A Detroit Institute of Arts investigation into a whistle-blower complaint has concluded on the ruling that the museum did not breach conflict of interest loans after borrowing a $5 million El Greco painting owned by the director’s father-in-law. “There was no finding of any intention to mislead or hide information, nor was there any finding of any conflict of interest, violation of DIA policy or violation of applicable law,” says reviewing law firm Crowell & Moring. (more…)

The Nordic Pavilion at the Venice Biennale will renamed will be renamed to the Sámi Pavilion for the exhibition’s 2022 edition, acknowledging the Sámi artists, Pauliina Feodoroff, Máret Ánne Sara, and Anders Sunna, showing there.  “The global pandemic, the impact of climate change, and worldwide calls for decolonization are leading us all to focus on alternative possibilities for our future and that of our planet,” says Katya García-Antón, the director of the Office for Contemporary Art Norway and the lead commissioner of the pavilion. “At this pivotal moment, it is vital to consider Indigenous ways of relating to the environment and to each other.” (more…)

Harold Ancart, Untitled (2020), via David Zwirner

Making an intriguing continuation of his investigation of natural processes and large-scale environmental phenomena, artist Harold Ancart has a new show on at David Zwirner this month.  Delving into leafy canopies and expansive, haunting desert expanses, the show gives the impression of an extended meditation on place and space, and makes for a strong follow up to the artist’s first show with the gallery in New York.   (more…)

The curators at the Baltimore Museum of Art have responded to criticism over the deaccessioning of works by Clyfford Still, Brice Marden and Andy Warhol from its collection in Art Newspaper this week. “These curatorial decisions reflect the same values we seek institutionally: equity and diversity make history fairer, more accurate and more meaningful in the present,” they write. (more…)

Simone Leigh will become the first black woman to exhibit as the U.S. choice for its Venice Biennale pavilion in 2022, the NYT reports. “I feel like I’m a part of a larger group of artists and thinkers who have reached critical mass,” Ms Leigh, 52, said. “And despite the really horrific climate that we’ve reached, it still doesn’t distract me from the fact of how amazing it is to be a Black artist right now.” (more…)

Over 1,300 arts orgs in the U.K. will receive a share of £257m government funding to help them survive the next six months.  The funding was announced this week in an effort to maintain British arts venues and institutions during the challenging late months of COVID-19. (more…)

The US Supreme Court has declined an appeal by developer Jerry Wolkoff’s G&M Realty to reverse a decision awarding $6.75m to 21 street artists whose works were destroyed when Wolkoff whitewashed the exterior of his 5Pointz warehouse.“The significance of this decision is that federal law now protects not only artwork exhibited in MoMA or the Louvre but also public murals, created with permission,” says Eric Baum, a lawyer for the artists. (more…)

A piece in Art Newspaper this week asks why certain works of art are stolen multiple times, and looks at the reasons thieves continue to steal works with a questionable resale value. “One thing I’m seeing more of is the use of such stolen works as a bargaining chip for [reducing] sentences,” says Robert Read, the head of art and private clients at Hiscox. “This trend was noted about a decade ago, but as sentencing gets more creative in the courtroom, it would appear that criminals are viewing it as more of an opportunity—in this case the more publicity and better known a work, the better.” (more…)

Vinci Chang, head of Sotheby’s Asia modern art department, is leaving the company.  Chang was on the ground floor through the department’s impressive last few years of growth, and hands the reins off to Felix Kwok, Head of Modern Asia Art Sales at Sotheby’s Hong Kong. (more…)

Deutsche Bank is planing to sell off around 200 works from its art holdings, Bloomberg reports.  The sold works focus in particular on pieces and objects outside the collection’s main focus, including paintings, sculptures, drawings and prints. (more…)

The UK’s National Trust will cut 1,296 jobs in an attempt to save £100 million in the face of the ongoing challenges of the coronavirus pandemic.  “In July, we announced that job losses and budget cuts were inevitable after almost every aspect of the charity’s income was hit by the coronavirus crisis,” a trust statement reads. “We proposed making almost 1,200 compulsory redundancies, saving £60m of our annual staff budget. But following a wide-ranging consultation with affected staff, the number of compulsory job losses has reduced by half.” (more…)

