From the Grand Reopening of the Louvre to Banksy’s Big Legal Loss: The Best & Worst of the Art World This Week

Catch up on this week's news, fast.

Benoît Kergo, Zoé, and Oscar at the Louvre's first day after reopening. Photo: Devorah Lauter.

BEST?

Great Artists on the Great Migration – Art stars including Mark Bradford and Carrie Mae Weems will make new work to reflect on the legacy of the Great Migration for a forthcoming two-museum show.

Made in L.A. Branches Out – The Hammer Museum’s typical home-grown biennial, co-presented at the Huntington, featured a lot of art made outside the California city.

Return to Pompeii – Decades after being pilfered from Pompeii, six ancient frescoes have been returned to the famed site.

Frieze Expands to Asia – The art fair announced it is debuting a new edition in Seoul, set for September 2022.

Biden Nixes Trump’s Weird Sculpture Garden – The president reversed Trump’s executive order to create a sculpture garden of “American Heroes,” which he proposed in the midst of the widespread removals of Confederate monuments.

Pinault’s Prize Opens – François Pinault’s private museum has finally opened in France, bringing his decades-long project to fruition.

Theaster Gates to Design Pavilion – The multi-hyphenate artist will be the first non-architect to design the 2022 Serpentine Pavilion.

More Museum Workers Push to Unionize – Following mass layoffs due to the global pandemic, workers at the Whitney Museum and the Hispanic Society are now pushing to unionize.

Notre Dame Sponsors Sculptures – Fundraising efforts to rebuild the damaged Paris cathedral now include sponsoring individual works, which donors can help support.

Suspect Secured – The twin brother of one suspect in the Dresden Green Vault heist, who had been on the lam, was finally arrested, bringing the total count to five people in custody.

Halle-Louvre! – The world’s most popular museum has reopened, and we asked 17 visitors why they were first in line to visit the Louvre.

 

WORST?

Artists Respond to Conflict in the Middle East – Artists and cultural leaders in Gaza and Israel condemn the ongoing violence, and urge international counterparts to support Palestine.

Disparity in Wages Come to Light – A new study reports that arts workers of color in Los Angeles earn significantly less in wages than their white counterparts.

Banksy Loses Big in Court – The E.U. ruled against the anonymous street artist’s trademark fight against a greeting card company, and the court used his own words against him.

TEFAF Nixes IRL Fair – Another one bites the dust as TEFAF cancels its marquee fair in Maastricht due to the ongoing global pandemic.

Cave Paintings in Peril – Some of the world’s oldest cave paintings face threats due to climate change, according to a new report.

Hong Kong Rainmaker Departs Sotheby’s – Auction maven Yuki Terase is leaving the auction house after 10 years of building up its Hong Kong base.


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