The latest episode of The Art Newspaper's podcast 'The Week in Art' covers three major stories. Host Ben Luke tours the newly opened David Bowie Centre at the V&A East Storehouse in London, a permanent repository for thousands of items from Bowie's archive, discussing the displays with curator Madeleine Haddon. The episode also reports on the inaugural Bukhara Biennial in Uzbekistan, with art market editor Kabir Jhala delivering a verdict from the opening and curator Diana Campbell offering insights. Finally, the podcast features a 'Work of the Week' segment on two paintings—Hurvin Anderson's 'Untitled' (2025) and Kara Walker's 'West Indies' (2014)—shown in an exhibition at Michael Werner Gallery in London curated by critic and writer Hilton Als, which explores the life and work of Dominican-born writer Jean Rhys.
This episode matters because it highlights three distinct but significant developments in the global art world. The David Bowie Centre represents a major institutional expansion for the V&A, blending music and visual art archives in an accessible public space. The Bukhara Biennial signals Uzbekistan's growing cultural ambitions and its integration into the international biennial circuit, a shift with geopolitical and artistic implications. The exhibition curated by Hilton Als at Michael Werner Gallery underscores the ongoing dialogue between literature and visual art, bringing together contemporary painters Anderson and Walker to engage with a canonical literary figure, demonstrating how curatorial practice can bridge disciplines.