Category: visual

“Stolen works of art pay for drugs and arms. The turnover in stolen art is second to the turnover from drugs.”

“The project is not officially endorsed by the Lego company.”

“Some answers the project is now reaching will be surprising: that, for example, the most responsible act of conservation might be the destruction of a piece of art.”

“Illuminations in two Ethiopian gospels dating back 1,500 years were painted in the ancient kingdom of Aksum, and not in the Middle East, as previously believed.”

That is a lot of museums. Then again, how do you define one? In China the word seems to refer to all types of spaces, from state-sponsored institutions to private collector-fueled projects … to the “many new museums … built as part of new property projects to help get them planning permission. Some may never have been intended for their stated purpose.”

“Beverly Schreiber Jacoby, president of BSJ Fine Art in New York, said that while Christie’s did what the city asked it to do, she regarded the evaluation process as “conceptually flawed.” She said it ignored the reality of bringing the art to market in the context of bankruptcy and what would be, in effect, a forced sale.”

The report emphasized several nonfinancial “measures of success,” including six Walker-organized exhibitions, a half-dozen performing arts commissions, and 41 film and video premieres. The center added 80 pieces to its permanent collection. It also sent four exhibitions to nine U.S. cities, where they were seen by more than 190,000 people.

“Sixty-five works in the report, from post-impressionist masterpieces by Degas and Matisse to Roman and Chinese antiquities, carried high estimates of more than $1 million.”

Lee Siegel: “But in casting aside Christ’s garments, the Franciscans made Christ’s nude body a focal point. As a result, according to Steinberg, from about the middle of the thirteenth century until the sixteenth century artists lavished particular care on Christ’s penis, the part of Christ’s body that made him most mortal, and which proved his union with humankind.”

They always said yes and I’d say, “I’m an artist. And artists see things in a different way. And one of the things I see are the signs the homeless have. I’m buying these signs because I see every sign as a story. There are many stories out here that should be heard. Can I offer you $20 for your sign?” They would all say yes, and it touched me how grateful many people were when I bought their sign. I got several hugs and many a “God bless you.”