2011’s Biggest Art Stories


"TIME Magazine has designated 2011 the year of the “Protester”, and the art world proved no exception, from picketing Teamsters, to an outspoken Chinese activist, to artists fighting for their resale rights. With sales fluctuating at auction, art forgery scandals, and rediscovered masterpieces - this year proved to be very provocative!

MutualArt.com presents our summary of this year’s top news stories that grabbed the headlines, followed by major award-winners, humanitarian nods and a special In Memoriam section."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Mutual Art
On:  12/28/11
Website:  http://www.mutualart.com

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Auction Houses See Increase in High-End Contemporary Art Sales


"'The art market is a place for new people these days,' Christophe Van de Weghe, a New York dealer, was quoted as saying. 'There are Americans nobody has seen before who are excited by this world and who want an alternative to shares. And then there are buyers coming in from places like India and China.'"  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The New York Times
On:  12/29/11
Website:  http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com

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Dulwich Picture Gallery saves St Cecilia from ruin – but who painted her?


"The work was bought in 1790 by one of the gallery's founders, Noel Joseph Desenfans, under the impression it was by the Bolognese master Annibale Carracci. Bray said it was "not good enough" to be a Carracci, but whoever did paint it could have been inspired by the Carracci school.

Desenfans and his business partner Sir Francis Bourgeois, the gallery's other founder, thought they had a masterpiece and so wanted it hung prominently in the 'skylight' room of the beautiful home they shared in what is now Hallam Street, in the West End of London."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Guardian
On:  12/29/11
Website:  http://www.guardian.co.uk

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How Is the Art Auction Market Doing?


"Over at Bloomberg, Scott Reyburn calculates that the two major art auction houses, Sotheby’s and Christie’s, sold about $1.7 billion of art in this year’s evening sales, the auctions that typically have the highest-value art on offer. That is a roughly $500 million jump over last year’s total, meaning that, at least at the very upper edge of the art market, collectors are increasingly comfortable shelling out major money for some works (and sellers are comfortable supplying them)."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Gallerist NY
On:  12/28/11
Website:  http://www.galleristny.com

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Preparing Christie’s for a quantum leap


"Christie’s hired Steven Murphy as its first American chief executive in September 2010, when he replaced Ed Dolman (who was made chairman but has since joined the Qatar Museums Authority). Murphy’s appointment surprised the market given his music and publishing—rather than art or auction—background. 'Veteran auction watchers are scratching their heads,' said New York’s CultureGrrl column at the time. Since then, say staff, he has worked hard to win respect throughout the business, exerting a subtle but positive influence on the world’s largest auction house. Murphy, who is based in Christie’s London headquarters, talks to The Art Newspaper about his work over the past year, his plans to introduce 'quantum changes' to the business in the internet age and how he will never shake off those rumours about Qatar."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Art Newspaper
On:  12/13/11
Website:  http://www.theartnewspaper.com

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Louvre's Leonardo was overcleaned, say art experts


"The Louvre is facing accusations that it overcleaned a masterpiece by Leonardo da Vinci, leaving it with a brightness that the Renaissance master never intended.

Two of France's top art experts have voiced their protest over the cleaning of The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne – a jewel of western art – by resigning from the Paris museum's advisory committee responsible for its 'restoration.'"  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Guardian
On:  12/28/11
Website:  http://www.guardian.co.uk

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Old Masters Set Records Amid Meager Offerings


"Record prices were achieved at Christie’s auction of old masters and British paintings in London on Dec. 6. The evening auction reached close to $38 million overall with 73 percent of the works selling above their pre-sale estimate.

The records were made, in part, due to the scarcity of fresh new works coming to the market, with buyers competing over what was available.

Art consignors in this category are tending to hold onto their works during the recession. The vendors are doing their best to entice them to sell with overly high sale estimations, many of which were not met at Old Masters Week this month for Christie’s, Sotheby’s, and Bonhams."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Epoch Times
On:  12/27/11
Website:  http://www.theepochtimes.com

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Expensive Art


"Some of Poland’s most expensive paintings can be viewed at the Art NEW Media Gallery through Jan. 4. The exhibition is entitled Art More Valuable Than Gold and features works that have fetched the highest prices at art auctions in Poland over the past two years. For the needs of the exhibition, the gallery has compiled a special list of the most expensive contemporary Polish painters."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Warsaw Voice
On:  12/27/11
Website:  http://www.warsawvoice.pl

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Two Artists With a Shared Sense of Freedom


"It is strange that the sculptor John Chamberlain and the painter Helen Frankenthaler should have died within a week of each other — he on Dec. 21, and she on Tuesday — considering that they occupy such similar positions within the history of American art. Both emerged in the 1950s and provided crucial links between art styles, specifically helping to forge the transition from Abstract Expressionism to what lay beyond.

