Plus, why Germany's recent election is good news for artists, and the Getty makes its first grant to preserve Indigenous heritage.
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, September 29.
Two of the Earliest Portraits of African Men Go on View Together – Albrecht Dürer’s 1508 sketch, which was discovered in his workshop when he died, and Jan Mostaert’s portrait, which dates to about 1525, are on view together for the first time as part of a new exhibition at the Rijksmuseum. The show’s curators say the juxtaposition disproves the notion that Europe was homogenous and puts a focus on works that, until the Black Lives Matter movement, garnered little interest from museums. The identities of both sitters remain unknown. (Guardian)
Madrid’s Copy of the Mona Lisa Sheds Light on Original – The Prado explores the wild world of Leonardo copies in a new exhibition that opens today (through January 23). The museum now believes one of the Mona Lisa‘s most famous copies was made by a Leonardo pupil (either Andrea Salaì or Francesco Melzi) and claims that the same artist is behind two other well-known copies of the master’s work, the Ganay version of the Salvator Mundi, now in a private collection, and Saint Anne, owned by the Hammer Museum in L.A. (TAN)
Frick to Show Contemporary Paintings With Old Masters – The Frick is bringing in some young guns to hang alongside Old Masters at the Breuer building. In “Living Histories: Queer Views and Old Masters,” paintings by Doron Langberg, Jenna Gribbon, Salman Toor, and other contemporary artists will share the walls with masterpieces by Vermeer, Holbein, and Rembrandt. The intervention will be on view until January 2022. (TAN)
The Implications of Germany’s Election on Culture – A number of experts are optimistic about the impact of Germany’s election on the cultural sphere. Both the Green party, which made major gains, and the SPD, which won a slim majority, are interested in forming a separate ministry of culture that is no longer bundled with “media,” as it is now. Both parties also included addressing the colonial era in their campaign platforms. Experts are hopeful that the new governments will extend support for artists, including unemployment insurance. (Deutsche Welle, Deutsche Welle)
Presenter for Right-Wing T.V. Station Named NPG Trustee – Inaya Folarin Iman, a television presenter at the right-wing U.K. channel G.B. News, has been named a trustee of the National Portrait Gallery in London. The pro-Brexit media figure, who has called the Black Lives Matter movement divisive, was given a four-year term by the government. Earlier this year another G.B. News presenter, Mercy Muroki, joined the board of London’s Museum of the Home. (TAN)
Getty Foundation Donates $1.3 Million to Wupatki National Monument – The Wupatki National Monument in Arizona will use the Getty’s grant for a long-term conservation project in light of climate change and increased tourism. The Indigenous site contains an ancient pueblo as well as more than 5,000 exceptionally well-preserved archeological sites. It marks the first time that the Getty has supported the preservation of Indigenous heritage. (The Art Newspaper)
Porsche Launches an Art Initiative – The German sports car manufacturer is launching “The Art of Dreams,” a new series of art and design commissions in creative capitals around the world. French architect-turned-artist Cyril Lancelin was tapped to create the first installation, which will be shown at the Palais Galliera Musée de la mode de la Ville de Paris from October 15–24, 2021. Future stops are planned for Milan during the 2022 Salone del Mobile fair as well as Asia later in the year. (Press release)
V&A Museum of Childhood Gets a New Name – As it undergoes a £13 million ($17.5 million) redevelopment, the V&A Museum of Childhood has announced it will be changing its name to the Young V&A, with a mandate of attracting and inspiring audiences from ages zero to 14. (Press release)
For Freedoms Launches Its First Public Art Project Outside of the U.S. – The edition producer Avant Arte is collaborating with the artist-run collective For Freedoms, which is perhaps best known for mounting artist-designed billboards across the U.S. Together, they will launch a series of London-based public art activations that will be accompanied by print editions by artists Christine Wong Yap and Hank Willis Thomas. (Press release)
Print edition of Who Taught You To Love by Hank Willis Thomas (2020).
