Video artist John Akomfrah has won the 2017 Artes Mundi Prize, a $50,000 prize honoring artists dedicated to “addressing social and political issues.”  “You really have to consider the option that people are migrating literally to survive,” he says of his recent work.  “They come here to be able to live, because there isn’t an alternative anywhere else.’ And that seems to be an insight that has been lost.” (more…)

Another article looking at the future of U.S. arts is in the Art Market Monitor today, noting fears of a collapse in “cultural infrastructure” and how it may harm the lower end of the market.  “We’ve seen the art market plateau in 2014 and 2015, then pull back substantially in 2016,” Marion Maneker writes.  “By most accounts, prices remain strong—as does demand—but it is supply that is constraining the market.” (more…)

The Guardian looks at the threats of Donald Trump’s proposed plans for arts funding cuts, and the related program cuts he has that may affect artists in unforeseen ways.  “The general feeling is that we are moving into unknown territory,” says Robert Lynch, president and CEO of Americans for the Arts. “It’s changing before our eyes, so we don’t really know. We are in a mode of either assessing opportunity or assessing danger.” (more…)

The Financial Times looks at the increasingly strong market for Jean Dubuffet, as a number of the artist’s premier works head to the auction blocks this March carrying equally premier prices.  “Everything Dubuffet is being looked at afresh,” says Alex Branczik, Sotheby’s head of contemporary art, Europe. “He was a prolific artist and people are discovering new pockets of interesting work.” (more…)

The Swiss city of Geneva is taking an activist stances against illicit art market activity, working under the Responsible Art Market Initiative to advise and council on buying and selling art.  “The idea is to make sure people understand what the threat is, and it is a real threat facing the art market,” says Mathilde Heaton, a former legal director at Christie’s. “We want to play our role in also combating a much wider problem.” (more…)

The Art Newspaper looks at the shortlist for the directorship of the Musée d’Orsay, profiling each replacement for Guy Cogeval, who will step down in March.  Potential nominees include Sylvain Amic, the director of museums in Rouen, and Dominique de Font-Réaulx, the director of the Musée Delacroix in Paris.   (more…)

Christo has canceled the production of his immense Colorado River production in protest over the U.S.’s new president, Donald Trump.  “I came from a Communist country,” he says. “I use my own money and my own work and my own plans because I like to be totally free. And here now, the federal government is our landlord. They own the land. I can’t do a project that benefits this landlord.” (more…)

The Whitney has hired Marcela Guerrero and Rujeko Hockley as assistant curators, bringing on a pair of young talents who have already built reputations for themselves at the Hammer and Brooklyn Museum, respectively.  “Marcela and Ru have distinguished themselves as two of the brightest and most passionate curatorial voices of their generation,” Scott Rothkopf, the Whitney’s deputy director for programs and chief curator, said in a statement. (more…)

The Morgan Library and Museum has announced that Jessica Ludwig will join the organization as deputy director.  “The Morgan is currently experiencing some of the most successful years in its history and Jessica’s expertise will be a key asset as the institution looks to extend these gains,” says Director Colin B. Bailey.  (more…)

Japanese collective Chim Pom has offered its creative take on the current border disputes between Donald Trump and the nation of Mexico, building a large tree house looking over the current border line.  “It’s our art,” says artist Ryuta Ushiro, “but it’s also for children.” (more…)

The Smithsonian has named Stephanie Stebich as the Director of its American Art Museum.  “I am honored to have been chosen to lead the national museum of American art in our nation’s capital,” Stebich said in a statement. “I am eager to tell the inspiring stories of American art through the museum’s phenomenal collections and dynamic programs.” (more…)

The New York Times reports on the controversy between artist Pat Lasch and MoMA, which seems to have discarded one of the artist’s works after commissioning for an exhibition during the museum’s 50th Anniversary show.  The work, a five foot high cake sculpture, was thrown out by the museum after it had deteriorated.  “Yes, my art sometimes looks like food,” Ms. Lasch says. “But I wonder if they’d ever let a Claes Oldenburg hamburger or pie sculpture go missing. I highly doubt it.” (more…)