Both brought a new, unfettered approach to materials that pushed their respective mediums toward greater expressive freedom, unabashed physicality and a rough-edged, aggressively color-based beauty. These qualities became identifying hallmarks of American art, especially in the 1960s, but remain crucial to it even now."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The New York Times
On:  12/27/11
Website:  http://www.nytimes.com

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Another Collapse at Pompeii Renews Fears About Its Fate


"'This is a torment without end,' Luisa Bossa, a lawmaker from the leftist opposition Democratic Party, told Reuters. 'We have been complaining for three years, but the country’s most important archaeological area continues to fall apart. The truth is that the site has been left alone for years and now, a bit at a time, we are paying the price.'"  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The New York Times
On:  12/23/11
Website:  http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com

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Crystal Bridges, the Art Museum Walmart Money Built, Opens


"By just about any measure, the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, which opened last month in this small town in northwest Arkansas, is off to a running start. The dream-come-true of Alice Walton, an heir to the Walmart fortune, it is characterized by people both inside and outside the museum as a work in progress, with plenty of room for improvement. But there it stands, a big, serious, confident, new institution with more than 50,000 square feet of gallery space and a collection worth hundreds of millions of dollars in a region almost devoid of art museums."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The New York Times
On:  12/26/11
Website:  http://www.nytimes.com

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How Smartphones Are Changing Photography: The Numbers Are In


"'There is no doubt that the smartphone is becoming ‘good enough’ much of the time; but thanks to mobile phones, more pictures are being taken than ever before,' NPD’s Liz Cutting said in a statement. In short, before smartphones hit the scene, most people found themselves without a camera during unexpected photo opportunities. But now smartphones help ensure we always have an image-capture device at hand — and they’ve trained us to take more photos."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Wired
On:  12/22/11
Website:  http://www.wired.com

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Kerala leader's paintings fetch record price at auction


"At the Taj Hotel in the state capital, one of the two still surviving paintings by one-time kingmaker in Indian politics was auctioned for Rs510,000 (Dh35,520) and the other was presented to his daughter Padmaja Venugopal for which she offered an undisclosed amount to Kerala Lalitha Kala (Fine Arts) Academy which put the paintings up for auction."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Gulf News
On:  12/25/11
Website:  http://gulfnews.com

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Art reported stolen is found in owner's St. Paul home


"When works by Rembrandt, Salvador Dali and other noted artists turned up on an Internet auction site last spring, it might have seemed like a sudden boon to the art world.

After all, the artwork had officially been missing since 2007, when a St. Paul man reported that they'd been stolen from him.

When government agents armed with a federal search warrant entered Jason Sheedy's home this month, however, they reported finding those same artworks that he reported stolen four years ago. The warrant and related documents were unsealed this week in St. Paul."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Star Tribune
On:  12/23/11
Website:  http://www.startribune.com

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Art dealers claim droit de suite levy threatens London's art trade


"'Our argument is the same as the chancellor's against the European plan for financial transaction tax,' said Anthony Browne, chairman of the British Art Market Federation, representing some 10,000 art business in the UK, and which is vehemently opposed to ARR [Art Resale Rights]. 'If [ARR] existed worldwide, you'd have a level playing field. But it doesn't.' Droit de suite – which translates as 'the right to follow' – was introduced in France to help families of artists after the first world war and is operational in most EU countries.

It was implemented to 'harmonise' art markets in Europe. But with London as the main modern and contemporary fine art European capital with 58% of trade, the UK cried foul, warning it would be disproportionately damaged."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Guardian
On:  12/22/11
Website:  http://www.guardian.co.uk

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Art market - Still demand for quality works


"The auctions showed that the pressures on the global economy were having a negative impact on sales as revenue was down from the comparable auctions last year . Some works didn’t make their reserve .

There are always exceptions, though, and some quality works by recognised artists fetched record prices."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Financial Mail
On:  12/22/11
Website:  http://www.fm.co.za

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Erotic Art and a 200-Year-Old Condom Turn on Paris Buyers at a Titillating $850,000 Auction


"A graphite drawing by Hans Bellmer was the top lot, fetching €27,262 ($35,500) after a mere €3-4,000 ($3,900-5,200) estimate. Two daguerreotypes from 1850-51 by Jules Duboscq also inspired heated competition. The first, a black-and-white depiction of a naked woman gazing into a mirror, reached €24,164 ($31,500), while the second, a color scene of a young man displaying his erect member to a courtesan, was sold for €13,631 ($17,775). A nineteenth-century lacquer box with an image of an orgy accompanied by a concert of wind instruments soared past its €2-3,000 ($2,600-3,900) estimate, finally going for €8,427 ($11,000)."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Artinfo
On:  12/22/11
Website:  http://artinfo.com

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The Droit De Suite Dilemma (And Why It's Just A Bad Idea)


"Just as droit de suite – the requirement that artists receive royalties on secondary sales of their work – is about to go into effect in the UK, the US Congress has introduced its own droit de suite bill, which would require payment of a seven percent fee on resales above $10,000.  As described in The Art Newspaper, 'The Equity for Visual Artists Act of 2011, would set aside 7% of the price for works resold for more than $10,000 at major auction houses, such as Christie’s and Sotheby’s, with half the proceeds going to the artists and half to non-profit art museums.'

