Kengo Kuma Architects Chosen to Design New Wing of London’s National Gallery

Kengo Kuma and Associates has been selected to lead the design of a massive £750 million extension to London’s National Gallery, titled Project Domani. The Tokyo-based firm won the commission over sixty-four other competitors and will collaborate with UK firms BDP and MICA to develop the new wing on land currently occupied by a hotel and office complex. The design features a dual-level approach, utilizing vaults and arches on the main floor to harmonize with existing galleries while introducing a modern geometric aesthetic on the upper level.

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.

The Italian artist who sails from the Island of Elba to Saint Helena: talking about power and making a film

L’artista italiano che parte dall’Isola d’Elba in barca a vela per raggiungere Sant’Elena: si parla di potere e si gira un film

Italian artist Luca Vitone (born Genoa, 1964) has launched a project titled "Pro Tempore," which involves a two-month sailing journey from the Island of Elba—Napoleon Bonaparte's first place of exile—to the remote island of Saint Helena, where Napoleon died in exile. The voyage, aboard the boat Adriatica, includes four intermediate stops (Balearic Islands, Algeciras, Canary Islands, Cape Verde) and is funded by the 14th edition of the Italian Council grant, in partnership with the Fondazione Oelle. The project explores the concept of temporary power and uses Napoleon's biography and the sea as metaphors for control and instability.

In Lugano, there are 5 exhibitions dedicated to the Orient to discover around the city

A Lugano ci sono 5 mostre dedicate all’Oriente da scoprire in giro per la città

Five exhibitions dedicated to East Asian art are currently on view across Lugano, Switzerland. Four are housed in the city's two major museums, MASI and MUSEC, while the fifth is presented by Primo Marella Gallery. The shows feature a range of works, from historical Japanese kakemono scrolls and screens to contemporary art by Chinese artists Zhang Hong Mei and He Wei, and a survey of video art from South Korea.

Sotheby’s Paris Notches a $41 M. Modern and Contemporary Sale, Led by a $12 M. Monet Unseen for a Century

Sotheby’s Paris achieved a landmark result for its modern and contemporary art sale, totaling €35 million ($41 million) and surpassing its high estimate. The auction was headlined by two Claude Monet paintings that had been hidden from public view for roughly a century, including 'Vétheuil, effet du matin' (1901), which sold for €10.2 million ($12.1 million), setting a record for the artist at auction in France.

The Prints Market Is Having a Moment—Driven by New Collectors and a Taste for the Historic

The prints and multiples market is experiencing a significant transformation, driven by an influx of new collectors and a shift in taste toward historically significant works. Artnet Auctions data shows that 50% of prints and multiples lots sold between 2020 and 2025 went to first-time buyers on their platform. This surge in demand is coinciding with major events like the IFPDA Print Fair and Artnet's own Premier Prints and Multiples sale, which features works from modern masters like Frank Stella and Jeff Koons.

sothebys modern contemporary art singapore pacita abad

Sotheby’s held its annual modern and contemporary art sale in Singapore on Sunday, achieving $13.1 million across 62 lots with a 94% sell-through rate. The top lot was Adrien-Jean Le Mayeur de Merpres’s *Weavers* (1953) at $1.2 million, followed by Takashi Murakami’s *Blue Signals* (2017) at $1.06 million. New artist records were set for Pacita Abad, whose *Assaulting the eye with Ecstasy* (1984) sold for $389,400, and Singaporean artist Anthony Poon, whose *Colour Waves* (1986) fetched $129,800. Bidders came from Southeast Asia, the US, the UAE, Europe, South Korea, Japan, India, and China.

guy wildenstein resigns wildenstein gallery president

Guy Wildenstein has resigned as president of Wildenstein & Co., the prestigious art gallery founded by his family in 1875, after 35 years in the role. He is succeeded by his son David Wildenstein, who previously served as vice president overseeing investment and real estate, while his daughter Vanessa Wildenstein becomes vice president and director of the New York location. The announcement was made to the Art Newspaper, which first reported the news. Wildenstein, 80, was convicted of tax fraud in 2024 in a high-profile French case involving the concealment of masterworks to avoid inheritance taxes, receiving a four-year prison sentence with house arrest and a €1 million fine.

report rebounding art auction market 2025 arttactic

ArtTactic's year-end report reveals that the global art auction market rebounded to $4.55 billion in 2025, an 11.1% increase from 2024. Sotheby's saw a 17% sales jump and Christie's a nearly 7% rise. Historic single-owner sales, including estates of Leonard Lauder, Cindy and Jay Pritzker, and Pauline Karpidas, drove recovery with $884.9 million in total. Old Masters, Impressionist, and modern art surged 42.3% year-on-year, while contemporary and post-war art lagged. The trophy market (works over $10 million) grew 19.4% to $1.48 billion, led by Impressionist art up 80.4% to $1.04 billion, fueled by three Gustav Klimt canvases from the Lauder collection.

