NewsMuseums
Panel recommends dissolution of 'dysfunctional' Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation
With 2,000 employees, the foundation is the biggest arts employer in Germany
NewsArt market
Sotheby's to auction £4m restituted Bellotto painting that Jewish retail magnate was forced to sell to Hitler
The view of Dresden's Zwinger moat had been returned to the heirs of Max Emden and will now be offered for sale in London on 28 July
NewsExhibitions
Massive Monet cathedral painting to be installed in Rouen
The 360-degree work by the Iranian architect Yadegar Asisi will be displayed in a rotunda on the banks of the Seine
NewsMuseums
German government seeks to buy Hamburger Bahnhof museum from investor
Move means the venue can continue to operate as Berlin’s main contemporary art museum
NewsMonuments
Riga installs six-metre statue to honour medical workers
Sculpture by Latvian artist Aigars Bikse is in a prominent spot in front of the National Museum of Art
NewsMuseums
Berlin’s Humboldt Forum to open this year despite pandemic delay
Exhibition of Berlin city history is to be among the first to open
NewsExhibitions
'Ultimate masterpiece': Van Eyck drawing— rarely seen due to fragility—goes on display for first time in a decade
Exhibited from today at Dresden’s Kupferstich-Kabinett, the picture of an old man is the only undisputed drawing by the Dutch Old Master that survives
NewsMuseums
'Time to give back the swag, guys!' British Museum unleashes Twitter storm with statement on Black Lives Matter
London institution was criticised for proclaiming that it "stands in solidarity with the Black community" while continuing to resist calls to restitute colonial-era loot
NewsRepatriation
Digital Benin: a milestone on the long, slow journey to restitution
When British troops plundered the Royal Palace of Benin in the 19th century, at least 3,000 objects were dispersed internationally. A new online database is bringing them together
NewsArt market
Berlin dealer Johann König stages impromptu 'fair' to coincide with original Art Basel dates in June
"People are hungry for art in the original and the online viewing room can’t replace the personal experience,” the dealer says
Newscoronavirus
German government earmarks €1bn for arts in €130bn pandemic stimulus package
Package aims to counter “severest economic crisis in the history of the federal republic”
NewsAntiquities & Archaeology
How Germany’s 4,000-year-old answer to Stonehenge shows that Brexit is 'nonsense'
Pömmelte, sacred site that was used by the ancient Unetice culture, is opening up to tourists
NewsArt market
Code-cracking lot: Second World War Enigma machine on offer at Vienna’s Dorotheum
The Germans believed Enigma was uncrackable; cryptographers at Bletchley Park broke the code, contributing to the Allies’ victory
NewsPublic art
Sculpture confronting Germany's colonial past installed at Berlin’s long-awaited Humboldt Forum
Kang Sunkoo’s bronze Statue of Limitations shows a black flag at half-mast
Newscoronavirus
Austrian culture minister steps down after coming under fire over pandemic response
Ulrike Lunacek was in office for less than four months
NewsBerlin
As one private collector shuts down Berlin space, Julia Stoschek threatens to follow
Closure of Thomas Olbricht’s Me Collectors Room comes after collector Friedrich Christian Flick’s announcement he is ending his museum loan
NewsAuctions
First live auction in Germany after lockdown features painting bought for Hitler
Neumeister in Munich will today host a live auction for a maximum audience of 20
Newscoronavirus
We went to one of the first German museums to reopen after the lockdown—here's what it was like
Poles and ribbons are used at the Brandenburg State Museum for Modern Art in Cottbus to practice social distancing
AnalysisArt market
When the emergency aid runs dry, what next for art galleries?
