Art News. Vasari Codex

article news schedule May 5, 2026 visibility 20 link 2 artists

Hundreds of ‘Piss Bottles’ Left at the Met Gala in Protest of Jeff Bezos

Hundreds of bottles filled with what appeared to be urine were discovered at the Metropolitan Museum of Art during the Met Gala on May 5, 2026, according to the New York Post. The protest was claimed by the anti-billionaire group Everybody Hates Elon, which targeted the event over Jeff Bezos serving as the gala's chair. The group left the bottles with signs labeling them a "Met Gala VIP toilet" and criticizing Bezos for alleged labor practices at Amazon, where workers reportedly feel forced to urinate in bottles due to lack of bathroom breaks. The group later clarified on Instagram that the bottles did not contain real urine.

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article culture schedule May 5, 2026 visibility 24 link 13 artists

The Good, the Bad, and the Fugly From the 2026 Met Gala

Cultured magazine's 2026 Met Gala coverage features a roundtable of critics and writers offering candid, often humorous takes on celebrity looks from the red carpet. Emma Chamberlain's hand-painted Mugler gown is widely praised as the most on-theme, while Troye Sivan's Prada homage to Robert Mapplethorpe and Chase Infiniti's Thom Browne trompe-l'œil dress also earn acclaim. Gabrielle Richardson calls for more color, noting the theme is about art, and criticizes the monochromatic trend. Mackenzie Thomas pans Alysa Liu's look as "prom" and "quinceañera," while others celebrate Naomi Osaka's Robert Wun Couture and Connor Storrie's Saint Laurent ensemble. The article is structured as a series of short, punchy quotes from multiple contributors, each focusing on specific attendees' fashion choices.

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article culture schedule May 5, 2026 visibility 18 link 4 artists

The Strange Coincidence Behind Ivy Getty’s Ludovic de Saint Sernin Met Gala Dress

Ivy Getty, an American model and philanthropist, collaborated with Parisian designer Ludovic de Saint Sernin to create her Met Gala dress, inspired by the 1926 illustration *L’Eclat de l’Or* by Russian artist Erté. The sketch, originally for the show *The Golden Fables*, was chosen from Getty’s mood board; the pair later discovered it is held in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s archive, coinciding with its 100th anniversary. The final fringed gown debuted on the Met Gala red carpet, and the duo discussed the creative process in an interview.

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person people schedule Apr 23, 2026 visibility 19 link 5 artists

art alex da corte artist whitney museum

Alex Da Corte, known for his dreamlike installations such as the Big Bird piece on the Met's roof, is taking on a new role as curator. He is co-organizing the Whitney Museum's upcoming Roy Lichtenstein exhibition with Meg Onli, the largest Lichtenstein show in New York since 1993. In a Q&A for Cultured's 2026 CULT100 honorees, Da Corte discusses his influences, including poet Miyó Vestrini and filmmakers Len Lye and Todd Haynes, and reflects on his six-year preparation for the show.

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gavel restitution schedule Apr 17, 2026 visibility 41 link 2 artists

Turkey Notches Another Successful Restitution After Denver Art Museum Returns 1500-Year-Old Marble Head

The Denver Art Museum has repatriated a 1,500-year-old marble head of a bearded man to Turkey, following a successful restitution claim. The sculpture, which dates back to the fifth century BCE, was originally unearthed in the agora of the ancient city of Smyrna (modern-day Izmir) and was likely trafficked illicitly before entering the museum's collection. The artifact is now on public display at the İzmir Archaeology Museum.

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article news schedule Apr 16, 2026 visibility 23 link 9 artists

New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani to Skip Met Gala, Sources Say

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and his wife Rama Duwaji will reportedly skip the 2025 Met Gala, breaking a long-standing tradition of mayoral attendance at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s premier fundraiser. Sources suggest the decision stems from a conflict between Mamdani’s socialist political platform and the event's association with billionaire sponsors, specifically Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez-Bezos.

