Slawn Releases ‘Not An Artist’ Album After Live Studio Exhibition at Saatchi Yates

London-based artist Slawn has released a collaborative album titled 'Not An Artist' following a month-long residency at Saatchi Yates gallery. From January to February, the gallery was transformed into a live studio environment where Slawn created paintings and recorded music simultaneously. The project featured a wide array of musical collaborators, including Unknown T and Blackhaine, and was executive produced by Arthur Bean.

Climate report from Getty’s PST Art programme urges cultural organisations to confront exhibitions’ impacts

The Getty has released a comprehensive climate impact assessment of its PST Art initiative, titled Art & Science Collide (2024-25), based on its inaugural Climate Impact Program (CIP). Developed with climate adviser Laura Lupton and artist Debra Scacco, the program provided webinars, guidance, and networking to participating institutions, with over two-thirds completing a climate impact report. Key findings show that air travel and air freight of art are the most carbon-intensive activities, and shifting to sea freight could reduce total emissions by 18%. Many institutions reduced waste through simple, low-cost changes, with some committing to permanent sustainability practices.

Louvre’s €666m plans for new entrance ‘financially unsound’—and security should come first—auditor says

A report from the Cour des comptes, France's state auditing body, has deemed the Louvre's €666 million plan for a new entrance and subterranean complex around the Mona Lisa as "financially unsound." The report, released on November 6 by chairman Pierre Moscovici, criticizes the museum's management under director Laurence des Cars, highlighting severe delays in security upgrades—only 4% of an €83 million infrastructure budget has been spent since 2018. The audit follows an audacious heist of French crown jewels on October 19, which the report says was enabled by inadequate security. It urges the Louvre to prioritize a €450 million infrastructure plan over the grand renovation project, which has already seen a 45% cost overrun from its initial €450 million estimate.

The Philadelphia Museum of Art is now the Philadelphia Art Museum

The Philadelphia Museum of Art has officially changed its name to the Philadelphia Art Museum, as announced on October 8, 2025. The rebranding is accompanied by new merchandise featuring the updated name and logo, with press images released by photographer Rob Cusick showing the new branding.

His final exhibition: More than 300 paintings featured in Marley Kaul's fourth book

Bemidji State University art professor Marley Kaul's fourth and final book, "Marley Kaul Paintings," will be released in September, featuring over 300 full-color paintings selected by Kaul and his family. The hardcover coffee table book is divided into 10 chapters that trace Kaul's artistic development from 1961 to 2021, including a final chapter titled "The Unfinished Series" from his last year. A retrospective exhibition of nearly 50 paintings will open at the Talley Gallery on September 4, followed by three book release events in Minneapolis, Bemidji, and Grand Forks.

White House Lists Smithsonian Exhibits It Finds Objectionable

The White House has released a list of Smithsonian Institution exhibits it finds objectionable, targeting displays that it claims promote divisive narratives or undermine traditional American values. The list includes specific exhibitions across multiple Smithsonian museums, such as those related to race, gender, and historical figures, which the administration argues should be revised or removed.

This is BC: Renowned artists open Enderby gallery

Renowned artists have opened a new gallery in Enderby, British Columbia, as reported in a segment titled 'This is BC' by Global News. The video feature, published on June 10, 2025, highlights the establishment of this gallery by well-known visual artists in the small community of Enderby, located in the North Okanagan region. The artists are bringing their expertise and creative works to a local venue, aiming to enrich the area's cultural landscape.

RTRU* (*Raudive Technoculture Research Unit) at KAJE

The exhibition "RTRU* (*Raudive Technoculture Research Unit)" is on view at KAJE in Brooklyn from April 4 to May 17, 2026. Curated by the Riga Technoculture Research Unit (Zane Onckule and Elizaveta Shneyderman), the show features works by Ka Baird, Scott Benzel, Valdis Celms, Cal Fish, Jason Isolini, Voldemārs Matvejs, Karlīna Mežecka, Adriana Ramić, Konstantīns Raudive, and Ieva Rubeze. The press release and checklist are available, and images of the exhibition are provided courtesy of the artists and the gallery.

