Category: visual

Lucian Freud’s most recent painting, “Night Portrait, Face Down,” just went on view in New York and has visitors commenting that the prone nude figure seems to be “plunging down through space.” “The idea is that when you stand back from it you feel a little dizzy,” Freud says. (Freud holds the auction record, at £2.8 million, for any living British artist, and the new painting has already been sold for an undisclosed price.) – The Telegraph (UK)

Six years ago thieves broke into Bobby Henderson’s Cleveland home and stole a valuable stained glass window. It was created by English artist William Morris more than 100 years ago, measures 9 feet 9 inches high by 5 feet 6 inches wide, and weighs about 600 pounds. So it was some feat to get it out of the house. Six weeks ago, Henderson’s friends spotted the distinctive piece of art on the Internet auction site, eBay. They contacted Henderson, who contacted authorities. – The Plain Dealer (Cleveland)

For the first time this year, the Whitney Biennial includes internet art. But “it’s clear that if 2000 is remembered as a turning point in the history of Internet art, it may be not because of the Biennial but in spite of it. It took the Whitney until five days after the show opened to get a suite of computers operational in the lower level gallery, despite assurances at the press preview that the computers would be available to viewers as soon as the pre-show parties had ended.” – New Republic

Given the quick success of British and German web lists of artwork of questionable provenance, American museums discover the internet as well. Yesterday the Metropolitan Museum posted a list of 393 paintings whose ownership histories have any gap between 1933 and 1945. Then the Museum of Modern Art followed suit with a list of the known provenance of 15 works acquired after 1933. – New York Times

DITTO CHICAGO’S ART INSTITUTE: 500 works listed by the museum. – Chicago Tribune

WHY NOW? And by the way, the Presidential Advisory Commission on Holocaust Assets asked the heads of four major museums yesterday, just how serious are you about this issue? And why is Boston’s Museum of Fine Art’s list so thin? – Boston Herald

— trooped before the Presidential Advisory Commission on Holocaust Assets Wednesday to declare their intention to resolve provenance issues. The commission acts as a national body examining what stolen war-era assets exist in the United States and oversees the research to identify them. – Newsday

Boston’s MFA acknowledges that a family has made a claim for one of the European paintings in the museum’s collection that was stolen and sold in France during the Nazi occupation. The MFA responds: “We have researched the claim and found it to be completely valid and have since been discussing an amicable resolution with the claimant. The claim-ant wishes to keep the painting at the MFA and we are working toward that end.” – Boston Herald

Less than two hours after Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts put up a website Monday providing details about seven paintings that might have been looted during the Holocaust, the museum received an e-mail providing information about one of the paintings. – Boston Herald

— four of its paintings – including a Max Beckman and a Matisse to check Nazi provenance. – St. Louis Post-Dispatch

The largest poster art project ever seen in Britain is currently on display on billboards throughout London’s East End. Artist Alison Marchant gathered candid snapshots from local families’ albums and enlarged them on 126 billboards and 85 freestanding posters. “It’s as if suddenly all the houses in the East End were made of glass.” – London Evening Standard

“Ten years ago, we used to have 500 people coming to an opening. Now it’s closer to five than 500.” Art galleries discover that many people prefer the comfort of choosing art online. – CBC