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museum exhibitions schedule Mar 12, 2026 visibility 15 link 9 artists

art lauren halsey sculpture park los angeles

Los Angeles-based artist Lauren Halsey has realized a long-held dream with the opening of "sister dreamer," a public sculpture park at the corner of Western Avenue and 76th Street in South Central LA. The park features eight 22-foot-tall pillars modeled after local heroes, sphinxes, benches, fountains, native plants, and gardens, and will remain for 18 months before finding a permanent home. It also serves as a hub for Halsey's nonprofit Summaeverythang Community Center, offering free programming in art, education, and wellness, including partnerships with the Broad, tutoring, yoga, and community dinners.

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article news schedule Mar 9, 2026 visibility 16 link 1 artist

ancient egyptians correction fluid book of the dead

Researchers at the Fitzwilliam Museum have discovered that ancient Egyptian scribes used a primitive form of correction fluid to amend errors on papyrus scrolls. While preparing a 3,300-year-old copy of the Book of the Dead for the tomb of the scribe Ramose, conservators noticed white lines of huntite and calcite mixed with yellow orpiment used to slim down a painted jackal. This 'ancient Wite-Out' was specifically blended to match the cream-colored tone of fresh papyrus, concealing revisions made during the artistic process.

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article news schedule Feb 5, 2026 visibility 16 link 1 artist

philadelphia art museum rebranding

The Philadelphia Museum of Art is reversing its controversial rebranding decision, abandoning the name "Philadelphia Art Museum" and the acronym "PhAM" after widespread backlash. The museum will retain its new griffin logo but restore the original name, Philadelphia Museum of Art, across all platforms. The rebrand, developed with Brooklyn design studio Gretel at a cost of $1 million, was rolled out less than four months ago but met with public mockery and internal turmoil. The reversal follows the firing of CEO Sasha Suda, who filed a lawsuit over her ouster, and the appointment of Daniel Weiss, former CEO of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, as her successor. Chief marketing officer Paul Dien also resigned amid the fallout. The board voted unanimously to undo the name change after a survey commissioned by an interdisciplinary task force.

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article news schedule Jan 21, 2026 visibility 19 link 1 artist

philadelphia art museum board firing director daniel weiss

Daniel H. Weiss, the new director of the Philadelphia Art Museum, gave his first extensive interview to the Philadelphia Inquirer, defending the museum's board after the controversial firing of his predecessor, Sasha Suda. Suda was terminated in November for alleged misappropriation of funds, including a $39,000 salary increase over two years, which she claims was authorized and is now the subject of a lawsuit. Weiss, formerly president and CEO of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, stated the board does not need radical restructuring but acknowledged the museum faces a financial deficit and needs to address its widely ridiculed rebrand from the Philadelphia Museum of Art to the Philadelphia Art Museum (acronym PhAM). He has begun a listening tour with staff to assess problems, and the marketing chief who led the rebrand has since resigned.

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article news schedule Jan 16, 2026 visibility 20 link 1 artist

metropolitan museum art workers largest museum unions

Nearly 1,000 salaried and hourly workers at the Metropolitan Museum of Art voted on Friday to join Local 2110 of the United Auto Workers (UAW), creating one of the largest museum unions in the United States. The vote passed 542-172, covering staff across 50 departments including curators, conservators, librarians, and archivists. Roughly 100 ballots remain sealed due to a management challenge, to be resolved through arbitration after certification by the National Labor Relations Board. The union drive had been brewing for over four years, driven by concerns over job security, pay equity, and transparency.

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gavel restitution schedule Dec 23, 2025 visibility 15 link 1 artist

looted artworks returned turkey met museum manhattan da

On December 8, 2025, a repatriation ceremony in New York saw 43 looted antiquities returned to Turkey, including a 2nd-century marble head of Demosthenes from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a Roman bronze statue of an emperor from collector Aaron Mendelsohn, and 41 terracotta reliefs from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. The returns resulted from a years-long investigation by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office’s Antiquities Trafficking Unit into networks that plundered archaeological sites in Turkey and sold items with forged provenance.

