Vasari Art Codex

article news schedule Sep 23, 2025 visibility 3 link 4 artists, 4 galleries

tom wesselmann studio frieze masters morning links 1234753240

The New York Times reports that artists' studios are being preserved long after their deaths, with Tom Wesselmann's Cooper Square studio maintained exactly as he left it in 2004 by his widow Claire Wesselmann and a dedicated staff. Former assistant Jeffrey Sturges, now director of exhibitions for Wesselmann's estate, notes the space still feels lived in, with maquettes, labeled gloves, and lingering turpentine scent. Similar preserved studios exist for Auguste Rodin and Francis Bacon in Europe, and America is now following suit.

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article news schedule Sep 19, 2025 visibility 3 link 16 artists, 1 gallery

uzbekistan art scene bukhara biennial morning links 1234752845

The article reports multiple art-world developments: the heirs of German Jewish banker Paul von Mendelssohn-Bartholdy are appealing a court dismissal of their lawsuit to recover a Van Gogh Sunflowers painting, claiming it was sold under Nazi duress. Japan's Kawamura Memorial DIC Museum of Art is selling major works including a Monet Nymphéas (1907) through Christie's as its parent company, DIC Corporation, downsizes and relocates the museum. A man was killed unloading an Andy Warhol-painted BMW Art Car in Washington, D.C., and a newly discovered Picasso portrait of Dora Maar will be auctioned in Paris. Sotheby's will sell a Surrealist collection led by a Frida Kahlo painting estimated at $40–60 million. The article also asks whether Uzbekistan is becoming a major art hub.

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article news schedule Sep 18, 2025 visibility 5 link 3 artists, 2 galleries

carlos cruz diezs crosswalk artwork removed 1234752434

An artwork by Venezuelan artist Carlos Cruz-Diez that decorated a crosswalk in Coral Gables, Florida, has been removed following a directive from the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) banning public artwork with “social, political, or ideological messages.” The piece, titled *Induction Chromatique* (2017), featured colorful chevron patterns and was originally installed during Art Basel 2017. The city purchased the design for $180,000 and spent $18,000 annually on maintenance, but the crosswalks were painted over last month. The gallery, Ninoska Huerta Gallery, has called for dialogue about restoration or relocation.

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article news schedule Sep 17, 2025 visibility 4 link 14 artists, 2 galleries

paris natural history museum windsor castle morning links 1234752342

Thieves stole gold worth approximately €600,000 ($700,000) from the Natural History Museum in Paris's Fifth Arrondissement, using an angle grinder and blowtorch to break in during the night. The robbery was detected on Tuesday morning, and the museum's mineralogy gallery closed afterward. Separately, five members of the punk art collective Pussy Riot were sentenced in absentia by a Moscow court to 8–13 years for spreading false information about the Russian military, linked to a 2022 antiwar video. Other news includes the identification of manganese blue in a Jackson Pollock painting, a protest banner at Windsor Castle, new acquisitions at the Norton Museum, an upcoming Victoria and Albert Museum exhibition on Marie Antoinette, a gallery move in New York, and a preview of Calder Gardens in Philadelphia.

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museum exhibitions schedule Sep 17, 2025 visibility 5 link 6 artists, 1 gallery

art basel paris loic prigent edward enninful 1234752358

Art Basel has partnered with French journalist and filmmaker Loïc Prigent and British fashion editor Edward Enninful to curate public events at its upcoming Paris fair, running October 24–26 at the Grand Palais. Prigent will curate 'Oh La La!', an initiative inviting galleries to present new works during the fair's second half, while Enninful will oversee a day of talks under Art Basel's Conversations program, marking the launch of his media company EE72. The talks, held at the Petit Palais, will preview Enninful's exhibition 'The '90s' scheduled for Tate Britain next year.

