Here’s what made a mark around the industry since last Friday morning…

Art Fairs

– NADA Miami provided a strong start to Miami Art Week with multiple sold-out booths on its opening day (December 5). It is the first year that the fair has opened in advance of Art Basel Miami Beach. (Artnet News)

– Artist Vanessa German improvised a performance after one of her sculptures was damaged in transit to Untitled Art Fair, where it was installed at Nil Gallery’s booth. (Artnet News)

– Works by Cynthia Talmadge, Eric N. Mack, and Cristina Camancho are just some of the highlights we saw at this year’s Art Basel Miami Beach (a.k.a. “the fun Basel”). (Artnet News)

– Almine Rech, Thaddeus Ropac, Nathalie Obadia, and Hauser & Wirthare among the roughly 70 galleries that will participate in the 12th edition of Artgenève, which will open on January 25, 2024 at Palexpo Geneva under the new direction of Charlotte Diwan. (Press release)

Auction Houses

– The Qatar Investment Authority has been approached as a potential buyer for a minority stake in Sotheby’s. The pitch follows the auction house’s owner Patrick Drahi’s announcement in August that his telecoms group Altice was looking to sell assets to pay down $60 billion in debts accumulated during years of frenetic acquisitions in France, the U.S., Portugal, and Israel. Several members of Qatar’s ruling family are avid art collectors and a previous emir had expressed interest in acquiring Christie’s in 2010. (Financial Times)

– Phillips has named industry veteran Meiling Lee as the new head of the 20th century and contemporary art department in Asia alongside a series of new appointments across the region, further beefing up the leadership and staff at its new Hong Kong outpost. (Artnet News)

Galleries

– Alexander Harrison has joined Kasmin, White Cube now represents the estate of Lygia Pape, Charisee Pearlina Weston is now represented by Patron, Gladstone Gallery has added Carrie Mae Weems to their roster, Kate Bickmore has joined Andrew Reed Gallery, Galerie Mennour signed Mircea Suciu, Dalton Paula has joined James Fuentes, and Goodman Gallery now represents Chemu Ng’ok in tandem with Central Fine. (Press releases)

– London’s OOF Gallery—dedicated to showing art related to football (or soccer, in American parlance)—will offer part of their space near the Tottenham Hotspur stadium as subsidized studios beginning in January. Artists need not make work about or have an interest in sports to apply. (Instagram)

Institutions, Biennials & Prizes

– The multidisciplinary Berlin-based artist Jesse Darling has won the 2023 Turner Prize, the U.K.’s most prestigious award for contemporary art. The artist received a cash prize of £25,000 ($31,500), with the remaining shortlisted artists—Rory Pilgrim, Barbara Walker, and Ghislaine Leung—each receiving £10,000 ($12,600). Darling is the first transgender artist to receive the award. (Artnet News)

– New York’s Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum has laid off 10 workers to reduce its operating deficit caused by inflation strains, including two deputy directors and staff in the vistor services and communications departments. (Artnet News)

– The Zabludowicz Collection’s space in London will close this month after 16 years. The private museum, which has faced criticism in recent years for its founders’ connections to pro-Israel lobby groups, will continue to loan work from the collection. Its New York location and residency program in Finland will remain operational. (Artnet News)

Tech & Legal News

– The lawyers representing a group of artists who filed a class action lawsuit against three A.I. companies—Midjourney Inc, DeviantArt Inc, and Stability A.I.—have filed an amended complaint to address concerns of the court after a federal judge dismissed some of their claims of alleged infringement in October. The updated complaint includes seven other creatives as well as an additional defendent, Runway A.I. (Artnet News)

– More than 200 works previously owned by the former New York-based art advisor Lisa Schiff may go up for sale at Phillips next year, pending court approval. Proceeds from the sales would go toward the $1.8 million in debtsclaimed by Schiff’s creditors in two civil law suits alleging fraud and impropriety. (Artnet News)

– A police investigation is underway after unknown actors “vandalized” the windows of New York’s Lévy Gorvy Dyan gallery with an imitation apology letter attributed to the dealers, according to an Instagram post shared by the gallery. The fake posters referenced a real statement in support of Israel published by the dealers in Artforum following the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war. (Hyperallergic)

Paint Drippings is excerpted from The Back Room, our lively recap funneling only the week’s must-know intel into a nimble read you’ll actually enjoy. Artnet News Pro members get exclusive access—subscribe now to receive this in your inbox every Friday.