Latest
Unlike paintings and sculptures, site-specific art lacks protection under US law
Recent disputes over the dismantling, relocation or recontextualizing of site-specific works have underlined the limited protections for such art
UC Berkeley returns Wiyot human remains and burial objects
The university still holds one of the largest collections of Indigenous human remains and sacred objects in the US
Want to look like Mona Lisa? A new website turns your selfies into Leonardo da Vinci-style portraits
The Da Vinci Face platform uses using artificial intelligence and sophisticated algorithms to transform you into an Old Master
The US and Nigeria sign cultural property agreement
The five-year memorandum of understanding comes at a moment when Nigeria is taking increasingly proactive measures to secure its patrimony and recover artefacts that were looted and stolen
Step back inside Notre Dame: immersive VR exhibition recreates Paris cathedral prior to 2019 fire
Eternal Notre Dame will raise funds towards the €1bn restoration of the fire-ravaged cathedral
Art market
Art Basel forced to postpone Hong Kong fair until May due to rising Covid cases
Originally planned for March, it will now take place less than three weeks before the Swiss fair's flagship event in Basel
Late Botticelli painting sputters at Sotheby’s Old Masters auction in New York, selling for $45.4m
The star lot of the sale, a rediscovered and austere portrait of Christ, hammered just below its estimate
Edel Assanti launches new London gallery in former Fitzrovia haberdashery
Gallery co-founders Jeremy Epstein and Charlie Fellowes discuss renovating the Grade II-listed Arts and Crafts building which opens this week with a show of new work by Noémie Goudal
War of the fairs: Art Basel owner kicks Fiac out of Grand Palais in Paris
The French cultural body RMN put Fiac's October slot up for tender last year—now the Swiss firm MCH will launch a contemporary art fair, paying €10.6m for a seven-year contract
Museums & Heritage
Berlin museum that championed forgotten women artists for almost 40 years closes due to lack of funds
The Verborgene Museum held exhibitions for more than 150 artists including Jewish painter Lotte Laserstein
A Mexican millionaire is building a museum to house his art collection, and using public funds to do it
Mauricio Fernández Garza first proposed the structure, which is a replica of his mansion in San Pedro Garza García, near Monterrey, when he was mayor of the well-heeled town
German museums may have thousands of looted relics from China’s Imperial Palace, research group believes
Collaborative research by major German institutions may expose huge amounts of Chinese objects taken during Boxer Rebellion
UK’s first LGBTQ museum to open in London this spring
Queer Britain charity pledges new institution will be free of charge
Into the ether: How a German museum accidentally lost access to two highly valuable NFTs
Copy-and-paste fail or meta commentary on crypto art?
The XR Panel
What exactly is extended reality (XR) and how is it being used in art? We bring together an international group of experts in the field to review and make sense of the cutting-edge, digital work that artists, museums, galleries and app-makers are creating across the spectrum of XR—from augmented to virtual reality.
What is the metaverse and why does it matter to the art world? Experts weigh in and predict its future impact
A dream or a marketing campaign? All hype or all-important? The Art Newspaper’s XR panel looks at the ways the metaverse has become a part of the field
Exhibitions
Venice Biennale 2022: all the national pavilions, artists and curators
The latest details about the key participants of the 59th International Art Exhibition
A surreal encounter between Salvador Dalí and Sigmund Freud is the topic of a new Viennese show
The Lower Belvedere exhibition will explore how the Spanish artist's work was influenced by the inventor of psychoanalysis
Two exhibitions spotlight Muriel Gardiner Buttinger, Alice Neel’s benefactor of 20 years
Buttinger, a psychoanalyst who also helped hundreds of Jews and anti-fascists flee Nazi Austria in the 1930s, sat for one of Neel’s inimitable portrait paintings in 1966
The splendour of the Palace of Versailles springs up in the Middle East
Objects recalling palace life in its pre-revolutionary pomp go on display at the Louvre Abu Dhabi
Exhibition explores the many faces of Elizabeth I and her fellow Tudors
The show of portraits at the Holburne Museum in Bath charts the reign of the Tudor monarchs and their subjects
The Week in Art
A podcast bringing you the latest news from the art world, every week
Bacon and beasts: an in-depth look at the visceral new show at London’s Royal Academy of Arts
Plus, Botticelli in New York and gender in Asian art in San Francisco
Adventures with Van Gogh
Adventures with Van Gogh is a weekly blog by Martin Bailey, our long-standing correspondent and expert on the artist. Published every Friday, his stories range from newsy items about this most intriguing artist to scholarly pieces based on his own meticulous investigations and discoveries.