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person people schedule Sep 16, 2025 visibility 7 link 5 artists, 3 galleries

perez art museum miami jose carlos diaz chief curator 1234752086

The Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM) has appointed José Carlos Diaz as its new senior director of curatorial affairs and chief curator, effective October 13. Diaz, a Miami native, returns from the Seattle Art Museum where he served as deputy director of art since 2022, overseeing curatorial programs and the "Calder at SAM" initiative following a major gift of 48 Calder works. He succeeds Gilbert Vicario, who left in February. Diaz previously worked at PAMM when it was the Miami Art Museum, and has held curatorial roles at the Bass Museum of Art, Tate Liverpool, the Liverpool Biennial, and the Andy Warhol Museum.

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trending_up market schedule Sep 15, 2025 visibility 8 link 13 artists, 1 gallery

leonard lauder sothebys klimt matisse 1234751922

Sotheby's has secured a major consignment of approximately $400 million in art from the collection of the late Leonard Lauder, who died in July at age 92. The highlight is Gustav Klimt's "Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer" (1914–16), expected to fetch over $150 million, potentially shattering Klimt's auction record. The sale also includes two other Klimt landscapes, six bronzes by Henri Matisse, a $20 million Edvard Munch painting, and an Agnes Martin work, totaling 55 artworks. The auction will inaugurate Sotheby's new space in the former Whitney Museum building, designed by Marcel Breuer.

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article news schedule Sep 15, 2025 visibility 8 link 23 artists, 1 gallery

leonard lauders klimt painting likely top lot this auction season controversy at tasmania museum and more morning links for september 15 2025 1234751787

A new report reveals that the University of Tasmania's RA Rodda Museum kept and displayed 177 human remains without family consent, collected from coroners' autopsies between 1966 and 1991. The remains were removed from public display in 2018 after a curator raised concerns in 2016, and the university has since apologized and met with affected families. Separately, the late art patron Leonard Lauder's estate includes a Gustav Klimt painting, *Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer* (1914), valued at over $100 million, expected to be the top lot this auction season at either Sotheby's or Christie's.

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article culture schedule Sep 9, 2025 visibility 3 link 6 artists, 1 gallery

jason wu the robert rauschenberg foundation collaborate new york fashion week 1234751178

Fashion designer Jason Wu has collaborated with the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation to create a Spring 2026 collection titled "COLLAGE," inspired by the late artist's work and presented during New York Fashion Week. The collection draws on ten works from the foundation's holdings, including pieces from Rauschenberg's "Hoarfrost" series (1974–76) and "Airport Suite" (1974), with Wu granted rare access to study the artist's use of fabric and collage. The collection will be shown alongside a major Rauschenberg piece on September 14, 2025, and will be available for purchase in February 2026.

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article news schedule Sep 8, 2025 visibility 7 link 7 artists, 2 galleries

british museum bayeux tapestry marilyn monroe morning links 1234751057

British Museum director Nicholas Cullinan has written to the Guardian to reassure the public that the nearly 900-year-old Bayeux Tapestry will be safely transported from France to the UK for a landmark loan exhibition scheduled from September 2026 to July 2027. The unprecedented agreement, seen as a diplomatic gesture between France and Britain, has sparked protests from French art historians who claim President Emmanuel Macron ignored expert warnings that the tapestry is too fragile to move; a petition against the loan has gathered over 71,000 signatures. Cullinan insists that rigorous planning and due diligence by experts on both sides of the Channel are underway to ensure safe transport and conservation.

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article news schedule Sep 5, 2025 visibility 3 link 7 artists, 2 galleries

giorgio armani dead 91 morning links 1234750979

An Argentine court has charged Patricia Kadgien, 58, and her husband, the daughter and son-in-law of Nazi official Friedrich Kadgien, with concealing looted artworks. The charges follow a police raid on their Mar del Plata home after a snapshot of a looted Baroque painting by Giuseppe Ghislandi appeared in an online real estate listing. The painting, once owned by Jewish collector Jacques Goudstikker, was recovered along with 22 works by Henri Matisse and others, whose provenance is under investigation. Separately, iconic designer Giorgio Armani has died at 91 in Milan; he was a noted contemporary art supporter, subject of a 2000 solo exhibition at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, and founder of the Armani/Silos cultural venue. The Louvre has appointed Bénédicte Savoy as its next "Chaire du Louvre," a position from which she will deliver lectures on the museum's collections, continuing her advocacy for repatriation of African art.