Good news? Or bad?"  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Forbes
On:  12/21/11
Website:  http://www.forbes.com

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Art insurers preparing for busy New Year following 2011 art market boom


"Scott Brady, leader of insurance brokerage DeWitt Stern's operations in California, reported good news and more good news for collectors who have recently acquired artwork form the Elizabeth Taylor Collection or other 2011 event. First, art insurance policies that are separate from conventional property insurance are not that expensive. Rates vary, but the cost for insuring a half-million dollars of art is often less than $500 a year. Second, unlike most auto insurance policies, it is fairly easy to negotiate special clauses that match the particular needs of individual art owners."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Examiner
On:  12/20/11
Website:  http://www.examiner.com

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Four Things to Know About the Nutty New Droit de Suite Bill Introduced in Congress Last Week


"On the surface, the Nadler-Kohl bill seems rational — it's a populist response to the corporate behemoths that rule the art world and give collectors in the 1 percent a platform on which to throw millions of dollars back and forth between one another. But the problem is that it goes too far and is likely to backfire. The tax is substantial enough to cause the auction houses to change their business model rather than pay it, and in the end it would serve to either line the pockets of the establishment while punishing struggling artists, or push even more of the auction market to Hong Kong."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Artinfo
On:  12/21/11
Website:  http://artinfo.com

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DP World Raises Funds For Al Noor Special Needs Training Center Through Auction Of Art


"Children with special needs will benefit from the combined efforts of DP World and renowned young Emirati artist and DP World employee Farid Mohammed Al Rais.

DP World purchased the painting earlier this year and donated it to an auction to raise funds for the Al Noor Training Centre for Children with Special Needs in Dubai.

The work of art fetched AED 25,000 and the money will go towards supporting the Centres humanitarian efforts to provide quality education and therapy services to children with special needs."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Eye of Dubai
On:  12/21/11
Website:  http://www.eyeofdubai.com

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Fayetteville Museum of Art board ready to dissolve organization


"Board members for the Fayetteville Museum of Art plan to quietly dissolve their 40-year-old organization as early as this week, an official said Monday.

Mac Healy, the board president, said the organization has paid all its debts including a bank loan with this month's sale of the 7.5-acre campus behind Eutaw Village Shopping Center.

The property, including the empty museum building, sold for $250,000, according to Cumberland County land records."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Fay Observer
On:  12/20/11
Website:  http://www.fayobserver.com

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888 Auctions to Feature Important Zhang Daqian Chinese Watercolour Painting


"After a successful year in 2011, 888 Auctions is prepared to usher in the new year with its first sale, Chinese Paintings and Asian Works of Art, Thursday, January 12th, 2012. Comprised of over 550 lots, the auction will showcase an enticing collection of Asian art and antiques including but not limited to paintings, porcelains, bronze cast Buddhist deities, fine furniture, ivory, jade and shoushan carvings. Items have been meticulously selected for their fine artistic merits, historical value, and exceptional provenance.

With the skyrocketing value of Chinese paintings, buyers will be happy to hear the inclusion of two outstanding watercolour paintings."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Art Fix Daily
On:  12/19/11
Website:  http://artfixdaily.com

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Hirst, Warhol Prices Outperform S&P 500 in Art Index


"Art by Damien Hirst and Andy Warhol outperformed the Standard & Poor’s 500 index over the past 10 years, according to a new measure by Artnet AG designed to rank the performance of art as an asset.
Since 2002, Hirst’s prices have increased almost threefold, though they had risen fivefold through 2007 and have since fallen, according to a graph compiled by Artnet using its new product. Warhol has performed even better, with prices gaining fourfold and almost returning to peak 2007 levels this year. The S&P 500 has risen about 7 percent in the decade."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Bloomberg
On:  12/21/11
Website:  http://www.bloomberg.com

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Art sales: review of 2011


"It has been an uneven year for the art market, starting like an express train, but finishing slightly out of puff. The auction houses will not produce their annual sales reports until next year, but figures on Sotheby’s website indicate that there has been a 12.2 per cent rise in its worldwide auction sales to $4.9 billion. However, while sales up to the end of July were generally meeting and sometimes exceeding expectations, since September, in Europe and the UK, they have consistently fallen below their estimates. Although there are exceptions, the trend suggests that the eurozone crisis has taken its toll."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Telegraph
On:  12/19/11
Website:  http://www.telegraph.co.uk

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Fern Coppedge Painting Found At Hot Dog Stand Auctioned For $30,000 By West Highland Art Auction Brokers & Freeman's Auctions


"In May, 2011, a man with a small but pleasant oil painting titled "October", fresh from a New Jersey estate, walked up to the owner of a hot dog stand in North Carolina. Alison Bledsoe, the hot dog lady, looked at the dirty landscape of a bridge, some yellow leafed trees and some brightly colored houses. She wasn't quite sure if the interesting painting was worth buying, but it wasn't expensive."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  PR Web
On:  12/19/11
Website:  http://www.prweb.com

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La Plaza stumbles as push for national museum gains foothold


"Television's highest-earning actress and a San Francisco art museum chief are two of the key figures in the bid to establish a new museum on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., devoted to the history and culture of American Latinos.

But Eva Longoria, who will rally public support for a bill in Congress to create the museum, and Jonathan Yorba, chairman of the museum-lobbying group that picked her, also played key roles in the creation of a problem-plagued Los Angeles museum and cultural center focused on the contributions of Mexican Americans in Southern California."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Los Angeles Times
On:  12/19/11
Website:  http://www.latimes.com

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Hearings Shed Light on Pollock Dispute


"Two former Knoedler employees testified about the refund for a work attributed to Jackson Pollock during hearings in Manhattan as part of a federal lawsuit brought by a London collector, Pierre Lagrange, who bought another disputed Pollock paintings.

