Staff at Goldsmiths art college plan industrial action ahead of redundancies

Staff at Goldsmiths, University of London, have voted to take industrial action in response to a massive restructuring plan aimed at saving £22 million by 2027. The University and College Union (UCU) reports that the 'Future Goldsmiths' initiative will lead to significant redundancies for both professional services and academic staff. Tensions have escalated following revelations that the institution spent over £14 million on private consultants and legal fees related to previous restructuring efforts while simultaneously cutting jobs.

blink 182 banksy sale

A Banksy painting from his 2005 'Crude Oils' exhibition sold for £4.3 million ($5.5 million) at Sotheby’s Modern and Contemporary Evening Auction in London. The work, *Crude Oil (Vettriano)*, came from the collection of Mark Hoppus, co-founder of the pop-punk band Blink-182, who acquired it in 2011. The painting reimagines Jack Vettriano’s *The Singing Butler*, replacing the idyllic beach scene with environmental pollution, including hazmat-suited workers and a sinking container ship. The sale occurred shortly after Vettriano’s death at age 73.

billboard 200 chart everybodys album

Artist Danny Cole, known for previous public stunts like covering the Hollywood sign's O with a giant cow, has launched 'Everybody's Album,' a project aiming to hack the Billboard 200 chart. The plan involves recruiting 100,000 people to each record one second of audio, paying them with a Shopify gift card that can only be used to pre-order the album, thereby exploiting chart metrics. With help from influencer Anthony Po, who has millions of followers, they have already secured 80,000 participants.

christies marquee fall 20th century evening sale report

Christie’s fall marquee 20th-century evening sales on Monday night generated a combined $690 million across two auctions, far exceeding the pre-sale low estimate of $534.7 million. The first sale featured 18 lots from the collection of the late Robert and Patricia Ross Weis, including works by Picasso, Matisse, Mondrian, and Rothko, while the second 62-lot sale included pieces by Calder, Hockney, Chagall, and Giacometti. Bidding wars drove 16 lots to sell at or above their high estimates, with adviser Ralph DeLuca winning several high-profile battles, including a Matisse painting for $32.3 million and a Max Ernst sculpture for $20.2 million. The sell-through rate was 97% by value and 96% by lot, with only one withdrawn lot and three unsold works.

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W. David Marx's book "Blank Space: A Cultural History of the Twenty-First Century" argues that 21st-century culture has stagnated, blaming the Internet and its economies for a lack of innovation. The book cites critics like Jason Farago and Alex Ross who lament the death of monoculture and the failure of the Internet's promised diversity, while Marx himself longs for a past era of linear artistic progress defined by -isms like Realism and Cubism. However, the review criticizes Marx's framework as rooted in a 19th-century positivist fallacy, noting that art history has never been a clean linear progression and that overlooked artists—such as Hilma af Klint and Hector Hyppolite—have always complicated the canon.

rare m c escher works auction

A cache of M.C. Escher drawings and prints, created during his time in Italy and later, fetched a stunning total of $7.8 million at Christie’s on July 22, quadrupling its low presale estimate. The auction, titled 'The Art of Infinity,' featured 65 lots, with nearly every work on paper surpassing the previous record for an Escher work in the medium. The top lot, *Reptiles* (ca. 1943), sold for $529,200—five times its low estimate—while *Relativity* (ca. 1953) achieved $504,000, ten times its low estimate. The sale largely came from the collection of Robert Owen Lehman Jr., a documentary filmmaker and member of the Lehman banking family.

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Pop star Ed Sheeran is launching his debut painting collection, "Cosmic Carpark Paintings," at HENI Gallery in London's Soho district from July 11 to August 1. The series of multicolored drip and splash works was created in a disused carpark using house paint, inspired by Jackson Pollock. Sheeran, who began painting in 2019, will sell original canvases and prints for £900 ($1,200) each, with 50 percent of proceeds going to the Ed Sheeran Foundation to support youth music programs in the U.K. The exhibition was encouraged by Sheeran's friends Damien Hirst and HENI founder Joe Hage.

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This episode of the Art Angle podcast, hosted by Kate Brown with co-hosts Ben Davis and Andrew Russeth, covers three major art-world stories: crypto collector Justin Sun’s escalating legal battle with billionaire David Geffen over a Giacometti sculpture; Jeff Koons’ trio of massive Hulk sculptures that debuted at Frieze New York; and the first round of the new Art Basel Awards. The discussion weaves together legal disputes, market signals, and institutional recognition.

