“On 15 June, Italy’s highest administrative court, the Council of State, suspended the decision by the Lazio regional administrative tribunal (TAR) that voided the appointments” of museum directors in Modena, Mantua, Naples, Taranto, and Reggio Calabria. “It is the latest twist in a legal saga that threatens the Italian culture ministry’s ongoing reform of the country’s bureaucratic museums sector.”
Category: visual
Stadiums Of The Future – A Full-Senses Experience
“As home entertainment systems become ever more elaborate, allowing fans to watch the action from every conceivable angle in ultra-high-definition, the conventional football stadium is having to up its game to lure people from the comfort of their homes. The promise of a pie, a pint and a good singsong in the stands just is not enough.”
How Did Contemporary Art Get To Be Blockbuster Art?
“In this environment, with museum directors under pressure to boost attendance, Holbein loses out to Damien Hirst, Manet to Christian Marclay, Braque to Jean-Michel Basquiat, and Klee to Jeff Koons. Even museums whose collections extend back to the ancients are stressing contemporary art. In the past few years, some museum directors and fundraisers have told me that it has become difficult to find money for exhibitions displaying what some are now calling ‘pre-contemporary art’. Sponsors, be they corporations, foundations or individuals, are simply uninterested. This is, as one art dealer remarked to me, like losing Mozart.”
American Quilting Has Been Dragged Into A Political Muck-Fest
“The traditional American hobby has – like knitting, baking and other skills – been given a new lease of life by social media, through Reddit discussions, online commerce and the ease of spreading tips and knowledge via digital videos. But in recent weeks, online communities and bloggers have been discussing a series of screenshots which appear to show socially conservative quilters organising campaigns and hurling insults about other enthusiasts who don’t share their political beliefs.”
Residents Of Dover Protest Removing Banky’s Anti-Brexit Mural
“The Dover Banksy is an iconic artwork. Our town is the gateway and guardian of the nation—and on the frontline of Brexit,” he said in reference to the mural’s highly significant location, adjacent to ferry terminal that connects the UK with continental Europe. “Dover is this Banksy’s rightful home,” he continued, “to demolish it would be a crime against culture.”
Last Month They Made Sam Durant Take His Sculpture Down In Minneapolis. He’s Okay With That
The artist’s concession has not been without controversy. At least one anti-censorship group described the decision as “hasty” and said that it “set an ominous precedent” that could put a chill on difficult, politically minded work.
Another Noose – The Third In Recent Weeks – Found Near A Museum In D.C.
This time, it was by the National Gallery of Art. The first two were at the Hirshhorn and the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Basquiat Is Driving Sales At Art Basel
Though some dealers think U.S. galleries are putting up prices too quickly, “others are reassured by relentlessly rising values — and by the cachet of buying blue-chip works from international ‘brand’ galleries.”
Architects Aren’t Confused: The Grenfell Tower Fire Was Preventable, They Say
One frustrated architect who’d like to have both more control of building materials and more control for fire officers: “The fire officer looked me straight in the eyes and told me that in his opinion this was a recipe for disaster.”
Where All The Art Goes When The Art Fair Is Over
Art storage facilities have become a big, global business, and one art storage mogul (yes, they exist) estimates that 80% of the world’s artworks is in storage at any given time. Georgina Adam takes a look inside the often-secretive industry.