‘The extremely happy part of the crowd’: Hungarian arts figures hope for change after 16 years of Orbán rule

The 16-year tenure of Viktor Orbán has come to an end following a landslide victory for Péter Magyar’s Tisza Party in the 2026 Hungarian parliamentary election. The shift in power has sparked widespread celebration among Hungary’s progressive art community, which has long felt stifled by Orbán’s nationalist and socially conservative agenda. Figures from major Budapest galleries and the contemporary art scene report a profound sense of relief, signaling a potential departure from the "illiberal democracy" that dominated the country for nearly two decades.

france national assembly vote bill looted artifacts 1234781166

The French National Assembly has unanimously passed a landmark bill designed to streamline the restitution of cultural artifacts looted during the colonial era between 1815 and 1972. This legislative framework aims to replace the previous requirement for individual laws for every return, fulfilling a long-standing pledge by President Emmanuel Macron to restore African heritage. While the vote was unanimous, the debate was contentious, with critics arguing over the omission of the word "colonialism" to avoid far-right backlash regarding national "repentance."

Proposed Restitution Law in France Advances in National Assembly

The French National Assembly’s Cultural Affairs Committee has approved a landmark bill aimed at streamlining the restitution of cultural property looted from Africa during the colonial era. Moving away from the previous requirement for case-by-case legislation, the new framework allows restitutions to be ordered by ministerial decree, provided they fall within the 1815–1972 timeframe. This advancement follows years of debate sparked by President Emmanuel Macron’s 2017 pledge and the influential 2018 Sarr-Savoy report.

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Four ancient bronze sculptures illegally removed from Thailand in the 1960s have been repatriated from San Francisco’s Asian Art Museum to their original home in Thailand, following an investigation led by the US Department of Homeland Security. The works, which were featured in the museum’s 2024 exhibition “Moving Objects: Learning from Local and Global Communities,” were linked to convicted antiquities trafficker Douglas Latchford and had been acquired by the museum’s founding collector Avery Brundage. The Asian Art Commission unanimously approved the return after a two-stage voting process that began in September 2024 and concluded in April 2025.

parties raouls jennifer lawrence chloe sevigny 50th anniversary

A dinner and party at Raoul's, the iconic SoHo French bistro, celebrated its 50th anniversary in partnership with Moda Operandi. The event drew a crowd of regulars and celebrities including Chloë Sevigny, Jennifer Lawrence, Amy Sedaris, and Dave Gahan, who reflected on the restaurant's history as a haven for artists and its role in the neighborhood's transformation from a gritty gallery hub to a tourist destination. Karim Raoul, the founder's son, spoke about the restaurant's enduring family-run ethos.

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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.

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The Pompeii Archaeological Park has unveiled the restored Garden of Hercules, replanted with 1,200 violets, 1,000 ruscus plants, 800 antique roses, vines, and fruit trees to mirror its appearance 2,000 years ago. The restoration is based on botanical research from the 1950s by Wilhelmina Jashemski, who identified pollen, spores, and plant fossils at the site. The garden, located on Regio VIII, Insula 2, also features a recreated ancient irrigation system and a terracotta statue of Hercules, and was once used for commercial perfume production.

kusterberg megalithic tomb germany restoration 2644729

Archaeologists and volunteers in Haldensleben, Germany, have reconstructed the Küsterberg megalithic tomb, a Neolithic burial chamber dating back roughly 5,500 years. The project, based on excavations by the German Research Foundation between 2010 and 2013, involved reassembling 19 upright stones and seven capstones, restoring the tomb's original form after it was altered by Iron Age peoples and damaged over millennia. The restored tomb was unveiled on the European Day of Megalithic Culture in April.

From silk murals to jade inlays: Forbidden City’s Qianlong Garden reopens after 25-year conservation project

The Qianlong Garden in Beijing's Palace Museum (Forbidden City) has reopened to the public after a 25-year, $20 million conservation project in partnership with the World Monuments Fund (WMF). The 1.6-hectare garden, built between 1771 and 1776, features 27 buildings with elaborate decorations including rare silk trompe l'oeil murals, jade inlays, and bamboo thread marquetry. The restoration began with the Juanqinzhai pavilion in 2002 and was completed in 2008, followed by work on three other structures. The project also involved recreating traditional materials and techniques that had fallen out of practice.

French government adopts bill for restitution of colonial-era objects

The French government has adopted a bill that facilitates the restitution of cultural objects plundered from former colonies, eight years after President Emmanuel Macron pledged to return African heritage. Presented by Culture Minister Rachida Dati, the bill maintains that French public collections are inalienable but creates an exemption for items taken by force between 1815 and 1972. Restitution requests must come from foreign states, be for public preservation and display, and involve items allegedly stolen, looted, or sold under duress. A bilateral scientific committee will examine each case, with final approval from the Conseil d'État. The bill aims to replace the current slow, case-by-case legislative process that has resulted in only 30 objects returned since 2017.

