Art News. Vasari Codex

article news schedule Dec 19, 2025 visibility 23 link 10 artists

vienna museum exhibition religious controversy

Conservative religious groups in Austria have launched a campaign against the exhibition “You Shall Make For Yourself An Image” at Vienna’s Künstlerhaus contemporary art museum, which explores Christian iconography from critical, feminist, and queer perspectives. The backlash, including an online petition and a “prayer of atonement” protest outside the museum, has been linked to a prior attack on another religious-themed exhibition at a Jesuit Church in Vienna. The show features over 30 artists, including Martin Kippenberger, Andres Serrano, and Marina Abramović, and has drawn particular ire for works like Kippenberger’s crucified frog and Anouk Lamm Anouk’s depiction of the Virgin Mary as a transgender woman.

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article culture schedule Dec 12, 2025 visibility 23 link 18 artists

best art world movies 2025

Artnet News has published a roundup of the best art world movies of 2025, highlighting films that explore the anxieties, ambitions, and contradictions of the contemporary art scene. The selection includes Kelly Reichardt's heist film *The Mastermind*, about a man stealing Arthur Dove paintings from a museum; the satire *Auction*, which follows a Parisian auctioneer discovering a long-lost Egon Schiele; the documentary *Art for Everybody*, reexamining Thomas Kinkade's legacy; and Ira Sachs's *Peter Hujar's Day*, a gentle portrait of the photographer's daily life. Spike Lee's *Highest 2 Lowest* also features, marking his entry into the old-guard canon.

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article local schedule Dec 10, 2025 visibility 14 link 1 artist

georgia okeeffe new mexico desert protected zone

A conservation plan is underway to protect 26 square kilometers of New Mexico desert near Abiquiu that inspired Georgia O’Keeffe’s iconic paintings. The land, owned by a charitable arm of the Presbyterian Church, is being safeguarded through a partnership with the New Mexico Land Conservancy and the state government, with a $920,000 award from a state conservation trust. The protected area includes sandstone bluffs, grasslands, and views of Cerro Pedernal, while preserving access for film productions and ranchers.

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museum exhibitions schedule Dec 8, 2025 visibility 23 link 9 artists

nairy baghramian katarzyna kobro isamu noguchi wiels brussels

Nairy Baghramian's exhibition "nameless" at Wiels in Brussels engages in a sculptural dialogue with the Polish avant-garde artist Katarzyna Kobro, whose work was largely destroyed during and after World War II. Baghramian riffs on Kobro's forms with unpainted steel variations that double as plinths for her own works, while also referencing other displaced sculptors such as Isamu Noguchi, Louise Bourgeois, and Jean Arp. The show deliberately leaves works untitled and undated, inviting viewers to discover art-historical references while enjoying the material playfulness of the sculptures.

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article culture schedule Dec 8, 2025 visibility 16 link 3 artists

frank lloyd wright didnt just design buildings he invented fonts too

Frank Lloyd Wright, renowned for his iconic architectural designs, also created distinctive hand-lettered typefaces that appeared on his architectural drawings. These letterforms, characterized by unique features like nearly meeting arcs in 'O's and double crossbars in 'A's and 'H's, were integral to his holistic artistic vision. The article traces how these lettering styles have been digitized into fonts, starting with Eaglefeather in 1993, designed by David Siegel in partnership with the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, followed by other typefaces like Exhibition, Terracotta, and Midway released by P22 Foundry, each drawing from different Wright projects.

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trending_up market schedule Dec 1, 2025 visibility 10 link 3 artists

rediscovered rubens painting sells france

A long-lost painting by Peter Paul Rubens, unseen for four centuries, was sold at auction in Versailles for €2.94 million ($3.4 million), nearly double its high estimate. Created in 1613, the work depicts Jesus Christ on the cross and was discovered in a private Paris townhouse by auctioneer Jean-Pierre Osenat. The painting was authenticated by German art historian Nils Büttner through X-ray imaging and pigment analysis, and its provenance traces back to the 19th-century French painter William-Adolphe Bouguereau.

