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Artnet News has published a list of the top 10 German art collectors, coinciding with the opening of Art Cologne 2015. The list includes notable figures such as Frieder Burda, who opened his own museum in Baden-Baden; Nicolas Berggruen, the "homeless billionaire" who favors contemporary American and German artists; Christian and Karen Boros, who display their collection in a repurposed Berlin bunker; industrialist Reinhold Würth, whose collection spans from Renaissance to contemporary; former dealer Désiré Feuerle, known for his eclectic mix of Khmer sculpture and contemporary art; and Hasso Plattner, co-founder of SAP and a major collector of Impressionist and modern works.

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Rachel Harrison's recent exhibition "The Friedmann Equations" at Greene Naftali in New York was a highlight of 2025, featuring her signature brainy, oblique, and funny sculptures and drawings. The show included works alluding to Marcel Duchamp and his alter-ego Rrose Sélavy, as well as drawings riffing on Hans Holbein's portraits of Henry VIII and his court. During a visit to the gallery, Harrison's dealer Carol Greene handed the author a copy of Harrison's new children's book, "Hold Still, Henry!", which reproduces those Holbein-inspired drawings in a board-book format for young readers. The book is published by Rookie Books, a small press founded in 2022 by artist Camillo Paravicini of Basel, Switzerland, who has previously worked with artists like Monster Chetwynd, Martin Parr, and Nathalie Du Pasquier.

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A significant trend is emerging in the New York art scene this winter, as a wave of gallery and museum exhibitions highlights contemporary artists engaging deeply with European Old Masters. While some critics dismiss art historical references as "reference-baiting" to boost market value, artists like Émile Brunet and Eleanor Johnson are demonstrating a profound technical and intellectual commitment to these lineages. Their work moves beyond mere pastiche, utilizing traditional materials, Northern Renaissance aesthetics, and Baroque glazing techniques to address modern themes of labor, humanism, and information overload.

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Jacqueline Humphries's survey exhibition at the Aspen Art Museum features her painting installation "TSLA" (2025), a five-panel work hung on bare metal studs that bisects the gallery space. The installation plays with perception through mirrors and anamorphic imagery, including a distorted Tesla logo, and includes a hidden set of red paintings visible only as reflections. The show also presents nine smaller works generated in part by artificial intelligence, housed in a green-walled adjacent room.

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David Hockney, the legendary British artist, turns 88 on July 9, and Artnet News reflects on his seven-decade career of rule-breaking. The article highlights eight key moments of defiance, including his openness about his homosexuality before decriminalization in the U.K., his public smoking habit that led to a Paris Metro ad being pulled, and his controversial "Hockney-Falco thesis" arguing that Old Masters used optical tools like the camera lucida. Hockney currently ranks third on the Artnet Intelligence Report for best-selling and most bankable postwar artists, and his largest-ever exhibition is on view at the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris.

Rare Portraits Reveal How Elizabeth I Turned Image Into Power

Philip Mould & Company in London is hosting a new exhibition titled "Elizabeth I: Queen and Court," featuring four rare portraits of the Tudor monarch alongside depictions of her closest advisors and political rivals. The show traces Elizabeth's visual evolution from a pious young princess to a formidable, iconographic ruler, highlighting how she utilized fashion and symbolism to solidify her authority and manage public perception during a period of immense political and religious transition.

Frieze London diary: art historical speed dating and frozen faeces

During Frieze week in London, the National Gallery hosted its 'Unexpected Views' talk series, where eight contemporary artists including Grayson Perry, Shirazeh Houshiary, and Haegue Yang gave ten-minute talks on their favorite works. Tracey Emin and British Museum director Nicholas Cullinan held a candid discussion titled 'Confessions in the Museum,' and the art collective Konn Artiss placed ice blocks containing frozen feces outside major galleries and auction houses as a protest against the art market. The week also featured a lavish Frieze Collectors' Dinner with guests including Ari Emanuel, Sadie Coles, and Christian Levett, and a secret performance by musician Sampha.

