V&A Pulls Catalog Materials Due to Chinese Censorship Laws

The Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London has admitted to removing maps and images from two exhibition catalogs following censorship demands from a Chinese printing firm. Documents revealed that C&C Offset Printing flagged content in the catalogs for the exhibitions "Music Is Black" and "Fabergé: Romance to Revolution" as violating Chinese law. The censored items included a 1930s map of British trade routes and a photograph of Vladimir Lenin, which the printer claimed could not be produced under Beijing’s strict regulations.

Is Chinese Censorship Reaching Inside Britain’s Museums?

London’s Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) has come under fire following reports that it altered exhibition catalogues to comply with Chinese government censorship. To reduce production costs, the museum utilized printers in China, which are subject to Beijing’s General Administration of Press and Publication (GAPP) regulations. Consequently, the museum removed historical maps and an image of Vladimir Lenin from publications for the "Music is Black" and "Fabergé: Romance to Revolution" exhibitions after they were flagged by Chinese authorities.

Fellowship Open Call – Shaping Africa’s Curatorial Futures

Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (Zeitz MOCAA) and the University of the Western Cape (UWC) have launched an open call for their fully funded 2027 Museum Fellowship Programme. The year-long initiative offers emerging African art professionals a combination of practical museum training and postgraduate academic study, aiming to develop the next generation of curators, researchers, and arts professionals on the continent.

Victoria & Albert Museum yields to Chinese censorship

Le Victoria & Albert Museum cède à la censure chinoise

The Victoria & Albert Museum in London removed a map and other content from its exhibition catalogues after its Chinese printer, C&C Offset Printing, flagged them as unacceptable to Chinese censors. The map, showing 1930s British Empire trade routes, was rejected by China's General Administration of Press and Publication (GAPP) because it included Chinese territory and borders, requiring the use of state-approved maps. The museum also previously removed a map and a photograph of Vladimir Lenin from a 2021 Fabergé exhibition catalogue.

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Saudi Arabia is significantly scaling back its ambitious "Vision 2030" cultural and infrastructure spending due to falling oil prices and massive budget overruns. Major international projects, including a $200 million investment deal with the Metropolitan Opera in New York and funding for the Centre Pompidou’s refurbishment, are currently in limbo or facing payment delays. Reports of unpaid invoices to art service firms and the halting of "gigaprojects" like Neom suggest a period of financial retrenchment for the kingdom.

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The British Museum faced significant criticism from archaeologists and the public after posting images containing A.I.-generated content on its Instagram and Facebook accounts. The posts, which featured a young woman contemplating exhibits, were tagged to an A.I. model and a marketing agency. Following a wave of negative comments, the museum removed the posts approximately six hours later and reportedly unfollowed critics on social media.

Hundreds of galleries across Spain will strike next week to protest 21% tax on art

Around 200 contemporary art galleries across Spain will close for a six-day strike from February 2 to 7. The action is a protest against the country's 21% value-added tax on art sales, which gallery owners argue cripples their competitiveness and sustainability.

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The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has awarded $75.1 million to 84 projects in its first grant round since President Donald Trump dismissed nearly all members of the National Council on the Humanities. The largest grants—$10 million each—went to the University of Texas at Austin and the Foundation for Excellence in Higher Education (FEHE), with other significant awards to the Abigail Adams Institute, Grand Central Atelier, and the Museum of the American Revolution. Many funded projects emphasize American exceptionalism, classical philosophy, civics, and Western canonical texts, reflecting the Trump administration's conservative priorities.

National Endowment for the Humanities awards $75.1m to 84 projects across the US

The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has awarded $75.1 million to 84 projects across the United States, marking the first grants since the Trump administration dismissed most members of the National Council on the Humanities. Major recipients include the University of Texas at Austin and the Foundation for Excellence in Higher Education, each receiving $10 million for programs focused on civics, strategy, and "Great Books." Other notable grants include $2.2 million for Philadelphia's Museum of the American Revolution and $2 million for Grand Central Atelier, a small art school in Queens that teaches classical realist techniques.

Canadian Museum for Human Rights’ planned exhibition on displacement of Palestinians sparks outpouring of support and criticism

The Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg announced plans for an exhibition titled 'Palestine Uprooted: Nakba, Past and Present,' scheduled to open in June 2026. The show will document the lived experience of the Nakba—the mass displacement of Palestinians beginning with the 1948 Arab-Israeli war—through video testimonials, objects, art, text, and photography, focusing on personal stories of Palestinian Canadians. The announcement has drawn both strong support and criticism, with museum CEO Isha Khan emphasizing the exhibition is not a historical retrospective or commentary on current Israel-Palestine relations.

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Artnet News published its 'Museums in Crisis' series, a global investigation into pressures facing cultural institutions. Key takeaways include: Western museums face a funding and political crisis, with U.S. institutions losing hundreds of millions in federal support (including $428 million from the National Endowment for the Humanities) and European museums like those in Berlin facing cuts of €130 million. Corporate sponsorship is increasingly risky due to ethical scrutiny, with the U.K.'s Museums Association urging institutions to avoid ties to fossil fuels or human rights abuses. China's private museums are at risk of downsizing or disappearing due to economic slowdown and lack of public funding.