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article policy schedule Aug 21, 2025 visibility 9 link 7 artists, 1 gallery

trump slavery museums smithsonian comments meaning 1234749760

President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social criticizing the Smithsonian and museums nationwide, claiming they focus excessively on negative aspects of U.S. history such as slavery. He described these institutions as the last remaining segment of 'WOKE' culture. The article counters his remarks by highlighting the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC), which presents both the horrors of slavery and themes of survival, liberation, and perseverance through objects like Harriet Tubman's handkerchief and artworks by Jacob Lawrence and Alison Saar. It also references the 2022 exhibition 'Afro-Atlantic Histories' at the National Gallery of Art, which balanced depictions of violence with messages of freedom and resilience.

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article news schedule Aug 20, 2025 visibility 2 link 2 artists, 1 gallery

mickalene thomas racquel chevremont harassment allegations 1234749647

Artist Mickalene Thomas has been accused in a legal filing of fostering an abusive work environment and mismanaging funds involving her former romantic partner Racquel Chevremont. Chevremont, a model, curator, and reality TV star, filed a summons in the Supreme Court of the State of New York on August 8, alleging she was not properly compensated for work done for Thomas, that Thomas diverted significant funds and business opportunities, and that she subjected Chevremont to quid pro quo harassment and a hostile work environment. The summons states their romantic relationship ended in 2020 but their professional ties remained strained, and Chevremont is seeking $10 million in damages.

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article culture schedule Aug 18, 2025 visibility 6 link 11 artists, 2 galleries

spike lee art collection highest 2 lowest 1234749536

Spike Lee's new film *Highest 2 Lowest*, an English-language reinterpretation of Akira Kurosawa's *High and Low*, prominently features artworks from Lee's personal collection—or replicas of them—as set decoration. Production designer Mark Friedberg used Lee's collection, previously surveyed at the Brooklyn Museum in 2023, as a reference to establish the character of music tycoon David King, played by Denzel Washington. Works by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Kehinde Wiley, Deborah Roberts, Gordon Parks, Henry Taylor, and others appear in the film, including Basquiat's *Horn Players* (1983) and *Now's the Time* (1985), Tim Okamura's portrait of Toni Morrison, and pieces from Andy Warhol's 'Muhammed Ali' series.

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trending_up market schedule Aug 15, 2025 visibility 3 link 5 artists, 1 gallery

sothebys to open its new breuer building hq on november 8 with blockbuster exhibition 1234749349

Sotheby's has announced November 8 as the opening date for its new headquarters in the iconic Breuer Building at 945 Madison Avenue, New York. The auction house purchased the building from the Whitney Museum in 2023 and commissioned Pritzker Prize-winning architects Herzog & de Meuron, along with PBDW Architects, to renovate the landmarked structure. The opening will feature a blockbuster exhibition of modern and contemporary art, followed by major sales the week of November 17. The building, designed by Marcel Breuer and completed in 1966, previously housed the Whitney Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Frick Collection.

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article news schedule Aug 11, 2025 visibility 6 link 6 artists, 1 gallery

why canalettos venice view sold for 43 9 m another identity politics vs art article 1234749161

ARTnews's Morning Links newsletter reports on multiple art-world developments. A new report from Puck and ARTDAI analyzes auction data for the first half of 2025, revealing that buyers are actively pursuing works by historically significant artists, with lower-value works seeing robust bidding but high-value purchases declining. Separately, Artnet News's Eileen Kinsella investigates why Canaletto's "Venice, the Return of the Bucintoro on Ascension Day" (circa 1730) sold for £31.9 million ($43.9 million) at Christie's, smashing the artist's auction record, with dealer Nicholas Hall citing its provenance, composition, and scale as key factors. The newsletter also notes an essay by Steven Pie in ArtReview critiquing the idea that identity politics has diminished contemporary art, responding to Dean Kissick's earlier Harper's Magazine piece.