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article news schedule Dec 22, 2025 visibility 19 link 1 artist

zohran mamdani signs open letter met museum union

New York City Mayoral-Elect Zohran Mamdani has signed an open letter supporting roughly 1,000 workers at the Metropolitan Museum of Art who filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board to form a bargaining unit. The vote is scheduled for January 13 and 15, 2026, and if approved, the Met would become the largest unionized museum in the country. The letter, released December 18 by the United Auto Workers (UAW), was also signed by Comptroller Elect Mark Levine and Manhattan Borough President Elect Brad Hoylman-Sigal, among other officials. The proposed union would cover curators, conservators, educators, and retail staff, citing long-term pay inequities, lack of job protection, and increasing workloads.

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article news schedule Dec 18, 2025 visibility 19 link 5 artists

jeff bezos lauren sanchez bezos met gala

Billionaire couple Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos are sponsoring the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s 2026 Met Gala, the annual benefit for the Costume Institute. The news has revived speculation that Bezos may buy Condé Nast, Vogue’s parent company, which organizes the gala. Sánchez Bezos, a former TV reporter and recent Vogue cover subject, has been increasingly active in fashion circles, attending Paris Fashion Week and sitting front row at Chanel and Balenciaga shows. The 2026 gala will be the first since Anna Wintour’s retirement, with Chloe Malle taking over Vogue, and will feature a new dedicated Costume Institute gallery and the theme “Costume Art.”

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article news schedule Dec 15, 2025 visibility 26 link 4 artists

museum workers tate strike met union

Workers at two major museums, the Tate in the U.K. and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, are taking labor action to demand higher wages and job security. Over 150 Tate staff from the PCS Tate United union went on strike across four locations, with picketing at Tate Britain, Tate Modern, and Tate Liverpool, disrupting the opening of the exhibition "Turner and Constable: Rivals and Originals." Meanwhile, nearly 1,000 employees at the Met have petitioned the National Labor Relations Board for a union election, which would be one of the largest museum unions in the U.S.

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article policy schedule Dec 9, 2025 visibility 11 link 1 artist

security threats force londons va to remove prophet muhammad artwork

The Victoria & Albert Museum in London removed an image of an artwork depicting the Prophet Muhammad from its website due to security concerns following the Charlie Hebdo terrorist attack. The artwork, a poster made by an Iranian artist around 1990, remains in the museum's collection and is available to scholars by appointment. The decision has drawn criticism from experts who view it as self-censorship that could undermine the study of Islamic art.

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article culture schedule Dec 9, 2025 visibility 12 link 1 artist

the secret islamic devotional art that depicts muhammad

The article explores the little-known tradition of figurative Islamic art depicting the prophet Muhammad, which has existed since at least the 13th century in Persian and Turkish cultures. It notes that while a ban on such imagery is widely observed in Arab countries, no explicit prohibition appears in the Quran, and devotional images—often in miniature form—have been created by Muslims for personal and religious use. Examples include a mural in Tehran and a work at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Scholars like John Esposito, Omid Safi, and Christiane Gruber are quoted to contextualize this tradition in the wake of the Charlie Hebdo attacks, which reignited debate over depictions of Muhammad.

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person people schedule Nov 21, 2025 visibility 14 link 1 artist

philadelphia art museum daniel weiss director controversy

The Philadelphia Art Museum has appointed Daniel H. Weiss, former president and CEO of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, as its new director and CEO, effective December 1. Weiss, who led the Met for eight years until 2023 and most recently served as a professor and senior adviser at Johns Hopkins University, will guide the museum through at least 2028. His appointment follows the abrupt ouster of previous director Sasha Suda, who was terminated for cause on November 4 and has since sued the museum, alleging board members falsely accused her of misusing funds. The museum’s board chair, Ellen Caplan, praised Weiss’s leadership experience but did not address Suda’s dismissal.