PRESS RELEASE: OK Arts Council announces historic gift of artworks for the Oklahoma State Art Collection

The Oklahoma Arts Council has announced a historic gift of artworks for the Oklahoma State Art Collection. The donation, described as one of the largest in the collection's history, includes a significant number of works by Oklahoma artists and will be formally added to the state's holdings.

Intermezzo: revisiting Helmut Newton

The Helmut Newton Foundation at Berlin's Museum für Fotografie is overhauling its permanent exhibition after more than 20 years, introducing a cinematic installation called "Intermezzo" that uses eight video projectors across four screens to present a film portrait of Helmut Newton. The film incorporates previously unreleased material, including personal recordings by his wife June Newton, and features interviews with figures from Newton's world such as Philippe Garner, Carla Sozzani, and Matthias Harder. Alongside the immersive film, the ground-floor gallery displays nearly 100 of Newton's exhibition posters and launches a new curatorial series, "Spotlight: behind the frame," which will focus on iconic photographs by Helmut Newton or Alice Springs, starting with Newton's 1975 "Rue Aubriot" and Alice Springs' 1970 Gitanes advertisement.

Ocean Line, 2026 by Carrie Mae Weems

Carrie Mae Weems has introduced a new photographic work titled 'Ocean Line' (2026). The piece is being presented in multiple dimensions, ranging from 11 x 14 inches to 20 x 24 inches, through a platform that partners with elite, vetted galleries to showcase contemporary artists to a global network of collectors and advisors.

PRESS RELEASE: Christie’s First London-Based Middle Eastern Modern & Contemporary Art Evening Auction Builds On Dubai’s Success, Achieving £5,235,125 / $6,863,249 / €5,826,694 - Christie's

Christie’s successfully transitioned its Middle Eastern Modern & Contemporary Art evening auction from Dubai to London, achieving a total of £5.2 million ($6.8 million). The sale boasted high sell-through rates of 85% by lot and 88% by value, driven by bidders from 23 different countries. Significant highlights included world auction records for Iraqi artist Jewad Selim, whose painting "The Watermelon Seller" fetched over double its estimate, and Mahmoud Sabri, whose work "Grief" sold for more than ten times its high estimate.

A short guide to the hidden meanings in great paintings

Former picture researcher Caroline Chapman has released a new book titled "Painted Mysteries: Interpreting Great Paintings," which decodes the hidden symbolism in over 135 historic artworks. The publication serves as a guide for modern viewers to understand the complex visual language used by masters such as Botticelli, Rembrandt, and Raphael, unravelling layers of meaning that have become elusive over time.

Japan’s favourite puffed corn snack was just sold at auction for ¥1.15 million

A limited-edition artwork by Japanese contemporary artist Tomokazu Matsuyama, titled 'Umaibo: Contemporary Art Flavour', sold at auction for ¥1.15 million (approximately $7,600 USD). The piece reimagines the iconic ¥15 Umaibo corn puff snack, a beloved cheap candy in Japan. Originally released in 2025 as a run of 50 sticks priced at ¥100,000 each, the work was first shown at Matsuyama's solo exhibition 'Tomokazu Matsuyama: First Last' at Azabudai Hills Gallery in Tokyo. The auction result represents over ten times the original retail price.

Last Year’s Art Market: Only Works by Proven Artists Survived

The Korea Art Authentication and Appraisal Institute (KAAAI) released its "2025 Art Market Analysis Report" on January 21, 2026, revealing that the Korean art market grew 5.16% in total auction sales to 142.7 billion won, despite a decline in the number of lots offered. The global market saw a similar trend: combined sales at Christie's, Sotheby's, and Phillips rose 11.1% to $4.56 billion, but the number of works sold fell by 33.3%. Demand concentrated on high-priced blue-chip works by artists like Gustav Klimt, Claude Monet, Mark Rothko, René Magritte, and Jean-Michel Basquiat, while ultra-contemporary art sales plunged 39.1%.

