Right-Wing Brazilians Are Up in Arms Over This ‘Obscene’ Sculpture of a Vulva at a Botanical Art Park in Brazil

Politics

Right-Wing Brazilians Are Up in Arms Over This ‘Obscene’ Sculpture of a Vulva at a Botanical Art Park in Brazil

A political controversy has erupted over the crimson art installation.

By Sarah Cascone, Jan 4, 2021

Politics

Trump Threatens to Derail Congress’s Coronavirus Relief Bill Unless Funding for the Smithsonian and Other Cultural Institutions Is Cut

The funding for the museums is actually part of the government's annual budget, not the relief bill.

By Ben Davis, Dec 23, 2020

Politics

A Statue of Civil Rights Activist Barbara Rose Johns May Soon Replace One of Robert E. Lee in the US Capitol Building

The new statue would commemorate a key figure in the Brown vs. Board of Ed Supreme Court decision.

By Taylor Dafoe, Dec 21, 2020

Politics

Ai Weiwei’s Startling and Sympathetic New Documentary Takes Viewers Into the Protests That Have Rocked Hong Kong

The film is now available on demand.

By Artnet News, Dec 18, 2020

Politics

France Pushed Through a Bill to Return 27 Looted Artifacts to Benin and Senegal After Senators Threatened to Derail the Plan

The debate broke down amid a discussion of how claims would be processed.

By Naomi Rea, Dec 17, 2020

Politics

Virginia’s Governor Wants to Spend $11 Million to Reimagine a Confederate Monument-Lined Promenade in Richmond

The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts would be tasked with transforming Monument Avenue if the budget goes through.

By Taylor Dafoe, Dec 16, 2020

Politics

An Iconic Barbara Kruger Text Artwork Has Become a Symbol in the Protest Movement Against Poland’s Strict Anti-Abortion Laws

The artwork first appeared in Poland in 1991.

By Sarah Cascone, Dec 16, 2020

Politics

A Single US Republican Senator Has Blocked the Approval of New Museums Dedicated to Women’s History and the American Latino

Mike Lee of Utah scuttled what other senators expected to be a simple vote.

By Taylor Dafoe, Dec 11, 2020

Politics

Georgia Runoff Candidate Kelly Loeffler Allegedly Owns a $56,000 Warhol Portrait of Mao, and a Fellow Republican Thinks It’s Weird

Loeffler's campaign has denied that she owns the artwork.

By Sarah Cascone, Dec 10, 2020

Politics

Bowing to Pressure, Harvard Will Remove Philip Johnson’s Name From a Building He Designed Because of His Support for Nazism

The home Johnson designed for his architectural thesis will now be referred to only by its street address.

By Taylor Dafoe, Dec 8, 2020

Politics

A Government-Commissioned Report Admonishes the Netherlands for Stacking Odds Against Those Seeking the Return of Nazi-Looted Art

The report cites a lack of "transparency" in restitution decisions.

By Kate Brown, Dec 7, 2020

Politics

After Protesting for Artistic Freedom, Cuban Authorities Detained Artist Tania Bruguera and Put Her Under House Arrest

“We want political freedom: respect for those who think differently," the artist says. "Basic stuff!”

By Brian Boucher, Dec 7, 2020

Politics

France Rules Out Expanding Its ‘Culture Pass’ Program, Which Gives Youth a €500 Credit to Spend on Cultural Activities

Officials say the funding is more urgently needed elsewhere.

By Kate Brown, Dec 3, 2020

Politics

An Explosive Debate Has Roiled Denmark After a Department Head at Its Top Art Academy Was Fired for Drowning a Bust of a Former King

The artist, who bagged the bust and dumped it in a canal, says her intention was to spark a debate about Denmark's colonial legacy.

By Kate Brown, Dec 2, 2020

Politics

‘Nobody Could Remain Silent’: The Killing of an Artist and Activist in Belarus Has Added Fuel to Widespread Protests Against the Government

The country's president was recently re-elected in a widely disputed election.

By Kate Brown & Naomi Rea, Dec 1, 2020