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article news schedule Nov 18, 2025 visibility 27 link 1 artist

metropolitan museum of art workers move to unionize

On Monday, Local 2110 of the United Auto Workers (UAW) filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board to unionize roughly 1,000 salaried and hourly workers at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The union cites long-term pay inequities, lack of job protection, and increasing workloads as motivations. The Met currently has two smaller unions for security guards and projectionists, and a museum spokesperson expressed respect for the right to seek representation. Employees reportedly first reached out to Local 2110 in 2022, and the drive has gained momentum in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

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gavel restitution schedule Oct 30, 2025 visibility 22 link 1 artist

mfa boston david drake vessels restitution

The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston has restituted two large-scale ceramic vessels by David Drake, an enslaved potter, to his known descendants. The works—a "Poem Jar" and a "Signed Jar," both from 1857—were acquired by the museum in 1997 and 2011 respectively. On October 16, the MFA deaccessioned the jars and transferred ownership to Drake's descendants via the Dave the Potter Legacy Trust. The museum then repurchased the "Poem Jar," which re-entered the collection on October 23, while the "Signed Jar" remains with the family on long-term loan to the museum. The decision followed discussions prompted by the exhibition "Hear Me Now: The Black Potters of Old Edgefield, South Carolina," co-organized with the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

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museum exhibitions schedule Oct 20, 2025 visibility 19 link 2 artists

egyptian god erect phallus met

A 5,000-year-old statue of the Egyptian god Min, currently on display in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's exhibition "Divine Egypt," has gone viral on social media after a user on X posted a humorous comment about its erect phallus. The statue, which originally featured a separate stone phallus now lost, depicts Min with his hand at his groin, a pose linked to male fertility. The exhibition includes nearly 250 artworks and objects related to Egyptian deities, with loans from the Louvre, the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

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museum exhibitions schedule Oct 16, 2025 visibility 13 link 7 artists

art met roof garden jennie c jones

The Metropolitan Museum of Art has unveiled its 2025 Roof Garden Commission, titled *Ensemble*, by artist Jennie C. Jones. The installation features three upright sculptures made from concrete travertine and powder-coated steel, whose angular forms are inspired by musical instruments—a zither, an Aeolian harp, and a one-string instrument. A fourth red floor piece acts as a "conductor." The works are equipped with frets and strings that vibrate in the wind, inviting viewers to engage with them as both visual and sonic objects. The exhibition also includes collaborative programming, performances, and a publication with contributions from curator Lauren Rosati and artist Glenn Ligon.

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gavel restitution schedule Oct 13, 2025 visibility 19 link 1 artist

manhattan district attorney returns antiquities greece

The Manhattan District Attorney's office has returned 29 antiquities valued at $3 million to Greece, following seizures by its Antiquities Trafficking Unit. The objects were recovered from ongoing investigations into looting and trafficking networks run by convicted traffickers Robin Symes and Eugene Alexander. Two of the items—a Bronze Foot in the Form of a Sphinx and a Bronze Applique of a Gorgon, both from the 6th century B.C.E.—were seized from the Metropolitan Museum of Art this year, having passed through traffickers and galleries before entering the museum's collection.

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museum exhibitions schedule Oct 8, 2025 visibility 14 link 5 artists

met divine egypt review ancient art blockbuster

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York is set to open "Divine Egypt" on October 12, 2025, the museum's first large-scale exhibition of ancient Egyptian art since 2012. The show features 210 objects, including strange and surreal works such as a limestone block with carved ears, a snake with a woman's head, and a giant quartz diorite scarab representing the god Khepri. Curated by Diana Craig Patch with research associate Brendan Hainline, the exhibition focuses on about 25 of the 1,500 gods worshipped in ancient Egypt, presenting them in nonchronological mini-sections that highlight how divine iconographies were remixed and subverted over time. Most works come from the Met's own collection, with none on loan from Egypt.

