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, February 24.

NEED-TO-READ

MoMA Board Member Thomas Lee Has Died – The billionaire financier and collector Thomas H. Lee, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at 78 on Thursday. Lee was an early pioneer of private equity investments. (Evening Standard)

Philadelphia Museum of Art Plans Center for African Art – The  institution has inaugurated the new Brind Center for African and African Diasporic Art, thanks to an undisclosed donation from Ira Brind, the financier and museum trustee. (New York Times)

Kelly Rowland Curates Sotheby’s Sale – The auction house had no Dilemma in picking the four-time Grammy award-winning singer, songerwriter, actress and executive producer to select works for its Contemporary Curated sale in New York on March 9. Rowland, who has built her own private collection of art has selected six works that resonate with her personal collecting vision, which prizes rhythm and movement. Works by artists including Ernie Barnes, Stanley Whitney, and Robert Longo are on the line up. (Press release)

Ukraine Installs Cameras at Banksy Murals – The government of Ukraine has installed special “impact resistant” glass over Banksy murals that appeared in the war-torn country in late 2022. The officials also installed security cameras as the works have been vandalized in some instances, and they are also concerned about theft. (Forbes)

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Marian Goodman Gallery Secures Tribeca Building – Gallery partners have announced that Marian Goodman is ending its 46-year tenure in Midtown Manhattan to head to Tribeca, and will occupy real estate at 385 Broadway from mid- to -late 2024. The gallery will be across the street from another recent addition to the Tribeca ecosystem, after Alexander Gray Associates announced it would be leaving Chelsea next year. (Press release)

New Curatorial Director at Lehmann Maupin – Katherine Rochester moves into the new position, working closely with senior leadership to advance the gallery’s artistic program and institutional collaborations. She was previously director of curatorial research at VIA Art Fund. (Press release)

Anthony Meier Swaps City for Suburbs – The dealer has moved to a more spacious gallery in the more suburban Mill Valley, California, across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. The longtime dealer has worked with artists including Gerhard Richter, and was seeking a quieter area that was still full of culture. (The Art Newspaper)

FOR ART’S SAKE

L.A.’s “Irritatingly Hot People” Wear Wet Paint Hats – A roundup of last week’s chicest art world parties and events during Frieze Los Angeles cited Annie Armstrong’s Wet Paint party at Escuela Taqueria as the place to be on Valentine’s Day, quoting a toast from artist Raúl de Nieves (the night’s DJ): “Today is a day about expressing love. Some people are expressing love with their lovers, and some of us wonder why we don’t have that. But we do, because we’re connected. And maybe we don’t have that person that we think belongs to us. But tonight, dancing, we all felt so close, right?” (W)

Inside the Wet Paint x OTTO 958 party at La Escuela in Los Angeles. Photo: James Jackman.