The MFA Boston is planning a $24 million overhaul of its conversation center, centralizing a series of distinct departments into a central space.  “It’s not just about treatment any more,” Matthew Siegal, the chair of conservation and collections management, says. “Our department has an equal amount of technicians and conservators. People responsible for conservation engineering, specialist collections care, preventative conservation, etc. The whole discipline has changed to look at everything that goes on prior to the actual treatment. The idea is to keep objects from needing treatment.” (more…)

David Hockney was welcomed to Costaño Elementary and 49ers Academy in East Palo Alto, California, where he mentored young students in fine arts.  The program, headed by architect Frank Gehry, seeks to encourage arts education for high-needs students.   “I haven’t been inside a school for 40 years or more, and it’s very nice,” the artist said.  “The kids give off energy and I get it back.” (more…)

The second half of the Bronx Museum’s exchange of artworks with the nation of Cuba will not go ahead, after Cuban officials declined allowing works to leave the country, which some speculate may be the result of the new presidential administration.  “We pushed as hard as we could,” says director Holly Block.  “I don’t want to call it disappointment because it’s been such a long process that we’re hopeful that it’s going to continue to foster cultural exchange.” (more…)

Romania’s Culture Ministry has selected 90-year-old artist Geta Brătescu to represent the Eastern European nation at the Venice Biennale this year, Art News reports.  This will be Brătescu’s third Biennale, having participated previously in 1960 and 2013.   (more…)

The College Art Association has issued a statement condemning Donald Trump’s stated intent to shutter the National Endowment for the Arts.  “Given that the respective budgets of the NEA and NEH represent only a tiny fraction of the entire federal budget, their planned elimination cannot logically be seen as a cost-saving measure,” the statement reads.  “Rather, it appears to be a deliberate, ominous effort to silence artistic and academic voices, representing a potentially chilling next step in an apparent effort to stifle and eradicate oppositional voices and cultural output from civic life. By eliminating the support for these agencies, the government undermines the unifying potential of the arts, culture, and education that encourages and nurtures communication and positive discussion.” (more…)

Brad Troemel is the subject of a profile in the New Yorker this week, which reflects on the artist’s recent work both in and outside the traditional gallery system, and his approach towards making art that often defies categorization.  “At what point do artists using social media stop making art for the idealized art world audience they want,” the piece quotes from one of his essays, “and start embracing the new audience they have?”  (more…)

The New York Times profiles the increased potential in recent years for Instagram as a marketing tool, noting a considerable uptick in works sold through the platform.  “It has hit a sweet spot in the market for sharing information,” Anders Petterson, one of the contributors to the Hiscox Online Art Trade Report says, “but no one saw this coming as a sales tool.” (more…)

The LA Times has a piece today on the participation of a number of artists and gallerists in the Los Angeles protests against Donald Trump, counting Catherine Opie and a range of gallerists from across the city.  “Artists need to bring that voice of opposition to this cause — with every drop of blood and every tear,” Opie says. (more…)

Egypt’s Museum of Islamic Art has reopened for the first time since being badly damaged by a car bomb in 2014.  “I’m amazed. I haven’t been to the Louvre, but I feel like I’m somewhere a lot more beautiful,” said Hussein Ismail, a visitor to the museum. (more…)

Seventy-five people have been arrested across Europe as part of a crackdown on the trafficking of illegal art and artifacts, the New York Times reports.  Over 3,000 objects were recovered as part of the operation, which focused around works smuggled out of war-torn regions.  (more…)

Art News has a piece on President Donald Trump’s proposal to eliminate the NEA, reflecting back to the presidency of George H.W. Bush, when the organization faced similar threats of defunding, particularly in situations where the government sought to limit funding over exhibitions’ political content.  The piece reflects on a number of contentious shows during the era, including an exhibition of Robert Mapplethorpe photos, and an exhibition devoted to the AIDS epidemic. (more…)

The Guardian spotlights Anderson Ranch outside of Aspen, a former sheep farm that has become a major workshop site for artists working in a range of media, counting Tom Sachs and Christo among its recent residents.  “Anderson Ranch is unique because we’re a mix of both education and inspiration,” says executive director Nancy Wilhelms.  “People of all ages and abilities come here and learn new skills or unlock their inner artist, or learn something new about themselves through art.” (more…)