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museum exhibitions schedule Aug 11, 2025 visibility 8 link 15 artists, 1 gallery

aspen air festival 2025 1234749067

The inaugural AIR festival took place in Aspen as part of Aspen Art Week, featuring a mix of talks, performances, and a closed-door retreat for artists, writers, scientists, and theorists. Highlights included a pack of panting huskies, a psychoanalysis talk in a psychedelic chapel, an artist conversing with his AI doppelganger, and a whispery musical performance on a museum rooftop. The festival kicked off with a film by Apichatpong Weerasethakul accompanied by composer Rafiq Bhatia, followed by discussions on dreaming and catastrophe, and site-responsive works by Jota Mombaça and Paul Chan.

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trending_up market schedule Aug 6, 2025 visibility 5 link 2 artists, 4 galleries

lauren quin joins pace gallery 1234748985

Los Angeles-based painter Lauren Quin has joined Pace Gallery, following the closure of her previous gallery Blum & Poe earlier this summer. Her first exhibition at Pace's Los Angeles space is scheduled for 2026, and her work will also appear in the gallery's booth at Frieze Seoul next month. Quin, known for densely layered abstractions, has been on a rapid ascent since earning her MFA from the Yale School of Art in 2019, with her paintings held by major institutions including the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, the Walker Art Center, and the Hirshhorn Museum. Pace founder Arne Glimcher, a longtime supporter, gave Quin a solo show at Pace-affiliated 125 Newbury in 2024, which she credits as a turning point in her practice.

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article news schedule Aug 4, 2025 visibility 8 link 9 artists, 1 gallery

tate attendance decline china private museums morning links 1234748744

Tate director Maria Balshaw has defended the museum network's programming against criticism linking it to declining attendance, arguing in the Guardian that visitor numbers have returned to 95% of pre-pandemic levels when compared to annual pre-Covid figures rather than the record year of 2019. She cited popular shows for Pablo Picasso, J. M. W. Turner, and Tracey Emin as a strong foundation for future growth, though critics like Catherine Bliss countered that apart from the Lynette Yiadom-Boakye portrait show and El Anatsui's Turbine Hall installation, recent contemporary exhibitions have failed to excite. Separately, the article reports a wave of closures and cutbacks sweeping China's private art museums, including the shutdown of Shenzhen's Jupiter Museum of Art and Qingdao's TAG Art Museum, with the UCCA Center for Contemporary Art also facing financial difficulties.

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museum exhibitions schedule Jul 28, 2025 visibility 4 link 4 artists, 1 gallery

sam barsky sweaters kohler r u still painting 1234748203

Sam Barsky, a self-taught knitter who learned from a library book in 1999 after dropping out of nursing school due to chronic illness, creates intricate pictorial sweaters entirely freehand without patterns. His sweaters depict landscapes and landmarks—such as Central Park, the London Bridge, and the Twin Towers—and he often photographs himself wearing them at the actual sites. His first museum solo exhibition, “It’s Not the Same Without You,” recently closed at the John Michael Kohler Arts Center in Wisconsin, and his work also appeared in the group show “R U Still Painting???” in Manhattan alongside artists like assume vivid astro focus and Uri Aran.

