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who was ching ho cheng 1234744132

Ching Ho Cheng (1946–89), a Chinese-American artist who described himself as working "with paper, instead of on it," is the subject of a revival of interest, including a current solo show at Bank gallery's New York outpost featuring his airbrushed gouache works from the mid-to-late 1970s. Cheng, who lived and worked in Suite 903 of New York's Chelsea Hotel, created spiritual, experimental works ranging from psychedelic paintings to torn-paper pieces and monumental oxidized sculptures, before his career was cut short by AIDS-related complications. His papers at the Smithsonian Archives of American Art were digitized in 2024, and his work will be included in a group show at the Whitney Museum of American Art and a major institutional retrospective at the Addison Gallery of American Art in 2027.

Museum acquisitions round-up: Andy Warhol in an apron, a solid-silver relief and Christo's luggage rack

Major international institutions have secured significant new acquisitions, ranging from intimate photographic archives to monumental silver reliefs. The Smithsonian’s Archives of American Art received over 400 stereoscopic slides by Ronnie Cutrone documenting Andy Warhol’s Factory, while the Germanisches Nationalmuseum acquired Luigi Valadier’s final silver masterpiece, 'Lamentation of Christ'. Additionally, the Christo and Jeanne-Claude Foundation donated 14 works to the City of Paris, including the early sculpture 'Package on a Luggage Rack' for the Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris.

michael h smith dealer curator artist dead 1234762619

Michael H. Smith, an artist, dealer, and curator who played a pivotal role in developing Southern California's art scene in the 1970s and '80s, died on October 31 in Santa Barbara at age 80. Smith opened his eponymous gallery in Los Angeles in 1971, later became a partner at the Jack Glenn Gallery, and served as director of the Baxter Art Gallery at Caltech from 1977 to 1982, where he staged exhibitions for artists including Hans Haacke, Richard Tuttle, and Berenice Abbott. He also founded a consultancy for artists, taught at UC Irvine, and worked as a conceptual photographer whose works were exhibited by dealer Craig Krull.

mierle laderman ukeles maintenance artist documentary review 1234746471

A new documentary titled "Maintenance Artist," directed by Toby Perl Freilich, premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. The film chronicles the career of Mierle Laderman Ukeles, who coined the term "Maintenance Art" in a 1969 manifesto to elevate everyday domestic and civic labor into art. It follows her decades-long collaborations with New York City agencies, including her seminal "Touch Sanitation Performance" (1979–80) with the NYC Department of Sanitation, and her ongoing struggle to realize the installation "Landing: Cantilevered Overlook" (2008) at Freshkills Park. The documentary weaves together archival footage, interviews, and analysis of second-wave feminism, conceptual art, and urban bureaucracy.

art blunk house mariah nielson collector

Mariah Nielson, director of the JB Blunk Estate, reflects on growing up in the Blunk House—a home built by her father, artist JB Blunk, in the 1950s from salvaged materials in Point Reyes Station, California. She describes the house as a living sculpture where art, craft, and daily life merge. Today, she runs Blunk Space, the estate's gallery, and currently presents the exhibition “100 Candleholders,” featuring works by artists connected to the Blunk legacy. Nielson shares how her father's philosophy of functional, un-precious art shapes her collecting and curatorial practice.