The New York Times writes on the efforts of Crystal Bridges Museum to establish itself as a leading contemporary arts institution, and the planning underway for a show of young and underestimated artists from around the United States.  “There have been times over the past few months,” said Don Bacigalupi, an employee of the museum currently leading the hunt. “When I wake up and literally have no idea what city I’m in.” (more…)

A pair of George Condo shows on view in London showcase recent work by the artist both before and after a bout with Legionnaire’s disease, showcasing a wildly divergent pair of styles influenced by the artist’s inability to paint during his illness.  The works are on view at both Simon Lee Gallery and Skarstedt, opening concurrently with London’s contemporary auctions this week. (more…)

Piper Marshall, the curator of the Swiss Institute, has resigned from her position after six years to pursue freelance projects.  “I am extremely grateful to the SI Board, former director Gianni Jetzer, and the SI team for nurturing my growth and challenging and refining my role as a curator of historically significant art and immensely talented artists,” Marshall says. (more…)

The Art Basel fair has announced the list of exhibitors for its 2014 edition, to be held this June, with 285 Galleries from around the world.  A number of small galleries, like New York’s Ramiken Crucible and London’s The Approach will appear this year alongside the annual players.  (more…)

An article in Bloomberg this week traces the current speculation over young artists and the art market, detailing the increasingly seen practice of flipping young artists quickly after purchasing them.  Of particular note are the works of artists Lucien Smith and Oscar Murillo, whose works have seen increase of more than 3,000% in two years. (more…)

A new project to reimagine the city flag for New York has drawn submissions from John Baldessari, Francesco Clemente, Tom Sachs and more, to be auctioned at Sotheby’s later this month to benefit the Fund for the City of New York.  “The idea is, in an increasingly virtual world in the 21st century flags are one of the remaining symbols of shared virtues and beliefs,” Barbaralee Diamonstein-Spielvogel, chairwoman of the alliance and of the Historic Landmarks Preservation Center said. (more…)

Artists David Shrigley and Hans Haacke have been announced as the 2015 and 2016 commissions for London’s Fourth Plinth sculpture project.  Shrigley will install an enormous hand giving a thumbs up on the plinth in 2016, while Haacke will show a skeletal horse sculpture as next year’s piece.  “What’s exciting for me is the opportunity to make something on a scale you couldn’t possibly imagine making yourself.”  Shrigley says. (more…)

The winner of the 2014 young architects program at MoMA PS1 has been announced, a striking cylindrical design made of corn stalk and living root structures, designed by New York-based practice The Living.  The structure will be installed this summer as part of PS1’s annual “Warm-Up Series.”  “This year’s yap winning project bears no small feat. it is the first sizable structure to claim near-zero carbon emissions in its construction process and, beyond recycling, it presents itself as being 100% compostable,’ said Pedro Gadanho, curator of MoMA‘s department of architecture and design. (more…)

A Picasso tapestry currently hanging at the Four Seasons Restaurant on Park Avenue is facing a dangerous removal from its current installation.  The work is being removed following a contractor’s estimate that the wall behind it is at risk of collapse, but the fragile nature of the work could make it difficult to remove.  “No matter how cautious they are, the work is so brittle and fragile that it could, as one of them put it, ‘crack like a potato chip,’ ” said Peg Breen, President of the New York Landmarks Conservancy. (more…)

A New York judge has ruled that the lawsuit filed by collector Ron Perelman against dealer Larry Gagosian can proceed, following Gagosian’s request that the suit be thrown out.  While rejecting several of the claims regarding breach of contract and other complaints, the court ruled that Perelman’s fraud lawsuit will be able to move forward. (more…)

The historic Franklin School building in Downtown Washington, D.C. will be converted into a modern art museum, called The Institute for Contemporary Expression.  The building will house exhibitions, performances and sculpture, and was pushed forward by collector Dani Levinas.  “With the completion of this selection process we are now a step closer to revitalizing Franklin School and giving it a new life,”  said deputy mayor for planning and economic development Victor Hoskins. (more…)

Camille Pissarro, Le Boulevard Montmartre, Matinée De Printemps (1897), via Sotheby’s

With the closing hammer at Sotheby’s last night, another set of impressive evening sales for Impressionist and Modernist Art, with a number of longstanding auction records falling in a flurry of bids.  The continued strength of the market could be felt across the board, but the week was particularly auspicious for Christie’s, which secured an astounding $288.13 million sale for its 48 lots, the highest sale for an auction ever in London, while Sotheby’s achieved $104.4 million for its 90 lot offering.   (more…)

Gregory Edwards, Steady Work (Installation View), via ArtObserved

Gregory Edwards’ approach to abstraction is oddly figurative. For his latest solo show at 47 Canal, entitled Steady Work—the Brooklyn artist’s first since his solo debut in 2011—Edwards riffs on the inspirational sloganeering of the self-help genre. Featuring single words or short phrases painted amidst garishly colored, textured backgrounds, the show’s six works perhaps most strongly recall the increasingly vintage aesthetic of MS PowerPoint slideshows and WordArt.

