Art News. Vasari Codex

article news schedule May 26, 2026 visibility 4 link 27 artists, 2 galleries

Gala Season! Shaggy and Jewel Hit the Whitney, Henry Taylor and Pharrell Toast Gordon Parks, and More Juicy Art-World Gossip

Artnet News' gossip column "Wet Paint" reports on the Whitney Museum's 2026 annual gala, a major fundraising event. The author describes the scene: donors and celebrities like Jewel, Neil Patrick Harris, and Nigel Barker mingled with artists Julie Mehretu (the honoree) and Glenn Ligon. Notably, the 56 artists in the current Whitney Biennial were not invited due to limited seating, a policy confirmed by the museum. The evening raised $6.3 million, with individual seats costing $7,500.

newspaper Artnet News open_in_new Read original

article news schedule May 22, 2026 visibility 9 link 6 artists

What am I bid for a blown-up van? The bizarre art auction aiming to build an eco power station in Reform-held Clacton

Artists Hilary Powell and Dan Edelstyn are auctioning off their work from the past 15 years this Saturday to raise at least £250,000 for a community-led renewable power station in Clacton, the constituency of Reform UK leader Nigel Farage. The auction, which will be conducted by former YBA Gavin Turk, includes a gold Ford Transit van wreckage containing fake banknotes that the pair blew up in 2019 as part of their film *Bank Job*, now reconstituted as a mobile sculpture. An online auction runs until 31 May, but currently only £750 has been raised.

newspaper The Guardian open_in_new Read original

article news schedule May 23, 2026 visibility 10 link 6 artists, 1 gallery

Ansel Adams Trust Slams Gallery for AI-Generated Work at AIPAD Photography Show

The Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust publicly condemned Danziger Gallery for exhibiting and offering for sale an AI-generated artwork at the 2026 AIPAD Photography Show in New York. The untitled piece, described as a color version of Adams' iconic photograph "Moonrise Over Hernandez," was printed by master printer Esteban Mauchi and displayed alongside works by Seydou Keïta, Hoda Afshar, and Matthew Porter. The trust stated it did not authorize or endorse the work, accused the gallery of exploiting Adams' name and reputation, and noted that Danziger did not remove the piece after being contacted. The gallery has not commented publicly.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

article news schedule May 20, 2026 visibility 9 link 1 artist

Expansion plans for Rome's Galleria Borghese draw fierce response

Rome's Galleria Borghese, a 17th-century villa museum housing masterpieces by Caravaggio, Bernini, and Canova, is facing controversy over a privately funded feasibility study for a potential expansion. Sponsored by Italian engineering firm Proger, the €900,000 initiative would fund an international architecture competition to explore adding exhibition and visitor space to the Villa Borghese Pinciana grounds. Museum officials cite operational constraints: the historic interiors limit access to 360 visitors per two-hour slot (about 4,000 daily), reservations require weeks of waiting, many works remain in storage, and accessibility is poor. Visitor numbers hit a record 630,760 in 2025, up from 506,000 a decade earlier. Preservation groups including Italia Nostra Roma and Amici di Villa Borghese have objected to any new construction in the sensitive historic landscape. Director Francesca Cappelletti emphasized at a May 18 press conference that no project exists yet and the museum is only beginning a study process, with a winner possible by year's end.

newspaper The Art Newspaper open_in_new Read original

article news schedule May 26, 2026 visibility 1 link 3 artists

Brazilian Police name alleged thief of Matisse works

Brazilian police have named Laéssio Rodrigues de Oliveira Silva as the alleged mastermind behind the December 2024 theft of thirteen artworks from the Biblioteca Mario de Andrade in São Paulo. The stolen works include eight prints by Henri Matisse from his book *Jazz* (1947) and five illustrations by Candido Portinari for *Menino de Engenho* (1959). Two suspects were initially identified, with one arrested, but police now allege Rodrigues de Oliveira Silva orchestrated the heist from prison, where he is already serving time for previous thefts of rare books and manuscripts from institutions including the National Library Foundation and the University of São Paulo. He is also suspected of ties to the PCC organized crime gang. Two alleged intermediaries and one of the two gunmen have been arrested, while the other gunman, Gabriel Pereira Rodrigues de Mello, remains at large, and the artworks have not been recovered.

newspaper ArtReview open_in_new Read original

article news schedule May 21, 2026 visibility 11 link 6 artists

Thomas J. Price and Tavares Strachan Make Shortlist for Billie Holiday Monument Designs

The New York City Department of Cultural Affairs has announced a shortlist of six finalists for a public monument honoring jazz singer Billie Holiday, to be installed outside the Jamaica Performing Arts Center in Queens. Among the top contenders are British sculptor Thomas J. Price and Bahamian conceptual artist Tavares Strachan, whose proposals include abstract bronze forms and a mirrored column, respectively. Other finalists are La Vaughn Belle, Nikesha Breeze, Nekisha Durrett, and Tanda Francis, all of whom consulted with Holiday scholars and family members to develop their designs.

newspaper Artforum open_in_new Read original

article news schedule May 26, 2026 visibility 4

Russian Strike on Kyiv Damages National Art Museum of Ukraine

A Russian strike on Kyiv has caused serious damage to the National Art Museum of Ukraine, with a blast wave shattering windows, damaging frames, and collapsing plaster in several halls. The museum's skylight roof, which provides natural lighting for second-floor exhibition spaces, was also affected. No collection items or staff were harmed, as valuable holdings had been moved to secure storage early in the invasion.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

article news schedule May 23, 2026 visibility 5

Fraudster trying to sell fake ancient statues to Sotheby’s foiled over bogus invoices

