Category: visual

Germany has only recently begun to come to terms with what to do with art stolen during the Nazi era. But finding solutions is problematic. “What was legal in this criminal era? Was there a semi-normality and a decent, civil art market in the early years of the Nazi regime? This might be determined on the basis of the prices obtained on the art market. Or should all sales of art owned by Jews after 1933 be regarded as ‘a result of persecution’?” – Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung

Wall texts in museums have gotten completely out of hand. People spend more time reading the text than they do looking at the art. Is it time to cut back? A critic talks the issue over with a curator. – The Globe and Mail (Canada)

As the major auction houses gear up for their big fall sales over the next two weeks, a third player is giving them a run for their money. “The historical tug-of-war between Sotheby’s and Christie’s has turned into an expensive three-way fight. Since LVMH bought Phillips, the London-based auction house a year ago, it has been going after property at any cost, dipping into LVMH’s deep pockets to become a major player.” – New York Times

Once the center of the art auction world, France has handled only 5% of international art sales in recent decades due to an antiquated, protectionist system that has prohibited foreign auction houses from selling in Paris. But now imminent reforms will soon end French auctioneers’ monopoly and open the door to a more vibrant art market. “Many new foreign dealers have already opened branches in Paris in recent months and are eagerly awaiting the starting gun.” – The Age (Melbourne) (DPA)

“Quietly, in little-noticed legal maneuvers over the past two years and with the silent blessing of the City Council, the social contract Kimbell forged with Fort Worth has been dismantled. Few noticed, but the change meant that the people no longer held ultimate claim to the museum and its collection.” The final step came on August 15, when the Fort Worth City Council voted away protections that would keep the museum in town. – Fort Worth Weekly

President Clinton has signed a bill to change the name of the National Museum of American Art to the Smithsonian American Art Museum, which will affect all 22 museums and research institutes run by the Smithsonian Institution. “As we send more and more traveling exhibits across the country and create affiliations with museums in all 50 states, it’s important for people to be able to recognize instantly that the Smithsonian has come to their town.” – New Jersey Online (AP)

What are the elements that make a successful world’s fair? The Hannover World’s Fair is about to end. “No one will consider it one of the best, despite the unexpected increase in attendance over the last few weeks and although paying visitors were always more impressed than the critics who received complimentary tickets.”- Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung

There are more engineers studying how to fix the wobble in Norman Foster’s Millennium footbridge across the Thames than there are people who have been to the Millennium Dome. “Yet the £5 million currently quoted for a remedy to the famous wobble is a colossal sum compared both to the original estimate of £9 million and the much increased ‘final’ figure of £18 million. – The Times (UK)

Germany’s 80-year-old Bauhaus design movement, whose guiding principle of “less is more” was popularized in the ‘20s, is inspiring a whole new generation of designers ready Sto apply its tenets to enlivening urban architecture and creating affordable design choices for the average city dweller. “The idea here is not to reproduce the Bauhaus. The idea now is to try to pick up where it was before it suffered an unnatural death and apply it to today’s challenges presented by globalization.” – Los Angeles Times

“The J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles has been blocked by a judge from building renovations and additions to its villa overlooking the Pacific Ocean. At issue is the $150 million project to modernise the Roman-style structure that opened in 1974 as the original J. Paul Getty Museum. The museum stands on what is officially classified agricultural land.” – The Art Newspaper