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article culture schedule Nov 26, 2025 visibility 17 link 12 artists

neo pointillism revival

Santina Semadar Panetta, a Canadian artist, is pioneering Neo-Pointillism, a contemporary evolution of the 19th-century pointillist style. She creates vibrant, intricate paintings that blend portraiture and landscape, using bold color palettes and meticulous technique. Panetta is the only Canadian artist selected for the Biennale di Palermo, Biennale di Mantova, and the Biennale of the Nations in Venice, and her work was recently featured at the LA Art Show. In an interview, she discusses her shift from journalism to art, inspired by the events of September 11, 2001, and her academic training at Académie Art et Beaux, which led her to develop a philosophical and rhetorical approach to Neo-Pointillism.

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article culture schedule Nov 26, 2025 visibility 18 link 6 artists

vanity fair nuzzi unreleased portrait scandal

Vanity Fair has commissioned and will publish an abstract nude portrait of journalist Olivia Nuzzi, titled "How to Disappear," by artist Isabelle Brourman, in its Dec. 2 Hollywood Issue. The painting, which depicts Nuzzi nude with Americana symbols swirling around her, was created after the two met during Donald Trump's criminal trial and will also be exhibited at Art Basel Miami Beach as part of Jeffery Deitch's presentation "The Great American Nude."

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trending_up market schedule Nov 25, 2025 visibility 12 link 9 artists

triceratops gros delettrez dinosaur sale

Parisian auction house Gros and Delettrez is offering a 66 million-year-old Triceratops prorsus skull on December 11, with an estimate of €300,000–€500,000 ($345,615–$576,025). The specimen, which surfaced from Wyoming's Lance Formation, is exceptionally complete with over 70 percent of its original bones and all three original horns intact. This marks the auction house's first dinosaur offering and will christen its new Rive Gauche headquarters, with the skull going on view on December 9 alongside works by Pablo Picasso and Pierre Soulages.

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gavel restitution schedule Nov 24, 2025 visibility 14 link 4 artists

family says firm funding its legal battle for stolen paintings sought control of lawsuits

The son of late Palestinian businessman Uthman Khatib, Prince Castro Ben Leon, is suing LitFin Capital, the Prague-based litigation funder that financed his family's legal battle to recover 135 Russian avant-garde paintings allegedly stolen by Israeli Russian Mozes Frisch. The paintings, attributed to El Lissitzky, Kazimir Malevich, and Wassily Kandinsky, are valued at $323 million. A Paris court secured the works in January after they were seized from Paris-based authenticators ArtAnalysis, which had been holding them for Frisch. Castro claims LitFin is now refusing to pay legal bills unless it gains control of the lawsuits, violating their funding agreement. LitFin denies the allegations, stating it has always honored its contractual obligations.

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trending_up market schedule Nov 21, 2025 visibility 23 link 15 artists

sothebys surrealism modern auction november 2025 new york

On Thursday night, Sotheby’s concluded a week of evening sales with a three-part modern art auction that achieved $304.6 million, far exceeding its pre-sale estimate of $211.3–$289.3 million. The evening featured 13 works from the collection of Cindy and Jay Pritzker, which sold for $109.5 million, followed by the 'Exquisite Corpus' Surrealist sale from Selma Ertegun’s collection totaling $98 million, and a multiple-owner modern art auction that brought in $97 million. The standout was Frida Kahlo’s self-portrait *El sueño (La cama)* (1940), which sold for $55 million, setting records for Kahlo, a Latin American artist, and a female artist at auction. Vincent van Gogh’s *Piles de romans parisiens et roses dans une verre (Romans parisiens)* (1887) achieved $62.7 million after a seven-minute bidding war.

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trending_up market schedule Nov 20, 2025 visibility 17 link 9 artists

churchill painting hudsons bay company auction

The Hudson's Bay Company, a historic Canadian department store chain that declared bankruptcy in March, began selling off its art collection. On November 19, 27 paintings from the retailer's trove were auctioned by Canadian auction house Heffel, all selling well above estimate. The top lot was an impressionistic painting of a Marrakech street by Winston Churchill, which sold for $1.5 million, more than tripling its low estimate. Other notable sales included Frederic Marlett Bell-Smith's 'Lights of a City Street' at $691,250 and works by William von Moll Berczy and Charles Pachter.

