PreviewThe Year Ahead 2020
New museums and major expansions opening in 2020
From Tutankhamun's new king-sized home in Cairo to Munch's sleek space in Oslo, here is our pick of the big openings this year
NewsMuseums & Heritage
UK's historic houses fight for survival post-lockdown after financial crash
Heritage organisations such as the National Trust rely on visitors for most of their income—but they have been staying away
NewsConservation & Preservation
Turkish government on collision course with Unesco over turning Hagia Sophia into mosque
President Erdogan’s plans to convert the museum have drawn fire from Greece and the US
ReviewThree to see
Three exhibitions to see in New York, London and online this weekend
From Vanessa Thill's mixed-media sculptures at Deli Gallery to Ella Kruglyanskaya's figurative works at Thomas Dane Gallery
FeatureBook Club
In Pictures | Can’t travel to Venice? Immerse yourself in a new book on Turner’s paintings of the watery city
Five paintings and sketches by the British artist selected from a new book
NewsControversies
Pace Gallery shuts down homophobic slurs on Instagram over Peter Hujar photographs
In Pride Month post, gallery speaks out against "individuals who wish to degrade marginalised communities"
NewsAuctions
Waning market for African artefacts? Controversial Benin bronze fails to sell at Christie's
Academics challenge the provenance of the Edo plaque as well as two Igbo alusi figures that sold under estimate for €212,500
PreviewExhibitions
Derek Jarman's love of gardening is subject of new London show
Exhibition at the Garden Museum focuses on the late artist and film-maker's time at Prospect Cottage in Dungeness
NewsThree to see
Three online exhibitions honouring Pride Month
From the history of discriminatory blood donation policies at the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art to the history of the rainbow flag
NewsCrime
Teenager who threw boy from Tate Modern is given a life sentence with minimum term of 15 years
Jonty Bravery intended to kill, judge says
NewsExhibitions
Major slavery exhibition heads to MFA Houston and the National Gallery of Art in Washington
Afro-Atlantic Histories, which opened in São Paulo in 2018, tells the story of the transatlantic slave trade and its legacies
NewsArthur Jafa
Arthur Jafa’s searing chronicle of Black America to be screened by museums worldwide for 48 hours
Fourteen institutions including Tate will livestream Love is the Message, The Message is Death
NewsMuseums & Heritage
Facebook and Instagram ban trading of historical artefacts
Heritage group Athar were part of a campaign highlighting the social media giants' “black market in antiquities”
NewsMuseums
UK museums can reopen from 4 July—but for some it's too soon
News of the government's latest easing of lockdown measures today has been welcomed by the art world but "huge problems still remain for the sector"
NewsRestitution
National museum in Stockholm to return stolen 16th-century painting to Poland
Officials in Poland and Sweden piece together provenance of work by School of Lucas Cranach the Elder
NewsSculpture
Windrush sculptures honouring UK's Caribbean immigrants to be unveiled in London
Leading black artists Thomas J. Price and Veronica Ryan's works in Hackney are due to be completed in 2021
Newscoronavirus
Works of art hung in hospital staff rooms are a tonic for UK healthcare workers
Rana Begum and the Chapman brothers have donated works to the #100NHSRooms initiative
NewsGuerilla Girls
Guerrilla Girls focus on Black Lives Matter in new video
Art Night’s Trailers series also includes works by Mark Leckey and Oona Doherty
ReviewThree to see
Three projects celebrating Juneteenth, the holiday marking the end of slavery in the US
From freedom papers on view at the National Museum of African American History and Culture to Issac Julien's film about famed abolitionist Frederick Douglass
FeatureBook Club
In Pictures | Eva Hesse and Hannah Wilke compared in new catalogue
A selection of photographs, plus the curator Eleanor Nairne tells us how the two artists had a love for liquid latex and were fuelled by grief
NewsControversies
Racism on walls of UK government? British Empire murals spark controversy
Politician raises concerns over Sigismund Goetze painting in the Foreign Office depicting Africa as a naked boy
NewsExhibitions
'Radical black resistance': Dresden exhibition to focus on legendary activist Angela Davis
In the wake of the Black Lives Matter demonstrations, Albertinum show explores impact of her visit to East Germany in 1972
NewsProtests
Protestors seize African artefact from Paris's Quai Branly museum in bid to 'bring to Africa what was taken'
Five demonstrators will go to court on charges of theft
ReviewThree to see
Three cultural projects exploring racial injustice and black resistance
From the artist collective Forensic Architecture's investigation into the UK police killing of Mark Duggan to an interactive platform chronicling the legacy of lynching in the US justice system
NewsMonuments
Museum world rallies behind curator investigated for tweets on how to damage bronze statues
UK arts professionals express support for Madeline Odent whose comments prompted a backlash on Twitter
NewsMonuments
Artist of African descent must create France's new slavery memorial, campaign group says
