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
NewsRestitution
George Soros's Open Society Foundations pledges $15m to help Africa recover looted heritage
Paid over four years, it will support efforts made by museums, grassroots-organisations and governments
NewsMuseums
German parliament approves extra costs for Berlin Museum of the 20th Century
The €364m budget is “a real pain threshold,” culture minister says
NewsCollectors
Collector Egidio Marzona buys eastern German castle to host design academy
The property was once home to Paul Schultze-Naumburg, a leading proponent of Nazi cultural policy
NewsRestitution
Bern museum sells $4m Manet painting from Gurlitt art hoard
National Museum of Western Art in Tokyo agrees to buy the painting, Ships at Sea in Stormy Weather
NewsProvenance research
'An invaluable resource' for provenance research: German pre-1945 auction catalogues are published online
The database includes 9,000 catalogues from more than 390 auction houses in Germany, Austria and Switzerland
NewsRestitution
FBI recovers painting suspected as Nazi loot from US museum
Gari Melchers's painting of a winter landscape, which was in the Arkell Museum in the state of New York, belonged to the media mogul Rudolf Mosse
PreviewExhibitions
Munich exhibition uses X-rays to lay bare Anthony van Dyck's creative methods
Research project conducted by Alte Pinakothek reveals how the Flemish painter developed and reworked his canvases
NewsArt market
'Close to Raphael' Madonna sells for €1.27m at Vienna’s Dorotheum
A leading Italian art historian attributed it to Raphael and associates before the sale
NewsAppointments
Tate’s Andrea Lissoni to lead Munich’s troubled Haus der Kunst
Challenges include financial problems and a major planned renovation
NewsExhibitions
British Museum to borrow the Nebra Sky Disc, the oldest portrayal of the cosmos
The artefact will be the focus of a joint exhibition with the Halle Museum of Prehistory
NewsArt crime
'Prominent' Berlin art dealer arrested on suspicion of fraud
Police has raided seven premises in connection with the investigation
NewsOlafur Eliasson
Olafur Eliasson will create 'pan-European' work of art for Germany's EU presidency next year
The project, which is to be designed with participation from children and young people, will be supported by the Goethe Institute
NewsColonial art
German states establish help desk to handle artefacts acquired in colonial era
An open letter from scholars and curators, including Bénédicte Savoy and Felwine Sarr, demands greater transparency on collections
NewsMuseums
Italy extends Eike Schmidt’s leadership of Uffizi for four years
Sylvain Bellenger is reappointed in Capodimonte, Cristiana Collu remains at Rome Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna
NewsArt market
Is this a Raphael? Madonna and Child painting to be auctioned at Dorotheum in Vienna
The work, previously unknown to scholars, was until now in a private ducal collection
NewsAppointments & departures
Uffizi's Eike Schmidt reveals why he cancelled move to Kunsthistorisches Museum at the eleventh hour
Uffizi director says he is able to pursue reforms at Florence museum under Italy's new centre-left government
NewsAppointments
Uffizi’s Eike Schmidt cancels move to Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna
Move comes just one month before the German art historian was due to take the reins of the prestigious museum
NewsRestoration
King of bling’s magnificent home—destroyed by Allied bombing—is recreated in Dresden
Splendid royal state apartments of Augustus the Strong are opening to visitors again after a lavish reconstruction
PreviewExhibitions
Woven conflicts: Hannah Ryggen's fascist-fighting tapestries go on show in Frankfurt
Textile-works showing Nazi prison camps and Mussolini with a spear through his head will feature in first German survey of Swedish artist
NewsOlafur Eliasson
Olafur Eliasson appointed UN Goodwill Ambassador for climate
The Danish-Icelandic artist has long been addressing environmental issues in his work
NewsRestitution
Namibian artefacts travel home in Berlin museum research project
But return of the objects permanently to Namibia is not the immediate goal, says Hermann Parzinger, president of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation
NewsAustrian politics
Austrian election campaign turns forest art stadium into political battleground
Unveiled earlier this month, Klaus Littmann's tree installation is Austria's biggest ever public work of art
NewsMuseums
Costs soar for Berlin’s planned Museum of the 20th Century
New estimate puts potential cost at €450m versus previous estimate of €200m
NewsRestoration
Restorers discover shield fragment is 1,700 years old, making it the oldest German panel painting
Researchers at the Landesmuseum in Halle found fragments of paint on the ancient wooden object
NewsProtest
Ai Weiwei was not 'thrown out' of Munich’s Haus der Kunst, artist confirms
Activist was demonstrating in support of workers' rights in the face of cost-cutting at the museum
ReviewThree to see
Three exhibitions to see during Berlin Art Week
From an artist occupation in an abandoned building to Ai Weiwei's return to his roots
NewsPhotography
Germany plans photography archive to preserve 'visual memory of our society'
Culture minister Monika Grütters enlists international experts to help create a central institution but critics question necessity and feasibility
NewsBauhaus
'Black box' dedicated to Bauhaus opens in Dessau
Museum celebrates the German design school in the city most closely associated with founder Walter Gropius
NewsControversies
Nazi design exhibition at Dutch museum braces for protests
The show called Design of the Third Reich features the Volkswagen Beetle and Riefenstahl’s films