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 on this Friday, June 10.
NEED-TO-READ
Alexandre Arnault on Cultural Relevance’s Importance to Brands – An exhibition that opens today at London’s Saatchi Gallery looks at how pop culture has intersected with the Tiffany jewelry brand—from Audrey Hepburn window-shopping to Emma Raducanu playing grand slam tennis in a Tiffany cross necklace. “We can’t get so scared that we don’t do anything exciting,” LVMH heir Alexandre Arnault said. “Tiffany has been part of pop culture for 185 years and we plan to continue with that forever.” (Guardian)
Spain Returns Stolen Painting and Reliquary to Italy – An oil work by an anonymous Lombard artist called Luncheon from around 1600 is among a group of items being returned to Italy from Spain. Spanish police handed over two Old Master works produced in Italy and a wooden reliquary of a saint that were recovered in recent police operations conducted by both nations. (ARTnews)
Art Basel to Host Pussy Riot Performance – The Swiss art fair has announced a series of programs intended to support Ukraine during next week’s festivities. They include the display of 11 large-scale photographs by Ukrainian artist Boris Mikhailov on the facades of cultural institutions around Basel; a donation of 110,000 CHF ($111,385) to humanitarian aid organizations supporting victims of the war; and a performance by dissident punk group Pussy Riot at Basel’s Kaserne on June 14 to coincide with the opening of the fair. (Press release)
Lawsuit Over Black Lives Matter Mural Dismissed (Again) – A judge has upheld the previous dismissal of a lawsuit brought by a conservative women’s group against New York City officials over a Black Lives Matter mural that was painted in large-scale yellow letters on the street outside Trump Tower. The same month the 2020 mural was approved, the pro-Trump group Women for America First asked the mayor to paint their own mural in the same spot. A judge determined that the rejection of their request did not violate the group’s right to free speech under the First Amendment. (TAN)
MOVERS & SHAKERS
Short List for Sobey Art Award Announced – Canada’s most prestigious contemporary art prize has revealed its short list: Tyshan Wright, Stanley Février, Azza El Siddique, Divya Mehra, and Krystle Silverfox. The artists will be included in a show from October to February at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa. The award hands out C$400,000 ($318,000), with C$100,000 going to the winner and C$25,000 to each of the other shortlisted finalists. (The Art Newspaper)
Artes Mundi Releases Artist List – Artes Mundi, the U.K.’s biennial exhibition and contemporary art prize, has also revealed its short list of seven artists: Rushdi Anwar, Carolina Caycedo, Alia Farid, Naomi Rincon Gallardo, Taloi Havini, Nguyen Trinh Thi, and Mounira Al Solh. They show at venues across the U.K. from October 2023 to March 2024. The winner goes home with £40,000. (Press release)
Prospect Triennial Names Artistic Director – Miranda Lash, a senior curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art Denver, will curate the next edition of Prospect New Orleans, which is scheduled to open in 2024. Lash, who grew up in a Spanish-speaking household, is the first Latina to curate the show. From 2008 to 2014, she was the founding curator of modern and contemporary at the New Orleans Museum of Art. (ARTnews)
Getty Foundation Awards $1.3 Million to Paper Projects – The Los Angeles foundation has awarded 15 grants worth nearly $1.3 million to institutions including the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C., the Courtauld in London, the Museum of Modern Art in New York to fund exhibitions, publications, digital initiatives, and workshops related to prints and drawings. (ARTnews)
FOR ART’S SAKE
Sanford Biggers Sculpture Lands in Orange County – The Orange County Museum of Art announced plans to present a monumental sculpture by Sanford Biggers when it reopens on October 8 at its new home on the campus of Segerstrom Center for the Arts. The 24-foot-wide, 16-foot-tall sculpture, Of many waters… (2022), blends the archetype of a European reclining figure with a 19th-Century Baule double-face mask made from metal sequins. (Press release)
Rendering of Of many waters… (2022) by Sanford Biggers on the Sculpture Terrace of OCMA, opening to the public in October 2022. Credit: Morphosis