With short-term assistance varying between countries, trade organisations fear many businesses will close permanently due to coronavirus lockdowns
NewsPrivate collections
Berlin museums announce ‘painful’ end to loan of 'one of the world’s most outstanding contemporary art collections'
Prestigious private Flick collection, including works by Giacometti, Duchamp and Bruce Nauman, has been on loan to Berlin for 17 years
Newscoronavirus
German museums prepare to reopen, gradually and with precautions
The first museums open today in the state of Brandenburg in a gradual easing of the coronavirus lockdown; bigger museums may take longer to reopen
Newscoronavirus
In cautious loosening of lockdown, Germany allows art galleries to re-open
Small shops to open from next week but large gatherings still banned until at least 31 August
NewsArt collection
Looted Benin treasures to go online in international project led by Hamburg museum
Project is backed by the Ernst von Siemens art foundation, which seeks “a more factual focus to the discussions about restitution”
NewsCathedral of Notre Dame
Germany offers help in restoring Notre Dame's stained-glass windows
German cathedral glass workshops have the expertise and experience necessary to undertake the restoration
Newscoronavirus
Austrian galleries plan cautious re-openings as government eases lockdown
“The doors will be wide open to let the sun in again,” says one Viennese dealer
NewsMuseums
Fire breaks out at Berlin’s Humboldt Forum
Fire service says one person was injured in the blaze caused by a gas cylinder exploding
Newscoronavirus
'Like a permanent bank holiday': museums at greater risk of break-ins during lockdown
Reduced security staff and distracted police forces could lead to a rise in art thefts—but there are measures that can be taken to protect collections
NewsArt market
Forgery, drugs and sex abuse in the Canadian art world exposed in new documentary
There Are No Fakes connects a forged Norval Morrisseau painting to a crime ring behind "the greatest art scam in Canadian history"
NewsArt theft
Birthday heist: Van Gogh painting stolen from Dutch museum on anniversary of artist's birth
The Singer Laren museum in the Netherlands is currently on lockdown because of the coronavirus pandemic
Newscoronavirus
Majority of Berlin artists worried they can't pay rent due to coronavirus, survey finds
German government has introduced emergency measures to support the creative industry
Featurecoronavirus
Here's how to apply for financial aid during the coronavirus pandemic if you're self-employed or a small business in the arts
We have gathered information about grants and loans around the world to help you get through the Covid-19 crisis
Newscoronavirus
Berlin museums will close to stem spread of coronavirus
Culture ministers from the 16 states to meet today to discuss their response to the virus
Newscoronavirus
Germany promises financial support to help arts institutions hit by coronavirus
Grütters sees "massive burden" for arts sector as theatres and concert halls close, ticket sales dwindle
NewsNazi loot
Hitler’s helpers? German dynasty’s restitution claim hangs on Nazi ties
Hohenzollern family is seeking compensation for thousands of works and expropriated property
Newscoronavirus
Austria’s federal museums close to prevent coronavirus spread
Albertina delays planned opening of new Vienna museum of modern art
NewsArt theft
Green Vault guards under investigation in Dresden jewel heist inquiry
Two are suspected of tampering with the alarm system; two more, on duty during the theft, are accused of an inadequate response
NewsHumboldt Forum
Goethe Institute teams up with Berlin's Humboldt Forum
Joint projects will include exhibitions, exchanges and education programs focussed on post-colonialism and sustainability
PreviewExhibitions
Topless Beethoven to take centre stage in Leipzig survey of Symbolist artist Max Klinger
Exhibition at the Museum of Fine Arts hopes to raise awareness of the German sculptor whose work was dismissed by critics as "craft"
NewsAnniversary
Happy birthday Beuys: German museums band together to celebrate artist’s 2021 centenary
Twenty institutions in 12 cities are planning exhibitions and events for 100th anniversary of Joseph Beuys’s birth
NewsOpenings
Semperbau museum in Dresden, home to Vermeer's hidden cupid painting, reopens after €49m renovation
The 19th-century palace is returning to the idea of showing sculpture alongside its Old Masters
NewsExhibitions
Uffizi scientific committee resigns in dispute over Raphael loan
The committee had advised against moving Raphael’s portrait of Pope Leo X; the museum loaned it to Rome’s Scuderie del Quirinale regardless
NewsRestitution
Italy hands Nazi-looted Renaissance sculpture from the Uffizi to Germany
Andrea della Robbia’s Mary Magdalene was acquired by Hermann Göring in 1941
NewsParthenon marbles
Leaked draft of EU paper stirs Parthenon Marbles dispute
But the clause is unlikely to refer to the ancient Greek sculptures in the British Museum, expert says
NewsPublic art
Carousel in Frankfurt to recall the Kindertransport that saved thousands of children from the Nazis
Yael Bartana's public sculpture commemorates those who were shipped out before the Second World War
NewsSculpture Park
Sculpture park to show works by Ai Weiwei and Hans Arp at castle outside Berlin
