“In the past museums would not have acted without concrete evidence that would stand up in a court of law. Today museums are amenable to looking at persuasive circumstantial evidence.”
Category: visual
College Community Is Creeped Out By Sculpture Of Near-Naked Older Man
“Now we’re celebrating near naked statues of older men on campus? Sorry, don’t get it.”
UNESCO Stops Unauthorized Reconstruction of Bamiyan Buddhas
“The international community has reacted furiously to news that a German-led team of archaeologists has been reconstructing the feet and legs of the smaller of the two Bamiyan Buddhas, the monumental Afghan sculptures blown up by the Taliban in 2001.”
MoMA Mulls Making Its Sculpture Garden Free to Public, And Not Everyone Is Thrilled
“The idea that you buy your giant pretzel and walk in off the street is, I’m sorry, just not the same,” says one visitor. Grouses an architect, “How is this different than just a shopping mall with sculptures? That’s where it’s headed.”
After Uproar, Portugal’s Auction of Miró Works Cancelled
Just hours before Christie’s was set to begin its auction in London, the house withdrew 85 works by the Catalan Surrealist. The Portuguese government inherited the art from a failed bank and had hoped to use the sale proceeds to pay down debt – until an outcry arose.
Dallas Museum Gets Major Collection of Islamic Art
“The Keir Collection, amassed over decades in Britain by Edmund de Unger, a Hungarian real-estate magnate who died in 2011, will go to Dallas for at least 15 years beginning in May, under an unusual long-term renewable loan that will give the museum the right to lend pieces to other institutions.”
The Chinese Art Market Doesn’t Add Up (Where’s The Money?)
“Money-laundering, tax evasion and the illicit transfer of cultural heritage objects could be factors explaining large discrepancies that have emerged in an analysis of art shipments between China and the US.”
San Francisco Rejects George Lucas’s Plan To Build $700 Million Museum
“Lucas wants a showcase for his collection of popular art, including illustrations by Norman Rockwell and Maxfield Parrish, and he had pledged $700 million to build and endow the museum.”
Detroit Institute Of Art Gave Raises To Its Execs In The Past Four Years (And This Is Important Because…)
“The DIA’s tax filings indicate salaries and compensation for top executives have climbed 17 percent since 2010. That’s somewhat greater than increases at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, and substantially greater than at the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. Neither of those institutions is getting rescue money.”
Is Fair Use Broken In The Visual Arts?
“Members of the visual arts communities of practice encounter copyright permissions issues in connection with virtually every aspect of fulfilling their professional responsibilities, ranging from an artist’s creation of work that references popular culture to an art historian’s focus on a contemporary artist, to a teacher’s compilation of curriculum materials, to a museum exhibition and catalogue, to scholarly and art publishing.”