Kerry James Marshall offers a fresh lesson in art history at his London retrospective

Kerry James Marshall's retrospective 'The Histories' opens at the Royal Academy of Arts in London, featuring over 80 works spanning his career. The exhibition, co-curated by Mark Godfrey and Adrian Locke, includes early pieces like 'A Portrait of the Artist as a Shadow of His Former Self' (1980) and recent paintings exploring African history and the transatlantic slave trade. After London, the show travels to Kunsthaus Zürich and the Musée d'Art Moderne in Paris, timed to Marshall's 70th birthday.

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Artnet News asked leading curators and museum directors to share their favorite artworks of all time. Connie Butler of MoMA PS1 chose David Hammons's "Bliz-aard Ball Sale" (1983), praising its connection from Duchamp to AI. Julieta Gonzalez of the Wexner Center selected Hans Holbein the Younger's "The Ambassadors" (1533), highlighting its anamorphic skull as a metaphor for viewing modernity from the margins. Madeleine Grynsztejn of MCA Chicago picked Francisco Goya's "A Pilgrimage to San Isidro" (1819–23) from his Black Paintings cycle, calling it a metaphor for fanaticism.

Can Art Feel?

Hyperallergic's newsletter explores the question of whether artworks can possess personhood, drawing on Lisa Siraganian's essay that references the 2010 Citizens United Supreme Court decision and Pierre Huyghe's uncanny human statues. Other featured pieces include Ed Simon's review of Elizabeth Goldring's new book on Hans Holbein the Younger, Michael Glover's introduction to George Stubbs's equine portraits at the National Gallery in London, and news of a historic $116M gift to the National Gallery of Art for an artwork lending program. The newsletter also covers Byron Kim's exhibition at James Cohan Gallery, the new V&A East museum in London, and obituaries for Desmond Morris, James Hayward, and Flo Oy Wong.

The Enigma of Alison Knowles

Lauren Moya Ford reviews the only book dedicated to Fluxus artist Alison Knowles, who died six months ago. The book, "Performing Chance: The Art of Alison Knowles In/Out of Fluxus" by Nicole L. Woods (2026), attempts to illuminate Knowles's life and work, but Ford notes that much of her personal life remains mysterious despite the author's efforts. The article is part of a broader books newsletter that also features new tomes on Hans Holbein’s portraits, Jan Staller’s photographs of Manhattan construction sites, and a discussion of a Black Panther family album at the Studio Museum in Harlem.

Early 2026 Art Books From Yale University Press

Yale University Press has announced its early 2026 art book lineup, featuring exhibition catalogues such as "Raphael: Sublime Poetry" from The Metropolitan Museum of Art, "Gwen John: Strange Beauties" from the Yale Center for British Art, "Edward Steichen and the Garden" from the George Eastman Museum, and "Frederic Church: Global Artist" from Olana NY State Historic Site. New releases also include a biography of Anni Albers by Nicholas Fox Weber, a catalogue titled "Anni Albers: Constructing Textiles" accompanying a European traveling exhibition, and Alyce Mahon's "Dorothea Tanning: A Surrealist Life," named a Best New Art Book of 2026 by Christie's. The press will hold a 50% off annual sale in May.

Venice, Here We Come

Hyperallergic's newsletter previews the upcoming 61st Venice Biennale, noting the charged political climate that may overshadow the art. It highlights the main exhibition "In Minor Keys" conceived by the late Koyo Kouoh, and includes a guide to national pavilions, collateral events, and notable exhibitions in Venice. The edition also features a studio visit with 93-year-old artist Joan Semmel, an interview with Lebanese artist Tania El Khoury about her "revenge art," and news about Barbara Chase-Riboud declining to represent the US at the Biennale, a $116M gift to the National Gallery of Art, and the death of Argentine painter Ides Kihlen at 108.

Gearing Up for Venice

The 2026 Venice Biennale's awards jury has announced it will not consider artists from countries whose leaders are charged with crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court, specifically naming Israel and Russia. In other news, satellite imagery confirms Azerbaijan demolished an Armenian church in Artsakh, the World Press Photo of the Year was awarded to Carol Guzy for an image of ICE detaining a father, and Argentine abstract painter Ides Kihlen died at age 108. Hyperallergic also published a guide to the Biennale by Hrag Vartanian and reported on Lynda Roscoe Hartigan's appointment as director of the Smithsonian American Art Museum.