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article news schedule Jul 24, 2025 visibility 5 link 5 artists, 1 gallery

morning links july 23 2025 1234748160

Sotheby's Upper East Side headquarters at 1334 York Avenue faces financial uncertainty after its tenant, Weill Cornell Medicine, scaled back plans for a research center due to federal healthcare budget cuts. The National Institutes of Health funding freeze has reduced Weill Cornell's projected grants from over $300 million in 2024 to $130 million this year, leading to potential layoffs and halted construction. S&P Global estimates the building has lost nearly half its value since 2020, now worth $443 million, and has assigned Sotheby's a speculative B- credit rating amid declining global art sales. Separately, Italy's culture minister Alessandro Giuli demanded historian Ernesto Galli della Loggia resign from the Council of National Committees after he criticized the government's cultural policies, sparking a public feud. Art Basel Miami Beach announced 285 exhibitors for its 2025 edition, and a UK report showed only one percent of artworks with deferred export licenses were acquired by museums in 2024-25, a sharp decline from previous years.

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article news schedule Jul 17, 2025 visibility 3 link 4 artists, 1 gallery

museo dolores set for controversial reopening no charges yet over british museum thefts christies seeks potential in trumps big bill and more morning links for july 17 2025 1234747676

Mexico City’s Museo Dolores Olmedo, home to the world’s largest collection of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera works, is set to reopen in 2026 after being closed since 2020 due to the pandemic. However, controversy surrounds the potential relocation of its collection to Parque Aztlán in Chapultepec, a move that nearly 100 prominent cultural figures have opposed in a letter to Mexico’s culture ministry, arguing it defies founder Dolores Olmedo’s wish that the collection remain in Xochimilco. Separately, former British Museum curator Peter Higgs, accused of stealing artifacts, has not been formally charged, though the museum has dismissed him and is pursuing a civil case; a mock trial organized by Roger Michel highlighted museums’ failure to adopt modern collection-tracking technologies. Meanwhile, Christie’s is looking to provisions in Donald Trump’s tax bill to boost the struggling art market, and global auction sales at Christie’s, Sotheby’s, and Phillips fell only 6.2% in the first half of 2025.

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article culture schedule Jul 16, 2025 visibility 3 link 8 artists, 1 gallery

who was j m w turner why so important british artist 1234745218

This article profiles British painter Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775–1851), detailing his rise from a barber's son to one of Britain's most famous artists. It covers his early training at the Royal Academy Schools, his mastery of watercolor and oil, and his prolific output of over 500 oil paintings and thousands of works on paper. Key works discussed include *Jedburgh Abbey* (c. 1832), *Fishermen at Sea* (1796), and *The Battle of Trafalgar* (1822), the latter of which sparked controversy for historical inaccuracies. The piece notes that for his 250th birthday, international institutions are celebrating his legacy.

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article news schedule Jul 14, 2025 visibility 7 link 5 artists, 2 galleries

centre pompidou metz cancels caribbean art show 1234747270

The Centre Pompidou-Metz in France has canceled a planned survey of Caribbean and Guyanese art titled “Van Lévé,” curated by Guadeloupean curator Claire Tancons. The exhibition, scheduled to open in October 2026, was to feature artists including Gaëlle Choisne and Pol Taburet. Museum director Chiara Parisi cited budgetary constraints in an email to Tancons, but Tancons disputed this, noting that the Ford Foundation had already contributed $500,000. A group of artists and curators, including Zineb Sedira and Tabita Rezaire, issued a statement condemning the cancellation and questioning whether bias played a role.

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museum exhibitions schedule Jul 12, 2025 visibility 7 link 14 artists, 2 galleries

must see site santa fe international cecilia alemani once within a time 1234746679

Curator Cecilia Alemani has organized the latest edition of the SITE Santa Fe International, titled "Once Within a Time," inspired by Godfrey Reggio's 2022 film of the same name. The exhibition, which opened in 2025, centers on storytelling and features Reggio's trippy 55-minute film alongside works by over a dozen artists, including Helen Cordero, D.H. Lawrence, Louise Bonnet, Norman Zammitt, Joseph Yoakum, John McCracken, Karla Knight, and Ali Cherri. The show extends beyond SITE Santa Fe to multiple venues across New Mexico, such as the New Mexico Military Museum, a hotel, and a cannabis shop, weaving together themes of eros, energy, the military, and the state's archetypes like UFOs, Land art, and Native spirituality.