10 artworks perfect valentines day art

Artnet News has curated a list of 10 artworks available through its Gallery Network as Valentine's Day gift suggestions. The featured works include pieces by artists such as Damien Hirst, Marc Chagall, Man Ray, and Emilie Charmy, with prices available upon inquiry. The selection ranges from contemporary works like Hirst's 'Butterfly Heart' (2020) to historical pieces like Chagall's 'The Adolescents' (1975), all presented as alternatives to traditional Valentine's gifts like roses or chocolates.

Theme and artists announced for British Art Show 10

The 10th edition of the British Art Show, titled 'A Chorus of Strangers,' has announced its theme and a roster of over 30 participating artists. Curated by Ekow Eshun and organized by Hayward Gallery Touring, the exhibition will explore the relationship between the individual and the 'other' through three thematic lenses: 'Moments of Being,' 'Ways of Living,' and 'States of Nature.' The show is scheduled to launch in Coventry on October 2, 2025, before touring to Swansea, Bristol, Sheffield, and Newcastle Gateshead.

Venice Unveils Stunning New Art Spaces

During the Architecture Biennale preview in Venice, two major new art spaces opened: the Nicoletta Fiorucci Foundation's new home in a historic palazzo on the San Barnaba canal, and SMAC (San Marco Art Centre), a contemporary art center on Saint Mark's Square designed by David Chipperfield. Additionally, Belgian artist Luc Tuymans accepted a last-minute commission from the Abbot of San Giorgio Maggiore to replace two Tintoretto paintings with his own large-scale works. The Fiorucci Foundation's palazzo, acquired in December 2024, opened May 10 with an exhibition by Georgian artist Tolia Astakhishvili, featuring works made from found materials and drawings on walls, alongside pieces by Thea Djordjadze and Maka Sanadze. SMAC, restored by Chipperfield, currently hosts two exhibitions: one on Australian modernist architect Harry Seidler and another on Korean landscape architect Jung Youngsun.

Work in Progress: Akinsanya Kambon

Akinsanya Kambon’s work is featured as a highlight in a curated guide of six must-see exhibitions during the EXPO Chicago 2026 art fair. The selection spans a diverse range of media and venues, including Josh Brainin’s frantic two-channel video installations at Tala and a thematic exploration of urban infrastructure hosted at the Chicago Cultural Center.

Meet Me in New York: Alix Vernet

The Chicago art scene takes center stage with a curated guide to six essential exhibitions coinciding with the EXPO Chicago 2026 art fair. Highlights include Josh Brainin’s immersive two-channel video installation at Tala and a thematic exploration of Chicago’s urban infrastructure hosted at the Chicago Cultural Center, showcasing a diverse range of media from digital video to architectural critique.

Martha Graham Took Classic Ballet and Turned It Into Modern Dance. It’s Still Moving Us 100 Years Later

The Martha Graham Dance Company, the oldest professional dance troupe in the United States, is celebrating its 100th anniversary with a worldwide centennial tour. The company is marking the milestone by performing Graham's classic works, like the 1946 ballet *Cave of the Heart*, alongside newer commissions that continue her innovative legacy.

Riyadh Art Extends Its Citywide Permanent Collection

Riyadh Art, a public art initiative led by the Royal Commission for Riyadh City, is expanding its Permanent Collection with 115 new installations planned through 2026 and beyond, adding to the 75 works already installed across the Saudi capital. The collection includes works by international artists such as Alexander Calder, Anish Kapoor, Jeff Koons, Giuseppe Penone, and Ugo Rondinone, alongside Saudi practitioners like Zaman Jassim and Mohammed Al Saleem, with recent additions including Calder's 'Janey Waney' and Nobuo Sekine's 'Phase of Nothingness'.

Spring 2026 to Feature New Documentaries, Screenings, Artist Talks, and a New Episode of Art in the Twenty-First Century

Art21 has announced its spring 2026 programming lineup, which includes new documentary premieres, film screenings, artist talks, and the second episode of the 12th season of its flagship series 'Art in the Twenty-First Century.' The season features artists such as Tomás Saraceno, Njideka Akunyili Crosby, Camille Henrot, and Ragnar Kjartansson, and coincides with the series' 25th anniversary.

