‘A static collection is a dead collection’: how the British Museum is acquiring for a global public

The British Museum has received a record-breaking donation of Chinese ceramics valued at nearly £1 billion from the Sir Percival David Foundation, including the famous David vases from 1351 and a 1,000-year-old Ru ware bowl stand. The acquisition, approved by the Charity Commission, expands the museum's Chinese ceramics collection to 10,000 pieces and fulfills the donor's intent to inform and inspire the public. The article details the museum's acquisition process, which prioritizes objects that tell stories about everyday life and ephemeral culture, while adhering to strict ethical and practical considerations due to the British Museum Act 1963's stringent deaccession rules.

Never Before Seen Art From King Charles’s Royal Tours Debuts at Buckingham Palace

A new exhibition titled "The King's Tour Artists" has opened in the Buckingham Palace Ballroom, showcasing over 70 works from King Charles III's private collection. The artworks, created by 43 different artists during 70 royal tours to 95 countries and regions since 1985, are displayed together for the first time. The exhibition was viewed by the King and Queen during a reception marking 40 years of the King's initiative to bring artists on official tours. Highlights include a 1985 watercolor from Italy and 2007 portraits of Charles and Camilla by James Hart Dyke from a visit to the Gulf States. The show runs from July 10 to September 10, 2025, as part of the Palace's summer opening.

Birmingham celebrates 'forgotten pop-art pioneer' Peter Phillips

An outdoor exhibition titled 'Pop Goes Brum!' will be held in Birmingham's Snow Hill Square from 9 to 30 June 2025, celebrating the life and work of Peter Phillips, a pioneering British pop artist who died in June 2025. Curated by art historian Ruth Millington and developed in partnership with Birmingham School of Art, the free exhibition aims to showcase Phillips' 'pioneering achievements' and his deep connection to Birmingham, where he was born in 1939 and trained at Moseley School of Art and Birmingham School of Art. Phillips, who ranked alongside David Hockney, Pauline Boty, Peter Blake, Andy Warhol, and Roy Lichtenstein, was a key figure in the international pop art movement and helped launch British pop art with a 1961 exhibition.

Monet auction drives Sotheby’s Paris sale to 35 million euros

Sotheby's Paris sale on April 16, 2026, achieved a total of 35 million euros, an 84% increase over the previous year's equivalent auction. The event was dominated by two rediscovered Claude Monet paintings, with 'Vétheuil, effet du matin' setting a new auction record for the artist in France at 10.2 million euros. Strong results were also posted for works by Marc Chagall, Lucio Fontana, and Gerhard Richter, with 62.5% of lots selling above their high estimates.

London’s Art Market Rebound: Sotheby’s Spring 2026 Recap

Sotheby’s London kicked off its Spring 2026 marquee season with a series of high-energy auctions, totaling £154 million across its Modern & Contemporary sales. The week was highlighted by a "white-glove" evening auction that achieved a 100% sell-through rate, led by Francis Bacon’s 1972 Self-Portrait which sold for £16 million. Significant records were set for British masters, most notably Leon Kossoff, whose painting "Children’s Swimming Pool" shattered estimates to reach £5.2 million.

RELEASE: Christie's Spring Auction Series in New York Achieves a Combined Total of $1.79 billion - Christie's

Christie’s concluded its Spring auction series in New York with a historic total of $1.79 billion, bolstered by the landmark sale of the Peggy and David Rockefeller Collection. The two-week marathon featured high-profile evening and day sales that attracted over 85,000 visitors and bidders from 52 countries. Significant results included record-breaking prices for artists such as Kazimir Malevich, Constantin Brancusi, and Joan Mitchell, alongside major works by Francis Bacon and Vincent van Gogh.

Booming stock market is fueling a mega-billion return to classic art and a backlash to junk

A booming stock market and increased disposable income among the ultra-wealthy have fueled a $2.2 billion fall auction season in New York, led by Gustav Klimt's "Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer," which sold for $236.4 million at Sotheby's. Other major sales include Frida Kahlo's "El sueño (la cama)" setting a record for a female artist at $55 million, and Mark Rothko's "No. 31 Yellow Stripe" fetching $62 million at Christie's. The surge is attributed to a convergence of high-quality estates coming to market—including those of Leonard Lauder, Robert and Patricia Ross Weis, and Jay and Cindy Pritzker—and renewed confidence among wealthy buyers after a stagnant period for art prices.