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trending_up market schedule Nov 18, 2025 visibility 17 link 8 artists

kurt cobain nirvana guitar christies

A 1969 Fender Competition Mustang guitar owned by Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain is being auctioned by Christie's in March, with an estimated price of $2.5–$5 million. The guitar was used on the albums *Nevermind* and *In Utero*, as well as in the music video for "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and numerous live performances. It is part of the Jim Irsay Collection, assembled by the late Indianapolis Colts owner, which includes instruments from John Lennon, Jimi Hendrix, Prince, and others.

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museum exhibitions schedule Nov 18, 2025 visibility 18 link 6 artists

park avenue armory 2026 program marina abramovic

The Park Avenue Armory in New York has announced its 2026 program, headlined by the US premiere of Marina Abramović's provocative performance piece "Balkan Erotic Epic" on December 8. The four-hour work, centered on nude fertility rituals rooted in Balkan traditions, will be joined by other multidisciplinary works including Céleste Boursier-Mougenot's sound installation "clinamen," Steve Reich's "Music for 18 Musicians" conducted by Alan Pierson, a Simon Stone production of "The Cherry Orchard" set in modern-day Seoul, and a Benjamin Millepied dance piece based on Romeo and Juliet. All performances will take place in the Armory's Drill Hall.

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museum exhibitions schedule Nov 17, 2025 visibility 17 link 4 artists

scope art show miami 2025

Scope Art Show Miami has announced its 2025 edition, themed "Be Here Now," which will take place December 2–7. The fair will feature 95 galleries from 18 countries and territories, including over 30 first-time exhibitors, along with large-scale installations, performances, and collaborative activations. Highlights include a reprisal of The Better Together Bar by Chris Allen Darsow and Al Hamm, a monumental installation by Victor Quiñonez (Marka27) titled "Elevar La Cultura" (2025), Shepard Fairey's "Phone Booth" presented by Mortal Machine Gallery, and Dan Witz's hyperrealist painting "Crown Heights" (2025).

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article news schedule Nov 17, 2025 visibility 16 link 2 artists

epstein files andres serrano

Newly released Epstein files, shared on the House Oversight Committee website, reveal direct email exchanges between artist Andres Serrano and convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. In an October 2016 email, Serrano discussed voting for Donald Trump as a sympathy vote due to disgust over the outrage at Trump's sexist comments. Epstein responded briefly, and Serrano mentioned his exhibition "Torture" in Ireland. The pair had a prior acquaintance in the 1990s, and in 2018 they agreed to a trade: Serrano would photograph Epstein in exchange for a statue.

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article policy schedule Nov 14, 2025 visibility 22 link 3 artists

french art world opposes proposal new taxes

Two French parliamentarians, Jean-Paul Matteï and Philippe Juvin, have proposed a new tax regime on art as part of France's 2026 budget, which would make France the only major art market to impose a wealth tax on the mere possession of artworks. The French art world has strongly opposed the proposal, with 27 signatories including Art Basel, auctioneer Drouot, visual artists' rights organization ADAGP, the Association for the International Diffusion of French Art (ADIAF), and the Comité Professionel des Galeries d’Art (CPGA). Critics argue the tax is technically unenforceable, would drive collectors away, and harm the broader art ecosystem.

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museum exhibitions schedule Nov 12, 2025 visibility 20 link 6 artists

judson memorial church peoples flag show anniversary

Three artists—Faith Ringgold, Jean Toche, and Jon Hendricks—organized "The People's Flag Show" at Judson Memorial Church in New York's Greenwich Village in November 1970, protesting the Vietnam War and challenging US flag desecration laws. The exhibition featured around 150 artists via open call, including Yvonne Rainer, Kate Millett, and the Guerrilla Art Action Group. On November 13, 1970, Ringgold, Toche, and Hendricks were arrested and fined $100 for flag desecration; their case was later dismissed with help from the American Civil Liberties Union. Now, 55 years later, Judson Commons—the church's nonprofit arts arm—is mounting a new version of the exhibition, again via open call, featuring over 60 artists and a week of programming in the Judson Gym.