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article news schedule Sep 10, 2025 visibility 12 link 2 artists

matthew christopher pietras death by suicide

Matthew Christopher Pietras, an arts patron who pledged millions to the Metropolitan Opera and the Frick Collection, died by suicide on May 30 in his Manhattan apartment, as ruled by the New York City medical examiner. His death was attributed to acute intoxication from a combination of prescription drugs. Pietras had made a $15 million pledge to the Met Opera, but when he attempted to transfer $10 million, the transaction was flagged as fraudulent, and it was later revealed that the funds belonged to the Soros family, not to Pietras himself. He worked as a financial manager—or, more accurately, a personal assistant and property manager—for Gregory Soros, the youngest son of billionaire George Soros.

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gavel restitution schedule Aug 7, 2025 visibility 14 link 2 artists

manhattan das office returns over 30 antiquities to spain italy and hungary

The Manhattan District Attorney's Office, led by Alvin Bragg and the Antiquities Trafficking Unit under Matthew Bogdanos, has repatriated over 30 antiquities to Spain, Italy, and Hungary. The returned objects include a 1st-century CE marble head of Alexander the Great as Helios, a 1675 Jesuit manuscript stolen during World War II, and several 6th-century Visigoth pendants trafficked by Robin Symes and sold to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1990. The items were seized from traffickers including Giacomo Medici, Giovanni Franco Becchina, Robin Symes, Robert Hecht, Eugene Alexander, and Edoardo Almagià, who is awaiting extradition from Italy.

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gavel restitution schedule Jul 4, 2025 visibility 14 link 4 artists

french museums open letter

Four pro-Tibetan groups in France have filed a legal complaint against Paris's Musée Guimet, accusing it of erasing Tibet's cultural identity by renaming its Nepal-Tibet gallery to "Himalayan world" and removing references to "Tibetan art." The groups argue the changes blur Tibet's distinct heritage and align with political pressures from Beijing. The museum denies external influence, stating the new name better reflects the region's cultural interconnections, citing similar usage by institutions like the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Smithsonian.

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article news schedule Jun 30, 2025 visibility 13 link 6 artists

inside grand egyptian museum

The Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) in Cairo has delayed its official opening again, now expected in the fourth quarter of 2025, due to regional conflicts including the Israel-Iran war. Originally proposed in 1992 and under construction since 2002, the $1 billion museum has faced repeated setbacks from the Arab Spring, the pandemic, and wars in Gaza and Sudan. When it opens, it will showcase over 100,000 artifacts, making it the largest archaeological museum in the world, with the Tutankhamun galleries as its centerpiece featuring over 5,398 objects from the pharaoh's tomb.

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article news schedule Jun 26, 2025 visibility 10 link 2 artists

hatshepsut statues destroyed research

New research challenges the long-held belief that Pharaoh Thutmose III destroyed statues of his predecessor Hatshepsut out of vengeful rage after her death in 1458 B.C.E. Jun Yi Wong, a research fellow at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, examined hundreds of statue fragments from Hatshepsut's mortuary temple at Deir el-Bahri in Luxor. His study, published in Antiquity on June 24, reveals that the statues were broken according to a ritual practice called deactivation—snapped at the neck, waist, and knees—while faces were left intact. Wong found that the fragments were not immediately buried but later reused by everyday Egyptians as building materials, suggesting pragmatic reuse rather than targeted erasure.

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article news schedule Jun 17, 2025 visibility 10 link 1 artist

ai art restoration conservation mit

MIT mechanical engineering student Alex Kachkine has developed a new AI technique that could dramatically speed up the restoration of aged or damaged paintings. The method uses a high-resolution scan of the artwork, an AI algorithm to identify cracks and missing patches, and a digitally printed polymer film—called a "digital mask"—that is overlaid onto the painting and sealed with varnish. The mask can be removed without trace using conservators' solvents. Kachkine tested the process on a 15th-century oil-on-panel painting by the Master of the Prado Adoration of the Magi, where the AI identified 5,612 damaged sections and the restoration took just 3.5 hours—66 times faster than conventional hand inpainting.

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