Ai Weiwei, Dropping a Han Dynasty Urn in Lego (2015) from Chambers Fine Art, New York and Beijing, at the 2021 Armory Show at the Javits Center in New York. Photo by Sarah Cascone.
Ai Weiwei, Dropping a Han Dynasty Urn in Lego (2015) from Chambers Fine Art, New York and Beijing, at the 2021 Armory Show at the Javits Center in New York. Photo by Sarah Cascone.

BEST?

Wealthy Women Spur Market Recovery – Art Basel’s market report reveals that high-net-worth millennial women are fueling the gallery recovery.

Art Fair Fare – The first major IRL art fair is happening now in New York, and sales were swift at the Armory Show’s opening day.

Sotheby’s Nabs Macklowe Trove – The auction house won the rights to sell the divorcing couple’s more than $600 million art collection.

Basel’s Big Fund – In an effort to quell nerves ahead of its Swiss edition, Art Basel created a “solidarity fund” as a safety net.

Twenty Years On – On this week’s episode of the Art Angle, four artists who had residencies in the Twin Towers reflect on how 9/11 shaped their art and lives.

A Magical Armory Experience – At this year’s fair, a witch channeling the spirit of Hilma af Klint is reading tarot cards.

Silicon Valley Backs Art Institution – San Francisco is getting a new contemporary art venue that will emphasize diversity.

Iron Age Discovery – A rookie metal detectorist literally struck gold, and the stunning trove is now on view at a Danish museum.

Christopher Columbus Replaced – Artist Pedro Reyes is designing a new monument in Mexico City featuring Indigenous women; it will replace a 150-year-old statue of Columbus.

Removing Robert E. Lee – The largest Confederate statue in Richmond, Virginia, has been dismantled and removed from sight, marking a milestone for the country.

 

WORST?

Bannon Ousted From Italy – At long last, Steve Bannon’s far-right school has been evicted from the 800-year-old monastery it inhabited.

House Oversight Lead Demands Receipts – Representative James Comer is urging Hunter Biden’s art sales to be made public.

M+ Museum Removes Ai Weiwei Work – The Hong Kong-based museum took down Ai’s infamous Tiananmen Square photograph as it awaits government review.

Another Art Fair Bites the Dust – Paris’s local Salon Galeristes called off its event for October, even as some larger fairs barrel ahead.

Hedge Fund Titan Trumps Turkey – A judge ruled that businessman Michael Steinhardt, and not the nation of Turkey, owns an ancient Stargazer idol.