Billionaire Tom Gores, owner of U.S. prison phone company Securus Technologies, has left his position as trustee at LACMA. “Paraphrasing a salient question at last week’s board meeting: ‘Okay Tom, we appreciate your efforts to “take the hill” and reform Securus. But why does LACMA have to take the hill with you?’ The simple answer is: You don’t,” he said in a letter to the museum. “Effective immediately, I resign my position on the board and forego all ties to the institution.” (more…)

The Museum of Chinese in America, previously the victim of a savage fire in its Chinatown exhibition space, has recevied a $3 million grant from the Ford Foundation, which is more than the entire year’s budget for the museum. “This is an absolute game changer for us,” says museum president Nancy Yao Maasbach. (more…)

Nancy Spector has left the Guggenheim, following an investigation into allegations of mistreatment and racism from curator Chaédria LaBouvier, who organized a Basquiat exhibition at the museum as their first solo black curator.   “The museum cannot be taken seriously as a good faith actor in its commitment to affirming diversity,” the letter said, “without grappling honestly and humbly with its failure in regards to the treatment of Chaédria LaBouvier.” (more…)

Artist Frank Bowling has been knighted by the Queen of England, part of her annual birthday honor’s list. “Trained in the English art school tradition, my identity as a British artist has always been crucial to me and I have viewed London as my home since arriving in 1953 from what was then British Guiana,” Bowling says. “To be recognized for my contribution to British painting and art history with a knighthood makes me extremely proud.” (more…)

Gagosian has launched a new project, Gagosian Premieres, which aims to capitalize on the recent popularity of auctions and streaming media during the challenging era of COVID-19. (more…)

Do Ho Suh at Lehmann Maupin

With the weather turning increasingly chilly, and the fall months coming on in full stride, the art world would normally turn its attention this week to London, where the tents would be up and the halls would be ready for another edition of Frieze Art Fair in the British Capital.  Yet the fair’s annual run is just one more event moved online this fall, as Europe and the United States continue to contend with the heightened stress and security concerns of the COVID-19 pandemic.  This week, the British staple of the annual art calendar has popped up online, open for the next week with a broad set of works on view, and a range of galleries logging in from around the globe.

Gretchen Bender at Metro Pictures

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François Pinault has set the opening date for his Bourse de Commerce museum for January 23, 2021. “Not only will it add to the European landscape of institutions devoted to presenting contemporary art, but after the difficult year experienced by France and the world in 2020, it will contribute to the renaissance of the Parisian cultural sphere,” he says. (more…)

Bloomberg looks at the sale of a Botticelli work in the upcoming January Old Masters Sales at Sotheby’s, expected to fetch $80 million, and how the owner’s private foundation has saved him tens of millions in capital gains taxes.  “He donated it and got a large deduction which sheltered his income,” says Ralph Lerner, co-author of Art Law – The Guide for Collectors, Investors, Dealers and Artists. “And now his foundation will have all this money tax-free while satisfying its charitable purpose.” (more…)

Artist Charles Gaines has created a fellowship for black MFA Students at CalArts, where he has been a longtime member of the faculty. “I have spent my whole teaching career at CalArts working—not alone but with others—on diversity and inclusion in order to increase the presence of the minority voice in society,” Mr. Gaines says.  (more…)

TEFAF has extended the delay for its 2021 edition, moving it once again from March to May as COVID-19 concerns continue to mount. “It is our hope that by pushing the dates of TEFAF Maastricht to later in the spring, we make physical attendance possible, safe, and comfortable for our exhibitors and guests,” says chairman Hidde van Seggelen. “The safety of our TEFAF community is our utmost priority as we fulfill our commitment to inspiring art lovers, collectors, and institutions, while simultaneously doing our part to cultivate an adaptable art market in which our dealers can thrive.”  (more…)

London’s Cromwell Place, a new, customized arts venue for exhibitors and arts professionals, gets a spotlight in the NYT this week.  “I like the built-in industry flexibility,” says David Maupin, co-founder of Lehmann Maupin. “It provides a space we can do a multitude of things with.” (more…)

Marina Abramovic has an interview in The Guardian this week, showcasing her small home upstate and speaking on a range of topics, including her relationship with the late Ulay, her longtime collaborator. “It’s really easy to say you can forgive someone, but to really forgive with your whole heart is the hardest thing in the world,” she says. “But truly, I forgave him in the deepest way. We had made some incredible, important work. When it was wonderful, it was wonderful; when it was hell, it was hell.”  (more…)

Following multiple delays, Berlin’s long-awaited Humboldt Forum museum complex will open in December.  Its main program will launch a few months later. (more…)