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 Friday, June 23.
NEED-TO-READ
Is American Architecture Having an Identity Crisis? – Architecture critic Christopher Hawthorne is not impressed with Philadelphia’s new Museum of the American Revolution. The red-brick colossus is anything but revolutionary, blending in with the surrounding architectural landscape as though “the most important questions about national identity have long been settled.’’ (Los Angeles Times)
Seuss Museum Glosses Over Controversial Elements of Author’s Life – Sopan Deb hones in on the museum’s selective amnesia when it comes to some of the artist’s early political cartoons. But the museum’s leaders defend the decision to skirt around Theodore Geisel’s anti-Japanese and racist caricatures. (New York Times)
Food Art Is a Real Conservation Challenge – Whether it’s Pope.L’s bologna cubes or Janine Antoni’s chocolate busts, conservation experts are scratching their heads on how to preserve contemporary artworks with foodstuffs as they age. (Financial Times)
How China Saved Its Biennale Debut from the Sars Epidemic – China’s inaugural pavilion was canceled in the wake of the severe acute respiratory syndrome epidemic in 2003, but artist Zheng Guogu managed to salvage the exhibition by “smuggling” works to Italy under a different name so as to avoid quarantine requirements. (South China Morning Post)
Reality Show Fails to Capture True Spirit of Fire Island – In a rare paywall-free read from Bookforum, David Velasco takes on Logo TV’s new reality series, “Fire Island,” and pieces together a better depiction of the island’s culture, drawing from personal experience as well the many artworks that have emerged from the queer haven. (Bookforum)
ART MARKET
Pace to Present Installation About US-Mexico Border – A multimedia installation that explores the disorder at the US border by American photographer Richard Misrach and Mexican-American experimental composer Guillermo Galindo will be shown at New York’s Pace Gallery from June 28–August 18. (NYT)
Sunday Painter Gallery Moves to Vauxhall – London’s Sunday Painter gallery will relocate from its Peckham space in September to a larger one in Vauxhall, designed by architects from Sanchez Benton. (Press release)
Michael Rosenfeld Gallery to Represent Hannelore Baron – The American artist’s estate will now be represented by the gallery, whose founder is a long-time collector of Baron’s book-sized works of assemblage and collage. (Press release)
COMINGS & GOINGS
Detroit’s Kresge Arts Announces 2017 Fellows – Eighteen artists have been chosen from a pool of over 750 applicants to receive a cash prize of $25,000 and a year of professional support by Creative Many Michigan. The new fellows include Nicole Macdonald, David Philpot, and Robert Sestok. (Artforum)
Düsseldorf’s Kunstpalast Museum Names New Director – German-British art historian Felix Krämer will take the reins at the institution in October, ending his tenure as head of collections at the Städel Museum in Frankfurt. Krämer intends to overhaul the museum’s acquisition policies to include overlooked historical works. (Deutsche Presse Agentur)
Fine Arts Dealers Association Names New President – Steve Hartman, founder of Cleveland’s Contessa Gallery, will be the new president of FADA’s board. He plans to focus on expanding the benefits of membership. (ArtFixDaily.com)
New Director of Development at the Chrysler Museum of Art – The Norfolk, Virginia museum has selected Kate Hofheimer Wilson for the post. She most recently served as the director of major giving at the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, also in Virginia. (Artdaily.com)
FOR ART’S SAKE
Prix Thun for Art and Ethics Award Winner Announced – The Indian artist and women’s rights activist Sheba Chhachhi is the second recipient of the $25,000 prize, which is given to artists who promote sustainability in their practices. (Artforum)
Rebecca Horn Wins Duisburg Sculpture Prize – The 73-year-old sculptor nabs the Wilhelm Lehmbruck Prize, awarded by the city of Duisburg since 1966. She’s the first woman to receive the honor, which she now shares with the likes of Joseph Beuys, Richard Serra, and Jean Tinguely. (DPA)
Toronto’s Luminato Festival Gets Cash to Support Emerging Artists – The annual arts festival received $600,000 from an anonymous donor, which is intended to be spread out over three years and allotted specifically for projects that involve emerging artists. (The Globe and Mail)
Diller Scofidio + Renfro Begins Construction on US Olympic Museum – The New York-based architecture studio unveiled renderings of the museum, which just broke ground in Colorado Springs. The 5,600-square-metre facility is designed in a spiral to mimic “the movement of athletes.” (dezeen.com)
A rendering of the US Olympic Museum in Colorado Springs, CO. Courtesy Diller Scofidio + Renfro.
A rendering of the US Olympic Museum in Colorado Springs, CO. Courtesy Diller Scofidio + Renfro.
A rendering of the US Olympic Museum in Colorado Springs, CO. Courtesy Diller Scofidio + Renfro.