Check out first look images of L.A.’s trippy museum of AI arts — and its new opening plan

Media artist Refik Anadol has announced that Dataland, the world's first museum of AI arts, will open in spring 2026 at the Frank Gehry-designed Grand L.A. complex in downtown Los Angeles, delayed from its original 2025 schedule. The museum spans 25,000 square feet and includes five galleries; a sneak peek was released of the Infinity Room, an immersive multisensory space featuring swirling colors, AI-generated scents, and a proprietary AI model called the Large Nature Model. The Infinity Room concept originated in 2014 at UCLA and has since toured 35 cities, attracting over 10 million visitors.

Man killed while unloading Warhol-painted BMW for exhibition in Washington, DC

A man was killed on September 17 on the National Mall in Washington, DC, while unloading a 1979 BMW M1 Art Car custom-painted by Andy Warhol. The vehicle was being prepared for the pop-up exhibition 'Cars at the Capital,' scheduled to run from September 17-23 in temporary pavilions near the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. A winch holding the car on a flatbed truck came loose, pinning the victim, who was pronounced dead at the scene; his identity has not been released. Exhibition organizer Hagerty Drivers Foundation canceled the event out of respect for the deceased.

August Book Bag: from a ‘behind-the-scenes’ studio book to artists joining in with the American Revolution

The article reviews four new art books released in August. It covers 'In the Studio: Jack Whitten' by Yinka Elujoba (Hauser & Wirth Publishers), a compact overview of the US artist's work and his Black Monoliths series; 'Selected Writings, Volume 1, Towards a New African Art Discourse' by the late Okwui Enwezor (Duke University Press), collecting his essays on decolonizing the art world; 'The Painter’s Fire: A Forgotten History of the Artists Who Championed the American Revolution' by Zara Anishanslin (Harvard University Press), examining three artists—Robert Edge Pine, Prince Demah, and Patience Wright—who contributed to the American War of Independence; and 'Beyond Blue and White: The Hidden History of Delftware and the Women Behind the Iconic Ceramic' by Genevieve Wheeler Brown (Pegasus Books), highlighting women like Barbara Rotteveel in the history of Delftware.

Jon Pestoni at Zodiac Pictures

Jon Pestoni's exhibition "More Bermuda Than Pizza" is on view at Zodiac Pictures in Los Angeles from April 11 to May 9, 2026. The show presents a series of new paintings by the artist, documented through 32 images on the exhibition page, with a press release and works list available for reference.

author rob franklin great black hope interview

Rob Franklin, a professor, poet, critic, and co-founder of Art for Black Lives, has released his debut novel "Great Black Hope" on June 10. The book follows Smith, a queer Black Stanford graduate, who is arrested for cocaine possession in the Hamptons after his best friend's death, leading him through New York's nightclubs, courtrooms, and recovery meetings. The novel is described as a satirical, intellectually incisive, and mournful addition to the canon of New York party literature, blending social commentary with a bildungsroman and elegy.

Photographer Matthieu Salvaing: my crazy, beautiful Camargue

Photographer Matthieu Salvaing has released a new book celebrating the Camargue, a wild marshland region in southern France known for its unique landscape, wildlife, and salty culture. The book captures the area's dramatic light, white horses, flamingos, and traditional bull-rearing practices through Salvaing's distinctive photographic style.

UK Heritage Department feared ‘mass restitutions’ when Stone of Scone was returned to Scotland

Newly released UK government files reveal that in 1996, the Department of National Heritage strongly opposed Prime Minister John Major's decision to return the 13th-century Stone of Scone to Scotland. The department's cultural property unit head, Lynn Gates, warned that the return would set a 'precedent to mass restitution,' triggering claims from Greece for the Parthenon Marbles, Egypt for the Rosetta Stone and Sphinx's Beard fragment, and Nigeria for the Benin Bronzes, with fears of further demands from Ethiopia, India, Pakistan, and other nations. The internal memo criticized Major for failing to consult the department before agreeing to the transfer from Westminster Abbey.

