Art Industry News: Major Modigliani Exhibition Is Busted for Fakes + More Must-Read Stories

The painting *Marie, daughter of the people* (1918), attributed to Amedeo Modigliani, was used on promotional material for the show in Genoa.

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 Monday, July 17.

NEED-TO-READ

Art Insiders Propose How to Fix the Met – As the New York museum searches for a new director, artists—including Glenn Ligon, Takashi Murakami, and Mark Bradford—and other cultural figures offer some suggestions. Their ideas range from the unlikely (taking a climate change denier’s name off the plaza) to the compelling (showing Egyptian art alongside African). (New York Times)

Modigliani Exhibition in Italy Raided for Forgeries – Twenty-one works supposedly by Amedeo Modigliani have been confiscated by authorities in Genoa after they confirmed that several paintings showcased in a major exhibition at the Doge’s Palace were likely fakes. (The Telegraph)

Tomb-Looting Is Surging in China – With market prices for some Chinese antiquities reaching new heights, China’s countryside is seeing a surge in amateur and professional thieves who are risking their lives to rob tombs in search of hidden treasure. (NYT)

New York Plans to Build 50,000 Square Feet of Artist Studios – New York City’s Economic Development Corporation and the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs have announced the creation of a vast complex of artist studios and workspace for art-based businesses at the Brooklyn Army Terminal. (Press release)

ART MARKET

David Zwirner’s Hong Kong Outpost to Launch With Michaël Borremans Show – The first Asian branch of the blue-chip gallery will open with a solo show by the Belgian artist; he is expected to show a continuation of his acclaimed Black Mould series. (The Art Newspaper)

Old Master Auctions Reap Strong Results – Melanie Gerlis explores the ups and downs of the Old Masters market, following the results of the recent London sales. (Financial Times)

Istanbul’s Rampa Gallery Closes After Seven Years – The gallery, one of the top players in the city’s art scene, closed its last show, a solo presentation of works by Selma Gürbüz, in April. (ARTnews)

Winston Churchill Painting Gifted to Vivien Leigh Up for Sale – The floral still life by the art-inclined former UK prime minister is being unveiled today at Sotheby’s London. Estimated at £70,000–100,000, it will be one of the star lots in the September 26 sale of the Hollywood actress’s personal collection. (Press release)

COMINGS & GOINGS

Gwangju Biennale Names New Director – Kim Sun-jung is taking the reins at the Gwangju Biennale Foundation for a three-year term and plans to develop the biannual art event into “a platform for learning and connecting with local and global audiences.” (ArtAsiaPacific)

Sculptor Charles McGill Dies at 53 – The multidisciplinary artist and educator, whose work often commented on race, politics, sex, and class, was best known for his conceptual work incorporating golf objects that he referred to as “The Artifacts from the Former Black Militant Golf and Country Club.” He died on July 9. (Artforum)

FOR ART’S SAKE

Arizona Museum Opens Sikh Art Gallery – The Phoenix Art Museum is home to the US’s second gallery dedicated to Sikh art, which opened in April thanks to a donation from Dr. Parvinderjit Singh Khanuja. (artdaily)

Stolen $6 Million Masterpiece Returned to Italy – Located in Morocco by local police and Interpol, a 17th-century painting by Giovanni Francesco Barbieri was returned to a church in Modena, in Northern Italy, whence it was stolen in 2014. (Africa Times)

Now Nobody Can Visit This Male-Only Island in Japan – The holy island of Okinoshima, where women are banned and men must cleanse before entering, usually only accepts 200 visitors a year. Now that it has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage site, the Shinto shrine that owns the island will restrict entry to priests starting from 2018. (Agence France-Presse)

How One Santa Fe Collective Made $6 Million in One Year – The jury is still out on whether Meow Wolf’s interactive installation in a defunct bowling alley can be called art, but what’s certain is that the 140-person collective behind it is making bank. (Artsy)