artist renee good last words new york ice office 1234769759

Performance artist Maria De Victoria spent Tuesday chanting the last words of Renee Nicole Good—a poet and mother killed by an ICE agent in Minneapolis—outside the ICE field office in New York City's Jacob K. Javits Federal Building. Dressed in a coat bearing Good's phrase "I'm not mad at you, dude," De Victoria performed the endurance piece from sunrise to sunset as an act of dissent against federal immigration crackdowns. The work concluded with a silent vigil, and De Victoria, an immigrant from Peru represented by Desnivel Gallery, has a history of politically charged endurance performances.

art history teacher charlie kirk investigation florida 1234769708

Hope McMath, an artist and art history teacher at Douglas Anderson School of the Arts in Jacksonville, Florida, was removed from the classroom in September 2024 after posting about the assassination of Charlie Kirk on her private social media. An investigation by Duval County Public Schools found only a minor violation for profanity, but the district refused to reinstate her due to a concurrent state education board investigation. McMath is suing the school district, state officials, and Moms for Liberty, alleging her removal was politically motivated and violated her free speech rights.

non bank art loans defaults rise deloitte private arttactic 1234768867

Half of non-bank art lenders experienced loan defaults in 2024, up from 17 percent in 2022, according to the Art and Finance Report 2025 by Deloitte Private and ArtTactic. The report notes that while the wider art market has shrunk since 2022—sales fell 12 percent to $57.5 billion in 2024—the market for art-backed loans has grown to an estimated $33.9–$40 billion. Non-bank lenders are increasingly taking on riskier clients, with some charging over 15 percent interest, while private banks reported zero defaults in 2024.

burmese curator flees bangkok china censors art exhibition 1234753536

The curator of an exhibition at the Bangkok Arts and Cultural Centre (BACC) fled Thailand two days after its opening, fearing arrest and deportation. The show, titled “Constellation of Complicity: Visualising the Global Machine of Authoritarian Solidarity,” featured exiled artists from China, Russia, Iran, and Myanmar and was curated by an artist from Myanmar known as Sai. After receiving warnings from BACC directors that Thai police were seeking his contact information, Sai learned that the Chinese embassy, Thai Foreign Ministry, and Bangkok city officials had pressured the museum over potential diplomatic tensions. The exhibition was censored: black paint covered artists' names and descriptions of Tibet, Hong Kong, and Xinjiang; a multimedia piece by Tibetan artist Tenzin Mingyur Paldron was nearly entirely removed; and flags representing Tibet and the Uyghur people were taken down. Sai immediately flew to London and plans to restage the exhibition elsewhere without censorship.

kryptos sculpture code cia 1234762958

An anonymous buyer paid $962,500 at an RR Auction sale for the code to the final unsolved passage of Jim Sanborn's sculpture "Kryptos," located at the CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia. The sculpture, dedicated in 1990, contains four encrypted passages; three have been cracked by cryptologists, but the 97-character fourth passage (K4) has remained unsolved for decades. Sanborn, now 80, decided to sell the solution after growing tired of fielding inquiries from enthusiasts, despite a recent discovery of the solution in the Smithsonian's Archives of American Art that raised questions about the auction.

just stop oil activists dyed stonehenge not guilty 1234759935

Three Just Stop Oil activists—Luke Watson, Rajan Naidu, and Niamh Lynch—were found not guilty of criminal damage by a Salisbury Crown Court jury on October 31, after dyeing Stonehenge bright orange with a cornflour, talcum powder, and orange dye mixture in June 2024. The defendants argued their actions were protected under freedom of speech and protest rights (Articles 10 and 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights), and noted no lasting damage occurred. English Heritage CEO Nick Merriman acknowledged the distress caused but confirmed no visible damage, while the cleanup cost £620.

british architecture sexism toxic culture 1234758066

A report commissioned by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), titled the RIBA Build It Together report, reveals widespread sexism and toxic workplace culture in the architecture industry. Based on a survey of 635 workers conducted by the Fawcett Society, it found that half of female respondents experienced bullying, one-third reported sexual harassment, and 83% said their careers were hindered by having children. The report describes environments where long hours are glorified, power imbalances are stark, and sexism is overt, with many victims fearing to report abuse.