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person people schedule Jul 10, 2025 visibility 7 link 7 artists, 1 gallery

shamim m momin bronx museum director 1234747212

The Bronx Museum of the Arts has appointed Shamim M. Momin as its next director and chief curator, effective early September. Momin succeeds Klaudio Rodriguez, who left last September to lead the Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, Florida. Most recently director of curatorial affairs at the Henry Art Gallery in Seattle (2018–2024), Momin curated the group exhibition “In Plain Sight” and oversaw commissions by artists including Tala Madani, Gary Simmons, and Hank Willis Thomas. She also cofounded LAND (Los Angeles Nomadic Division) in 2009, curating over 100 public art commissions, and previously served as an associate curator at the Whitney Museum and branch director of its now-closed Midtown outpost, where she organized more than 50 projects. She co-curated the 2004 and 2008 Whitney Biennials.

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trending_up market schedule Jul 7, 2025 visibility 2 link 7 artists, 3 galleries

londons old masters week sees rare works sell and mid market paintings struggle 1234746818

Christie's, Sotheby's, and Bonhams held Old Masters auctions in London, with Christie's achieving a record £31.9 million ($43.7 million) sale for Canaletto's *Venice, the Return of the Bucintoro on Ascension Day* (circa 1732), more than half the sale's total of £60.8 million. The painting, once owned by Robert Walpole, set a new auction record for the artist. Sotheby's evening sale brought in £14.5 million, with J.M.W. Turner's rediscovered *The Rising Squall, Hot Wells, from St Vincent's Rock, Bristol* (1792) selling for £1.9 million, seven times its estimate. However, mid-market paintings struggled, and the Bristol Museum and Art Gallery failed to acquire the Turner despite fundraising £109,000.

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article policy schedule Jul 1, 2025 visibility 2 link 11 artists, 1 gallery

president trumps budget bill includes 40 m for statues at new national garden of heroes 1234746576

President Trump's proposed spending legislation, known as the "Big Beautiful Bill," includes $40 million for the procurement of statues for the National Garden of American Heroes. The funds, appropriated to the National Endowment for the Humanities for fiscal year 2025 and available through 2028, will support life-size statues of 250 historical figures, with selected artists receiving up to $200,000 per statue. The garden, first announced in a 2020 executive order, is a priority for the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and requires realistic depictions in materials like marble or bronze.

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person people schedule Jun 26, 2025 visibility 4 link 8 artists, 2 galleries

justin vivian bond current cultural climate 1234744200

Justin Vivian Bond, a multidisciplinary artist and performer, is profiled in ARTnews as part of their Newsmakers series. Bond, who received a MacArthur Foundation “genius grant” in 2024, discusses their upcoming performances at Joe’s Pub in New York, including a show titled “Well, Well, Well” inspired by lesbian singer-songwriters and the novel *The Well of Loneliness*. They also mention resurrecting their duo Kiki & Herb in London, and reflect on their 2017 exhibition at the New Museum, “Trigger: Gender as a Tool and a Weapon,” whose wallpaper is now installed at the V&A East Storehouse.

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trending_up market schedule Jun 26, 2025 visibility 4 link 5 artists, 2 galleries

napoleon sale sothebys paris france famous antiques dealer 1234746214

On Wednesday in Paris, Sotheby's auctioned a collection of Napoleonic artifacts from the private collection of prominent French antiques dealer Pierre-Jean Chalençon, generating €8.7 million ($9.6 million) against a €6 million estimate. The 112-lot sale included imperial furniture, Old Master paintings, and personal relics such as Napoleon's worn stockings and a copy of his marriage certificate. Highlights included a portrait by Jean-Baptiste Mauzaisse that sold for €863,600 (20 times its estimate) and the only surviving remnant of Napoleon's first will, which fetched €482,600. However, Napoleon's bicorne hat underperformed, selling for €355,600 against a €600,000 low estimate, amid provenance questions raised by French newspaper Le Figaro.

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