CONTEMPORARY ART Day Sale on 6 December at 2pm - Christie's

Christie’s Paris has announced two major contemporary art auctions scheduled for late 2023, consisting of a live sale on December 6 and an online sale running from November 28 to December 8. The auctions feature over 200 lots with a combined global estimate of €8.5 million to €12.3 million, highlighted by two previously unseen paintings by Pierre Soulages and works by Jean Dubuffet and Georges Mathieu. A significant portion of the online sale is dedicated to "A Lifetime Collection," a prestigious private Parisian collection featuring works by David Hockney, Sol LeWitt, and Robert Combas.

Portland Art Museum unveils major Hockney show

The Portland Art Museum has opened a major retrospective of David Hockney's work, featuring over 200 pieces spanning six decades. The exhibition, drawn from the collection of philanthropist Jordan Schnitzer, includes iconic series like the swimming pool paintings, iPad drawings, and photographic collages, and is designed with immersive, perspective-shifting gallery spaces.

Pulitzer Arts Foundation celebrates 25th Anniversary with Exhibition

The Pulitzer Arts Foundation is celebrating its 25th anniversary with the exhibition "Dialogues & Conversations," which explores artistic exchange through the lens of curator and collector Emily Rauh Pulitzer. Featuring over 35 artists—including Edgar Degas, Willem de Kooning, Dan Flavin, Alberto Giacometti, David Hammons, Jasper Johns, Donald Judd, Bruce Nauman, Medardo Rosso, and Doris Salcedo—the show presents around 90 works spanning the late 19th century to the present. These pieces come from Mrs. Pulitzer's personal collection, assembled with her late husband Joseph Pulitzer Jr., as well as from her curatorial work at Harvard Art Museums and Saint Louis Art Museum, and loans from The Museum of Modern Art and private lenders.

Visual Art: Sotheby’s To Stage Modern and Contemporary Art Auction During SAW 2026, featuring works by Walter Spies and Raden Saleh

Sotheby’s will hold a Modern and Contemporary Art auction on 25 January during Singapore Art Week (SAW) 2026 at The Edition Singapore. The sale features rare works by early Southeast Asian masters, including Walter Spies’ "Die Schlittschuhläufer (The Ice Skaters)" (1922) and Raden Saleh’s "The Eruption of Mount Merapi, by Day" (1865), alongside Vietnamese silk paintings by Le Pho and Mai Trung Thu, and a David Hockney piece. The auction highlights a 60% rise in new bidders from Southeast Asia since 2022.

We Are the Drum and the Scribe: Black Art In America Collection at the Bo Bartlett Center

The Bo Bartlett Center in Columbus, Georgia, is hosting the exhibition "We Are the Drum and the Scribe: Black Art In America Collection" from January 20 to May 16. The show features over 40 works from the private collection of Najee & Seteria Dorsey and Black Art In America (BAIA), including pieces by Kerry James Marshall, Wadsworth Jarrell, David Driskell, and contemporary artists like Dr Fahamu Pecou and Alfred Conteh. A public reception is scheduled for February 19th.

Wayne Thiebaud’s first UK show reveals the hidden depths of his deceptively simple paintings

Wayne Thiebaud's first museum exhibition in the UK has opened at the Courtauld Gallery, featuring 21 paintings on loan from US public and private collections, including the Wayne Thiebaud Foundation. The show, titled "Wayne Thiebaud: American Still Life," highlights the artist's deceptively simple depictions of cakes, pies, and deli counters, and includes a concurrent exhibition of works on paper called "Delights." Co-curator Barnaby Wright emphasizes that seeing the works in person reveals their extraordinary painterly quality, which reproductions flatten.

Wayne Thiebaud’s first UK show reveals the hidden depths of his deceptively simple paintings

The Courtauld Gallery in London is hosting Wayne Thiebaud's first museum exhibition in the UK, titled "Wayne Thiebaud: American Still Life." The show features 21 paintings, mostly on loan from US public and private collections, including the Wayne Thiebaud Foundation. Co-curator Barnaby Wright highlights that seeing Thiebaud's work in person reveals its extraordinary painterly quality, which reproductions flatten. The exhibition connects Thiebaud's deceptively simple depictions of cakes, pies, and deli counters to the tradition of still-life painting, tracing influences from Édouard Manet and Paul Cézanne to Jean Siméon Chardin, and contrasts his sincere approach with Pop art's irony.

