An open letter in USA Today from David J. Skorton, the secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, has called for an end to the government shutdown, noting that the closures cost the institution $1 million a week.  “Most important from a humanitarian perspective is the effect of loss of salary on our more than 4,000 furloughed employees,” he says.  “It is reassuring and appreciated that the president and Congress have agreed to supply back pay once the government fully reopens. But to many of our employees, particularly those with more modest salaries, the loss of each paycheck causes direct and significant harm.”

(more…)

In a landslide vote, the employees of the New Museum have voted to unionize. “We have a union—that’s the big news,” says Dana Kopel, a senior editor and publications coordinator. “From here, we go into negotiations.” (more…)

MOMA has received nine projects from Swiss architecture firm Herzog & de Meuron, including 23 pieces related to projects overseen by the firm between 1994 and 2018.  “For more than three decades, Herzog & de Meuron’s practice has been a singular and defining voice in the discourse of contemporary architecture,” says Martino Stierli, MoMA’s chief curator of architecture and design. “Thanks to the generosity of the office and the Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron Kabinett, we will be able to include these key works of contemporary architectural production in our changing collection displays.” (more…)

The Getty Trust has named artists Ed Ruscha and Lorna Simpson among this year’s recipients of its J. Paul Getty Medal, recognizing significant contributions to the arts.  “We are honored to present the medal this year to three leaders who have helped transform and deepen our understanding and appreciation of the visual arts and the humanities,” Maria Hummer-Tuttle, chair of the J. Paul Getty board of trustees, said. (more…)

Camden, New Jersey will be the next recipient of a $1 million grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies for a public artwork examining the city’s issues with illegal dumping sites. “Illegal dumping is unsightly, unlawful, and costs the city over $4 million annually,” says mayor Mayor, Francisco Moran. “This winning project provides a unique way to bring together residents and artists to address this issue with creativity and create a brighter future for Camden.” (more…)

The Singapore Biennale has revealed the title for its show, “Every Step in the Right Direction,” and named Patrick Flores as head of the curatorial team. “What is the responsibility of the artwork, its making, and its experience in the prospects of future action?” Flores and his team ask in a statement. “As we believe, every effort to change the world for the better matters. The Singapore Biennale 2019 puts its faith squarely in the potential of art and its understanding to rework the world.” (more…)

Artist Miroslaw Balka gets a profile in The Guardian this week, discussing his current show at White Cube, and its relation to current political situations in the US and Europe. “We used to think demolishing walls was a sign of progress. Now everywhere we are building them up again. So I wanted to say we have been here before,” he says. “It’s a gesture of warning, in a way.”  (more…)

The art activist group W.A.G.E., which advocates for artists to be compensated for their labor, has published an open letter calling for artists participating in the 2019 Whitney Biennnial to “demand to be paid for the content they provide and withhold that content until the demands of Whitney staff are met.”  The letter addresses current protests within the museum over Whitney vice chair Warren B. Kanders and his ownership of Safariland, a defense company producing tear gas canisters used against asylum seekers along the U.S.-Mexico border.  (more…)

The Park Avenue Armory and Studio Museum will partner for the “Culture in a Changing America” symposium, bringing together artists, activists, scholars, and others across disciplines on February 17th.  “Showcasing an impressive range of leaders from the social and artistic spectrum, this series presents opportunities to address some of the most pressing issues of our time,” Park Avenue Armory president Rebecca Robertson said in a statement. (more…)

Expo Chicago has tapped Jacob Fabricius, current artistic director of the Kunsthal Aarhus, as the curator of its 2019 “In/Situ” section. “I have been visiting and collaborating with Chicago’s incredible art institutions since the late 1990s, drawing from the diversity, architecture and history of the city,” he said in a statement. “Chicago has inspired my work a great deal, and Expo Chicago’s immersive ‘In/Situ’ program provides the perfect framework for my exploration into pressing issues of sustainability and political systems.”

(more…)

Jonas Mekas in 1964, via NYT

Film-maker Jonas Mekas, a figure who loomed large in the New York cinematic landscape, and an artist widely considered the godfather of underground cinema, has died at the age of 96.  A founder of both the famed Film Culture magazine and the still operating Anthology Film Archives in Manhattan, his energetic engagement with all aspects of filmmaking helped to nurture the careers of filmmakers like John Waters and Jim Jarmusch, among others.  “Jonas passed away quietly and peacefully early this morning,” the Film Archives wrote online. “He was at home with family. He will be greatly missed but his light shines on.” (more…)

Following the continued protests against the Sackler Family, a number of politicians and activists are pressuring Harvard to remove the Sackler name from a number of its buildings, including its arts museum. The news comes a day after The Met announced it was reviewing its gift acceptance policies over similar criticism and legal threats. (more…)

