Ruth Hoppe, the modern art conservator for the museum, noticed that the painting had been retouched to cover up tiny holes in it. On closer inspection, she found that there were shards of glass wedged into the canvas. Ms. Hoppe decided to do a more extensive investigation. She X-rayed the work, and discovered something extraordinary: Underneath the “Wisteria” was another painting — of water lilies. – The New York Times
Category: visual
A Conservative Writer Makes An Anti-Market Argument About Jeff Koons
Matthew Scully: “Actually, if there’s political insight to be gleaned from all this, it probably has more to do with inflatable reputations, gullible audiences, and the spell of progressive groupthink — problems that grow only more hopeless with money.” National Review Online
The New LACMA – A Museum For No One
The museum has been through three contentious redesigns before, but the thing it needed all along was more room. Its collection—which includes pre-Columbian relics, as well as modern showpieces like Chris Burden’s Urban Light—was already bursting its four current buildings at the seams. Now, it will be squeezed into a space two-thirds the size. – The New Republic
By The Numbers, U.S. Museums Are Overwhelmingly Male, And White
A new study says that, at 18 major U.S. museums, with 10,000 artworks analyzed, the numbers are overwhelmingly clear. “The study found that 85.4% of the works in the collections of all major US museums belong to white artists, and 87.4% are by men. African American artists have the lowest share with just 1.2% of the works; Asian artists total at 9%; and Hispanic and Latino artists constitute only 2.8% of the artists.” – Hyperallergic
The Radical Vision And Joy Of Keith Haring
Haring died almost 30 years ago, but his art remains as fresh, and as relevant, as ever. “Haring did much more than provide cute cartoons. He was publicly minded. His art faced outwards. He wanted to inform, to start a conversation, to question authority and convention, to represent the oppressed. Those cute figures are political.” – The Observer (UK)
Leonardo Expert Will Not Certify ‘Salvator Mundi’ As His Work
Carmen Bambach, a curator at the Met, says no. “In her forthcoming four-volume study of the polymath – a vast project spanning more than 1m words and 1,500 images – Bambach attributes most of the picture to Leonardo’s assistant, Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio, with only ‘small retouchings’ by the master himself.” – The Guardian (UK)
The Museum Of Tibetan Art Is Every Small Museum In A Battle For Audience, Space – And Money
The museum, which opened on Staten Island in 1947 after the collector Jacques Marchais and a local Italian stone mason worked to find the right stone for a “traditional mountain feel,” is in need of all kinds of things – staff, time, and money, mostly, though the executive director is pleased that grants are coming in. She notes, “Every project takes time and money.” – The New York Times
Artist Tells Facebook And Instagram To Free The Nipple
Spencer Tunick takes photos of choreographed crowds of naked people at monuments and in natural settings all over the world. He calls them “flesh architecture,” and he’d like it if Instagram would quit censoring his art. – Asbury Park Press (New Jersey)
America’s Most-Endangered Historic Buildings
They might not be the prettiest, or the most interesting architecturally. But significant bits of history happened there. And they’re in danger of being torn down or falling down. – CityLab
Museums Are Increasingly Becoming Stages For Outside Protest
It makes sense. As iconic architectural spaces that are mostly free to enter, museums have a lot to offer today’s media-savvy protestors. – Museums Association