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 Tuesday, March 15.

NEED-TO-READ

Biden Appoints Advisory Committee on the Arts – U.S. President Joe Biden announced the appointment of 14 people to the President’s Advisory Committee on the Arts, including photographer and artist Bonnie Lautenberg and Barbara Goot Gamson, a trustee of the Menil Collection, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and the Aspen Art Museum in Colorado. (The Art Newspaper)

Digital Art Company Sues Artist for Breach of Contract in Making NFTs – Danny Casale, also known as Coolman Coffeedan, is being sued by the Florida-based company DigiArt, which claims the artist breached an agreement to exclusively sell NFTs with DigiArt and split profits. Casale says such an agreement was never reached. (TAN)

Anna Delvey Has Been Released From Custody – The scammer Anna Sorokin, who called herself Anna Delvey, was sent back to Frankfurt, Germany, yesterday after being released from an upstate New York detention center. She had been in ICE custody for nearly a year. The former socialite, who sought to open her own art foundation in Manhattan before her downfall, is the subject of the hit Netflix show Inventing Anna.  (NY Post)

France Has Earmarked €1 Million for Ukrainian Artists – The French culture ministry is offering refugee artists (and their families) three-month residencies as well as grants for research and performances. The new €1 million ($1.1 million) fund will also support Russian dissident artists who have been “forced into exile.” (The Local)

MOVERS & SHAKERS

The Met Chooses Lauren Halsey for Roof Installation – The L.A.-based artist has been selected for the Met’s prestigious rooftop commission. Her work, called the eastside of south central los angeles hieroglyph prototype architecture (I), will consider connections between ancient Egyptian symbolism, 1960s architecture, and graffiti tagging. It will be on view from May 17 through October 23. (New York Times)

Swiss Institute Taps Director – The New York contemporary art nonprofit has named Stefanie Hessler as its new director. She previously led Norway’s Kunsthall Trondheim, where she focused on programming that explored ecology and society. (Artforum)

Huntington Library Acquires Archive of Eve Babitz – The archive of the late Los Angeles author has been acquired by the Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens. The trove includes art, manuscripts, journals, photographs, and correspondence dating from from 1943 to 2011. (LA Times)

Artist Rafa Esparza Wins 2022 Pérez Prize – The Pérez Art Museum Miami has awarded Los Angeles–based artist rafa esparza its annual prize, which comes with a $50,000 unrestricted cash grant. (ARTnews)

FOR ART’S SAKE

U.K. Government Blocks Export of Joshua Reynolds Painting – The British artist’s 1776 portrait of the Polynesian celebrity Omai has become on of the most expensive works ever to receive U.K. export ban. A local buyer has until July 10 to raise £50 million ($65.4 million) for the painting, which will otherwise head abroad. (The Art Newspaper)

Joshua Reynolds’s Portrait of Omai on the move at Tate Britain. (Photo by Matthew Fearn – PA Images/PA Images via Getty Images)