The Sprawling New David Geffen Galleries At LACMA Open To The Public On Sunday, May 3

The David Geffen Galleries at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) will open to the public on Sunday, May 3, after 20 years of development. Designed by architect Peter Zumthor, the 900-foot-long horizontal glass and concrete structure overlooks the La Brea Tar Pits and stretches over Wilshire Boulevard. The main floor, elevated 30 feet above street level, offers 110,000 square feet of gallery space for LACMA’s permanent collection. The inaugural exhibition is inspired by four major bodies of water—the Pacific, Indian, and Atlantic oceans, and the Mediterranean Sea—and features works by artists including Todd Gray, Do Ho Suh, Lauren Halsey, Tavares Strachan, Jeff Koons, and Diego Rivera. The building also includes open plazas, an outdoor public space, and an Erewhon Cafe, with a larger restaurant and wine bar planned for fall 2026.

In major auction night, rare Klimt painting smashes records at $236.4 million

Sotheby's held its first sale at its new US headquarters in New York, where Gustav Klimt's "Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer" sold for $236.4 million, becoming the most valuable work of modern art ever sold at auction and the most expensive artwork ever sold by Sotheby's globally. The record-breaking 20-minute bidding war also saw strong results for works by Edvard Munch ($35.1 million) and a Klimt landscape ($86 million), while the evening's total reached $706 million. However, two top lots by Kerry James Marshall and Barkley L. Hendricks failed to sell, and Maurizio Cattelan's gold toilet "America" drew only a single bid from Ripley's Believe It or Not! for $12.1 million.

Steve DiBenedetto’s Cosmic Sense of the Absurd

Artist Steve DiBenedetto presents a new body of work in his solo exhibition, "Spiral Architect," at Derek Eller Gallery. The show features 17 paintings ranging from large-scale canvases to intimate works, all characterized by a restless movement between abstraction and figuration. DiBenedetto utilizes a process-heavy technique of adding, scraping, and reworking oil paint to create dense, visionary landscapes filled with octopi, cellular forms, and Rube Goldberg-esque machinery.

Tanka Fonta wins 2026 Wi Di Mimba Wi Prize

Cameroon-born artist and polymath Tanka Fonta has been named the recipient of the 2026 Wi Di Mimba Wi Prize. Awarded by SAVVY Contemporary and the AKB Stiftung, the prize includes a €30,000 grant, production funds for a new commission, and dedicated curatorial support. Fonta, whose multidisciplinary practice spans visual art, composition, and philosophy, was selected from a shortlist of five Germany-based artists by a jury of prominent curators and academics.

Can Raising Children Make You a Better Artist? Four Artist Mothers Weigh In.

Four artist mothers—Hope Atherton, Jessi Reaves, Sam Moyer, and Sarah Morris—share candid reflections on how raising children has shaped their art practices. They discuss fractured time, heightened decisiveness, evolving rituals like bedtime reading, and the guilt and power that accompany balancing motherhood with studio work. Atherton describes a new sense of urgency and efficiency, while Reaves and others offer personal anecdotes about the interplay between caregiving and creativity.

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Cultured reports on the meticulous restoration of La Pausa, the Mediterranean villa built by Gabrielle Chanel in 1928, led by architect Peter Marino. After Chanel sold the property in 1953 to American collectors who later donated it to the Dallas Museum of Art, the house of Chanel reacquired it in 2015. Over the following decade, Marino worked with Chanel’s heritage team, including Hélène Fulgence, to restore the villa to its original state using archival images, blueprints, and original furnishings sourced at auction. The villa, perched in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, will now serve as a creative retreat for artists and writers.

This week's openings in Parisian galleries

Les vernissages cette semaine dans les galeries parisiennes

This week's openings in Parisian galleries feature a wide range of exhibitions across the Marais, Saint-Germain-des-Prés, and other districts. Highlights include Galerie Alain Margaron's group show "Du modèle à l'autoportrait" exploring the body in works by André Derain, Jean Hélion, Fred Deux, and Zoran Mušič; Kim Myoung Nam's first solo show at Galerie UNIVER / Colette Colla, presenting perforated paper pieces; and Galerie Wagner's collective exhibition dedicated to Latin American artists Milton Becerra, Olga Luna, and Claudia Lavegas. Other notable shows include Louis Pion's ink-on-envelope series at Galerie Incognito Artclub, Léonore Chastagner's raw ceramics at Galerie Anne-Sarah Bénichou, and solo presentations by Quentin Gouevic and Jérôme Zonder at Galerie Nathalie Obadia.