Why this rarely seen Van Gogh self-portrait deserves more attention

A blog post examines Van Gogh's lesser-known self-portrait, *Self-portrait with bandaged Ear and Pipe* (January 1889), held in a private collection and rarely exhibited—last lent outside Switzerland in 1990. The painting shows the artist clean-shaven, smoking a pipe, with a striking orange-red background, painted just weeks after he mutilated his ear following a row with Paul Gauguin. The post contrasts it with the more famous version in London's Courtauld Gallery, analyzing compositional details and the artist's psychological state.

F.E. McWilliam Gallery & Studio presents 100 Years of British and Irish Art – A Fermanagh Collection

The F.E. McWilliam Gallery & Studio in Northern Ireland has opened "100 Years of British and Irish Art: A Fermanagh Collection," a landmark exhibition showcasing the private art collection of the Earl and Countess of Belmore. Curated by William Laffan and Riann Coulter, the show spans five decades of collecting and features works by Irish painters such as Paul Henry, Norah McGuinness, and Basil Blackshaw, alongside British modernists like David Bomberg and Ceri Richards, as well as contemporary artists including Brian Ballard and Philip Flanagan. The exhibition runs until January 31, 2026, with free admission.

5 exhibitions in Provence for the 100th anniversary of Fragonard, the historic perfume house

5 mostre in Provenza per i 100 anni di Fragonard, la storica maison di profumi

The historic French perfume house Fragonard is preparing to celebrate its centenary in 2026 with a series of five exhibitions in Provence. Founded in 1926 by Eugène Fuchs and named in honor of the Rococo painter Jean-Honoré Fragonard, the maison has evolved into a significant cultural patron under the leadership of the Costa family. The upcoming celebrations highlight the family's extensive private collections, which span ancient perfume artifacts, traditional Provençal costumes, and fine art, housed across several free public museums in Grasse, Paris, and Arles.

‘Taking Flight’: Joe Overstreet’s Art Exhibits Encapsulate Geometry and Immersion

The Mississippi Museum of Art in Jackson is presenting 'Joe Overstreet: Taking Flight,' a major exhibition featuring three collections of the late artist's work, including his 'Flight Patterns' series. The show, organized by The Menil Collection in Houston and running through Jan. 25, 2026, highlights Overstreet's abstract phase with works from the 1960s, 1970s, and 1990s that use ropes and metal grommets to create multi-dimensional pieces exploring themes of flight and movement. The exhibition includes loans from private collections, other museums, and the Eric Firestone Gallery, which represents Overstreet's estate.

Bing Crosby’s collection brings a white-glove Christmas to Sotheby’s

Sotheby's achieved a white-glove auction of Bing Crosby's personal collection in New York, selling all 100% of lots for $6.7 million against an estimate of $3.9–$6.3 million. Highlights included musical arrangements from Crosby's 1954 film *White Christmas* ($19,050), a Tiffany & Co cigarette box gifted by John F. Kennedy ($15,240), a Sheraton-style grand piano from *High Society* ($95,250), and a Fabergé sapphire mouse ($355,600). Top prices were led by paintings by Sir Alfred James Munnings ($1.2 million) and Charles Marion Russell.

Two Bouchers for the Prado

Deux Boucher pour le Prado

The Museo del Prado in Madrid has acquired two significant early pendant paintings by François Boucher, titled 'La Naissance et La Mort d'Adonis.' The works were purchased from a French private collection through the Madrid gallery Ana Chiclana, using funds from the bequest of the late department head Juan José Luna. The paintings have been restored and are currently on public display in the Goya's Majas room, awaiting the reopening of the museum's renovated 18th-century galleries.

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Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM) director Franklin Sirmans reflected on his decade-long tenure in an interview with the New York Times during Art Basel Miami Beach. He highlighted the museum's growth, including doubling its endowment (with 10% from the Fund for Black Art), expanding the collection to over 3,500 works, and launching digital initiatives like PAMM TV. Sirmans also criticized Florida Governor Ron DeSantis's 2024 veto of $32 million in arts funding, which left the state with zero arts funding for a period, though some funding was later restored.

