CNBC notes increased trends towards online art auctions among the larger auction houses, with Sotheby’s and other houses looking increasingly to online sales.  “(Online auctions) take place simultaneously with a live stream that connects the bidder to the auction floor, as if they were attending in person,” Natalie Townsend, a spokesperson for Invaluable. “The tech behind it is very precise, as you can imagine there can be no time lapses when it comes to bidding on high ticket items, and features a comprehensive bidding dashboard to give the auctioneer instant visibility on bid updates from mobile bidders.” (more…)

Sotheby’s is stuck in the middle of conflicting claims over a Buddha statue reportedly stolen from a San Francisco gallery in 1983, and which recently appeared on the block during the auction house’s Indian and Southeast Asian Art sale this September.  Even though gallerist Gary Crawford was able to halt the sale, he is suing for the return of the statue, which Sotheby’s is still holding due to claims of ownership by its consigner, Weider Health and Fitness. (more…)

A report on the state of the Chinese art market by the National Law Review has found drastic contractions in the market’s auction turnaround rate, dropping by 30%, a drop that the publication attributes to the government’s ongoing anti-corruption campaign.  “Although it remains to see whether the anti-corruption campaign could make the ultimate success, the impact on the art world is visible,” the artice concludes.  “Like the investors concern about political risks, China art market stakeholders also need to learn to predict and manage the unexpected impact the changing of political landscape may have on the market.” (more…)

ArtLifting, a new online platform for homeless and disadvantaged artists to sell their work has raised $1.1 million in seed funding from Toms Shoes founder Blake Mycoskie, angel investor Joanne Wilson, author and entrepreneur Eric Ries, social impact accelerator Tumml, among others, TechCrunch reports.  “It’s exciting to see entrepreneurs focusing on strengths in our communities to create change,” Mycoskie said in a statement.  (more…)

Morgan Library Director of Collections Peggy Fogelman has been announced as the new director at Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. “Peggy is the perfect fit for the Gardner with her impressive background ranging from work in large prestigious institutions to small, intimate museums,” says Steve Kidder, the Gardner Museum’s Board President. “She brings us the best intersection of creativity, vision, and successful execution. We look forward to seeing what she dreams up for this very special Museum.” (more…)

The exhibitor list for the 2016 edition of Art Basel Hong Kong has been announced, running from Thursday, March 24 to Saturday, March 26, and hosting 239 galleries from 35 countries, including 28 first-time galleries at the event.  Notable attendees include Marianne Boesky, which returns after a brief hiatus from the fair, and Selma Feriani Gallery, the first African gallery outside South Africa to attend. (more…)

Ranking online auctioneer Auctionata has acquired the London-based valuation company ValueMyStuff, part of the company’s international expansion plans. “Having access to the best experts worldwide is an essential aspect of Auctionata’s business model,” says Alexander Zacke, founder and CEO of Auctionata.  “Through the acquisition of VMS we are able to expand the expertise from which we provide our customers with fast and reliable valuations. As the market leader and inventor of the livestream auction, we are thus not only shaping the user experience for our bidders, but also for our consignors.” (more…)

Following a number of comparisons to the work of James Turrell, rapper Drake’s “Hotline Bling” video has finally been addressed by the artist, who seems to have taken the homage of his pale, colored light installations with something of a sense of humor.  “I wish to make clear that neither I nor any of my woes was involved in any way in the making of the Hotline Bling video,” he said through a blog post from his lawyer. (more…)

Artist Melik Ohanian has won this year’s Marcel Duchamp prize, presented by the ADIAF (Association pour la Diffusion Internationale de l’Art Français) in partnership with the Centre Pompidou, National Museum of Modern Art, and FIAC, where the award was presented this past week. (more…)

WWD profiles Lucas Zwirner, son of mega-dealer David Zwirner, and editor of the gallery’s young publishing imprint, David Zwirner books.  “I remember reading Wallace Stevens poems and feeling like I could not be doing anything more important,” he says. “At least for the first two or three years, I wanted nothing to do with the sphere of influence that generates from [the gallery].”  (more…)

As Gerhard Richter opens a historical exhibition of his “Color Chart” works from the 1960’s at Dominique Lévy in London, Art Info notes the significance of the works on the artist’s career, and his initial inspiration while passing through a Düsseldorf hardware store, where he saw a selection of paint sample cards.  “I preferred the unartistic, tasteful and secular illustration of the different tones to the paintings of Albers, Bill, Calderara, Lohse, etc.,” Richter says. (more…)