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.

john moran modern contemporary fine art

John Moran Auctioneers is holding a Modern and Contemporary Fine Art sale at its Monrovia headquarters, featuring standout works by Deborah Butterfield and Joel Shapiro, alongside pieces by Alice Baber, Sandro Chia, Jonas Wood, Banksy, and Takashi Murakami. Highlights include two horse sculptures by Butterfield—Untitled (Foal) (2015) and Untitled (Large Horse) (2013)—and Joel Shapiro's Untitled (1996), all from the Estate of Herbert and Anne Lucas. The sale also includes works from other notable 20th- and 21st-century artists, positioning it as a key end-of-year auction event.

christies four paris art week 2025 auctions

Christie's and Sotheby's both posted strong results during Paris Art Week 2025, with Christie's four auctions totaling $107.4 million—a 16% increase year-over-year—and Sotheby's two sales reaching €89.7 million ($104 million), a 50% rise from the previous year. The top lot at Christie's was Yves Klein's monumental painting *California (IKB 71)*, which sold for €18.4 million ($21.4 million), setting a record for the artist in France. Other artists including Max Ernst, Paul Signac, Lee Ufan, and Berthe Morisot also achieved new auction records in France during the week.

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.

j hobermans book everything is now 1960s nyc downtown yoko ono andy warhol

J. Hoberman's new book, *Everything Is Now: The 1960s New York Avant-Garde—Primal Happenings, Underground Movies, Radical Pop*, offers a sweeping cultural history of the downtown New York scene in the 1960s. The book centers on figures like Jonas Mekas, Andy Warhol, Yoko Ono, and Jack Smith, weaving together experimental films, happenings, music, and the chaotic energy of the era. Hoberman, a longtime critic and curator, draws on his personal connections to the scene, including his mentorship under Mekas, and will present a selection of shorts from the book at Anthology Film Archives in June.

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.

christies riggio modern art new york evening auctions 2025

Christie’s spring marquee auctions in New York brought in a combined $489 million with fees across two evening sales: the Leonard & Louise Riggio: Collected Works sale and the 20th Century sale. The Riggio collection, featuring 39 works heavy on Surrealism, modernism, and Minimalism, achieved $272 million with buyer’s premium, led by Piet Mondrian’s Composition With Large Red Plane, Bluish Gray, Yellow, Black and Blue (1922) at $47.56 million and René Magritte’s L’empire des lumières (1949) at $34.9 million. The 20th Century sale included major canvases by Monet, Rothko, and Warhol, but the hammer total of $409 million fell below the $446 million pre-sale low estimate, indicating the auction house did not meet expectations.

justin sun responds david geffen counter response giacometti

Hong Kong crypto entrepreneur and art collector Justin Sun has filed a new 100-page legal response in his ongoing lawsuit against megacollector David Geffen over Alberto Giacometti's sculpture *Le Nez* (1949/1965). Sun claims his employee Xiong Zihan Sydney stole the $78.4 million artwork—which he bought at Sotheby's New York in 2021—and sold it to Geffen without his knowledge. Geffen counters that Sun is experiencing "seller's remorse" and that the lawsuit is a sham. Sun's latest filing alleges that Geffen paid $2 million "under the table" to dealers David and Cole Tunkl to secure the piece, and reveals that Xiong has been detained in China since February at the Dezhou Detention Center.

robbie williams mono london exhibition opening

British pop star Robbie Williams opened a solo exhibition titled "Radical Honesty" at Moco Museum London on May 1, 2025, drawing hundreds of fans and guests. The show features nearly two dozen canvas works and sculptures exploring modern-day anxiety and emotional vulnerability, inspired by Williams's personal experiences. It is his third collaboration with Moco Museum, which has previously presented his works in Barcelona and Amsterdam. The opening had a pop concert atmosphere, with fans waiting for hours outside the venue. Among the attendees were TV personalities Leigh Francis and Andy Goldstein, and artists Chris Levine and Philip Colbert. Williams addressed criticism of celebrity art-making, while Moco co-founder Lionel Logchines praised the humor and mental health themes in Williams's work, comparing him to Banksy.