AI Helps UK Researchers Identify Unknown Subject in Hans Holbein Drawing as Anne Boleyn

Researchers Karen L. Davies and Hassan Ugail used artificial intelligence facial recognition to analyze two Hans Holbein drawings from the Royal Collection Trust. Their study, published in npj Heritage Science, suggests that a portrait previously labeled as Anne Boleyn actually depicts her mother, Elizabeth Howard, while a drawing cataloged as an unidentified woman is the true likeness of Anne Boleyn. The findings challenge long-held identifications based on 18th-century inscriptions and align more closely with contemporary descriptions of Boleyn as slender with dark hair.

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The British Museum has launched a high-profile fundraising campaign to acquire the Tudor Heart, a gold pendant from the early reign of Henry VIII, discovered by amateur metal detectorist Charlie Clarke in Warwickshire in 2019. The museum needs to raise £3.5 million ($4.6 million) by early next year to secure the piece, which features symbols of Henry VIII and Katherine of Aragon and is described as the only surviving Tudor jewelry of its kind. Actor Damian Lewis and historian Mary Beard are supporting the appeal, and the museum will host its first British Museum Ball on October 18 to further fundraising efforts.

A.I. Identifies Holbein Drawing as Possible Portrait of Anne Boleyn

Researchers at the University of Bradford have used artificial intelligence to analyze preparatory drawings by Hans Holbein the Younger in the Royal Collection at Windsor Castle. The AI model, which previously identified a forgotten Raphael painting, suggests that a drawing long believed to depict Anne Boleyn actually shows her mother, Elizabeth Howard, while another drawing labeled "Unidentified Woman" likely portrays Anne Boleyn herself. The findings, published in Heritage Science, are based on biometric analysis of facial features, bone architecture, and proportional relationships, offering quantifiable evidence to resolve long-standing scholarly uncertainty about the sitters' identities.

Mystery sitter in Holbein portrait could be Anne Boleyn, AI analysis finds

Researchers using AI have analyzed two Renaissance sketches by Hans Holbein from the Royal Collection, known as the Windsor sketch and the Unidentified Woman. The AI model, developed by Professor Hassan Ugail at the University of Bradford, compared the entire Holbein corpus and found that the Unidentified Woman may actually be Anne Boleyn, while the Windsor sketch—long thought to depict Boleyn—may instead show her mother, Elizabeth Howard. The study suggests the works were incorrectly inscribed in the 1700s, leading to centuries of misidentification.

Hans Holbein Painted the Human

A new book, 'Holbein: Renaissance Master' by Elizabeth Goldring, published by Yale University Press and the Paul Mellon Centre, offers a comprehensive scholarly examination of the 16th-century German painter Hans Holbein the Younger. The review focuses on Holbein's masterful portraiture, particularly his depictions of opposing Tudor-era figures like Sir Thomas More and Thomas Cromwell, which are highlighted as embodying the era's complex political and religious tensions through their visual presentation at the Frick Collection in New York.

Anne Boleyn Exhibition at Hever Castle

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Hever Castle has launched "Capturing a Queen: The Image of Anne Boleyn," a landmark exhibition exploring the visual legacy of King Henry VIII’s second wife at her childhood home. The show brings together an unprecedented collection of portraits, woodcuts, and costumes to challenge the long-held myth that all contemporary likenesses of Anne were destroyed after her execution. Key highlights include infrared analysis of the 1583 "Rose" Portrait and research suggesting that some famous posthumous depictions actually blended her features with those of her daughter, Elizabeth I, to solidify Tudor legitimacy.

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New research by Tudor historian Owen Emmerson suggests that the most famous portrait of Anne Boleyn, displayed at London’s National Portrait Gallery, actually depicts her daughter Queen Elizabeth I. Emmerson argues the late-16th-century painting was deliberately made to resemble Elizabeth I, reinforcing a legitimate Tudor succession. The theory is supported by comparisons with another portrait of Elizabeth at Compton Verney and by Lawrence Hendra of Philip Mould gallery. An upcoming exhibition at Hever Castle, "Capturing a Queen: The Image of Anne Boleyn," will present this and other evidence, alongside newly identified contemporaneous images of Boleyn, including a miniature from the British Museum and a drawing by Hans Holbein the Younger.