Pauline Karpidas collection estimated to make £60m at Sotheby's

Sotheby's will hold a two-day sale in London on September 17-18 of around 250 works from the collection of British patron Pauline Karpidas, estimated at over £60 million—the highest estimate ever for a single-owner collection at the auction house in Europe. The sale includes Surrealist works by Max Ernst, Niki de Saint Phalle, Francis Picabia, and Salvador Dalí, alongside pieces by Andy Warhol and design objects by Les Lalanne, all drawn from Karpidas's London home.

Christie’s names new global president

Christie’s has appointed Alex Rotter as its new global president, marking another leadership change at the auction house. Rotter, who previously led the 20th- and 21st-century art department, will retain those responsibilities while developing strategies for auction and private sales. He joined Christie’s in 2017 and oversaw record-breaking sales including Jeff Koons’s *Rabbit* ($91.1m), Andy Warhol’s *Shot Sage Blue Marilyn* ($195m), and the *Salvator Mundi* attributed to Leonardo da Vinci ($450.3m). The appointment was made by CEO Bonnie Brennan, who succeeded Guillaume Cerutti earlier this year.

La grande artista Carla Accardi e l’arte italiana sono da record nell’asta da Dorotheum a Vienna

Dorotheum opened its Contemporary Week in Vienna on May 19, 2026, with modern and contemporary art sales that achieved strong results, particularly for Italian artists. Carla Accardi set a new auction record when her 1986 triptych *Fonda Notte Pieno Giorno* sold for €520,000, while works by Piero Dorazio, Emilio Vedova, Marino Marini, and Gino Severini also far exceeded their estimates. Top lots included Claude Monet’s *Waterloo Bridge* (€611,000) and Mikuláš Medek’s *Too Deep a Sleep V* (€546,000).

Aste a Parigi: nuovo record per Claude Monet da Sotheby’s e per Ettore Spalletti da Christie’s

Sotheby's Paris achieved a new French auction record for Claude Monet on April 16, 2026, with 'Vétheuil, effet du matin' (1901) selling for €10.2 million, far above its €6-8 million estimate. The evening sale generated €35 million total, an 84% increase over the 2025 session, also featuring strong results for Marc Chagall, Lucio Fontana, and Rembrandt Bugatti. Meanwhile, Christie's Paris celebrated the 25th anniversary of its 'Thinking Italian' section with a complete sell-out of 11 lots, including a new auction record for Ettore Spalletti's 'Mobile' (1974) at €203,200. The overall Paris modern and contemporary art week reached a record €80.9 million, up 39% year-on-year.

An Important Urbino Maiolica Basin for the Clark

Un important bassin en majolique d'Urbino pour le Clark

The Clark Art Institute in Williamstown has acquired a significant 16th-century Urbino maiolica basin from the gallery Camille Leprince following its display at TEFAF. Attributed to the workshop of Orazio or Flaminio Fontana, the trilobed basin features intricate historiated scenes from the life of Joseph and elaborate grotesque decorations. The piece was a highlight of the fair and is accompanied by extensive research regarding its complex provenance.

An exhibition centered on Bartholdi's Champollion, deposited in Nogent-sur-Seine

Une exposition autour du Champollion de Bartholdi, déposé à Nogent-sur-Seine

The Musée Camille Claudel in Nogent-sur-Seine is hosting a new exhibition centered around Auguste Bartholdi’s monument to Jean-François Champollion. The statue, recently transferred from the courtyard of the Collège de France by the Fonds national d’art contemporain, serves as the focal point for a display that explores the history and significance of the work. The exhibition provides a scholarly counter-narrative to recent ideological criticisms surrounding the monument's iconography.

literature james cahill the violet hour book

James Cahill's new novel *The Violet Hour* opens with a young man falling to his death from a London balcony, unraveling a mystery that draws readers into the lives of three figures in the global blue-chip art market: a tormented abstract painter, his estranged first dealer, and a billionaire collector. Cahill, a writer and critic who spent 12 years at Sadie Coles, explores the fraught relationships where creativity, money, friendship, and sexuality collide, offering a more empathetic take than typical satires of extreme wealth.

