Friedrich Petzel gets a profile in Art News, as he discusses his vision for his gallery and business model. “My imagination does not allow for 80, 90, 100 artists,” he says. “I think there’s a certain expectation of precision from people who enter the gallery.” (more…)
Rebecca Salter has been elected as new president of the Royal Academy of Arts. “A great day for the Royal Academy as Rebecca Salter is elected the first woman to be president since its founding in 1768,” says artist and academician Cathie Pilkington. (more…)
The Art Berlin fair has been scrapped, Art Newspaper reports. “We regret this step very much,” says Gerald Böse, the managing director of Koelnmesse. “But at the moment we don’t see the conditions necessary to achieve our visions in producing this event.” (more…)
A British court has ruled that Sotheby’s is due repayment for a disputed Frans Hals work, which originally sold for $10.8 million before being declared a fake. “We were glad to see our position completely vindicated by the court,” a representative for Sotheby’s says. (more…)
Artist David Datuna, who ate Maurizio Cattelan’s banana at Art Basel Miami Beach. “Warhol put banana on a canvas,” he says. “Cattelan takes a real banana and puts it on the wall. David took banana from the wall and ate it!” (more…)
Art News interviews curator Francesco Bonami about his experiences at Art Fairs. “People go to art fairs to meet people, then to look at art, but often people don’t want to meet you and sometimes they don’t want even to look at art,” he says. “You also learn a different language where ‘very good’ means good, ‘good’ means ok, and ‘ok’ means ‘it’s a disaster, I have not sold anything.'” (more…)
A piece in Art News notes that the Elgin Marbles have suffered damage due to pollution over the years, after the study of a series of casts has uncovered evidence of what the statues looked like during the 1800’s. “Elgin’s casts could be important records of the state of the sculptures in the very early 19th-century before modern pollution would hasten their deterioration,” says researcher Emma Payne. (more…)
Catherine Opie will be the first endowed chair in the art department of UCLA, LA Times reports. “This allows my area to grow,” Opie said. “The Resnicks have been really generous, not only to the university as a whole — but I’ve really appreciated what they’ve done for the department.” (more…)
Bettina Korek of Frieze LA will take over as new head of the Serpentine Galleries. “Some of the most compelling qualities of LA as a city are embodied by the Serpentine as an institution: intrepid innovation, fluidity across disciplines, an irrepressible preoccupation with the future. I am honoured to share the responsibility of leading the Serpentine into its 50th year and to continue to cultivate creative and philanthropic synergy between London, the US and the rest of the world,” she said in a statement. (more…)
A piece in Bloomberg traces the ongoing dispute between dealer Inigo Philbrick and the mysterious Guzzini Properties LTD.m uncovering that the company is owned by David and Simon Reuben. “My clients are philanthropic collectors, who, unfortunately, must now litigate to secure their rightful title to artworks after their good-faith, arm’s-length purchases,” says lawyer Wendy Lindstrom. (more…)
After sharing this year’s Turner Prize, Lawrence Abu Hamdan has won the 2019 Edvard Munch Art Award, which includes a residency and $50,000. A statement by the Munchmuseet noted the institution “values the artist’s commitment to human rights and his capacity to address urgent political subjects through his art.” (more…)
Maurizio Cattelan much talked about banana work was removed from the Galerie Perrotin booth at Art Basel Miami Beach this weekend after crowds gathering to see the work became too large. “Art Basel collaboratively worked with us to station guards and create uniform lines,” reads a gallery statement. “However, the installation caused several uncontrollable crowd movements and the placement of the work on our booth compromised the safety of the artwork around us, including that of our neighbors.” (more…)
The teenager who threw a young boy from the balcony of the Tate Modern has admitted to attempted murder, and will be sentenced early next year, after saying the act was intended to silence those who said he was not mentally ill. “I wanted to be on the news, who I am and why I did it, so when it is official no-one can say anything else,” he said. (more…)
Art Basel is offering support to dealers exhibiting in its Hong Kong fair this coming year, with a 5% to 10% discount on stand fixtures such as walls, flooring and lighting, which some speculate is an attempt to lure uneasy galleries in the wake of the protests in Hong Kong. “The $200,000 cost of doing Art Basel in Hong Kong is the difference between a small or mid-tier gallery going under. We are prepared to take the risk but we would like that properly acknowledged,” said one anonymous dealer. (more…)
The Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles will voluntarily recognize its employee union, the LA Times Reports. “This is a smart move,” says Lylwyn Esangga, organizing director at AFSCME’s District Council 36. “At the end of the day the workers want a voice and a seat at the table…. It shows a willingness to recognize that seat at the table. This is unique in that many employers will go through an election or do an anti-union campaign.” (more…)
A piece in the Smithsonian this week looks at the recent trove of Marcel Duchamp works given to the Hirshhorn Museum. “This is a real milestone in our museum’s history,” says museum director Melissa Chiu. “This is in fact the most important donation by individual collectors since our founding gift from Mr. Hirshhorn which founded our museum in 1974.” (more…)
A piece in GQ this week looks at the outsize impact of Berlin’s art scene on the look and popularity of Balenciaga in the broader art world. “There’s so much crossover that it feels like the art world and Balenciaga are a part of the same conversation,” says Carly Busta of New Models. (more…)
The Freelands Foundation has awarded the Hepworth Wakefield as the fourth recipient of its $132,000 Freelands Award, which will support a major exhibition of photographer Hannah Starkey. “This project comes at an exciting moment when Starkey is reassessing her art in the light of recent political events, such as the MeToo movement, that have such a vital bearing on her new work,” says museum director Simon Wallis. (more…)
Bloomberg has a piece on the massive Portia Munson work on view at P.P.O.W.‘s Art Basel Miami Beach booth, and efforts to sell it during the fair. “This is really why we do this, “ says collector Steve Wilson, who ultimately bought the work. “I love exposing the world to this kind of art, and helping living artists, and putting it all together.” (more…)
A number of museums are closed in France this week as protests and strikes over President Macron’s retirement reforms continue nationwide. Other museums are choosing to operate only partially, like the Grand Palais. “Because of the circulation problems, a lot of people can’t come to work so we can only keep one exhibition open,” says a spokesperson. (more…)
A piece in Art Newspaper spotlights the continued efforts of the Yuz Museum and LACMA to show Yuz founder Budi Tek’s collection of Chinese contemporary art in Shanghai despite a government crackdown on Islam. “I do not consider that to be a problem at all,” Tek says. “It is never in my mind that whatever happens in Hong Kong will affect our program, or our [future] achievements.” (more…)
A large-scale march against climate change has been scheduled for Friday 6 December, outside the government centre in downtown Miami. “We are reaching an irreversible tipping point, beyond which glacier ice melt will raise sea levels to catastrophic levels here in Miami, where more than 2.4m people live less than 4ft above the high-tide line,” says activist Will Charouhis adds. “Even the most conservative estimates show that some Floridians will soon be forced to move and will become some of our nation’s first climate refugees.” (more…)