Latest
MFA Boston's Old Master paintings could bring up to $3.8m at auction
The deaccessioned works, to be offered at Christie's in New York, include 17 pieces by Dutch and Flemish artists from the 17th century
Zoé Whitley to step down as director of London's Chisenhale Gallery
Whitley’s five year tenure resulted in 15 exhibitions
Gaza Biennale seeks to provide support and relief for Palestinian artists
More than 50 Palestinian artists are participating in the worldwide event
Louise Bourgeois’s mammoth spider will return to Tate Modern for the gallery's 25th anniversary
A new “capsule collection” trail will also feature works by Mark Rothko and Dorothea Tanning
The Year in Review: art market slump squeezes biggest players and Frieze for sale
The top end of the market failed to recover, while auction houses expanded in Hong Kong amid dramatic shifts in the city
Art market
What dealers and art enthusiasts got out of the inaugural Chelsea Art Fair
The five-gallery fair was staged inside one of Manhattan's most famous hotels
‘As long as we can work, we will’: Lebanon galleries re-open following Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire
Since the agreement came into force on 27 November, spaces have been trying to return to some semblance of normality
Comic book page—featuring Deadpool's first appearance—sells for nearly $1m at auction
This is the second most valuable page of comic art ever sold at auction
Privacy rules are spelling trouble for the art market
More stringent regulations are posing provenance challenges and leading to legal battles
£10m Botticelli leads London's pre-Christmas Old Master sales
Nine bidders competed for the 15th century painting of a Virgin and child at Sotheby's, while Zoffany, Tiepolo and Van Dyck topped auctions at Bonhams and Christie's
Museums & Heritage
Women-only art installation reopens at Mona, allowing some men to enter—and learn about housework
Kirsha Kaechele' Ladies Lounge will be reinstalled at the Hobart museum for a month after the supreme court overturned a ruling that the work was discriminatory
President Biden establishes national monument acknowledging history of forced assimilation at Native American boarding schools
The monument, at the site of the Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania, will ensure nobody forgets one of the “most horrific chapters in American history”, Biden said
UK strikes culture partnership deal with Saudi Arabia
The new bilateral agreement is intended to help Saudi Arabia “fulfil its ambition to become a global visitor destination”
MoMA PS1 receives $1m gift from trailblazing collector’s foundation
The gift to the New York contemporary art centre from the organisation named after David Teiger will help to fund an upcoming exhibition programme
Vatican gives Apollo a hand—literally—ahead of Jubilee Year
Restoration of the marble is expected to be a draw for the year-long event, which will allow public access to works in the Pope’s private collection as well as exhibitions across the Holy See and Rome
Exhibitions
Art Institute of Chicago explores ‘complex terrain’ of Pan-African art
A new show examines what the term means and celebrates foundational Black liberation movements
Scientific wonders from Versailles, which once delighted kings, to go on show in London
The Science Museum exhibition will explore the French monarchy’s fascination with scientific observation and experimentation under Louis XIV and XV
The Big Review: Matisse | Invitation to the Voyage at the Fondation Beyeler, Riehen/Basel ★★★★½
Sprawling survey of the Modernist master, comprising more than 70 works, is a celebration of a remarkable six-decade career
‘One of a kind’: Barbican and Fondation Giacometti to collaborate on 2025 exhibition series
Historic pieces by the acclaimed Swiss sculptor Giacometti will be brought together with works by three leading contemporary artists at the Brutalist London venue
December's must-see exhibitions: Hamad Butt, art in nature and Warhol's window dressing
The Art Newspaper's pick of the top shows to see around the world this month
Notre-Dame reopening: Special Report
The Paris cathedral is due to reopen to the public this weekend after it was partially destroyed by a devastating fire in 2019. In a special report, we explore the state of the renovation, the greatest discoveries and the works it inspired
Through the Notre-Dame restoration, Eugène Viollet-le-Duc has now become ‘untouchable’. But at what price?
The five-year restoration of the cathedral has cemented the reign of the 19th-century architect, but his methods may not meet modern standards
Opinion
The Year in Review: Escalating art attacks and responses to war
This year has been marked by a rising number of politically-motivated attacks on art. But we should not forget the power of art to unite diverse groups of people
Influencers: is it time for museums to go all in?
As an advertising agency pays Instagram influencers to promote museums, is it really worth shelling out thousands of dollars for added publicity and to reach new audiences?