In his suit against Knoedler and Ann Freedman, the gallery’s former president, Mr. Lagrange is demanding back the $17 million he paid in 2007 for that painting, “Untitled 1950.” A forensic examiner for Mr. Lagrange recently declared the work a fake. On Nov. 30, one day after receiving a copy of the forensic report, the 165-year-old gallery closed."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The New York Times
On:  12/16/11
Website:  http://www.nytimes.com

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EU art tax criticised by dealers


"'Droit de suite' provides artists - or their heirs within 70 years of their death - with a percentage of the re-sale price of their work.

The 70-year limit was introduced in 2006, but the UK delayed it till 2012.

Dealers complain that it has created a competitive disadvantage as countries such as China and the US do not pay it."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  BBC News
On:  12/18/11
Website:  http://www.bbc.co.uk

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As markets plunge, Asia's wealthy flock to art


"Despite the art market's vulnerability to shocks, including the 2008 Lehman Brothers collapse, when unrealistic estimates left scores of unsold lots amid tepid bidding even in the red-hot Chinese ceramics market, Asia's rapid wealth accumulation will likely see more and more money flow into art and alternative investments such as wine.

Asia's wealth management and private banking industry remains a sparkling growth area for many struggling banks, with an estimated 3.3 million high net worth individuals worth more than $1 million, according to Capgemini and Merrill Lynch's latest annual World Wealth report. [...] 'The exponential growth in the number of emerging market (millionaires) ... is expanding the global market for investments of passion,' the report said."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Reuters
On:  12/18/11
Website:  http://www.reuters.com

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Long-lost Victorian painting by William Powell Frith nets $782,680 at Christie's auction


"'The Derby Day' is an early version of one of the era's most famous pictures — Frith's teeming, picaresque image of the crowds at an 1850s horse race, from a rich family in their carriage to gamblers, acrobats and prostitutes.

The finished painting hangs in the Tate Britain gallery in London. The 15-by-35 inch (39 centimeter by 91 centimeter) oil-on-canvas sketch sold by Christie's is Frith's first complete version of the scene.

Christie's said the sale — to an anonymous bidder over the phone — set a world record price for Frith at auction."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Artdaily.org
On:  12/19/11
Website:  http://www.artdaily.org

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Lawmakers Propose Royalties Be Paid to Artists on Resale


"It’s the dream of every art collector to buy a painting from a little-known artist for $100 and later sell it for $1 million. But how does that artist feel? Some think it unfair that artists typically do not directly benefit when a particular work escalates in value, and a bill introduced Thursday by Representative Jerrold Nadler, Democrat of New York, and Senator Herb Kohl, Democrat of Wisconsin, seeks to redress that."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The New York Times
On:  12/15/11
Website:  http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com

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Invitation to Consign: Asian 20th Century & Contemporary Art


"The  Asian 20th Century and Contemporary Art auctions closed on a high note with more than HK$705 million (US$90.4 million) realized in the season’s four Evening and Day Sales, bringing the combined 2011 total to HK$1.52 billion (US$195 million), the largest ever achieved at Christie’s in this category, with a 33% growth over 2010. Average lot value for the season was the highest on record at HK$1.7 million (US$220,000). This vibrant market comprised buyers from across Asia, Europe, and the Americas, and further underscores a positive and enthusiastic response to the continued evolution of modern and contemporary art from all of Asia, including Southeast Asia, now merged into one single sale category."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Christie's
On:  12/15/11
Website:  http://www.christies.com

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Street artist Eduardo Relero's 3D illusions on pavements


"Argentinean 3D street artist Eduardo Relero has created worlds of wonder on pavements all over the globe.

The 48-year-old began his painting career on the streets of Rome in 1990 and has since gone on to create three-dimensional murals in Germany, France, Spain and America."  [View photos]

Published by:  The Telegraph
On:  12/15/11
Website:  http://www.telegraph.co.uk

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Bonhams to hold San Francisco based period Art and Design auction in late January


"Bonhams looks forward to presenting its third-ever Period Art & Design Auction, January 29, 2012 in San Francisco, featuring a strong selection of furniture and decorative arts.
. . .
Paintings well-worth touting in the sale will include a pair of Venetian paintings (est. $6,000-8,000); a signed, oil on canvas of The full-rigged 'James Ray' by Joseph Heard (British, 1799-1859), featuring a ship sailing blue green waters, against a beige sky (est. $3,000-5,000) and an Italian School, Study of a choir boy (est. $400–600)."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Artdaily.org
On:  12/15/11
Website:  http://www.artdaily.org

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Modern Women Artists in Turkey Meet Their Trailblazing Counterparts


"'Dream and Reality,' a show at the Istanbul Modern art museum, pairs 'nearly forgotten' painters from the Ottoman era with some of the most intriguing artists in Turkey today.

The common thread? All are women.