Jury of the Venice Biennale Resigns

Jury der Venedig-Biennale tritt zurück

The entire jury of the Venice Biennale, appointed by artistic director Koyo Kouoh, has resigned with immediate effect. In a statement released on Thursday, the jury members—including chair Solange Oliveira Farkas, Zoe Butt, Elvira Dyangani Ose, Marta Kuzma, and Giovanna Zapperi—cited a prior declaration from April 22 in which they announced they would not award Golden or Silver Lions to artists from countries whose political leadership is currently indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes against humanity. Although no specific countries were named, the move implicitly targets Russia (President Vladimir Putin) and Israel (Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu), both subject to ICC arrest warrants. The resignation comes amid escalating tensions over Russia's participation in the Biennale despite EU sanctions, which had already led to a freeze of EU funding and widespread protests.

How the GDR apron became Italian luxury

Wie die DDR-Schürze zum Italo-Luxus wurde

Italian luxury label Miu Miu has released dresses for summer 2026 that resemble 1980s East German kitchen aprons, with prices reaching up to €12,000 for crystal-embroidered versions. The collection debuted on the Paris runway in October, where actress Sandra Hüller opened the show in robust workwear, evoking factory workers from the former GDR. Designer Miuccia Prada, a former member of the Italian Communist Party, drew inspiration from Helga Paris's 1984 photo series "Frauen bei der Arbeit" (Women at Work), which documented female laborers in East Berlin's VEB Treffmodelle textile factory.

The Journal of Antiquarians and Galleries No. 10 Has Just Been Published

Le Journal des Antiquaires et Galeries n°10 vient de paraître

The tenth issue of Le Journal des Antiquaires et Galeries has been released, focusing on the resilience of the art market amidst geopolitical and economic headwinds. The publication highlights major spring events including Art Paris, Art Brussels, and the Paris Gallery Weekend, while introducing the newly formed Federation of Art Market Actors (FAM’Art).

Torsten Slama at Neuer Essener Kunstverein

The Neuer Essener Kunstverein in Essen is presenting an exhibition titled "Die Vatermaschine" featuring the work of Torsten Slama, running from February 28 to May 24, 2026. The exhibition is documented through 26 images on Contemporary Art Daily, with press release and floor plan available.

Cassandra Dias Takes an Impressionistic Approach to Painting with Thread

Cassandra Dias, a Southern California-based artist, creates lush embroideries of natural landscapes using thread painting, a technique that mimics the gestural strokes of a paintbrush. Since taking up needle and thread in 2020, she has developed an impressionistic style that captures cliffsides, vineyards, and mountains in richly textured scenes. Her forthcoming book, "Richly Stitched Landscape Embroidery: Mastering Thread Painted Scenes," is set for release in May and is available for pre-order through the Colossal Shop.

A Strong Gust of Wind Disrupts the Mundane in ‘Jour de Vent’

A team of six graduates from the École des Nouvelles Images in Avignon has released 'Jour de Vent' (Windy Day), a sweeping animated short film that captures a transformative moment in a public park. The narrative follows a diverse cast of characters—ranging from a businessman to a picnicking family—whose mundane routines are abruptly upended by a powerful gust of wind. This meteorological disruption serves as a catalyst for themes of surrender and human connection, mirroring a fluid production process where the filmmakers finalized the story's conclusion just days before completion.

Daniel Sackheim Traverses Los Angeles’ Noir Side in ‘The City Unseen’

Emmy Award-winning director and photographer Daniel Sackheim is set to release a new photography book titled 'The City Unseen,' which explores the noir aesthetic of Los Angeles. Moving away from the city's sunny stereotypes, Sackheim utilizes high-contrast black-and-white photography to capture a gritty, cinematic underbelly inspired by hardboiled detective novels and historic urban architecture. The project features dramatic silhouettes and deep shadows that create a sense of timeless mystery across iconic L.A. locales.

parties tropa tequila haas brothers carvingblock

Tropa Tequila launched its limited-edition Añejo Artist Series bottle, designed by artist Nikolai Haas of the Haas Brothers and produced by Max Block and Cam Saffle of CARVINGBLOCK. The launch event was held at the Haas Brothers’ new studio in North Hollywood, featuring an intimate dinner for Los Angeles artists, designers, and collaborators. Only 300 individually numbered bottles were released, with caps hand-beaded by artisans in South Africa.