Olivia Bourrat revient au Quai Branly

Olivia Bourrat, a 45-year-old chief heritage curator trained at the École du Louvre, the INP, and the Sorbonne, has been appointed director of the heritage and collections department at the Musée du quai Branly-Jacques Chirac in Paris. She succeeds Anne-Solène Rolland, and returns to the museum after previous stints there, as well as at France-Muséums, the Louvre Abu Dhabi, the French Ministry of Culture, and Paris Musées.

Monumental Rubens ceiling painting revealed once more after two-year renovation

The monumental Whitehall Ceiling at London’s Banqueting House, painted by Peter Paul Rubens, is set to reopen to the public following a comprehensive two-year renovation and conservation project. Managed by Historic Royal Palaces, the initiative included the installation of advanced climate control systems to preserve the 17th-century canvases, structural stabilization of historic plaster, and the addition of a lift to provide the first-ever step-free access to the Main Hall.

New book highlights Vorticism’s toxic side—and puts its women pioneers back in the frame

A new book by Canadian art historian James King, titled "Our Little Gang," examines the Vorticist movement, highlighting its toxic internal dynamics and the marginalization of its female pioneers. King details how Wyndham Lewis, the movement's self-appointed leader, belittled followers like Jessica Dismorr and Helen Saunders, even painting over one of Saunders' works. The book also explores the movement's artistic tensions, balancing abstraction with representation, and features works by Lewis, David Bomberg, and Saunders.

Venice Banksy mural removed as part of ‘innovative’ restoration project

A fading Banksy mural, *Migrant Child* (2019), depicting a child holding a flare and wearing a life vest, was removed from the façade of the 17th-century Palazzo San Pantalon in Venice on Wednesday night. Restorers cut out the wall section using angle grinders and hand tools from a barge, in an operation funded by the banking group Banca Ifis, the building's owner. The work—one of only two Banksy pieces officially attributed in Italy—had deteriorated significantly due to six years of exposure to the elements, with about a third of the image lost. It will undergo analysis and restoration under Federico Borgogni, who previously oversaw the removal of Banksy's *Aachoo!* in Bristol.

Your weekly dose of wonder: introducing The Specialist, a new podcast by Sotheby's

Sotheby's has launched a new podcast series titled "The Specialist," featuring its global specialists who share behind-the-scenes stories about extraordinary artworks and objects. Each episode focuses on a specific narrative, such as the restitution of a Kandinsky painting lost in Nazi-era Germany, the rediscovery of Rubens' "The Massacre of the Innocents," the story of the shredded Banksy artwork "Love is in the Bin," and the decade-long attribution project for a Vermeer painting. The podcast is available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

Gaudi’s original vision for Casa Batlló has been restored

Antoni Gaudí’s Casa Batlló in Barcelona has undergone a €3.5 million restoration that returns the building’s rear façade and private courtyard to their original 1906 design. Led by architect Xavier Villanueva, the year-long project employed local artisans to rebuild Gaudí’s vaulted balcony support system, reinstate lost features such as planters and a pergola, and restore original colors using 85,000 Nolla mosaic pieces, ironwork, stucco, and trencadís. The work coincides with the 20th anniversary of the building’s UNESCO World Heritage designation.

Art and Light Gallery spotlights artist Eric Benjamin at The Anchorage

Art & Light Gallery has partnered with The Anchorage restaurant in Greenville to host an exhibition of works by local artist Eric Benjamin. The show, available virtually on the gallery's website and on view through July 7 at the restaurant, features Benjamin's landscape paintings characterized by bold color and abstract energy created with hand-mixed oil paints. A ticketed artist talk is scheduled for June 18.

The Syrian Pavilion returns to Venice after the fall of the regime. The interview

A Venezia torna il Padiglione della Siria dopo il crollo del regime. L’intervista

The Syrian Pavilion returns to the Venice Biennale after the fall of the regime, marking the country's first participation since 2024. The pavilion, curated by artist Sara Shamma, is housed in the former refrigerated warehouses of Santa Marta at the Iuav University of Venice and runs until November 22. It features an installation inspired by the ancient funerary towers of Palmyra, combining painting, architecture, light, sound, and scent to explore cultural heritage and the restitution of looted antiquities.

New School Faculty React to Plans to Lay Off 15% of Workforce

The New School announced plans to lay off 15% of its full-time faculty and staff by mid-June, a move driven by a projected $48 million deficit and a 20% enrollment decline since 2021. The cuts are part of a broader workforce reduction strategy that has already included voluntary buyouts. The restructuring will disproportionately affect the New School for Social Research and Eugene Lang College of Liberal Arts, which are undergoing major mergers and program discontinuations, while the Parsons School of Design faces fewer cuts.

GDR Women Without Filter

DDR-Frauen ohne Filter

The Kunsthaus Apolda in Thuringia is presenting a posthumous retrospective of Günter Rössler, the East German photographer who defined nude and fashion photography in the GDR, on what would have been his 100th birthday. The exhibition features 130 works spanning six decades, including fashion assignments, reportage from his travels abroad, and large-format black-and-white nudes. It is curated by his widow and estate manager Kirsten Schlegel, and complemented by an audio guide in which Rössler's models reflect on their collaboration with him.