Levent Calikoglu, chief curator for the Modern, said by e-mail last week that female artists 'have a very important, critical and pioneering position in the Turkish art world. One of the objectives of the show was to render this visible.'"  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The New York Times
On:  12/14/11
Website:  http://www.nytimes.com

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ONDARTE International Artist Residency in the Mayan Riviera


INTERNATIONAL CALL FOR ENTRIES

Akumal, Mexico
Deadline: December 31, 2011 - ongoing
Posted: 2/19/11
 
Title:ONDARTE International Artist Residency in the Mayan Riviera
Venue:Akumal, Mexico
Eligibility:We offer a pristine environment in the Mayan Riviera with 8 large furnished suites all with private bathrooms, and 2 huge living/studio suites also with en suite bathrooms and more than enough space for private studios. All rooms have work desks for our artists to create in the comfort of their room if they feel necessary. ONDARTE'S grounds of over 2,000 square metres (22,000 square feet) are divided between the living quarters, the exterior working areas, the temperature controlled storage rooms, the comunal kitchen/dining area and the common/relax zones (swimming pool and gardens). Artists are welcome to work freely throughout the grounds. We are perfectly positioned in the small town of Akumal between the Caribbean Sea and Yal Ku lagoon. At ONDARTE we assist our artists as much as possible in order for them to concentrate solely on their creating. Once a month we organize an open house in which we invite local artists and the surrounding community in order to further promote the cultural exchange between the artists and their adopted home.
Fees:There is a monthly fee of 1,000
E-mail:Alec Von Bargen
Website:http://www.ondarteresidency.com

Muted tones paint the scene of art auctions in 2011


"POOR quality, conservative estimates, low reserves, few crowds and disappointing results. If you think this describes the 2011 real estate market you'd be right, but it also applies to this year's art market.

Sales results at auction this year realised $99.4 million, which is down from $103.2 million last year and a long way from the feverish pre-GFC days of 2007 when $175 million of art sold at auction."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Sydney Morning Herald
On:  12/14/11
Website:  http://www.smh.com.au

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Art treasures leave UK as museums struggle to mount competitive bids


"The committee that recommends export bars on art and cultural treasures to allow money to be raised to keep things in the UK announced decidedly mixed results. With less public money available, museums and galleries struggling with budgets and fundraising were simply not able to mount viable bids for seven cultural treasures, which will all now go abroad. On the plus side, four items worth more than £3.7m were saved, including a magnificent silver wine cistern and an important William IV cabinet."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Guardian
On:  12/13/11
Website:  http://www.guardian.co.uk

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‘9/11 imitation twin towers’ designers apologize


"The firm’s design statement described a 'pixelated cloud' containing public gardens to connected the two structures. The cloud would also house a wellness center, conference center, swimming pools, restaurants and cafes.

The firm apologized for the design’s resemblance to the Twin Towers, saying that they did not see the similarities during their design process. 'It is one of many projects in which MVRDV experiments with a raised city level to reinvent the often solitary typology of the skyscraper,' a statement on their site said. 'We sincerely apologize to anyone whose feelings we have hurt, it was not our intention.'"  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Washington Post
On:  12/12/11
Website:  http://www.washingtonpost.com

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11 Lots From 2011 That Wowed The Art Economist


"The annual fall auctions have just taken place during the week of 11-11-11, and so we've picked the top 11 priciest bombshells from the final "hammer price" tabulations.
. . .
We were pleased to hear that quite a number of people at the auctions were carrying issues of The Art Economist as a quick reference tool that can add some confidence and perspective as the bidding continues."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Huffington Post
On:  12/07/11
Website:  http://www.huffingtonpost.com

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Damien Hirst prepares to unleash another blizzard for buyers


"For his latest art-market venture, the British artist has teamed with his longtime U.S. dealer Larry Gagosian to supply all 11 Gagosian galleries worldwide with shows of his well-known "Spot" paintings, which feature grids of dots painted in different colors. All exhibitions, including Beverly Hills, New York, London and Hong Kong, will take place simultaneously Jan. 12 to Feb. 18."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Los Angeles Times
On:  12/10/11
Website:  http://www.latimes.com

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The law vs scholarship


"The news that a leading scholar felt constrained by legal advice from giving a full opinion on a group of drawings attributed to Francis Bacon highlights a growing fear among experts that they might be sued for giving their opinion.
. . .
'Many experts are reluctant to give their opinion in public because of the threat of legal action, which is in fact quite remote,' says Karen Sanig, the head of art law at Mishcon de Reya, London. 'This perception is having a freezing effect on scholarship. It has [become] increasingly obvious as a problem over the past six months, partly due to the coverage of authentication issues in the press.' With the prices of 20th-century art rising so strongly over the past decade, it is little surprise that these disputes have become so heated."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Art Newspaper
On:  12/08/11
Website:  http://www.theartnewspaper.com

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Sotheby's Paris sale of Contemporary art soars above estimate, fetches $ 15,098,358


"In a packed saleroom Sotheby’s Paris Evening Auction of Contemporary Art soared above estimate to bring a total of €11, 282,250/$ 15,098,358 (est. € 6,600,000- 9,370,000/ $ 8,832,384 / 12,539,309). There was competitive bidding throughout; all of the lots found buyers and three-quarters of the lots sold above their high estimates."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Artdaily.org
On:  12/12/11
Website:  http://www.artdaily.org

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Beware of Online Price Fixing


"Shill bidding is a big problem online. If a person pretends that his/her products are worth more than they are really worth, that is not on the up and up in the world of commerce, particularly in the world of e-commerce. Also, misrepresenting the demand for an item by creating false bidders for an item is also beyond the boundaries of acting in good faith."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Norristown Patch
On:  12/11/11
Website:  http://norristown.patch.com

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Search. Appreciate. Buy.