british architecture sexism toxic culture 1234758066

A report commissioned by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), titled the RIBA Build It Together report, reveals widespread sexism and toxic workplace culture in British architecture. Based on a survey of 635 industry workers conducted by the Fawcett Society, the report found that half of female respondents experienced bullying, one-third reported sexual harassment, and 83 percent said their career was hindered by having children. Many women described feeling humiliated, objectified, and traumatized, with 38 percent not reporting harassment for fear of consequences.

art world favorite water brand new collection art themed sparkling beverages 1234757973

Saratoga, the bottled water brand known for its blue glass bottles and ubiquity at art world events, has launched a new collection of flavored sparkling waters with art-themed names. The three flavors are Abstraction of Lime, Anatomy of a Peach, and Untitled Berry No. 3, each packaged in cans with colorful geometric abstract designs. The brand's marketing leans into art world language, describing the flavors as a "curated blend" and using ornate picture frames in promotional imagery.

canterbury cathedral jd vance elon musk artist responds 1234756764

Artist Alex Vellis responded to criticism from conservative figures including Elon Musk and US Vice President JD Vance over a graffiti-style art installation at Canterbury Cathedral. The work, part of a presentation called “HEAR US,” features questions posed to God developed through workshops with marginalized communities, including the Punjabi, black and brown diaspora, neurodivergent individuals, and the LGBTQIA+ population. Vance called the installation “ugly,” while Musk accused it of being “anti-Western propaganda.” Vellis, a poet, fired back on Instagram with a crude remark and the hashtag #freepalestine.

canterbury cathedral jd vance elon musk artist responds 1234756764

Artist Alex Vellis responded to criticism from conservative commentators, including Elon Musk and US Vice President JD Vance, over a graffiti-style art installation at Canterbury Cathedral. The installation, titled “HEAR US,” features questions posed to God, such as “What is the architecture of heaven?” and “Why are you indifferent to suffering?” Created through workshops with marginalized communities—including the Punjabi, black and brown diaspora, neurodivergent individuals, and the LGBTQIA+ population—the work uses spray-paint-like lettering but was not actually painted onto the historic building. Vance called the installation “ugly,” while Musk accused it of being “anti-Western propaganda.” Vellis responded on Instagram with a crude retort and the hashtag #freepalestine.

canterbury cathedral jd vance elon musk artist responds 1234756764

Artist Alex Vellis responded to criticism from conservative figures including Elon Musk and US Vice President JD Vance over a graffiti-style art installation at Canterbury Cathedral. The work, part of a presentation titled “HEAR US,” features questions posed to God, such as “What is the architecture of heaven?” and “Why are you indifferent to suffering?” Created through workshops with marginalized communities—including the Punjabi, black and brown diaspora, neurodivergent individuals, and the LGBTQIA+ population—the installation uses spray-paint-like lettering but was not actually painted onto the historic building. Vance called the work “really ugly,” while Musk accused it of being “anti-Western propaganda.” Vellis responded on Instagram with a crude remark and the hashtag #freepalestine.

ancient rome new orleans tombstone 1234755754

In March 2025, a New Orleans couple, Daniella Santoro and Aaron Lorenz, discovered a 2nd-century Roman marble headstone with a Latin inscription in their backyard during yard work. They contacted archaeologist D. Ryan Gray of the University of New Orleans, who, with colleagues including Tulane classics professor Susann Lusnia, traced the inscription to a missing object once held by a museum in Civitavecchia, Italy. The stone commemorates a Roman sailor named Sextus Congenius Verus. Researchers believe it was brought to New Orleans as a souvenir after World War II, likely by a member of the 34th division of the Fifth Army, which was stationed near Civitavecchia after liberating Rome in 1944.

vapid art world novel dimes square zoe dubno happiness love 1234754320

Zoe Dubno's novel *Happiness & Love* is a satire of the art world, heavily borrowing from Thomas Bernhard's 1984 novel *Woodcutters*. The book follows an unnamed narrator who relentlessly criticizes the vapid, social-climbing denizens of the downtown New York scene, using the word "stupid" over twenty times. The narrator laments the art world's obsession with wealth and clout over meaning and beauty, but her own hypocrisy and lack of self-awareness are evident. The novel has received superficial coverage from outlets like *New York Magazine*, focusing on the author's lifestyle rather than the book's content.