Comment | Why it's important to find hope for—and through—the arts after the US election
The divisions within American society cannot be ignored, but let’s focus on where the country is united, and how the cultural sector can foster that unity
Comment | EU’s new anti-looting law is another blow for legitimate trade
Though laudible in its aim to kerb trafficking of stolen goods, planned rules will impose unreasonable burdens on lawful and genuine trade
Comment | In the run up to the US election, Boston's Museum of Fine Art is hopeful about art's role in a democratic future
The museum's latest exhibition explains and scrutinises democracy through objects spanning 2,500 years
Obituaries
Remembering Elizabeth Esteve-Coll, groundbreaking director of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London
Charismatic leader who steered the museum through a difficult period in the 1980s, and later became a university vice-chancellor
Remembering Frank Auerbach, one of the leading artists of his generation, who has died aged 93
The German-born British painter, a leading figure in the School of London, produced some of the most enduring and perceptive observations of what it meant to be alive during his time
Remembering Amadou-Mahtar M’Bow, the Unesco boss who fought for the dispossessed
The headline-making director-general of Unesco, who clashed with Reagan and Thatcher, died recently at the age of 103
Remembering Hanif Kureshi, the artist credited with popularising street art in India
Kureshi decorated India’s public spaces with beautiful, provocative and socially engaged murals
Paul Lowe, conflict photographer and teacher lauded for Sarajevo siege photographs, dies, aged 60
Acclaimed photojournalist's teenage son charged with his murder on a popular hiking trail near Los Angeles
Book Club
Some of our favourite books of 2024—picked by The Art Newspaper’s books team
Our literary editors share what has delighted them this year, from art-themed novels to edifying histories
Magnum’s opus of America: a new photography compendium reveals the many sides of the US
The publication’s co-editor Peter van Agtmael chooses seven key images from legendary agency’s new book
An expert’s guide to the Venetian Renaissance: five must-read books on the period
All you ever wanted to know about the subject, from the story of Carpaccio and Bellini's narrative painting to a Venice guide for little explorers—selected by the curators Annette Hojer and Christine Follmann
December Book Bag: from Nick Cave’s devilish works to an analysis of Rembrandt’s competition with his star pupil
Our round-up of the latest art publications
Books
Beetlejuice and beyond: the origins of Tim Burton’s world of gothic romance and its enduring influence
Catalogue accompanying exhibition at London’s Design Museum explores the US film-maker’s unique aesthetic
Intense repartee: a collection of letters that the critic John Berger exchanged with his artist son
The correspondence between John and Yves Berger is both moving and enlightening
Two books explore Piet Mondrian's journey into abstraction—and his posthumous influence on 1960s fashion
How, two decades after his death, did Mondrian become a brand icon, and make a lasting contribution to the “youthquake”?
This newly translated volume compiles the photographic traces of a libidinous love affair
Author Annie Ernaux and journalist Marc Marie’s collaborative memoir documents a passionate yet haunted relationship
The arts should be recognised as a key part of what it means to be human, argues a new publication
An urgent treatise on the decommodification of culture by the professor of cultural economy Justin O’Connor
A brush with... podcast
A podcast that asks artists the questions you've always wanted to
A brush with… Michael Elmgreen and Ingar Dragset — podcast
In the first episode of A brush with featuring an artist duo, Elmgreen and Dragset discuss their influences, and the cultural experiences that have shaped their lives and work
The Week in Art
A podcast bringing you the latest news from the art world, every week
Art Basel Miami Beach, Notre-Dame reopens in Paris, and Parmigianino’s Vision of St Jerome—podcast
Dispatches from the mega fair, a chat with a chief architect behind the rebuilding of Notre-Dame cathedral, and up close with Parmigianino’s Mannerist masterpiece
Diary
Stellar work: Mercury crater named after artist Ruth Asawa
The Japanese-American sculptor is the 23rd woman to be given the honour—compared with 100 men
Elon Musk serves up disconcerting AI art
The controversial billionaire failed to spot a contemporary car in Caillebotte picture altered using artificial intelligence by Luma
Go big or go to the London gallery offering small beautiful art
Flowers Gallery has opened its annual exhibition of little pieces
‘The Roman emperors wouldn’t have put up with it’: Harry Kane statue gets art critics talking
The footballer attended the unveiling of the work after it finally found a permanent home
Listen up, Elon: Clifton Suspension Bridge Museum makes dramatic exit from X
Bristol institution makes waves after quitting social media platform
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.
Van Gogh’s finest ‘London drawing’ was not done in the UK, but later in Amsterdam
The sketch of Austin Friars Church throws fresh light on Vincent’s draftsmanship, suggesting he was even more of a late developer as an artist
Technology
News, background and analysis on the latest tech developments—artificial intelligence tools; Web3, the blockchain, NFTs; virtual and augmented reality; social media platforms—and how they affect the art market, museums, artists and curators.
Paintboxed! Artists invited to work with 1980s digital art tool once championed by Keith Haring and Richard Hamilton
ArtMeta art fair and Tezos ecosystem are taking Quantel Paintbox—used by contemporary art giants four decades ago—on a global tour to introduce it to a new generation of creators
Vatican launches AI-generated version of St Peter’s Basilica
Co-developed by Microsoft, the project also identified conservation issues at the world-famous church
How auction houses are embracing artificial intelligence
New services such as AI-enhanced translation are proving popular, even as human involvement remains crucial
From roving gallery to London’s Mayfair: Unit’s social media journey, 11 years on
Joe Kennedy and Jonny Burt didn’t have any of the traditional things needed to start a gallery—but they did have the power of Instagram
New York's Salon 94 is feeling the TikTok visitor effect
A content creator's positive post has led to a massive uptick in the gallery's footfall