"Building an art collection often requires cultivating relationships with a global network of dealers, gaining an understanding of the art galaxy's internal politics, attending respected art fairs and auctions and, most importantly, educating oneself on the art of the art deal (or paying someone else to make the decisions).

It's intimidating turf to novices, even those who think they know what they like, but don't necessarily know if their paintings, sculptures, photographs and multimedia installations will appreciate in value.

But now, a steadily growing genre of online ventures is seeking to streamline the process for both beginners and established collectors, facilitating keyboard-click access to fine art."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Wall Street Journal
On:  12/10/11
Website:  http://online.wsj.com

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Embracing Our Differences


INTERNATIONAL CALL FOR ENTRIES
Sarasota, Florida
Deadline: January 9, 2012
Posted: 6/29/11
 
 Exhibit Dates:April 1 - May 28, 2012
Title:Embracing Our Differences
Sponsor:Coexistence, Inc.
Venue:Island Park Sarasota Bayfront
Awards:$3,000
Juror:3-judge panel of professional artists, curators and art professionals
Eligibility:Embracing Our Differences invites artists, photographers, professionals, amateurs, teachers and students to participate in its 9th annual outdoor art exhibit celebrating diversity. National and international submissions are encouraged. 39 artists will be selected for the exhibit which will contain 39 billboard-sized (16 feet wide by 12 1/2 feet high) images of the selected artworks. In the judges' discretion, an additional six "honorable mention" selections may be made. Final selections will be chosen based on artistic excellence in reflection of the theme "Embracing Our Differences". The art-work will also be evaluated on how effectively it will read outdoors when enlarged to billboard size - 16 feet wide by 12 1/2 feet high. Artists are encouraged to use bold saturated colors and strong lines. No limit on the number of entries. The mission of Embracing Our Differences is to use art as a catalyst for creating awareness and promoting the value of diversity, the benefits of inclusion and the significance of the active rejection of hatred and prejudice.
Fees:None
Commission:None
E-mail:Michael Shelton
Phone:941-928-0567
Website:http://EmbracingOurDifferences.org

Prospectus:
http://embracingourdifferences.org/pdfs/2012eodartists.pdf

(PDF format - requires Adobe Reader)

Clandestine Trade


"Two utterly disparate artworks now on view in Manhattan—a centuries-old masterpiece and a modernist grotesque of immense price—are linked by a history that has remained largely in the shadows. At the Metropolitan Museum's newly reopened Islamic galleries you can see the first, the Shahnama of Shah Tahmasp, or parts of it at least. A gloriously illuminated manuscript from the 16th century, generally considered one of Muslim civilization's foremost artistic expressions, it came to be known as the 'Houghton' Shahnama. Why it is no longer called that, why the Met has some 78 of the initial 258 pictorial folios, and how and why the remainder of the original volume went back to Iran in a clandestine swap for the second artwork are all part of the story.

You can see that second work, simply known as 'Woman III,' at the Museum of Modern Art until Jan. 9 as part of 'de Kooning: A Retrospective.'"  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Wall Street Journal
On:  12/08/11
Website:  http://online.wsj.com

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Art.sy’s ‘Genome’ Predicts What Paintings You Will Like


"Cleveland and a team of art historians have spent the past year studying thousands of works and compiling a list of their distinct and measurable elements. The result is the Art Genome, composed at present of more than 550 'genes': attributes of fine art that range from the simply factual (the medium, the color palette) to the undeniably subjective (the 'movement' a work falls into, or its “subject matter”). Using these attributes, Art.sy’s recommendation engine can evaluate a piece on the fly and suggest relationships with other works, presenting those results on any device—even, eventually, a phone.
. . .
By teasing out traits in artworks that link them together aesthetically and historically, Art.sy can draw on buyers’ own taste to suggest other works to them, in some cases circumventing (if not entirely dispensing with) the choices put forward by gallerists and critics. On Art.sy, a would-be collector can select a work of art and get presented with a range of 'similar' work, much of it for sale. And what this will represent in practice is not just more products to buy but—potentially—future geniuses to coronate."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Wired.com
On:  11/23/11
Website:  http://www.wired.com

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Christie's art auction exceeds expectations


"Christie's held a highly anticipated auction of old master paintings in London on Tuesday night, with one of the star works selling for more than 2 million pounds above the pre-auction estimate."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Reuters
On:  12/07/11
Website:  http://uk.reuters.com

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U.S. gallery pays $4.6 mn at auction for Velazquez piece


"A U.S. gallery spent 2.95 million pounds ($4.6 million) at auction here Wednesday to acquire a rediscovered painting attributed to Spanish master Diego Velazquez (1599-1660).