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trending_up market schedule Oct 28, 2025 visibility 14 link 1 artist

salvador dali necklace sea sothebys surrealism sale

A Salvador Dalí-designed necklace, the Swirling Sea Necklace, sold for €736,600 ($858,500) at Sotheby's 'Surrealism and Its Legacy' auction on October 24, doubling its pre-sale estimate. The 18-karat gold piece, inlaid with diamonds, a cultured pearl, and sapphire and emerald beads, was conceived by Dalí in 1954 and first owned by São Schlumberger, a frequent patron of the artist. The necklace had previously sold at Sotheby's in 2014 for $665,000 to Anne Schlumberger, who died in April, prompting its return to auction.

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article policy schedule Oct 17, 2025 visibility 12 link 1 artist

east tennessee state university cancels exhibition political art

East Tennessee State University (ETSU) has canceled its annual juried exhibition of politically-themed art, "The Fletcher Exhibit of Social and Politically Engaged Art," at the Reece Museum. The show, established in 2013 in memory of ETSU art student Fletcher Dyer, featured works that criticized conservative figures including Charlie Kirk, Mitch McConnell, and Mike Johnson. The cancellation follows backlash from the ETSU chapter of Turning Point USA and Republican officials in Tennessee. Dyer's family, who endowed a scholarship for politically engaged art students, expressed feelings of betrayal, with the university stating its goals "no longer coincided" with theirs but refusing to provide written explanation.

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museum exhibitions schedule Oct 10, 2025 visibility 26 link 43 artists

kochi muziris biennial artist list

The Kochi-Muziris Biennial, South Asia's largest contemporary art biennial, has announced the 66 artists from over 20 countries participating in its 2025 edition, titled “For The Time Being.” Running from December 12 to March 31 across venues including Aspinwall House and Pepper House in Kochi, India, the event features around 50 new commissions and a theme centered on the body, memory, and temporality. The announcement comes after the 2023 edition was marred by controversy, with more than half of its 90 artists signing a public letter alleging communication breakdowns, unpaid fees, and production issues, as well as the Kerala government reportedly pulling out of a deal to acquire the main venue.

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article news schedule Oct 1, 2025 visibility 16 link 5 artists

judge denies motion to dismiss swizz beatz 1mdb case

A federal judge has denied a motion to dismiss music producer and art collector Kasseem Dean, known as Swizz Beatz, from a bankruptcy case tied to the 1MDB scandal. Dean and his two companies, Monza Studios and Swizz Beatz Productions, were named as defendants in a suit filed in October 2024 by joint liquidators Angela Barkhouse and Toni Shukla, seeking to recover $7.3 million allegedly transferred to Dean from entities controlled by Jho Low, the mastermind of the $7.65 billion 1MDB fraud. Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald ruled that the plaintiffs' claims are not time-barred, that they have standing, and that sufficient facts have been pleaded to proceed to discovery.

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article policy schedule Sep 27, 2025 visibility 23 link 11 artists

george soros trump open society foundations investigation

The Trump administration has escalated its attacks on billionaire philanthropist George Soros, with the Justice Department calling for an investigation into his Open Society Foundations. The foundations, which provide substantial grants to artists and human rights organizations globally, are accused of potential racketeering, wire fraud, and material support for terrorism, based on allegations from the conservative Capital Research Center. Soros, a major Democratic donor, has previously been targeted by Trump and Vice President JD Vance, who claim the foundations fund leftist protests. The Open Society Foundations have awarded $100,000 fellowships to numerous prominent artists, including Firelei Báez, Yto Barrada, and Nicholas Galanin, and provided $1.2 billion in funding in 2024 alone.

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gavel restitution schedule Sep 26, 2025 visibility 14 link 2 artists

jackson pollock painting lawsuit molly mcqueen

Molly McQueen, the granddaughter of actor Steve McQueen, is suing South Carolina lawyer Brent Borchert for a Jackson Pollock painting valued at $68 million. The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court in August, alleges that Steve McQueen transferred the Pollock drip painting to Borchert's parents, Rudolph and Pamela, in exchange for a motorcycle and a property in Latigo Canyon. When the motorcycle was crashed and the property title never changed hands, McQueen demanded the painting back, but the Borcherts failed to return it. Brent Borchert, who inherited the painting along with his sister Bettina after his parents' deaths, told the Mirror that the deal was 'hazy' and that he is open to a reasonable agreement if evidence supports the claim.