Marko Tadić “Funga Robo” at Trotoar, Zagreb

Marko Tadić presents his solo exhibition "Funga Robo" at Trotoar in Zagreb, showcasing recent works that explore speculative futures of cities through the lens of artistic ecologies. The exhibition title merges references to fungal mycelia and robotics, establishing a dialogue between biological systems and technological development.

Marlene Dumas painting set to break auction record for a work by a living woman artist

Marlene Dumas's painting *Miss January* (1997) will be auctioned at Christie's New York on 14 May with an estimate of $12–18 million, sourced from the collection of Mera and Don Rubell, founders of the Rubell Museum. The work is expected to surpass the current auction record for a living woman artist, held by Jenny Saville's *Propped* (1992) which sold for £9.5 million in 2018.

Warsaw’s Neon Museum sparks revival of interest in cold war signs and aesthetic

Warsaw is experiencing a significant revival of interest in its Cold War-era neon signs, a movement spearheaded by the city’s Neon Museum. Founded in 2012 by photographer Ilona Karwińska and designer David Hill, the museum has rescued hundreds of historic illuminations that were once discarded as worthless relics of the communist past. Originally commissioned by Soviet-era authorities as a form of "socialist modernization," these signs were designed by leading artists of the Polish Poster School and have now transitioned from propaganda tools to beloved cultural icons.

L’architecte du Musée Gandur

The article covers several art news items from the May 2, 2026 issue of Le Journal des Arts, including the Whitney Biennial's perceived neutrality, the increasing complexity of art taxation in 2025, an interview with Bourges mayor Yann Galut about the resized Bourges 2028 project, the unveiling of a contemporary gallery at Angers Cathedral, the abandonment of the Frigos artist site in Paris, and a profile of auctioneer Hubert L'Huillier.

The Pont Neuf Cave: work on JR's giant installation begins in Paris

Starting May 11, 2026, French artist JR has begun assembling "La Caverne du Pont Neuf" (The Cave at Pont Neuf), a monumental temporary installation that will transform Paris's oldest bridge into an immersive open-air cave. The project, open to the public from June 6 to 28, 2026, features inflatable structures, optical illusions, light shows, and augmented reality technology developed by Snap's AR Studio Paris. It includes a mineral soundscape by Thomas Bangalter (formerly of Daft Punk) and is funded entirely through private means, including support from L'Amicale des Ponts de Paris and sales of JR's works.

Artist ‘lost everything’ after cleared of rape

Anthony Lister, once called "Australia's Banksy," is staging a comeback with a new exhibition titled "Circus of Life" after being acquitted of sexual assault charges. The six-year legal battle, which began with a police raid on his Sydney home in 2020, led to the cancellation of his shows, financial ruin, and public vilification. Despite being found not guilty on all counts by a jury in under a minute, Lister says his reputation and career were destroyed, and he now challenges the art world and Australian public to accept him back.

A Museum Show Like No Other Aschaffenburg’s ‘Bavarian Nice’ Becomes the Stage for a Powerful Ukraine-Europe Art Collaboration Amid Global Conflict!

Aschaffenburg, Germany, is hosting a landmark exhibition titled 'A European Collection' at the Christian Schad Museum, opening April 30, 2026. The show features 73 European masterpieces from the 15th to 19th centuries, loaned from the Bohdan and Varvara Khanenko National Museum in Kyiv, Ukraine. Works by Peter Paul Rubens, Bernardo Bellotto, and Claude-Joseph Vernet are included, alongside a contemporary piece by Ukrainian artist Maria Kulikovska juxtaposed with Antonio Canova's sculpture 'La Pace'. This is the first comprehensive presentation of these Ukrainian-held works in Germany.