amid market uncertainty asian art posts standout results

A review of the top 20 auction lots sold globally in the first quarter of 2025 reveals that four of the five priciest works were either by Asian artists or sold in Asia, a shift from the dominance of Western works in London and New York during the same period in 2023 and 2024. Notable sales include a record-breaking Yuan dynasty calligraphy by Rao Jie at Sotheby’s Hong Kong for $32.2 million, Tyeb Mehta’s *Trussed Bull* setting an artist record at Saffronart in Mumbai, and M. F. Husain’s *Untitled (Gram Yatra)* becoming the first Indian Modern artwork to exceed $10 million at Christie’s New York. However, the total value of the top five lots fell to $73.7 million, down nearly 14% from 2024 and 46% from 2023, amid a broader downturn in Asian art sales, particularly in China.

christies names alex rotter global president

Christie’s has promoted Alex Rotter to global president, a new role in which he will retain his existing title as global chairman of 20th- and 21st-century art. Rotter will collaborate with regional presidents and global chairmen to develop strategies for auction and private sales. He joined Christie’s in 2017 after 16 years at Sotheby’s and created the “20/21” department, which unified postwar, contemporary, and Impressionist and modern art sales. Rotter has overseen landmark sales including Jeff Koons’s *Rabbit* (1986) for $91 million, Andy Warhol’s *Shot Sage Blue Marilyn* (1964) for $195 million, and Leonardo da Vinci’s *Salvator Mundi* (ca. 1500) for $450 million.

The Art Diary April 2026 – Revd Jonathan Evens

The April 2026 Art Diary highlights a global trend of exhibitions exploring the intersection of spirituality, art, and the environment. Key highlights include a new scholarly essay by Hassan Vawda reinterpreting the Kettle’s Yard collection through the religious beliefs of its founders, Jim and Helen Ede, and a major group exhibition at ICA LA titled 'Speaking in Tongues.' The latter features indigenous and diasporic artists from the Global South who utilize art as a conduit for the sacred, ritual, and ecstatic expression.

Peter Doig and Marina Abramović celebrated at star-studded Praemium Imperiale ceremony

Peter Doig and Marina Abramović were honored at the Praemium Imperiale Awards ceremony in Tokyo, hosted by the Japan Arts Association at the Meiji Kinenkan hall. Princess Hitachi presented the laureates with gold medals; other winners included Eduardo Souto de Moura (architecture), András Schiff (music), and Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker (theatre/film). Each received 15 million yen. Attendees included international advisors Hillary Rodham Clinton, Lord Patten, and Lamberto Dini, as well as past laureates Hiroshi Sugimoto and Lee Ufan. Clinton spoke about art's unifying power, while Dini warned of declining arts education worldwide.

How Duchamp Inspired These 4 Artists

Contemporary artists continue to grapple with the legacy of Marcel Duchamp, specifically his 1917 readymade "Fountain." This analysis highlights four modern creators who have directly referenced or reinterpreted the iconic porcelain urinal to explore themes of gender, domesticity, and institutional 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'.

Negative Impressions and Positive Traces of ’20th Century Debris’.

Marc Brandenburg's solo exhibition '20th Century Debris' is on view at the Berlinische Galerie in Berlin until September 14, 2026. The show features approximately 150 works, including early drawings from the 1990s, recent pieces, video, photography, and tattoo editions, all exploring spectral cityscapes and the debris of contemporary life through a process of tonal reversal and inversion.

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.

Remembering James Hayward, LA’s Adored Cowboy Painter

Abstract painter James Hayward, known for his monochromatic oil and wax impasto works, died last week at age 82. A legendary figure in the LA art scene, Hayward was equally celebrated for his magnetic personality, ribald humor, and storytelling. He rose to prominence in 1977 when included in the group show "Less is More" at Sidney Janis Gallery in New York, and was admired by art-world giants such as Dave Hickey, Chris Burden, Nancy Rubins, Ed Moses, and Mike Kelley. Hayward also taught at colleges across the country, including a guest seminar at the University of Southern California, and was a longtime supporter of the LA contemporary art magazine Artillery.

Dartmouth Students Turn to Moldy Beef Jerky Installation in Renewed Bid to Remove Leon Black’s Name from Arts Center

Art students at Dartmouth College installed a provocative piece titled "Something Rotten" in the Black Family Visual Arts Center, consisting of 20 moldy beef sticks arranged into a smiley face over the dedication wall honoring billionaire financier Leon Black and his family. The work, created by students Erik Siegel, Angeles Juarez-Ruiz, and Roan Wade, was removed one week after the exhibition "Storage Room" opened on April 14. The piece references Black's documented friendship and business dealings with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, with the wall label quoting an Epstein email mentioning "jerky." The installation is part of a broader student and alumni campaign to remove Black's name from the arts center, which was funded by a $48 million gift from Black and his wife Debra.

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.