Review: “Boris Lurie: Nothing To Do But To Try” at the Holocaust Museum Houston

The Holocaust Museum Houston is currently hosting "Boris Lurie: Nothing To Do But To Try," an exhibition focusing on the early works of the Holocaust survivor and NO!art movement founder. Organized by the Museum of Jewish Heritage, the show highlights Lurie’s "War Series," featuring paintings, drawings, and never-before-seen ephemera created as a means of processing the trauma of his imprisonment in camps like Buchenwald. The works, ranging from the immediate post-war period to decades later, serve as a visceral record of memory and loss, including tributes to his family members murdered in the Rumbula Forest massacre.

Collaborative art exhibition at Ferris State University’s Kendall College of Art and Design explores the weight and wonder of ordinary things

A new collaborative exhibition titled *Tension & Tenderness: The Domestic Surreal* has opened at Ferris State University’s Kendall College of Art and Design (KCAD) in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The show unites artists Michael Pfleghaar and Lisa Walcott, who explore the hidden forces within everyday domestic life. Pfleghaar’s paintings blend queer-coded interiors and still-life scenes with abstract elements, while Walcott’s kinetic sculptures repurpose household objects like brooms and drying racks to evoke gravity, breathing, and tension. The exhibition is curated by KCAD Exhibitions Director Michele Bosak and runs through November 15 in the KCAD FLEXgallery.

Collaborative art exhibition at Ferris State University’s Kendall College of Art and Design explores the weight and wonder of ordinary things

A new collaborative exhibition titled *Tension & Tenderness: The Domestic Surreal* has opened at Ferris State University’s Kendall College of Art and Design (KCAD) in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The show unites artists Michael Pfleghaar and Lisa Walcott, who explore the hidden forces within everyday domestic life through painting and kinetic sculpture. Pfleghaar’s queer-coded interiors and still-life compositions blend flattened perspective with abstract elements, while Walcott repurposes household objects like brooms and drying racks into moving sculptures that evoke gravity, breathing, and repetition. The exhibition runs through November 15 in the KCAD FLEXgallery.

Shakespeare’s London Home Finally Located After Centuries of Mystery

Scholar Lucy Munro of King’s College London has identified the precise location of William Shakespeare’s only owned London home in the Blackfriars neighborhood. By analyzing a 1668 property map created after the Great Fire of London, Munro pinpointed the site—now occupied by Ireland Yard and St. Andrew’s Hill—which was previously known only through vague historical references to the Blackfriars Gatehouse.

A Bodybuilder’s 3,300-Year-Old Egyptian Stele Heads to TEFAF

A 3,300-year-old Egyptian stele once owned by bodybuilding pioneer Ben Weider is set to be a highlight at TEFAF New York this May. The limestone carving, which depicts Pharaoh Thutmose IV, was gifted to Weider in 1964 and recently surfaced at a Montreal auction before being acquired by the London-based gallery David Aaron. Alongside the stele, the gallery will present a 2,500-year-old greywacke bust of a goddess, which was recently authenticated after being dismissed as a fake due to its pristine condition and 18th-century restorations.

art market minute feb 2 2742062

Saudi Arabia is scaling back some of its ambitious 'gigaprojects' under the Vision 2030 plan due to falling oil prices and budget constraints, raising questions about the future of its major cultural investments. This shift occurs as the art world's attention turns to the Gulf region for the inaugural Art Basel Qatar, highlighting the tension between grand cultural ambitions and economic realities in a key emerging art market.

bad bunny crossing the delaware ektor rivera 2739899

Artist Ektor Rivera has created a painting titled "The Discovery of Americans" (2025) that reimagines Emanuel Leutze's "Washington Crossing the Delaware" to celebrate Puerto Rican cultural figures, with Bad Bunny at the center. The work was commissioned by Miami art collector Seth Goldberg as a response to conservative criticism over Bad Bunny being selected to perform at the Super Bowl halftime show. The five-by-eight-foot painting places George Washington in the background while Puerto Rican icons including Jennifer Lopez, Ricky Martin, and Roberto Clemente take center stage, with Bad Bunny draped in the Puerto Rican flag. The artwork has garnered over 2.3 million views on Instagram and Facebook.

house of griffins ancient rome restoration 2737121

The House of Griffins, an ancient Roman residence on Rome's Palatine Hill dating back to the 2nd and 1st centuries B.C.E., is opening to the public on March 3 after a major restoration. Discovered by archaeologist Giacomo Boni in the 19th century, the domus features vivid frescoes, mosaic floors, and a stucco lunette with griffins. The Colosseum Archaeological Park led the restoration in 2024, reinforcing structural integrity and conserving wall paintings. Visitors cannot access the underground chambers directly; instead, they will experience a real-time, remote tour via a livestream narrated by a guide with a video camera.