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The British Museum has launched a high-profile fundraising campaign to acquire the Tudor Heart, a gold pendant from the early reign of Henry VIII, discovered by amateur metal detectorist Charlie Clarke in Warwickshire in 2019. The museum needs to raise £3.5 million ($4.6 million) by early next year to secure the piece, which features symbols of Henry VIII and Katherine of Aragon and is described as the only surviving Tudor jewelry of its kind. Actor Damian Lewis and historian Mary Beard are supporting the appeal, and the museum will host its first British Museum Ball on October 18 to further fundraising efforts.

british museum tudor heart henry viii 1234756993

The British Museum has launched a high-profile fundraising campaign to acquire the Tudor Heart, a 24-karat gold pendant from the early reign of Henry VIII, decorated with a rose and pomegranate tree and engraved with the letters 'H' and 'K' for Henry and his wife Katherine of Aragon. Found by amateur metal detectorist Charlie Clarke in Warwickshire in 2019, the piece is described by curator Rachel King as a unique surviving example of Tudor 'bling' previously known only from inventories and paintings by Hans Holbein the Younger. The museum needs to raise £3.5 million (about $4.6 million) by early next year, with support from actor Damian Lewis and historian Mary Beard, and will host its first British Museum Ball on October 18 as part of the effort.

british museum tudor heart henry viii 1234756993

The British Museum has launched a high-profile fundraising campaign to acquire the Tudor Heart, a 24-karat gold pendant from the early reign of Henry VIII. Discovered by amateur metal detectorist Charlie Clarke in Warwickshire in 2019, the pendant features a rose and pomegranate tree—symbols of Henry VIII and Katherine of Aragon—along with engraved letters 'H' and 'K'. The museum, supported by actor Damian Lewis and historian Mary Beard, aims to raise £3.5 million (about $4.6 million) by early next year to prevent the piece from entering a private collection. The campaign includes a public appeal and the first British Museum Ball on October 18.

Marian Goodman’s personal collection of Gerhard Richters

Christie's will auction seven paintings by Gerhard Richter from the personal collection of legendary gallerist Marian Goodman in May 2026, headlining a series of sales titled "Breaking Ground: The Private Collection of Marian Goodman." The group includes the iconic 1982 work *Kerze (Candle)*, estimated at $35–50 million, and spans Richter's career from 1982 to 2009. Goodman, who died in 2024, began representing Richter in 1985 after writing him a letter, and her collection reflects their decades-long professional and personal relationship.

jet le parti on founding sibyl a new model of art intelligence and hub for collecting 2750663

Self-taught artist Jet Le Parti has launched Sibyl, a Los Angeles-based cultural platform and research-led advisory that operates outside the traditional gallery system. Drawing on his background in neuroscience and philosophy, Le Parti developed Sibyl as an extension of his independent practice and previous ventures like Base 36 and Relaispunkt. The platform functions as a private collection and advisory service, leveraging direct relationships with collectors to bypass traditional intermediaries and formalize a network built on artistic trust.

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The Julia Stoschek Collection has made its United States debut with a sprawling exhibition titled "What a Wonderful World: An Audiovisual Poem," staged at the historic Variety Arts Theater in Los Angeles. Curated by Udo Kittelmann, the presentation features 45 time-based media works by a high-profile roster of artists including Marina Abramović, Arthur Jafa, and Anne Imhof, alongside early cinema classics. Eschewing traditional "white cube" gallery aesthetics, the show utilizes the dilapidated grandeur of the six-story theater, allowing for overlapping soundtracks and non-linear viewing experiences.

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Christie’s announced a single-owner sale titled “Visions of the West” featuring artworks from the collection of billionaire Bill Koch, to be held over two sessions on January 20 and January 21. The sale includes dozens of works by artists who depicted the American West and frontier, such as Frederic Remington, Charles Marion Russell, and Albert Bierstadt, with highlights including Remington’s painting *Coming to the Call* (estimated $6–$8 million) and Russell’s *The Sun Worshippers* ($4–$6 million). Koch, 85, is the lesser-known of the four Koch brothers and an avid art collector, who also recently sold part of his wine collection through Christie’s.

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The family behind the Fiat empire, the Agnellis, is under a new investigation into missing artworks and forgeries, as reported by the Times of London. Italian investigators are focusing on 13 works by artists including John Singer Sargent, Pablo Picasso, and Francis Bacon, allegedly missing from the collection founded by Giovanni Agnelli and expanded by his grandson Gianni, who died in 2003. Margherita Agnelli de Pahlen, Gianni’s daughter, claims she is being cheated out of her inheritance by Marella’s children from a previous marriage. Shippers reportedly brought copies of the works to the family’s Rome residence between 2016 and 2018, and Carabinieri are seeking information on the originals.

