Category: visual

Hong Kong and Berlin aren’t two cities usually associated with one another. But this summer artwork by 1000 Berlin and Hong Kong artists will be swapped for large exhibitions. Then, 200 artists from each will visit the other and do residences. Organizers of the project feel there are natural links between the two cities – “both have been politically reorganized and are currently trying to redefine themselves, particularly in the cultural, economic and political spheres; both function as a window (Hong Kong to China, and Berlin to Eastern Europe); and both are in the process of transformation.” – South China Morning Post (Hong Kong)

At a Europe/Africa summit conference, representatives of 52 African countries have asked European countries to return cultural treasures taken during colonial times. Items “in dispute include the Sphinx’s beard from Egypt, an obelisk from Ethiopia and a golden throne from Ghana.” – CBC

Australia’s newly competitive art markets have caused art auction houses to slash their commissions and offer inducements  like “frequent buyer” programs to customers in an attempt to increase business. – Sydney Morning Herald

Groundbreaking for Beijing’s new French-designed $567 million performing arts center took place this week. Plans for an official celebration were called off because of controversy over the project. “Critics of the project say the futuristic design by French architect Paul Andreu is a waste of money and is out of keeping with Chinese and Stalinist architecture of China’s capital.” – China Times

Vittorio Radice has seen Bilbao. He’s seen what Frank Gehry has done for an out-of-the-way Spanish city. And he wants to work the same magic on Birmingham, England. Not a museum, though. Radice runs a store and his great grand shiny shimmery confection would be a tribute to retailing. – The Telegraph (UK)

Belgian artist covered entry pillars of a Ghent museum with 8,000 slices of ham. He hopes that over three months the “sculpture” will attract swarms of flies and be a “living” piece of art. “Good art must stink a bit,” he said. Critics have so far disagreed. – The Straits Times (Singapore) (Reuters)

The Smithsonian badly needs repairs – about $500 million worth. Though artifacts are largely protected, a visit to some of the research and storage rooms on the Mall showed how the neglect could damage irreplaceable collections. – Washington Post

But with its makeover into the House of Britain, it’s fallen down on the job, writes one critic. “Now it is a card table on which teams of spectacularly ignorant modern curators play snap with the nation’s heritage. Here’s a 17th-century portrait of a squat Englishman. Here’s a 20th-century portrait of a squat English dog. They’re both squat, so let’s hang them together. Snap!” – The Sunday Times (UK)

In the 1950s Maxfield Parrish gave employees of the Windsor County National Bank a painting he had done to thank them for the help they gave him, month after month, balancing his accounts. The bank’s been sold a couple of times, and the painting has appreciated in value; it’s worth several hundred thousand dollars. The bank’s new owners tried to sell it, but the townspeople are mobilized for action to save their much-loved civic treasure. – Boston Globe