Museum Sculptures in Park Sanssouci Return Restored

Musen-Skulpturen im Park Sanssouci kehren restauriert zurück

Eight 18th-century marble sculptures depicting Greek muses have been reinstalled in the western pleasure garden of Park Sanssouci in Potsdam following a six-month restoration project. The works, created by Berlin sculptor Friedrich Christian Glume, represent figures like Melpomene (Tragedy), Klio (History), and Thalia (Comedy) and have been cleaned, repaired, and given a protective coating.

We had to make difficult decisions

"Wir mussten schwierige Entscheidungen treffen"

Investor Andrew E. Wolff has stepped down as CEO of Artnet after orchestrating a merger of the company's US operations with Artsy, another major art market platform he recently acquired. Jeffrey Yin, previously the interim head of Artsy, has been appointed as the permanent CEO of the combined entity. The restructuring involves significant layoffs, the closure of Artnet's Berlin office, and a consolidation of management teams, though both brands will continue to operate with distinct editorial voices.

The Textile Museum: A Frayed Project

Le Musée des tissus, un projet décousu

The renovation and expansion of the Musée des Tissus et des Arts Décoratifs in Lyon has stalled despite being acquired by the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Region seven years ago. Although architect Rudy Ricciotti revised his initial designs to satisfy local urban planning requirements and resident concerns, the project faces significant delays, with no building permit filed and a fluctuating budget that recently dropped from 60 million to 32 million euros. Tensions between the regional leadership and the City of Lyon have further complicated the timeline, leaving the museum closed to the public for four years.

Mexico faces sales of pre-Columbian art

Le Mexique face aux ventes d’art précolombien

The Mexican government is facing ongoing legal and diplomatic hurdles in its attempts to halt the sale of pre-Columbian artifacts in Paris. Despite formal protests from the Mexican embassy citing national heritage laws from 1827, auction houses like Millon continue to proceed with sales, generating millions in revenue. French authorities and legal experts maintain that Mexican national laws do not supersede French jurisdiction, which largely adheres to the 1970 UNESCO Convention regarding the illicit import and export of cultural property.

El Greco Painting Found Hidden Beneath a Forgery in the Vatican

El Greco Painting Found Hidden Beneath a Forgery in the Vatican

A painting by El Greco, titled 'The Redeemer' (c. 1590–95), was discovered in the Vatican after restorers removed a later forgery that had been painted over it. Scientific analysis confirmed the authenticity of the original work, which had been donated in 1967 and hung in the Apostolic Palace without prior study. The restored painting is now part of a two-work exhibition at the Papal Palace of Castel Gandolfo.

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A restoration of the Madonna and Child statue atop Notre-Dame de la Garde in Marseille has revealed seven bullet holes from Nazi gunfire during World War II. The 37-foot-tall copper and iron statue, known as the Bonne Mère, was shot after the city's liberation in 1944, when German artillery units fired on the church, piercing the bell tower, breaking stained-glass windows, and destroying the ceiling mosaic. The bullet holes were discovered near the end of a five-year restoration that included re-gilding and the installation of a new crown via helicopter.

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Heritage experts, international officials, and Syrian residents gathered in Switzerland for the first comprehensive conference on restoring the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra since the end of Bashar Al Assad's regime. Organized by UNESCO and the Aliph Foundation, the group recommended establishing an international expert task force to remove Palmyra from UNESCO's List of World Heritage in Danger. Rehabilitation efforts will focus on the Palmyra museum, restoration of artifacts at the Damascus Museum, and repair of the footbridge, with work expected to begin in January 2026.

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The Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art, which closed its New York physical space in 2024 to become a "global museum," has announced the winner of its 2025 Himalayan Art Prize: Khadhok – Tibetan Artists’ Collective, a Dharamshala-based group founded in 2023. The prize includes a $30,000 purse, the largest of its kind for Himalayan artists. Additionally, the museum named 15 recipients of its 2025 Research and Art Projects grants, distributing $200,000 total among projects ranging from $3,000 to $25,000, selected from 132 applications.

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Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities recovered underwater ruins from a sunken city off the coast of Alexandria on August 21. Divers and cranes retrieved ancient statues, including royal figures and sphinxes from the pre-Roman era, such as a partially preserved sphinx with the cartouche of Ramses II. The site in Abu Qir bay also revealed limestone buildings, residential and commercial structures, a 125-meter dock over 2,000 years old, a merchant ship, stone anchors, and a harbor crane from the Ptolemaic and Roman eras. Tourism and Antiquities Minister Sherif Fathy noted that only specific material meeting strict criteria is brought up, with the rest remaining underwater heritage.

Man who pocketed tiles from medieval priory as boy returns them 60 years later

Simon White, now 68, returned three fragments of medieval clay tiles he took as a nine-year-old from Wenlock Priory in Shropshire during a family outing in the late 1960s. The tiles, dating from the late 13th to early 14th century, were discovered in an old toffee tin during a house move. White contacted English Heritage, which confirmed the provenance using family diaries and historical analysis. One fragment features a previously unknown dragon motif, exciting medievalists.