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museum exhibitions schedule Sep 26, 2025 visibility 23 link 9 artists

suzanne duchamp retrospective zurich kunsthall schirn frankfurt

A new retrospective at Kunsthaus Zurich, soon traveling to Schirn Kunsthalle in Frankfurt, spotlights Suzanne Duchamp (1889–1963), a French artist often overshadowed by her brothers Marcel Duchamp, Raymond Duchamp-Villon, and Jacques Villon. The exhibition, titled “Suzanne Duchamp: Retrospective,” showcases her highly individual painterly practice rooted in Cubism and Dada, featuring works like *Radiation of Two Solitary Separates Apart* (1916–20) and *Marcel’s Unhappy Readymade* (1920), which reappropriates her brother’s readymade concept. The show includes a new catalog commission by painter Amy Sillman, who created digital drawings inspired by Duchamp’s formal dynamics.

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article news schedule Sep 25, 2025 visibility 13 link 5 artists

pussy riot russia prison sentences response

A Moscow court sentenced five members of the Russian activist art collective Pussy Riot in absentia to between eight and 13 years in prison. The charges stem from a 2022 music video titled *Mama, Don’t Watch TV*, which denounced the war in Ukraine, and a 2024 protest performance in Munich. The targeted artists are Maria Alyokhina, Diana Burkot, Taso Pletner, Olga Borisova, and Alina Petrova. They were found guilty of “discrediting the Russian Armed Forces” and “spreading false information” about the military.

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article news schedule Sep 23, 2025 visibility 14 link 3 artists

cai guo qiang fireworks show tibet

Chinese artist Cai Guo-Qiang staged a fireworks performance titled 'The Rising Dragon' at the base of the Himalayas in Shigatse, Tibet, sponsored by outdoor apparel brand Arc'teryx. The event, which involved colored smoke emitted at 18,000 feet elevation, sparked widespread online criticism over environmental concerns. Chinese authorities launched an investigation, and both Arc'teryx and Cai issued public apologies.

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trending_up market schedule Sep 22, 2025 visibility 16 link 15 artists

christies kawamura memorial dic museum art monet renoir

Christie’s has been consigned to sell works from the collection of the Kawamura Memorial DIC Museum of Art, including pieces by Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Marc Chagall, Henri Matisse, and Henry Moore, as part of its fall marquee auctions. A top highlight is Monet’s oil painting *Nymphéas* (1907) with a low estimate of $40 million. The museum, located in Sakura, Japan, and owned by the DIC Corporation, decided last December to downsize and relocate, selling 75 percent of its 384 artworks valued at $77.5 million. The sale includes eight works in Christie’s 20th Century Evening Sale in November, with additional pieces in day sales for Impressionist and Modern Art as well as Post-War and Contemporary Art.

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trending_up market schedule Sep 11, 2025 visibility 13 link 2 artists

lost jesus painting peter paul rubens paris mansion osenat

A long-lost painting of Jesus Christ's crucifixion by 17th-century Flemish master Peter Paul Rubens, titled *Christ on the Cross* (1613), was discovered in a Parisian mansion by auctioneer Jean-Pierre Osenat last September. The large Baroque work, measuring 42 by 29 inches, was authenticated by German curator and art historian Nils Buttner, chairman of the Centrum Rubenianum, through X-ray imaging and pigment analysis. It will be auctioned by Osenat's auction house in Fontainebleau on November 30, with no estimate yet released.

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article news schedule Sep 9, 2025 visibility 25 link 12 artists

school of visual arts transfers ownership alumni society

The School of Visual Arts (SVA) in New York has transferred ownership from the Rhodes family, which owned it for nearly 80 years, to the SVA Alumni Society, a nonprofit that has funded student scholarships since 1972. The transfer took effect on September 1, with longtime president David Rhodes stating that day-to-day operations would not change. The move comes amid financial difficulties, a recent faculty unionization effort by SVA Faculty United (affiliated with United Auto Workers), and reported layoffs of around 30 workers.

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