A big moment for a city that loves art

Geelong Gallery in Australia is preparing to host "Discovering the Impressionists: Paul Durand-Ruel, art dealer among the artists," its most ambitious international exhibition ever, running from 20 June to 11 October. The show features over 70 paintings by Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Berthe Morisot, Camille Pissarro, and second-generation Impressionists, with most works from a private French collection never before seen in Australia. The exhibition marks the gallery's 130th anniversary and is supported by the Geelong Major Events committee. Separately, the genU artX Regional 2026 exhibition at Rachinger Gallery showcases over 130 works by artists with disabilities or mental illness, on view until 22 May.

Pandolfini presents Julie Hamisky's "Alchemical Garden" at Design Week 2026

Pandolfini Auction House is hosting a solo exhibition titled "Giardino Alchemico" (Alchemical Garden) by French artist Julie Hamisky at its Milan office during Design Week 2026, from April 22 to 26. The exhibition, created in collaboration with Mitterrand gallery, features sculptures and botanical jewelry made through electroplating—a process that preserves organic matter like flowers and leaves in metal. Key works include "La Géante" (2024), an enlarged poppy sculpture, and "Aqua" (2024), a chandelier of galvanized plant elements, alongside wearable jewelry pieces.

Hong Kong Art Gallery Kwai Fung Hin Opens First Overseas Outpost In Singapore

Hong Kong’s Kwai Fung Hin gallery has expanded internationally for the first time, opening a new outpost at 30 Beach Road in Singapore. Founded by former banker Catherine Kwai in 1991, the gallery specializes in 20th-century modern and contemporary art with a focus on cultural heritage. The new space launched with an exhibition titled “Worlds beyond Reality – Monet’s Legacy II,” featuring a masterpiece by Claude Monet alongside works by Zao Wou-Ki and Chu Teh-Chun.

The best immersive experiences in America to check out right now

This guide highlights the premier immersive art destinations across the United States, featuring major venues such as Superblue Miami, Meow Wolf, and the WNDR Museum. These spaces utilize large-scale installations, LED technology, and interactive environments to move beyond traditional gallery formats, offering visitors sensory-driven experiences ranging from mirrored labyrinths to digital multiverses.

Major Brazilian art heist still unsolved as statute of limitations expires

The statute of limitations has officially expired on the 2006 heist at the Museu da Chácara do Céu in Rio de Janeiro, one of the most significant art thefts in Brazilian history. During the chaos of Carnival, armed thieves overpowered guards and stole masterpieces by Claude Monet, Henri Matisse, Salvador Dalí, and Pablo Picasso. Despite the works being valued at over $10 million and listed on international databases like Interpol and the Art Loss Register, the perpetrators were never identified and the art remains missing.

Sotheby’s to hold $141M Modern, Contemporary Art Sale in London

Sotheby’s is preparing to host a major Modern and Contemporary Art Evening Sale at its London headquarters on March 4. The auction features a high-profile selection of works with a total estimated value exceeding £110 million ($140.8 million), anchored by masterpieces from the impressionist and modern eras.

NSU Art Museum Receives $1.5 Million Gift for Exhibitions

The Jerry Taylor and Nancy Bryant Foundation has donated $1.5 million to NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale to fund exhibition development and educational programming. The gift will provide an ongoing income stream to support the museum's exhibitions, which are central to its regional and national distinction. Philanthropists Jerry Taylor and Nancy Bryant, who established their foundation in 1999, have a long history of supporting Nova Southeastern University and the museum, including a $5 million donation for a trading floor at the university's business school.

New documentary provides an inside look at the Harlem Renaissance

A new documentary, *Once Upon a Time in Harlem*, is screening at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah, offering an intimate look at the Harlem Renaissance. The film is assembled from 28 hours of 16mm footage shot in 1972 by the late filmmaker William Greaves at Duke Ellington's home in Harlem, capturing a gathering of key figures from the movement. Greaves's son David, who was one of the original cameramen, completed the film after his father's death. The footage includes interviews and reflections from artists, writers, musicians, and activists such as Romare Bearden, Aaron Douglas, James Van Der Zee, Eubie Blake, and Arna Bontemps.

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%.