At the Tuileries, the PAD Paris Fair Celebrates Design with Elegance This Weekend

Aux Tuileries, le salon PAD Paris célèbre le design avec élégance ce week-end

The PAD Paris (Pavillon des Arts et du Design) returns to the Jardin des Tuileries, showcasing 75 French and international galleries specializing in vintage and contemporary collectible design. Highlights of the 2025 edition include the debut of Gallery Gaïa & Romeo with mid-century Italian ceramics, a contemporary reimagining of Claude Monet’s studio by Amélie du Chalard, and a strong focus on international female designers at Maria Wettergren. Parallel to the main fair, the third edition of the Sustainable Design Biennale is presenting plastic-free material innovations and eco-friendly furniture solutions.

DC Getaway: Exploring Toronto’s art scene, from galleries to murals

Toronto's visual arts landscape is highlighted as a premier destination for travelers, featuring a mix of massive institutional collections and specialized local galleries. Key attractions include the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM), known for its vast natural history and ancient civilization galleries, and the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO), which houses over 120,000 works ranging from Renaissance masterpieces to contemporary installations like Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Mirrored Room.

Spring Arts Guide 2026: The Visual Art Exhibitions Making a Splash This Season

The Spring Arts Guide 2026 highlights several major exhibitions opening in the Washington D.C. area, ranging from local photography to expansive collection surveys. Alan Sislen’s 'AMBIGUITY' at Multiple Exposures Gallery explores architectural abstraction, while the National Museum of Women in the Arts hosts 'Making Their Mark,' a traveling exhibition of the Shah Garg Collection featuring luminaries like Howardena Pindell and Joan Semmel. Additionally, the National Museum of African Art presents 'Here: Pride and Belonging in African Art,' a landmark show centering queer voices within the African diaspora.

Beyoncé, Nicole Kidman and Venus Williams will co-chair 2026 Met Gala

The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute has announced the co-chairs for the 2026 Met Gala, scheduled for May 4, 2026. Pop superstar Beyoncé, actor Nicole Kidman, tennis legend Venus Williams, and Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour will serve as co-chairs of the annual benefit. The host committee includes fashion designer Anthony Vaccarello, actor Zoë Kravitz, and a roster of celebrities and artists such as Sabrina Carpenter, Doja Cat, and artist Anna Weyant. The gala will support the Costume Institute's exhibition "Costume Art" (May 10, 2026–January 10, 2027), which will inaugurate the new Condé M. Nast Galleries. The exhibition pairs 200 artworks from the Met's collection with 200 garments, exploring the relationship between the dressed body and Western art. Lauren Sánchez Bezos and Jeff Bezos are sponsoring the event.

Palazzo of Pop Art: new gallery in Italy will house major collection of 20th-century art

The Sonnabend Collection, a major trove of 20th-century art assembled by pioneering dealer Ileana Sonnabend, opens to the public on 29 November in Mantua, Italy. Housed in the renovated 13th-century Palazzo della Ragione, the new museum—Sonnabend Collection Mantova—will display nearly 100 works by artists such as Robert Rauschenberg, Jasper Johns, Andy Warhol, and Jeff Koons across 11 contemporary galleries. The venue also includes a temporary exhibition space, a bookshop, and an educational department, with the inaugural show featuring Warhol films.

Where to see art in Houston now: 10 exhibits and shows opening in October

Houston's October art scene is dominated by exhibitions exploring scientific and cosmic themes, including plasma installations, fractal worlds, and quantum landscapes. Notable shows include Anahita Bradberry's 'Spectral Field' at Diverseworks, Julius Horsthuis's 'Fractal Worlds' at Artechouse, and 'Growing Up Jewish' at Holocaust Museum Houston. The month also features CraftTexas 2025 at Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, 'Lines of Resolution' at Menil Drawing Institute, and a farewell show at Anya Tish Gallery.

Performa Is Bringing a Star-Studded Variety Show to Broadway

Performa, New York's biennial for performance art, is staging a one-night variety show on Broadway at Manhattan's Town Hall on June 10. The inaugural Performa All-Star Variety Show will feature artists including Barbara Kruger, Julio Torres, Marcel Dzama, Laurie Simmons, and Anne Imhoff, hosted by comedian Casey Jost. The 90-minute, 12-act event draws inspiration from 19th-century vaudeville and Futurist cabarets, offering a public spectacle outside the biennial's usual three-week format.