Beirut’s Aishti Foundation Museum, the project of Beirut luxury retail magnate and collector Tony Salamé, has opened this week, featuring an exhibition curated by Massimiliano Gioni, despite ongoing instability in the country.  “I think the best thing with a project, you forget about the uncertainty in the place, you keep on going,” Salamé says. (more…)

Artist Hank Willis Thomas has been commissioned to install a 12-foot tall sculpture at the base of the Brooklyn.  The work will consist of an arm and hand with a single finger raised, and will greet those entering the borough.  The final look for the work has yet to be decided. (more…)

A £35m Rembrandt may stay in the UK, as its buyer considers withdrawing the work’s export license and donating it to a British Museum.  “The prospective buyer is considering a loan to a UK institution so that the painting can be further enjoyed by the British public,” says a Sotheby’s spokeswoman.  (more…)

Ai Weiwei is accusing the Lego Company of censorship after the company refused to fill an order he made for the toy building blocks, which he was intending to use in a new project.  “We refrain — on a global level — from actively engaging in or endorsing the use of Lego bricks in projects or contexts of a political agenda,” the company responded. (more…)

Art Info looks at the increasingly high rents and other challenges mid-size, single-venue galleries are currently facing worldwide, and asks if the business model is capable of surviving in the current market.  “It was very hard for my type of gallery to become a big one,” says former gallery owner Nicole Klagsbrun, who closed her space in 2013 and shifted to an independent, curating-focused approach.  “Obviously, I’m happy to be outside because I have the freedom to really choose what I want to do and when to do it and really focus on projects.” (more…)

The New York Times profiles the chosen artworks hung at the White House by the Obama family, and the recent addition of a selection of abstract works.  “There was discussion about the president and first lady liking more abstract art,” says William Allman, the longtime curator of the White House art collection. “Our collection doesn’t really have any of that.” (more…)

The New York Times notes the current tax status for art in Delaware, and the investors setting up art storage ventures in the state to take advantage.  “Delaware has a lot of trust and tax advantages,” says Derek Jones, executive director of Atelier, a new storage company operating in the state. (more…)

A historic deal between Germany and Iran will lead to an exhibition of contemporary art works from the collection of the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art in Berlin.  “That a succession of Iranian museum curators and administrators have worked to put together the collection and maintain it over decades is a testament to a fundamental respect for the arts,” says Shiva Balaghi, a visiting scholar at Brown University.  “That this collection now serves as a foundation for greater collaboration between Iranian art institutions and those abroad is another indication of art’s ability to create alternative contexts for mutual understanding and appreciation.” (more…)

The shortlist for the 2016 Hugo Boss Prize has been announced, with Tania Bruguera, Mark Leckey, Ralph Lemon, Laura Owens, Wael Shawky and Anicka Yi making the list of honorees.  The winner announcement and ceremony will take place in October of 2016, and will give the winning artist an exhibition at the Guggenheim. (more…)

Loic Gouzer has been promoted as Christie’s Deputy Chairman, Post-War and Contemporary at Christie’s, Art News reports.  “I’m not really impressed by people’s titles, I’m impressed by what they do. I guess in Europe there isn’t really the culture of titles,” Gouzer says, ”but it is in America, so I’m happy.” (more…)

Bank of America has given 13 Conservation Grants to Museums and Institutions around the globe, giving more than $1 million in funding to museums including the Guggenheim in New York, the British Museum, the OCA Museum in Sao Paulo, and the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha, Qatar.  The Guggenheim will use the funds to restore Manet’s “Woman in Evening Dress.”  “We hope to remove a discolored varnish that is obscuring the brushwork and flattening the painting and really not presenting Manet in his best light,” said Carol Stringari, the museum’s deputy director and chief conservator. (more…)

Dealers Iwan and Manuela Wirth have topped ArtReview’s annual power rankings as the most powerful figures in the art world, primarily for “what they have done to change the model of selling and promoting art.”  “The Wirths’ increased influence stems in part from what they have done to change the model of selling and promoting art,” the website reads.  “As big art dealers are becoming ever better at selling art for high prices, and as collectors want to see themselves as more than just anonymous purchasers, the husband-and-wife-team understand that selling art objects isn’t the whole story – the well-off want to be sold a lifestyle.” (more…)

The New York Times follows the story of dealer Andrew Butterfield’s purchase of a small wooden believed to be by Donatello, and the dealer’s push to have the work authenticated.  “It felt so much like the embodiment of the early Renaissance,” he says. (more…)