London's Van Gogh self-portraits show is coming—here are my six favourite paintings
The Courtauld exhibition will be the first ever with works from Vincent’s full career, opening on 3 February
Diary
Books
Book Club
Extract | What should we do about paintings with racist titles?
In a new book of cultural essays, the Canadian novelist Esi Edugyan ponders whether we should change offensive names given to art—and what that might say about us
An expert’s guide to Georgia O’Keeffe: five must-read books on the American painter
All you ever wanted to know about O’Keeffe, including a comprehensive biography, the artist’s “perfect” novice recipe book, and her letters to photographer Alfred Stieglitz—selected by the curator Theodora Vischer
January Book Bag: from Marina Abramović’s instructions for rebooting your life to Paul Nash’s little-known design work
Our roundup of the latest art publications
Extract | Leonardo da Vinci’s drawing and painting tips
The Old Master’s advice is among the fascinating facts and illuminating anecdotes gathered in a new compendium called Artifacts
The Year Ahead
The most exciting exhibitions around the world in 2022
We take a look at the must-see exhibitions in 2022, including the return of the Venice Biennale and Documenta, blockbuster shows of Donatello and Cézanne, and a sculpture festival for the Qatar World Cup
The top art fairs for 2022
Despite the ongoing restrictions due to the pandemic, many art fairs hope to go ahead this year. Here's our pick of the key ones to visit
Making a fresh start: new museum openings for 2022
While the pandemic may have forced museums around the world into an involuntary temporary slumber, builders have been busy. Here are the most exciting new and expanded museums opening in 2022
Museums plan for a busy year despite Covid-19 uncertainty
Will 2022 see a return to normal for exhibition schedules? Or will surging cases mean plans have to be torn up again? We asked museum directors and head curators how confident they are for the year ahead
Get ready for the new world order: art market experts make their predictions for 2022
US dominance, industry collaborations and increased concern about climate change are all on art market experts’ minds—and, of course, NFTs
A brush with... podcast
A podcast that asks artists the questions you've always wanted to
A brush with... Kehinde Wiley
An in-depth interview on the artist's influences and cultural experiences, from Richard Dyer to John Singer Sargent
A closer Luke
Ben Luke, our Review editor and podcast host, weighs in on the pressing issues facing the UK art world and beyond
In this age of social fracture and political upheaval, Raphael’s sublime harmony is an underrated quality
Presenting beauty without the schmaltz is a challenge worth undertaking, as the delayed Raphael show at London's National Gallery will demonstrate
From the Uyghur Tribunals to a groundbreaking exhibition on slavery—we look back on 2021's most seismic cultural moments through The Week in Art podcast
Each week The Art Newspaper reflects on how big geopolitical developments affect different realms of art and heritage
Could an equivalent of wrapping the Arc de Triomphe happen in the UK? Not likely under our current leadership
Christo's posthumously realised project benefitted from France having a mature understanding of the importance of culture
As details of the £120m 'Brexit Festival' emerge, will it inspire the UK, or be the Johnson government‘s Millennium Dome?
Unboxed promises plenty of "immersion". But in what, exactly?
The Buck Stopped Here
Louisa Buck, our contemporary art correspondent, brings us all the gossip from the UK's key art events
Power to the people: London’s new public art gives a glimmer of hope in gloomy times
A colourful playground, giant vegetable sculptures and an elegant etched glass installation have all brightened up the capital this year
