Grayson Perry is under fire this week after a statement about coronavirus clearing the “dead wood” from the arts. “‘It’s awful that the culture sector has been decimated, but I think some things needed to go. Too often, the audience for culture is just the people making it – theatres with whole audiences of actors, or exhibitions only put on to impress other curators,” he said in an interview. (more…)

A number of U.S. Museums served as polling locations in yesterday’s election, Art Newspaper reports. “We expect to see a big turnout on election day and are honored to be a part of this process,” says Ann Philbin, director of the Hammer Museum. (more…)

Artist Howardena Pindell gives an interview with The Guardian this month, discussing her work and the trauma of racism in the United States. “The trauma of racism, I feel, is there for everyone to see,” she says. “If you are not a person of color, you may not even notice what is going on.  When you look different, you can become a target for others’ unresolved issues, where they take out their rage on people who do not look like them.” (more…)

A new report in the Art Newspaper reveals a Venetian city flood plan that sacrifices St. Marks’ Cathedral to save the city’s industrial port of Marghera. The decision comes amid the recent completion of the city’s new flood prevention system. (more…)

The Treasury Department has issued statements warning of vulnerabilities in the art market that could serve as sites for malign actors to evade U.S. sanctions, the Wall Street Journal reports. “The mobility, concealability, and subjective value of artwork further exacerbate its vulnerability to sanctions evasion,” says the Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control. (more…)

The Art Newspaper has a piece today on the cultural stakes of the election, recapping a series of articles on the current moment in arts and culture. (more…)

A new study into Vincent van Gogh’s psychiatric health has put forth that the artist had delirium, caused in part by alcohol withdrawal. “Those who consume large amounts of alcohol in combination with malnutrition, run the risk of brain function impairment including mental problems,” the study reads. “Moreover, abrupt stopping with excessive alcohol consumption can lead to withdrawal phenomena, including a delirium.” (more…)

A Japser Johns flag print valued at at least $1 million has been donated to the British Musuem.  “This is a hugely important print,” says Catherine Daunt, a curator of modern and contemporary art. “It is beautiful, complex and technically a great achievement. We now have 16 works by Johns in the collection, all of which are outstanding in their own way, but visually this is undoubtedly the most spectacular.” (more…)

Lockdown is back on in London this month, with museums and galleries closed until December. “Solidarity from Museums Association to all museums that reopened & now have to close; to all those furloughed, unfurloughed & soon to be refurloughed & to those that have been made redundant or face the prospect,” says Sharon Heal, the director of the Museums Association advocacy group. (more…)

Henry Taylor has an interview in the NYT this week, as he displays a new portrait of his brother made this year. “I was home in my garage studio, and I just like to paint. You know what I mean? I mean, my incentive is just wanting to make work and not be so complacent,” he says. “If I’m painting, I’m feeling good. So what inspired me? Just being allowed to paint. I don’t need a lot of inspiration, I just need time.” (more…)

A range of works will be screened on a massive “digital canvas” near  Tottenham Court Road tube station in London. “At this scale I don’t think there is anything like this in the world which is so exciting,” says artist Marco Brambilla, who is curating the program. “Once it starts, hopefully it will become like the Turbine Hall. Think of those epic installations which we all remember like Olafur Eliasson’s Weather Project and Bruce Nauman’s sound installation. The ambition of it is to create a series of installations similar to that.” (more…)

A Jewish family who recently lost a court case over the requested return of a €20 million Wassily Kandinsky obtained by the Stedelijk Museum during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands has accused an advisory committee of discrimination. “The restitutions committee has performed its task properly. There is no reason to revisit or redo the work. They are competent and able to assess the case. There are also no indications that the painting was stolen,” says Paul Loeb, who represents the museum. (more…)

Germany and France are facing another round of extended museum closures as lockdowns begin in the countries. “We have to act in order to avoid an acute national health emergency,” says German Prime Minister Angela Merkel. (more…)

The MoMA PS1 leadership is shifting, with longtime chair Agnes Gund heading over to manage the museum’s diversity, equity, and inclusion committee. Former board co–vice chair Sarah Arison is taking over as museum chair. “I am honored to take on this role as Chair of the PS1 Board of Directors, and humbled to continue Aggie Gund’s legacy of inspirational leadership,” Arison says. (more…)

In an interview this week with the Guardian, Tracey Emin revealed she is in remission after a cancer diagnosis and surgery this summer, an experience she says has renewed her passion for work.  “At my age now, love is a completely different dimension and level of understanding,” she says. “I don’t want children, I don’t want all the things that you might subconsciously crave when you’re young. I just want love. And as much love as I can possibly have. I want to be smothered in it, I want to be devoured by it. And I think that is OK.” (more…)

Michelangelo Pistoletto gets an interview in the NYT this week, as the artist discusses a fraught battle with COVID-19, and a string of new shows the artist has opening this fall.  “I’m still alive,” he says. “It was very, very hard to retake life.”  (more…)

After harsh criticism, the postponed Philip Guston show has been moved up to 2022, the NYT reports. “We never would have identified 2024 as a possible timeline if we were not serious about doing the show,” says National Gallery spokeswoman, Anabeth Guthrie. (more…)

In a last-minute decision, the Baltimore Museum of Art called of its decision to sell a set of works from its collection, removing them from the sale just hours before it sits start time. “On behalf of AAMD, I am gratified to learn that the Baltimore Museum of Art has decided to reverse course,” says Brent Benjamin, president of the AAMD, said in a statement. “As we have said consistently, our April 2020 resolutions were not intended to address needs beyond current, pandemic-related financial challenges.” (more…)

Galeria Nara Roesler is moving its New York gallery to West 21st Street in Chelsea next year.  “We know that artists are working to create objects that are meant to be experienced in the flesh,”Roesler says. “The digital channels have kept the conversations and connections with our audience going. We found a way without a physical space, but we still need a space to keep the gallery healthy in the future.” (more…)

Mark Godfrey, a senior curator of international art at Tate, has been suspended following criticism of the museum over its decision to postpone the Philip Guston show. “If you work at Tate, you are expected to toe the party line,” a source says. “There is very little tolerance for dissent and an increasingly autocratic managerial style.” (more…)

Frieze New York announced a pared down version of its fair for 2021, moving across town to The Shed for a scaled-down edition. “The Shed is committed to developing new partnerships and approaches to support the arts and our city at this critical time,” says artistic director and executive Alex Poots. (more…)

Lehmann Maupin will open a temporary exhibition space in Palm Beach, Florida next month, Art News reports. “We’ve learned a lot of lessons in the last seven months,” says gallery partner Carla Camacho, who will run the space. “Smaller markets are really hungry to have high quality art in their hometowns, and it’s time to bring high-level art and treat these regional cities with a more elevated experience.” (more…)

Jenny Holzer is working with students in Chicago as part of her You Vote program, placing messages on a series of LED billboard trucks.“Students wanted more, they wanted to participate in getting out the vote,” says Christine Mehring, a professor of art history at the college and an adjunct curator at the Smart Museum of Art who worked on the project. (more…)

Artist Sarah Sze has an interview in The Guardian this week, as she prepares an installation at Fondation Cartier in Paris. “I’m interested in the idea of sculpture as a tool to understand where we are in time – in the world, you know?” she says. (more…)