Politics After Rebuking Statue Toppling, President Trump Signs an Executive Order to Create a National Garden of Monuments to ‘American Heroes’ The monuments must be “lifelike or realistic” and not “abstract or modernist.” By Taylor Dafoe, Jul 6, 2020
Galleries New York’s Galleries Are Preparing to Reopen to an Uncertain Art Market This Week. Will Anyone Show Up? Appointments, masks, and hand sanitizer will be the new norms. By Taylor Dafoe, Jul 2, 2020
Market An Artist Pirated 10 Years Worth of Sotheby’s Auction Data to Expose the ‘Manipulation and Secrecy’ of the Art Market Paolo Cirio is selling digital reproductions of the lots for 1/100,000th of the price they went for on the block. By Taylor Dafoe, Jul 2, 2020
Art and Law Cuban Authorities Detained Artist Tania Bruguera While She Was on Her Way to a Protest Against Police Violence in Havana Bruguera was one of at least 40 dissident artists and activists taken into custody by Cuban authorities prior to the event. By Taylor Dafoe, Jul 1, 2020
Auctions Christie’s Paris Sells Two ‘Sacred Sculptures’ From Nigeria, Despite Protests From Scholars and Nigerian Heritage Authorities Professor Chika Okeke-Agulu and others have criticized the sale using the hashtag #BlackArtMatters. By Taylor Dafoe, Jun 29, 2020
Art World When the Louvre Reopens Next Week, Patient Visitors Will Be Able to View the Mona Lisa Practically Alone The museum has lost an estimated $45 million since the shutdown and expects attendance to plummet. By Taylor Dafoe, Jun 26, 2020
Politics The Trump Administration Has Deployed the National Guard to Protect Monuments in Washington, DC The president also promised a "very strong executive" order punishing monument vandals this week. By Taylor Dafoe, Jun 25, 2020
Art and Law Facebook, a Longtime Hub for the Illicit Antiquities Trade, Bans the Sale of Historic Artifacts on the Platform Ancient coins, manuscripts, mosaics, scrolls, and tombstones are all included in the ban. By Taylor Dafoe, Jun 24, 2020
Art World The Guggenheim’s Curatorial Staff Call Out the Museum’s ‘Discriminatory Practices’ in a Scathing Letter to Leadership The letter, signed only by the museum's "Curatorial Department," calls on the museum to make its workplace more equitable. By Taylor Dafoe, Jun 23, 2020
People The Art World Works From Home: Curator Natalie King Is Taking Podcast Lessons and Making Shakshuka While Developing New Zealand’s Venice Biennale Pavilion The Melbourne-based curator and academic is attending Zoom reading groups and diving deep into research from her home office. By Taylor Dafoe, Jun 23, 2020
Auctions A $10 Million Basquiat and a $35 Million Barnett Newman Are the Latest Big-Ticket Lots Secured for the Socially Distanced Summer Auction Season Christie’s will sell a $40 million Newman in their globe-spanning, relay-style sale. Phillips will offer a $10 million Basquiat. By Taylor Dafoe, Jun 18, 2020
Galleries New York Galleries Can Now Legally Reopen for Business by Appointment. Here’s What You Can Expect If You Visit One Wear a mask and expect some dealers to ask for your contact-tracing information. By Taylor Dafoe, Jun 17, 2020
Art and Law A Conquistador Monument Has Been Removed in Albuquerque After an Attempt to Topple It Was Met With Violence The head of Albuquerque Cultural Services Department explains why this can only be a temporary solution. By Taylor Dafoe, Jun 16, 2020
Auctions Sotheby’s Teams Up With Old Master Dealers to Offer More Than 100 Artworks From Their Inventories in a Pair of Unorthodox Online Sales The sales are part of an emerging lockdown-era trend of galleries joining forces with auction houses. By Taylor Dafoe, Jun 15, 2020
Art and Law A Year After It Was Stolen, Banksy’s Paris Mural for the Bataclan Theater Has Been Found in an Italian Farmhouse The work was taken from a door at the theater in January 2019. By Taylor Dafoe, Jun 11, 2020
