Art Industry News is a daily digest of the most consequential developments coming out of the art world and art market. Here’s what you need to know this Tuesday, August 15.
NEED-TO-READ
Collectors in Hot Water Over Expansion Plans – Poju and Anita Zabludowicz have submitted plans to expand their art foundation, housed in a 19th-century church in north London. The problem? They want to demolish the chapel’s former Sunday school. The heritage advisory body Historic England is contesting the plan, claiming it would “cause harm to a listed building.” (The Telegraph)
Artists Evicted from Beijing Art District – Police forced members of the artist co-op Iowa to evacuate from their homes and studios in the Caochangdi art district last week. Dissident artists Ai Weiwei and Wu Yuren have posted footage of the evictions online to draw attention to the issue. (Asia Art Pacific)
Museum of Photography Coming to London – The 89,000-square-foot photography venue, located near the Whitechapel Gallery, will be run by the Swedish organization Fotografiska, which founded a similar museum in Stockholm in 2010. (The Art Newspaper)
London Garden Bridge Project Scrapped – The $260 million pedestrian bridge over the River Thames has been officially abandoned—but not before $48 million of public money had already been spent on the project. London’s Major Sadiq Khan ultimately refused to pay the bridge’s steep annual maintenance costs. (Press release)
ART MARKET
Outsider Art Fair Paris Releases Exhibitor List – For its fifth edition in the French capital, the fair dedicated to works by self-taught artists will have a special curated section dedicated to art-brut collector Daniel Cordier, in addition to 34 international exhibitors. (Press release)
The Irish Art Market Is on the Up – Auction houses in Ireland are reporting renewed confidence in the art market after years of contraction amid a property collapse and banking crash. Some say they are seeing their best sales in a decade. As one auctioneer put it, “The Celtic Phoenix is in full flight.” (Independent IE)
COMINGS & GOINGS
Are Kanye West and Murakami Collaborating Again? – Takashi Murakami, who did the cover art for Kanye’s Graduation album and the video for his song Good Morning, hosted the musician at his studio three days ago, prompting speculation that the two could be collaborating on Kanye’s highly anticipated next release. (Complex)
Ringling Museum Names New Curator – Sarah Cartwright, who has been with the John & Mable Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota, Florida, since 2013, took on a new role as the institution’s new curator this summer. (Press release)
FOR ART’S SAKE
Pantone Releases New Purple in Honor of Prince – In collaboration with the Purple Rain singer’s estate, the Pantone Color Institute has memorialized Prince with a new shade of purple, the singer’s signature color, titled “Love Symbol #2.” The hue is inspired by his bespoke purple Yamaha piano. (Guardian)
Creative Time Raises Nari Ward Flag – The third flag in the nonprofit’s “Pledge of Allegiance” series was raised yesterday at its East 4th Street headquarters. The Nari Ward-designed Breathing Flag (2017), inspired by Marcus Garvey and the hole patterns of the Congolese Cosmogram prayer symbol, will fly through the rest of the month. (Press release)
Detroit Museums Examine ‘67 Riots – Three museums in Detroit will revisit the riots of July 1967 with a series of exhibitions that examine the influence and legacy of the events 50 years later. For some, these shows are also a bid to draw African American audiences in a city where 80 percent of residents are black, but a disproportionate number of their visitors are white. (New York Times)
MAG Rochester Acquires Bill Viola Work – The University of Rochester’s Memorial Art Gallery (MAG) has acquired a video installation by Bill Viola. Martyrs (Earth, Air, Fire, Water), originally commissioned by London’s St. Paul’s Cathedral, comments on how mass media turns us all into spectators of suffering. It will go on view October 11. (Press release)
Bill Viola, Martyrs (Earth, Air, Fire, Water), (2014) Photo: Kira Perov, courtesy Marion Stratton Gould Fund, 2017.
Bill Viola, Martyrs (Earth, Air, Fire, Water), (2014) Photo: Kira Perov, courtesy Marion Stratton Gould Fund, 2017.
Bill Viola, Martyrs (Earth, Air, Fire, Water), (2014) Photo: Kira Perov, courtesy Marion Stratton Gould Fund, 2017.
Bill Viola, Martyrs (Earth, Air, Fire, Water), (2014) Photo: Kira Perov, courtesy Marion Stratton Gould Fund, 2017.