The buyer was Alfred Bader Fine Arts of Milwaukee, whose vice president, David Bader, was present at the bidding at Bonhams in London, though the actual bidding was handled by his partner Otto Naumann, who said it was the 'bargain of the decade.'"  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Fox News Latino
On:  12/07/11
Website:  http://latino.foxnews.com

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Why Is Art So Damned Expensive?


"The top art prices may have little to do with classic economics. Noah Horowitz, whose Art of the Deal is a crucial text on the subject, says in the long run your investment in art may only do about as well as your holdings in bonds—and comes with greater risk. (But, as one major New York collector put it, that’s not so bad, if you have nowhere else to store your income. And anyway, 'bonds aren’t that good to look at.') At this moment, when the 1 percent has the cash to burn, buying art is less about finance than about the cultural value of money, and of art. 'A dollar is not a dollar is not a dollar,' says Viviana Zelizer, the great Princeton sociologist who wrote The Social Meaning of Money. The dollars spent in Miami are 'cultural dollars,' Zelizer says, and that makes them obey their own rules."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Daily Beast
On:  12/05/11
Website:  http://www.thedailybeast.com

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Research sheds new light on Nazi-era art


"Images documenting the Nazi-sponsored Grosse Deutsche Kunstausstellung (GDK) have been made available to the public for the first time in an online catalogue created by Munich’s Central Institute for Art History. More than 100,000 photographs, categorised by artist, genre, theme and, remarkably, buyer, have shed new light on the annual art exhibition, giving an insight into officially approved art of the Third Reich and the collecting taste of its citizens."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Art Newspaper
On:  12/06/11
Website:  http://www.theartnewspaper.com

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Methods for Finding a Lost Fresco by Leonardo Lead to a Protest


"More than 300 scholars have signed a petition to Florence’s mayor and that city’s top art authority to stop a project that hopes to find a Leonardo da Vinci masterpiece behind a fresco by Giorgio Vasari in the Palazzo Vecchio, now city hall.
. . .
war is brewing between art historians and proponents of the project, led by the National Geographic Society and the Center of Interdisciplinary Science for Art, Architecture and Archaeology at the University of California, San Diego. Project leaders have bored holes into the Vasari work so that an endoscopic probe can examine the wall behind it for any trace of the Leonardo fresco."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The New York Times
On:  12/06/11
Website:  http://www.nytimes.com

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Turner Prize won by Martin Boyce


"The prestigious and frequently controversial prize is awarded to a British artist under 50 who is judged to have put on the best exhibition of the last 12 months.

The other nominees were installation sculptor Karla Black, video artist Hilary Lloyd and painter George Shaw."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  BBC News
On:  12/05/11
Website:  http://www.bbc.co.uk

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The Seven Coolest Works From Visual Aid's 18th Charity Art Auction


"On a recent Saturday, art enthusiasts went to SOMArts looking to expand their collection and left with a little bit of good karma. Visual Aid auctioned off walls full of works from local artists, including paintings, photographs, and even pillows. It was all part of Big Deal, the nonprofit's 18th annual charity art auction benefiting artists living with AIDS and other life-threatening illnesses. Each year, Big Deal consists of a silent auction, a live auction, and a numerical system where interested buyers wait their turn to choose one of the various pieces all at a fixed price of $165."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  SF Weekly
On:  12/06/11
Website:  http://blogs.sfweekly.com

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Upcoming Greek and Cypriot Art Auction in Limassol


"Cyprus based art consultancy La Parole Divine organized an auction of Russian, Greek and Cypriot icons and art that will be held on December the 15th at the ‘Four Seasons hotel’ in Limassol.
. . .
A highlight of the auction is likely to be Ian Norbury’s Old Market in Famagusta, which gives a fascinating insight into the life of pre-1974 life."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Greek Reporter
On:  12/06/11
Website:  http://greece.greekreporter.com

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REMBRANDT SELF-PORTRAIT DETECTED UNDER PAINTING


"Advanced X-ray technology has revealed an unfinished self-portrait by the 17th-century Dutch master Rembrandt van Rijn. The portrait was detected beneath an oil painting depicting an old man with a gray beard.

Faint and monochrome, the underlying portrait features strong similarities with two significant self-portraits dating to 1630, when Rembrandt would have been 24 years old."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Discovery News
On:  12/05/11
Website:  http://news.discovery.com

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Tusk Modern Art Auction: Amy Winehouse graffiti art alongside modern masters in charity auction


"Anyone attending the Tusk Modern Art auction this evening is at risk of being star-struck on two counts. First, by the impressive array of artwork by world-renowned modern artists; second, by the guest list packed with celebrity bidders and do-gooders.
. . .
Lithographs by Chagall and Matisse, an oil painting by Velázquez, and a watercolour by Ronnie Wood, veteran Rolling Stone (and the Tusk Trust’s first ever Patron), count among the star lots."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Telegraph
On:  12/05/11
Website:  http://www.telegraph.co.uk

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Is a “Garden” the World’s Greatest New Artwork?