Rediscovered portrait by the Renaissance’s leading woman artist goes on display at the Winter Show

A rediscovered portrait by Sofonisba Anguissola, a pioneering female artist of the Italian Renaissance, has gone on public display for the first time in over a century at the Winter Show in New York. The painting, *Portrait of a Canon Regular* (1552), is Anguissola's earliest signed and dated work and was long considered lost until it was found in a private collection in North Carolina after being referenced in a 2019 monograph. It is being presented by Robert Simon Fine Art.

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Christie’s fall auction season in New York opened with a robust evening sale of 20th-century art on Monday night at Rockefeller Center, achieving a total of $690 million after fees. The sale featured an 18-lot offering from the private collection of Robert and Patricia Weis, followed by the main 20th-century auction. The top lot was Mark Rothko’s *No. 31 (Yellow Stripe)* (1958), which sold for $62 million, while Claude Monet’s *Nymphéas* (1907) brought $45.5 million. The sale had a 95 percent sell-through rate, with 55 of 80 lots guaranteed, and strong in-person bidding provided a boost of market confidence after months of art fair cancellations and gallery closures.

Renoir: A festival of loans for a double exhibition

Renoir : un festival de prêts pour une double exposition

The Musée d'Orsay in Paris has launched a major two-part exhibition dedicated to Auguste Renoir, titled "Renoir dessinateur" (Renoir as a Draughtsman) and "Renoir et l'amour" (Renoir and Love). The initiative began with a study for Renoir's controversial painting *Les Grandes Baigneuses* and has grown into an international loan effort, featuring over 150 rarely seen drawings, watercolors, pastels, and paintings from major museums and private collections worldwide, including the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the MET, and the Barnes Foundation.

And this one shows the police evicting me: the fabulous fabric visions of Elizabeth Allen

The British textile artist Elizabeth Allen, who lived in a dilapidated hut and gained brief international fame in the 1960s after being discovered by artist Patrick Heron, is the subject of a major rediscovery. A new exhibition at Compton Verney in Warwickshire features works that have been hidden in storage or private collections for nearly fifty years, including the first public display of 'Autobiraggraphy,' a textile work documenting her wrongful eviction in 1934.

Paris Man Wins $1.2 Million Picasso Painting in Charity Raffle

A Parisian software salesman, Christophe Dothen, won a 1921 oil painting by Pablo Picasso titled 'Nature Morte' in a charity raffle. The raffle, which sold tickets for 100 euros each, raised over $5 million for the international charity Abridge, which provides clean water to villages in Africa.

Giuditta Branconi “Cannon Fodder” at Collezione Maramotti, Reggio Emilia

Italian artist Giuditta Branconi has unveiled her first institutional solo exhibition, titled "Cannon Fodder," at the Collezione Maramotti in Reggio Emilia. The exhibition features a series of new large-scale paintings and a site-specific installation characterized by dense, chaotic compositions where multiple narratives unfold simultaneously. Branconi describes her approach as fostering an "anarchic gaze," intentionally refusing to guide the viewer through her crowded, vibrant visual landscapes.

Mexico’s culture ministry urges eBay to halt sales of pre-Hispanic artefacts

Mexico's Ministry of Culture has identified 195 pre-Hispanic archaeological objects listed for sale on eBay by a US-based seller and has formally demanded the platform halt the sales and return the items. The ministry, through Secretary Claudia Curiel de Icaza, argues the sale is illegal as the export of such cultural heritage has been prohibited since 1827, and their presence abroad results from illicit extraction. Legal action has been initiated with Mexican and international authorities, including Interpol and US Homeland Security Investigations, to secure repatriation.

Monet painting auctioned in France for more than 10 million euros

Monet-Gemälde in Frankreich für mehr als 10 Millionen Euro versteigert

A recently rediscovered landscape painting by Claude Monet, titled "Vétheuil, effet du matin" (1901), sold for €10.2 million at a Sotheby’s auction in France. The sale exceeded its initial estimate of €6 million to €8 million and set a new record for a Monet work sold at auction within France. A second work, "Les îles de Port-Villez" (1883), also outperformed expectations, fetching €6.45 million during the same event.