Gregory Edwards, Steady Work (2013), via 47 Canal (more…)

Collector and dealer Asher Edelman has filed a lawsuit claiming he has been victimized in a fraudulent deal for the sale of more than 100 works claimed to be by Picasso, Matisse, and more.  The lawsuit states that Swiss company Artmentum convinced Edelman’s company that a Japanese museum was seeking to sell $400 million in art, a statement that Edelman claims was wholly false.  “Each defendant, acting individually and in concert with each other, participated in an elaborate, fraudulent scheme in the guise of an international art transaction designed to deprive ArtAssure of hundreds of millions of dollars,” the lawsuit says. (more…)

Juan Gris, Nature morte à la nappe à carreaux (1915), via Christie’s

After the beginning of the February auctions in New York last week, attention will shift across the Atlantic to London, where the Impressionish and Modern art auctions will commence today, February 4^th with Christie’s evening sale.  This year, the modern sale will offer some strong works from both auction houses, boasting impressive estimates that belie a strong offering across the board, rather than a handful of big ticket works. (more…)

The trailer for the Penn Gillette-directed film Tim’s Vermeer has been released, charting a computer graphics designer’s inquiry into the painting technique of Johannes Vermeer, and the impact it makes on the art world. (more…)

Reporter Doreen Carvajal has published an article in the New York Times, detailing her independent efforts to track down the potential heirs to paintings lost or stolen during the Nazi occupation of much of Europe.  The search was inspired by the French government’s increased efforts to return confiscated paintings, and the legal challenges it faces.  The article also addresses a perceived indifference to the process of returning the works, which is in part caused by a need for thoroughly exhaustive research.  “There is no French omerta to refuse to return the paintings,” says Cultural Minister Aurélie Filippetti.  “On the contrary, I am committed to move faster and further.” (more…)

The construction of an enormous tower next door to the Art Students League has raised fierce debate among members and supporters of the institution.  The soon to be built Extell Building will stand as one of the tallest buildings in the world, with several cantilevered segments hanging over the school, for which developers will pay the organization $31 million.  While many at the Art Students League are eager to accept the money, others worry about rushing into a deal that may ultimately endanger the school’s future.  “The League is too beautiful and too venerable to be messed with like this,” says member Beth Karts. “Some things in this world, like the League, are worth a lot more than money.” (more…)

Christie’s auction house will auction a series of 45 never-before exhibited works from the early career of Jean-Michel Basquiat, a collection held by his former lover Alexis Adler from when the pair shared an apartment in the East Village from 1979 to 1980.  The online-only sale will be held in March, and features a mural the artist painted with the words “Olive Oyl” as the top lot, priced to sell for just over $400,000.  “He left this trail of art everywhere he went,” said Ms. Adler. (more…)

Part of artist Doug Aitken’s The Source series of art conversations, the artist speaks with Liz Glynn, talking about the artist’s approach to her immersive environments.  “I think about functioning as somewhere between an architect and a scientist,” she says. “So I create the space and set up an experiment, but then I get out of the way and sort of see what happens.” (more…)

Michael Beutler, Weaving Workshop (2009-2013) all images courtesy Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris

At the Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris is the largest ever textile show presented by the museum to date, including more than 100 woven works by artists such as Pablo Picasso and Fernand Léger, as well as several contemporary artists. The show will remain on view through February 9th.

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El Greco, The Annunciation, via Sotheby’s

The past week of Old Masters auctions in New York has concluded with a series of successful auctions at both Sotheby’s and Christie’s this week, bringing respectable sums that set the stage for the next two weeks of Modern and Contemporary Works at both houses.  Notably more subdued than last year’s competitive sales, a number of works still managed to drive the auctions beyond their anticipated figures.  Sotheby’s capped a series of well-attended auctions that brought in a total sum of $71 million, while Christie’s closed a series of auctions bringing in just over $65 million. (more…)

Frank Stella, The Big Flea Tower (2013), all images Courtesy Peter Freeman Inc.

On view at Peter Freeman, Inc. is a solo show of recent sculptures by Frank Stella, drawn mostly from his series Scarlatti K and Circus which were created using 3-D printing technology and metal pipes and rods. The exhibition will continue through February 22, 2014.

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Jake and Dinos Chapman, The Sum of all Evil (2012-2013), via Serpentine Sackler

An exhibition of Jake and Dinos Chapman, the English brothers turned artistic-collaborators, is currently on view at the Serpentine Sackler Gallery in London’s Hyde Park through February 9.  Titled Come and See, the show is something of a magnum opus – the Chapmans display an interest in any and all media, from painting to film. Their cheeky disregard to a medium-centric practice allows them to mesh subject material in mock conspiracy-theory style. Posed KKK members, McDonald’s characters and scenes of war and chaos reminiscent of Urs Graf or their frequent muse, Francisco Goya are assembled in an “overtly-designed-chaos” where homage and meaning are tossed about for the sake of pointed caricature. (more…)