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A new biography by art historian Elizabeth Goldring, titled "Holbein: Renaissance Master," traces the journey of German painter Hans Holbein the Younger from his humble beginnings in Augsburg to becoming the official painter of King Henry VIII in Tudor England. The book, already released in the U.K. and hitting U.S. bookshops on January 6, examines how Holbein's portraits—including the iconic image of Henry VIII and rival courtiers Thomas More and Thomas Cromwell—defined the visual legacy of the Tudor dynasty. Goldring highlights Holbein's ability to confer power through paint, with his works still shaping global perceptions of the Tudors centuries later.

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A 16th-century portrait of Thomas Howard, the 4th Duke of Norfolk, by Hans Eworth sold for £3.2 million ($4.2 million) at Sotheby’s Old Masters sale in London on December 4, setting a record as the most expensive Elizabethan portrait ever sold. The painting was purchased by the art advisory Clore Wyndham on behalf of the Duke of Norfolk and the trustees of Arundel Castle, where it will be displayed. The work, painted in 1562, depicts Norfolk at the height of his political power, dressed in opulent Tudor fashion, and is one of only two known portraits of him.

Exhibition | Catherine Opie, 'To Be Seen' at National Portrait Gallery, London, United Kingdom

The National Portrait Gallery in London is hosting "To Be Seen," the first major UK museum exhibition dedicated to the American photographer Catherine Opie. Curated in collaboration with the artist, the show spans over 30 years of work, including her seminal 1991 series "Being and Having" and her Holbein-inspired portraits of the LGBTQ+ community. The exhibition is further expanded through a series of interventions where Opie’s contemporary photographs are placed in direct dialogue with the gallery’s permanent collection.

Twisting tale of ‘Henry VIII’s lost dagger’ to be told in London exhibition

An exhibition opening at Strawberry Hill House in London on November 1 will explore the history of a jewel-encrusted Ottoman dagger long believed to have belonged to Henry VIII. Curator Silvia Davoli has uncovered that the dagger was actually made in late 16th-century Istanbul, decades after Henry's death, and was mistakenly attributed to the king by 18th-century engraver George Vertue. The dagger was owned by Horace Walpole, then passed through several hands before being stolen in a 1946 heist at Hever Castle, where it was kept by the Astor family. Though the original dagger remains missing, the exhibition will display two similar Ottoman daggers from Welbeck Abbey and Vienna's Kunsthistorisches Museum.

Banking family’s treasures go on show at Bath’s Holburne Museum

Nearly 200 Old Master treasures from the Schroder Collection, amassed by the late banker Bruno Schroder and his family over more than a century, will go on long-term display at the Holburne Museum in Bath, UK, starting 10 September. The collection includes silver, maiolica, and paintings by artists such as Lucas Cranach the Elder and Hans Holbein the Elder, many shown publicly for the first time. The loan was facilitated by Bruno’s daughter Leonie, who requested the works remain in the UK and be placed in a regional museum rather than London.

Holbein drawings go back on show at Kunstmuseum Basel after almost 20 years

The Kunstmuseum Basel has reinstalled a collection of extremely fragile Hans Holbein drawings in a dedicated gallery as part of a major rehang of its 14th- to 19th-century galleries. The works, mostly preparatory studies by the Northern Renaissance painter, have not been publicly displayed for nearly 20 years and are so light-sensitive that the gallery's lighting system activates only when visitors enter. The museum's director, Elena Filipovic, notes that the drawings entered the collection in 1661 and have been kept undercover since the 1980s, last appearing in a major Holbein exhibition in 2006.

Holbein biography interrogates the artist's life and work from a different angle

Elizabeth Goldring’s new biography of Hans Holbein the Younger takes a documentary-focused approach, prioritizing archival evidence over visual analysis. The book examines Holbein’s life (1497/8–1543) through chronological chapters, using inventories, correspondence, and other records to correct long-held assumptions and propose new theories about his work. Goldring’s detective work includes identifying the green curtain in Holbein’s portrait of Sir Thomas More as a reference to the sitter’s role as chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, and suggesting that a lost painting of the More family was given to Erasmus as a gift.