A fraudster named Andrew Crowley, 46, attempted to sell fake ancient statues to Sotheby's, claiming they were inherited from his grandfather. The items—three Cycladic figures and one Anatolian stargazer statuette—were valued at up to £680,000 if genuine. However, the scheme unraveled when forensic analysis revealed that the accompanying invoices, purportedly typed in 1976, were produced using printing methods invented in 2001. Sotheby's experts also spotted spelling errors. Crowley received a two-year suspended sentence after admitting to making a false representation to the auction house.

newspaper The Guardian open_in_new Read original

article news schedule May 26, 2026 visibility 4 link 1 artist

Biennale’s Kazakh Pavilion Roiled by Controversy after Artwork Fails to Make It on View

Controversy has erupted at the Kazakhstan pavilion of the Venice Biennale after artist Äsel Kadyrhanova's multimedia installation *Machine* (2013), which addresses Stalin-era repression in Kazakhstan, was dismantled before the exhibition opened. An open letter published on e-flux, signed by prominent Kazakhstani art community members, alleges the work was removed on May 5 on orders from the nation's Ministry of Culture or pavilion organizers. The pavilion's curator, Syrlybek Bekbota, claims he personally made the decision to dismantle the work after negotiations with the artist failed, citing contractual restrictions from the venue, the Museo Storico Navale di Venezia, which prohibits "political, ideological," or "propagandistic" content. The venue's management company, D'Uva, denies any role in the removal, while the project's co-commissioner, Danagul Tolepbay, disputes the accuracy of the open letter's claims.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

article news schedule May 20, 2026 visibility 3 link 1 artist

CalArts President Booed During Commencement Speech

California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) President Ravi S. Rajan was loudly booed by students during the school's commencement ceremony on May 15, as they held signs reading “Hold the Admin Accountable” and “Save Our Faculty & Staff.” The protest stemmed from ongoing financial turmoil at the esteemed art school, including a multi-million-dollar budget deficit, significant staff and faculty layoffs, and a decline in enrollment from 1,500 to roughly 1,200. Despite Rajan's attempts to redirect focus to the graduates, the booing persisted, and board chair Charmaine Jefferson unsuccessfully appealed for calm. The incident follows a broader crisis at CalArts, where over 75% of staff sought to unionize in 2024, and faculty held a “Chop from the Top” rally in March against proposed $5 million in cuts.

newspaper Hyperallergic open_in_new Read original

article news schedule May 26, 2026 visibility 4 link 1 artist

Miami Politician Admits to Hiring ‘Jew Hater’ Billboard Trucks Targeting Pro-Palestinian Protesters at Art Basel Miami Beach

Miami City Commissioner David Suarez admitted to paying $4,000 for billboard trucks that targeted pro-Palestinian protesters outside Art Basel Miami Beach in December 2024. The trucks called Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) an “extremist group” and labeled members Alan Levine and Donna Nevel as “Jew haters.” The protest, organized by JVP and three other groups, called for a boycott of UBS, Art Basel’s sponsor, over its ties to Israeli weapons manufacturer Elbit Systems. A lawsuit filed in Southern Florida District Court seeks documents from Suarez, Mayor Steven Meiner, and other officials related to the incident and a city ordinance that protesters claim was designed to discourage demonstrations.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

article news schedule May 22, 2026 visibility 6

“Villa Borghese è perfetta e non si tocca”. Siamo andati a vedere se è proprio così perfetta

A private company donated a design competition to the Galleria Borghese in Rome, aiming to expand the museum's exhibition spaces and services. Before any winning project was selected, associations like Italia Nostra protested, claiming the initiative would desecrate Villa Borghese. The article's author visited the park to document its current state, finding decay: a wrecked Globe Theatre, neglected ponds, graffiti, trash, dilapidated buildings, and a degraded horse-riding track. The author argues that while the park is defended as "perfect and untouchable," it is actually suffering from real neglect that goes unaddressed by the same groups opposing development.

newspaper Artribune open_in_new Read original

article news schedule May 24, 2026 visibility 7 link 1 artist

Il Museo Nazionale d’Arte dell’Ucraina di Kiev colpito e danneggiato dai bombardamenti russi. Le immagini

Between the night of May 23 and the early hours of May 24, 2026, Russia launched a massive attack on Kyiv and other areas of Ukraine using 600 drones and 90 missiles. The National Art Museum of Ukraine (NAMU) in Kyiv suffered severe structural damage, along with government buildings. The attack was reportedly a response to a Ukrainian bombing of a dormitory in Russian-occupied Starobilsk. The museum, founded in the late 19th century and housed in a neoclassical building opened in 1904, holds nearly 40,000 works spanning over a thousand years of Ukrainian art, including medieval icons, Baroque masterpieces, and avant-garde pieces.

newspaper Artribune open_in_new Read original

article news schedule May 26, 2026 visibility 2

Sharjah Art Foundation Launches The Hook for Emerging Art Writers.

Sharjah Art Foundation has launched The Hook, a new editorial platform that supports emerging and established art writers across the region. The initiative invites writers to submit pitches responding to a single artwork currently on view at Sharjah Art Foundation venues, encouraging personal, critical, and experimental approaches to art writing. Selected texts will be published on #SAFOnline, and contributors will receive an honorarium. The open call is aimed at local and regional writers interested in engaging critically with contemporary art.

newspaper ART AFRICA open_in_new Read original