huge persepolis destruction 2718329

The article recounts the Sack of Persepolis in 330 B.C.E., when Alexander the Great and his Macedonian forces pillaged and destroyed the Achaemenid capital. It describes Persepolis as a marvel of ancient architecture, including the 31-acre limestone terrace, the Apadana hall with 36 columns, and the palace of Xerxes I. Ancient sources like Diodorus of Sicily and Plutarch offer conflicting accounts of the destruction—whether it was spontaneous, premeditated, or fueled by alcohol—while modern historians view it as a political act of retribution for Xerxes' attack on Athens.

rome colosseum metro station archaeology 2731534

Rome's new Colosseo-Fori Imperiali metro station opened on Tuesday after 11 years of construction, featuring archaeological treasures uncovered during excavation, including ceramic fragments, statues, oil lamps, stone vessels, and 28 ancient wells. The station, part of Metro Line C, also revealed a nearly 260-foot early second-century military barracks and a home with frescoes and mosaics at the nearby Porta Metronia station. Mayor Roberto Gualtieri attended the opening ceremony, and the city plans to open a museum in the station.

lindsey halligan trump smithsonian executive order 2626200

President Donald Trump issued an executive order directing the Smithsonian Institution to be purged of "divisive, race-centered ideology." The order tasks Vice President J.D. Vance and Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum with overseeing the review of the Smithsonian's 21 museums, the National Zoo, and other sites. However, the article focuses on Lindsey Halligan, a former property lawyer from Fort Lauderdale, who is named twice in the order as the only individual specifically charged with co-piloting the initiative alongside Vance. Halligan, a former Trump legal team member involved in the Mar-a-Lago classified documents case and a defamation lawsuit against CNN, has a background in property law and little public record on cultural or historical matters.

Nikyle Begay Resurrects Century-Old Diné Weavings

Nikyle Begay, a Diné shepherd and weaver based in the Navajo Nation, is revitalizing ancestral weaving techniques that were historically marginalized by the colonial trading-post economy. By breeding Navajo Churro sheep and mastering complex twill patterns once used for functional saddle blankets, Begay bridges the gap between traditional agricultural practice and contemporary fine art. Their work involves the entire lifecycle of the medium, from shearing and processing wool to reconstructing intricate designs that fell out of favor when commercial markets prioritized specific regional styles for non-Native buyers.

Jeremy Frey: The Generational Impact of a New Artistic Path

Indigenous weaver Jeremy Frey, a 2025 MacArthur Fellowship recipient, will participate in an upcoming public conversation with Hyperallergic Editor-at-Large Hrag Vartanian. The discussion will explore Frey’s unique practice of Passamaquoddy basketry, which involves harvesting natural materials like black ash and sweetgrass to create intricate vessels and innovative relief prints that bridge the gap between traditional craft and contemporary sculpture.

Dutch Museum Discovers 8-Inch Ancient Roman Phallus

Archaeologists at the Valkhof Museum in Nijmegen discovered a rare, eight-inch Ancient Roman phallus carved from bone while cataloging a massive backlog of 16,000 archaeological boxes. The artifact was found alongside high-quality Roman tableware during an €8 million government-funded inventory project aimed at processing collections from defunct storage depots in the province of Gelderland.

POC Arts Nonprofits Face Severe Staffing Challenges, Survey Finds

A new report by Museum Hue reveals that over a third of surveyed museums and cultural centers founded and led by people of color in the Northeastern United States operate without any full-time staff. The study, which examined 38 institutions, found that 67% of smaller-budget organizations (with budgets under $500,000) lack full-time employees, with some operating on less than $100,000 annually and relying heavily on volunteers.

The Formal Consistency of Marcos López

LA CONSISTENCIA FORMAL DE MARCOS LÓPEZ

The Fundación Larivière in Buenos Aires is hosting a major retrospective of Argentine photographer Marcos López, featuring over 200 works spanning from 1975 to 2025. The exhibition highlights López’s distinct visual language, characterized by the high-saturation color palette of his 'Pop Latino' series and his rejection of traditional black-and-white documentary photography. His work is defined by deliberate staging, using artificial backdrops and theatrical props to create images that function as allegorical documents of Latin American identity.