Lehmann Maupin Gallery filed suit against former director Bona Yoo, accusing the dealer of “stealing trade secrets” and altering the gallery’s files before moving on to Lévy Gorvy Gallery in New York as sales director.  “Lehmann Maupin brought this lawsuit purely out of spite towards a former employee who, in Lehmann Maupin’s own words, was ‘a valuable leader at the gallery.’ Ms. Yoo intends to vigorously defend herself against her former employer’s baseless and vengeful claims,” Yoo’s lawyer, Tibor Nagy says. (more…)

The Foundation for Contemporary Arts in New York has named 18 artists who will receive unrestricted grants of $40,000, including Tania Bruguera and Mika Tajima. “It’s always an overwhelming but fantastic experience seeing how much amazing stuff is out there that you might not otherwise know about,” says board member Cecily Brown. “One big thing is that [receiving a grant] is a sign of respect from your peers, and hopefully it can really help someone to not do their day job for a while and buy the time to really put into one’s own work. Even just being able to focus on one’s work full-time is a huge difference.“ (more…)

Another arts project suffering from the US government shutdown is artist Trevor Paglen’s sculpture Orbital Reflector, which remains undeployed more than a month after it was launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.  “A division of the United States Air Force known as CSpOC is faced with the task of properly identifying each of those satellites so that they can be tracked as they orbit the earth,” says commissioning institution the Nevada Museum of Art. “Six weeks post-launch, that task is still not complete; only half of the satellites from the launch have been properly identified. Many of the satellites that launched together remain in a cluster and until they separate it is difficult to correctly identify each one.” (more…)

Hauser & Wirth has donated $1 million to California State, Los Angeles for the school’s department of television, film, and media studies. “Cal State L.A.’s commitment to civic engagement and public service aligns perfectly with our gallery’s desire to contribute to the communities where we work,” says Marc Payot, vice president and partner of Hauser & Wirth. “We want to support scholarship in all forms, from art historical research and the preservation of artists’ archives, to the efforts of young students seeking to become community activists themselves through the art and films they are learning to make.” (more…)

Chicago nonprofit United States Artists has released its list of 2019 fellows, each receiving an unrestricted $50,000 cash prize, including filmmaker Nuotama Frances Bodomo (who was featured in ARTnews’s “Africa Now” issue), Juliana Huxtable, Wu Tsang and Simone Leigh.  (more…)

Following the ongoing controversy involving the Sackler family’s gifts to many American institutions and their ties to the drug OxyContinn, The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York is re-assessing its gift acceptance policy, the Art Newspaper reports. “The Sackler family has been connected with The Met for more than a half century,” says museum president Daniel Weiss. “The Met is currently engaging in a further review of our detailed gift acceptance policies, and we will have more to report in due course.” (more…)

Munich’s Haus der Kunst has appointed an expert commission to oversee programming and strategy following turbulent months after the departure of Okwui Enwezor. The commission will “support the curatorial team and play an advisory and monitoring role concerning both content and feasibility of planned projects,” according to a statement.  (more…)

A group of artists, intellectuals and professionals have published an open letter asking the New Museum to allow its employees to unionize, leading the New Museum to step back and allow the process.  “We respect our employees’ right to self-organize and will respect whatever decision they make,” the museum said in a statement. “We will continue to work together to advance the museum’s special mission.” (more…)

Art News has a piece this week on  San Francisco’s Saint Joseph’s Arts Society, a newly opened exhibition space in the city that features a range of exhibitions including one curated by Venus Over Manhattan. “Hopefully, collectively, it will be a gift to the city of San Francisco,” says building owner Ken Fulk.  (more…)

Mika Rottenberg is now represented by Hauser & Wirth, Art News reports. The artist was previously represented by Andrea Rosen before the gallery closed in 2017. (more…)

A new museum dedicated to the work of Fernand Léger and André Mare is expected to open in Argentan, Normandy this June, Artforum reports. Housed in the childhood home of Léger, at 6 rue de l’Hotel de Ville will undergo a $1.5 million renovation. “[Léger and Mare’s] shared love for painting and drawing was to strengthen a sincere friendship that would nourish their respective creativity,” a statement reads. Musée Fernand Léger–André Mare “traces and tracks their lives from their beginnings in Argentan to international recognition, emphasizing their mutual emulation, the love they shared for their native land, and how their works were influenced by the experiences of their youth.” (more…)

The UK Government is investing £20 million into cultural projects in the areas of Grimsby, Wakefield, Plymouth, Worcester and the Thames Estuary area of Kent. “This is an incredible opportunity that will not only help people build careers in the arts and culture locally but also boost wider investment and diversify the creative economy,” says Jeremy Wright, the culture secretary. (more…)