took the Renaissance to gather it up piece by piece,” he says. “Right now, this understanding of the sacredness of culture is eroding everywhere.” (more…)

The New York Times notes increased pressure on galleries to help fund museum exhibitions of their artists.  “It’s really gotten out of hand,” says Lawrence Luhring of Luhring Augustine gallery. “It’s the brazenness of it — just the expectation of ‘How are you going to contribute?’” (more…)

Christie’s and the Mugrabi family have announced a settlement to their pending lawsuit, resolving the issue before their dispute over a recently purchased Basquiat went to court.  “Christie’s, Jombihis Corporation and the Mugrabi family are very pleased to have reached an agreement in principle to resolve the litigation,” a joint statement reads.  “We all look forward to continuing our long and fruitful relationship together.” (more…)

The Art Newspaper looks at Sherrie Levine’s recent move to David Zwirner, and speculates if the artist’s market is due to mature.  “Sherrie Levine is one of the leading artists of her generation and has considerable museum support for her work,” says Zwirner partner Chris D’Amelio. “Her prices, relative to her importance, are attractive to collectors.” (more…)

The National Gallery’s new director, Gabriele Finaldi, is interviewed in the Art Newspaper this week, where he discusses his vision for the institution in relation to other British institutions.  “As time moves on, 1900 seems increasingly remote and less related to how we think about periods of history and art history,” he says.  “In artistic terms, nothing very special happens in 1900, but the 1880s and 90s are a remarkably fertile period that push forward new modes of expression, with Cubism very soon afterwards. It is slightly frustrating to reach 1900 and then not go on.”  (more…)

Germany has announced at least another year of funding for research into the provenance of artwork from the Cornelius Gurlitt trove.  “We all had higher expectations than we could meet, and that is because this is a singular case,”says culture minister Monika Grütters. “It is so extraordinary that there is no pattern to follow.” (more…)

Phyllida Barlow has been selected to represent Britain at the 2017 Venice Biennale.  “It’s a massive honor,” she said. “Having been that thing called a minor British artist for most of my working life, I’m now getting things beyond my wildest dreams.” (more…)

Wim Pijbes, director general of the Rijksmuseum, will leave the museum to head the private Museum Voorlinden, the Art Newspaper reports.  Pijbes took over at the museum in 2008, guiding the ongoing renovations and improvements to the institution to a highly lauded reopening in 2013.   (more…)

The Dia Foundation has added two new board members this week, as it continues to work towards rebuilding a strong presence in downtown Manhattan.  The new members are James Murdoch, chief executive at 21st Century Fox and son of Rupert Murdoch, alongside Jane Skinner Goodell, the former television reporter and anchor, the wife of N.F.L. Commissioner Roger Goodell. (more…)

Christie’s is filing a multi-million dollar lawsuit against Jose Mugrabi, after the dealer and collector missed a $13 million payment on a Basquiat work he bought at auction last year.  The lawsuit, including fees and interest on the payment, will top $37 million.  “We repeatedly attempted to resolve this matter with Mr. Mugrabi,” said a company spokesperson.  “Unfortunately, our efforts failed, and Christie’s felt it had no other alternative but to litigate.” (more…)

Vanity Fair reports on the increasingly heated conflicts over the estate of Melva Bucksbaum, the late vice chairwoman of the Whitney Museum, whose will is currently being challenged by her husband, Raymond Learsy.  Learsy claims he is entitled to half of Bucksbaum’s fortune, leading to fierce clashes with her children. (more…)

Aby Rosen has partnered with Jeff Koons and Groundswell, a New York community mural organization, to present a youth artists initiative at his SoHo project, 11 Howard.  The towering mural piece was created during after-school art programs led by Misha Tyutyunik.  “This is a very creative team of young artists, and it’s rare to see a group with such a unified vision. I’ve enjoyed working with the artists during the conception of their idea,” Koons said. (more…)

Gerhard Richter has harshly criticized a move to close the Museum Morsbroich in Leverkusen, Germany, and to sell its collection.  “A public art collection is not a financial investment that can be plundered depending on the cash situation,” he says.  “It is a piece of art history and represents the cultural memory of its trustees.” (more…)

The Robert Rauschenberg Foundation has announced plans to allow the public fair use access to images the artist’s works.  “In keeping with Rauschenberg’s legacy, the Foundation is always looking to identify challenges and then provide solutions,” says Christy MacLear, CEO of the Rauschenberg Foundation. “Traditional notions of copyright and attempts to control images have proven incompatible with the nature of the digital age. (more…)

Anish Kapoor is drawing controversy this week, after the artist was granted exclusive artist rights to the Vantablack pigment, a paint that absorbs over 99% of light.  “I’ve never heard of an artist monopolizing a material,” says another artist, Christian Furr. “We should be able to use it. It isn’t right that it belongs to one man.” (more…)