"Abelanet’s garden reminds us that the view from City Hall can be quite different from everywhere else—that, in fact, the seeming logic of its view of things can be nonsensical. To fully grasp reality we need to see how it looks from more than one place (politicians, take note). Like much of the world’s best art, Abelanet’s creation is at once silly and profound."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  Smithsonian Magazine
On:  11/29/11
Website:  http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com

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Possible Forging of Modern Art Is Investigated


"Federal authorities are investigating whether a parade of paintings and drawings, sold for years by some of New York’s most elite art dealers as the work of Modernist masters like Robert Motherwell and Jackson Pollock, actually consists of expert forgeries, according to people who have been interviewed or briefed by the investigators."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The New York Times
On:  12/02/11
Website:  http://www.nytimes.com

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Time to take stock


"Although Art Basel Miami Beach celebrates its tenth edition this year, it really should have been its 11th: the inaugural fair was cancelled after the 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. “It was a tough decision, and we lost $6m, but it was the right thing to do,” says the fair’s former director Sam Keller, who instigated the adventure of transplanting a European art fair to Florida.

There were many doubts as to whether the fair would succeed. 'In the first few years, it was like a baby trying to figure out how to walk. It had an awkward beginning, even though the baby had really good genes,' says one New York collector."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Art Newspaper
On:  12/03/11
Website:  http://www.theartnewspaper.com

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Charles Saatchi: the hideousness of the art world


"Do any of these people actually enjoy looking at art? Or do they simply enjoy having easily recognised, big-brand name pictures, bought ostentatiously in auction rooms at eye-catching prices, to decorate their several homes, floating and otherwise, in an instant demonstration of drop-dead coolth and wealth. Their pleasure is to be found in having their lovely friends measuring the weight of their baubles, and being awestruck.

It is no surprise, then, that the success of the uber art dealers is based upon the mystical power that art now holds over the super-rich."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Guardian
On:  12/02/11
Website:  http://www.guardian.co.uk

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Holiday Ephemera Sale on artnet Auctions


"artnet Auctions presents the Holiday Ephemera Sale, an extensive auction of over 150 rare and unusual art collectibles-many of them one-of-a-kind-from the personal collections of well-known artists and collectors, covering a wide range of periods, styles, and art movements."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  SFGate
On:  12/01/11
Website:  http://www.sfgate.com

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Free museums: Visits more than double


"Almost 18 million people visited the 13 attractions in 2010-11, compared with 7 million in 2000-01.

Thursday marks the 10th anniversary of the Labour government's decision to end charges at England's national museums.

Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt said free museums and galleries 'ensure that culture is for everyone'."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  BBC News
On:  12/01/11
Website:  http://www.bbc.co.uk

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A Gallery That Helped Create the American Art World Closes Shop After 165 Years


"After 165 years, Knoedler & Company, one of the oldest and most prestigious art galleries in the country, is permanently closing its doors. Opened at a time when there were no major museums in New York, Knoedler helped shape the tastes as well as decorate the homes of America’s new class of wealthy barons.

Although the gallery’s history is long and expansive, its statement Wednesday evening about closing was short and sudden: 'It is with profound regret that the owners of Knoedler Gallery announce its closing, effective today. This was a business decision made after careful consideration over the course of an extended period of time. Gallery staff will assist with an orderly winding down of Knoedler Gallery.'"  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The New York Times
On:  10/30/11
Website:  http://www.nytimes.com

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Entrepreneurs launch an email auction site for Toronto art


"Borrowing tactics from Groupon and eBay, three Toronto entrepreneurs are about to launch an e-mail auction site for Toronto works of art.

ArtBomb will send out an e-mail each day to subscribers who can bid on the featured work with the click of a mouse. Bidding will start at under $1,000 but some works will begin at $150. The average is about $400."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Star
On:  11/30/11
Website:  http://www.thestar.com

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FBI art crimes chief 'ordered theft of Monet and Sisley paintings from French gallery'


"The men face maximum sentences of 30 years in prison for armed robbery at the end of the week-long trial in Aix-en-Provence. The leader's lawyer claims they were a bunch of bumbling art amateurs talked into the heist by the world's most notorious art detective bent on catching bigger prey."  [Read Full Article]

Published by:  The Telegraph
On:  11/25/11
Website:  http://www.telegraph.co.uk

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7th International Drawing Annual


INTERNATIONAL CALL FOR ENTRIES
Art publication
Deadline: December 31, 2011
Posted: 9/26/11
 
 Exhibit Dates:(book project) Publication available in late 2012
Title:7th International Drawing Annual
Sponsor:Manifest Creative Research Gallery and Drawing Center
Venue:Manifest Gallery
Awards:$1000 in cash prizes. All participants receive one free copy of the book.
Juror:Juried by a rotating committee of 9-12 professional and academic advisors.
Eligibility:The INDA 7 is open to any artist submitting original works of art or design created within the past three years (2009 - 2011). Professionals and students in all disciplines are encouraged to submit. Manifest is eager to receive works of drawing in a wide range of applications (technical, graphic, fine art, design, architectural, digital, illustration, etc.) with the qualification being that artwork submitted is representative of high quality "drawing," even if it pushes the boundaries of conventional views of the discipline.
Fees:$10 per work submitted
Commission:Works do NOT need to be for sale to be considered.
E-mail:Jason Franz
Phone:513-861-3638
Website:http://www.manifestgallery.org
Prospectus:http://www.manifestgallery.org/inda7