Established by the founders of the Institute for Artists Estates, Loretta Würtenberger and Daniel Tümpel, the display will open in May at Schlossgut Schwante
NewsArt market
Goodbye Gerhard: Deutsche Bank shrinks art collection
Troubled firm offloads some major works, but vows to continue buying emerging artists’ work
NewsNazi loot
German court rules in favour of Nazi-looted art database, although owners say a listing makes works unsellable
Lostart.de is caught between the conflicting demands of claimants and the holders of disputed art
NewsEast German art
Arseholes or artists? How East German art is becoming a new collecting frontier
As a cache of communist pieces stored near Beeskow castle for 25 years is being rehabilitated, the market for such work is growing
PreviewExhibitions
Angelica Kauffman, who was lauded in her lifetime but later largely ignored by art historians, gets new show
Travelling Kunstpalast exhibition will feature the only known ceiling paintings created by a woman in the 18th century
NewsAcquisitions
Hitler in Hell: German Historical Museum acquires George Grosz painting
Painted while Grosz was living in exile, the work has remained in the family since 1944
NewsExhibitions
Two Iran exhibitions in Germany put on ice amid political tensions
Insurers refused to cover the transport of loans, including salt-mine mummies and Greek and Roman antiquities
NewsRestitution
Three Nazi-looted works bought by Gurlitt return to Jewish collector’s heirs
Two paintings by Jean-Louis Forain were discovered in Cornelius Gurlitt’s trove; the third work, by Constantin Guys, was restituted by another family member
NewsArt theft
Five Old Masters return to German castle 40 years after theft
The paintings, including works by Holbein and Hals, were smuggled across the Iron Curtain in the 1980s and recovered in a secret operation last year
NewsRestitution
Berlin restitutes painting to heirs of 'degenerate' artist for the first time
A portrayal of Lot by Hans Baldung Grien was sold to the Gemäldegalerie in 1937 by Hans Purrmann
NewsRestitution
Arts Council England asks for help in returning looted artefacts held in UK museums
Tender opened for guidance around repatriation questions for items including those acquired from former colonies
NewsArt market
Sotheby’s to auction three Nazi-looted works restituted to Jewish collector’s heirs
Two paintings by Signac and one by Pissarro are expected to fetch as much as £20m
NewsRestitution
New evidence cited in restitution claim for Panama Papers Modigliani
Dealer Oscar Stettiner’s grandson says painting, now owned by David Nahmad, was looted by Nazis
NewsArt market
Art Berlin is scrapped due to venue uncertainty and lack of profits
Organiser of German fair describes cancellation as "regrettable"
NewsControversies
German art activists apologise for upsetting Holocaust survivors with monument containing human remains
Centre for Political Beauty concedes “mistakes,” says it will veil monument
NewsControversies
Art activists anger Holocaust survivors with Berlin monument containing ashes
Centre for Political Beauty says action targets conservatives open to allying with far right
NewsConservation & Preservation
Cold War-era mosaic sees light of day again in eastern Germany
Reappearance of a Josep Renau mural hints at a greater acceptance of East German public art
NewsRestitution
Germany returns indigenous remains of 45 ancestors to Australia in 'long overdue step'
Saxon government acknowledges “years of disregard for their dignity and importance to their communities of origin”
NewsJewish Museum Berlin
Hetty Berg is appointed new director of Jewish Museum Berlin
She will take over the German institution following the controversial departure of Peter Schäfer last June
NewsRestitution
German museum acquires Heinrich Campendonk painting after restitution to Jewish collector’s heir
Work once belonged to the shoe manufacturer Alfred Hess, whose family was forced to flee Nazi Germany
NewsArt crime
Thieves steal priceless Baroque jewels from Dresden museum
After breaking in through a window at the Green Vault, the intruders grabbed three royal jewellery ensembles containing diamonds and pearls
NewsBerlin
New Berlin foundation turns AI into immersive art
Light Art Space wants visitors to understand the world through a computer’s eyes
NewsRestitution
Dr Oetker returns painting to heirs of Jewish tobacco dealer murdered by the Nazis
Leo Bendel was killed at Buchenwald three years after he sold the painting by Carl Spitzweg to fund his escape from Nazi Germany
NewsExhibitions
Permanent Documenta exhibition opens at Kassel’s Neue Galerie
The show includes insights into preparations by the Indonesian art cooperative Ruangrupa for the 2022 edition
NewsChina
German art worth €300m disappears in China, media reports
Collector Maria Chen-Tu says she had loaned works by Markus Lüpertz and Anselm Kiefer to a businessman to be shown in museums
NewsMuseums
German parliament approves institute for photographic legacy based in Dusseldorf
Government says institute is necessary to address “considerable backlog in securing the visual memory of our society”
NewsRestitution
France returns a historic sword to Senegal
The gesture is intended as a symbol of France’s commitment to repatriating African heritage