New Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s First Order of Business Was to Hang This Powerful Artwork About ‘Redlining’ in Her Office

Politics

New Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s First Order of Business Was to Hang This Powerful Artwork About ‘Redlining’ in Her Office

The work was rushed over from a South Side museum in time for the mayor's inauguration.

By Sarah Cascone, May 21, 2019

Politics

‘Absolutely Vile’ or ‘Powerful’? Christoph Buchel’s Migrant Boat Is the Most Divisive Work at the Venice Biennale

The provocative artist is showing, as a work of art, a ship in which hundreds of migrants drowned in 2015.

By Javier Pes & Naomi Rea, May 16, 2019

Politics

Bowing to Political Pressure, a Budapest Museum Censored an Unflattering Portrait of Hungary’s Autocratic Prime Minister

János Brückner's depiction of Viktor Orbán was not well received in the country's capital.

By Mia Harrison, May 14, 2019

Politics

In the Heart of the Whitney Biennial, Artists Are Working to Expose Board Member Warren Kanders’s Link to Possible War Crimes

Forensic Architecture's 'Triple Chaser,' as the video in the just-opened show is called, tracks Kanders's ties to munitions used in crisis zones.

By Eileen Kinsella, May 13, 2019

Politics

An American Couple Returned a Looted Painting to Poland. In the Process, They Became Unlikely Figures in the Country’s Fight for Gay Rights

The couple used the media attention to advocate for the LGBTQ+ community in Poland.

By Kate Brown, May 13, 2019

Politics

‘Artists Can Be Guides in This Troubled Epoch’: Thaddaeus Ropac Backs a Pro-European Exhibition and Benefit Auction

On the eve of crucial European elections, works by leading artists including Elmgreen & Dragset and Marina Abramovic will celebrate a united Europe.

By Kate Brown, May 9, 2019

Politics

Enduring a Political Crisis at Home, Venezuela Postpones the Opening of Its Pavilion at the Venice Biennale

Organizers say it'll open next week, but the building remains empty and padlocked, with trash bags piled up outside.

By Julia Halperin, May 8, 2019

Politics

Following Backlash, the Turner Prize Swiftly Drops Sponsorship From a Company Founded by an Anti-LGBT Activist

After a public outcry over the company founder's anti-gay agenda, Stagecoach will not sponsor the Turner Prize.

By Sarah Cascone, May 2, 2019

Politics

Will the Fourth Time Be the Charm? US Legislators Have Reintroduced a Bill to Open the National Museum of the American Latino

If approved, the museum will join the Smithsonian Institution museums on the National Mall in Washington.

By Eileen Kinsella, May 1, 2019

Politics

A Polish Museum Censored a Feminist Artist’s Phallic Work. Then a Banana-Eating Army of Protesters Stepped In

Prominent figures including Claire Bishop and Paulina Ołowska have signed an open letter admonishing the museum.

By Hili Perlson, Apr 30, 2019

Politics

More Than Half of the Artists Included in the Whitney Biennial Are Calling for Trustee Warren Kanders to Resign

Forty-six of the artists included in the upcoming Whitney Biennial have signed on.

By Kate Brown, Apr 30, 2019

Politics

Do You Come From a Wealthy Family? You’re More Likely to Become an Artist Than Someone From a Poorer Background

A recent study based on US census data suggests that artists tend to come from rich families.

By Sarah Cascone, Apr 29, 2019

Politics

Artists, Curators, and Academics Call on MoMA and Trustee Larry Fink to Divest From Private Prisons

Nearly all the participants in a recent conference at the museum signed the letter.

By Eileen Kinsella, Apr 29, 2019

Politics

LACMA Sold LA on Its Shrunken Zumthor Building by Promising to Add Satellites Around the City. Now That May Create Even More Problems

LACMA's building plan has become a lighting rod for the debate over what a 21st-century museum should be.

By Catherine Wagley, Apr 25, 2019

Politics

New York City Is Launching Its Own Green New Deal. Now Museums Have to Get Up to Code—and Fast

The 33 cultural institutions on city-owned property are tasked with cutting emissions in half by 2030.

By Sarah Cascone, Apr 23, 2019