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, April 4.
NEED TO READ
Ukrainian Photojournalist Dies – The body of renowned photojournalist Maksym Levin, 41, was found in Kyiv three weeks after his reported disappearance. Levin’s photographs have appeared in the Wall Street Journal, TIME, Reuters, and the BBC. Five other journalists from Ukraine and abroad have been killed since the war began. (Press release)
Philip Guston Painting May Set a New Record – An Abstract Expressionist painting by Philip Guston, Nile (1958), will hit the block at Sotheby’s New York in May. With an estimate of $20 million to $30 million—the highest ever for a work by the artist at auction—it is poised to break Guston’s current high water mark of $25.9 million, set in 2013. The work is being sold by Dallas-based couple Peter and Edith O’Donnell to benefit their philanthropic foundation. The auction will coincide with the debut of the controversial museum exhibition “Philip Guston Now.” (The Art Newspaper)
UNESCO Identifies Over 50 Damaged Cultural Sites in Ukraine – At least 53 cultural sites in Ukraine have been damaged since Russia invaded the country over a month ago, UNESCO reports. These include 29 religious sites, 16 historic buildings, four museums, and four monuments. Perpetrators of attacks against sites marked with the UNESCO emblem will be held responsible for acts constituting war crimes, the convention said. (NPR)
Massachusetts Museum Accused of Hoarding Indigenous Artifacts – The Association on American Indian Affairs has accused a Massachusetts museum of breaching the Native American Graves and Protection Act by “hoarding” around 100 objects, including human remains, taken from the Wounded Knee Massacre in 1890. The association is scheduled to meet the board of the Barre Museum on April 6. (TAN)
MOVERS & SHAKERS
Aichi Triennial Releases Artist List – Laurie Anderson, Kader Attia, Cao Fei, Theaster Gates, Anne Imhof, and Yoshitomo Nara are among the 82 artists from 32 countries featured in the upcoming Aichi Triennale. The closely watched Japanese exhibition will run from July 30 to October 10 on central Honshu Island. (ARTnews)
U.K. Seeks Buyer for Cézanne Painting – The U.K. is trying to find a domestic buyer for Cézanne’s Ferme Normande, Ete (Hattenville) (1882) before its export bar expires on July 31. The work—which was sold at a Christie’s auction in 2016—has been in the U.K. since 1937, when it was acquired by English industrialist Samuel Courtauld. If a local buyer cannot come up with £10 million ($13 million) by the end of July, the painting will leave the country. (Evening Standard)
UNESCO Under Pressure to Pull Heritage Meeting From Russia – Academics and art professionals are calling the U.N. agency to block Russia from hosting the upcoming World Heritage Committee session, which is scheduled to take place from June 19 to 30 in Kazan. “Planning a discussion on world heritage in Russia sounds like a mockery of innocent Ukrainian victims,” wrote Poland’s Auschwitz Memorial on Twitter. UNESCO says it has yet to receive any formal requests to change the location. (TAN)
FOR ART’S SAKE
See Emo Drawings by Radiohead’s Thom Yorke and Stanley Donwood – Sixty works on paper created by the British rock star and English artist between 1999 and 2001 will go on view from May 25 to 29 at London’s Tin Man Art. Yorke and Donwood met in the ’80s while studying at Exeter University and collaborated over the years on the band’s cover art. The two creatives curated an exhibition at Christie’s together last fall. (Press release)
We are not scaremongering, this is really happening, Thom Yorke. Courtesy of the artist and Tin Man Art.
Volcano erupts – hideous scenes. Stanley Donwood. Courtesy of the artist and Tin Man Art.