Culture ministry launches open call for monument that will be sited near the Musée du Louvre
NewsProtest
Oxford council says controversial Cecil Rhodes statue should go to museum after long-running stalemate
Thousands of protestors are demanding removal of statue of the Victorian imperialist from Oriel college
NewsMonuments
Statues of slavers around London could be pulled down under mayor’s new diversity plan
Sadiq Khan wants to review and improve "the diversity of public landmarks" after protestors toppled the statue of Edward Colston in Bristol
NewsArt market
La Biennale Paris dealers will consign works to Christie’s online sale as part of new partnership initiative
Art fair and auction house boundaries blurred in wake of the coronavirus outbreak
NewsMonuments
Protesters topple monument to slave trader Edward Colston in Bristol—mayor wants to place it in a museum
Controversial statue was dismantled and thrown into the harbour during a Black Lives Matter rally
NewsArt market
Art Basel cancels Swiss edition in September due to coronavirus concerns
Flagship fair will relaunch next June in Basel as organisers focus on delivering Miami Beach show in December
NewsThree to see
Three initiatives that explore racial inequality and the long fight for justice in the US
From Google Arts & Culture's digital platform exploring the culture of black experience to the Smithsonian's new Talking About Race portal
NewsBiennials & festivals
Saudi Arabia moves ahead with plans for 2021 biennale at historic Ad Diriyah site
New contemporary art event is yet to confirm participating artists
NewsArt market
Historic Tunisian items withdrawn from Paris auction after heritage body claims works left country illegally
More than 100 objects once belonging to the Tunisian politician Habib Djellouli, including an ancient Quran, are at the centre of the controversy
InterviewBook Club
Q&A | Would Bauhaus artists have loved the iPhone? The writer of a new book called iBauhaus thinks so
Nicholas Fox Weber tells us what inspired his book and which visionary he would not like to spend lockdown with
NewsArtists' houses
Controversial artist Gregor Schneider leads lockdown tours of Nazi chief Joseph Goebbels’s house
German artist and Golden Lion winner is inviting people on personal tours of his hometown
NewsProtest
Art world presses pause for #BlackOutTuesday
Mixed reactions for the social media campaign, whereby millions are posting black squares in support for the Black Lives Matter movement—but is it reductive?
NewsObituaries
'A healing machine meant to bring people together': art world figures pay tribute to Christo's vision
Pamm director says Miami island project brought the community together after 1980s race riots
FeatureBook of the month
Reviewed: Warhol, A Life as Art by Blake Gopnik
Three Andy Warhol devotees give their take on the near-1000 page biography
NewsArt market
Freshly graduated from art school? New online platform aims to help emerging artists sell work amidst pandemic
Inaugural show on Kovet.Art features eight graduates with prices under £10,000
ReviewThree to see
Three artist-led initiatives that are chronicling the coronavirus experience
From printed masks made by Ai Weiwei to art historical masterpieces recreated at home
NewsArt fairs
No boys allowed: this year’s Chart art fair will only exhibit women artists
Event across five Nordic cities tackles issue of male-dominated art world head on
FeatureBook Club
Extract | Tribal identity, Tories and Tracey Emin: Grayson Perry reveals (even more) in updated book
Excerpts from the expanded monograph include how he was inspired by outsider art and the stresses of building a “Taj Mahal on the River Stour”
NewsAppointments
'As reassuring as Mr Bean'? London's National Portrait Gallery appointment attracts criticism
Conservative MP Chris Grayling has been named a trustee of the museum
NewsPrizes
Turner prize 2020 is cancelled and replaced with £100,000 fund for artists
Ten £10,000 "Turner Bursaries" to be announced late June
NewsClimate Change
Inverleith House reinvents as climate crisis venue in partnership with Serpentine Galleries
Historic Edinburgh gallery will become ‘Climate House’ following £150,000 lifeline funding award from Outset
BlogBook Club
What has the Whitechapel Gallery chief Iwona Blazwick been reading during lockdown?
The London-based curator has been perusing publications on science fiction, avant-garde cabarets and all things witchy
ReviewThree to see
Three virtual readings to check out this weekend
From Maurizio Cattelan's Bedtime Stories to Neïl Beloufa's post-capitalist fable featuring camels and foxes
NewsProtest
'Impeach Bolsonaro': artist hangs black cloths on Brazilian Embassy in Paris to protest against president
Julio Villani's banners symbolise his “ongoing determination, revolt and despair” at the Brazilian leader's handling of the coronavirus crisis
NewsMedia & broadcast
BBC Four—UK's specialist arts TV channel—saved from the chop
Critics say new strategy means station will become a home for repeats with less investment in arts programming
NewsCharity
Put your art where your mouth is: leading British artists design masks for charity
David Shrigley, Linder, Eddie Peake and Yinka Shonibare have created facemasks to raise funds for UK museums and artists
NewsDigital Age
DIY curating: UK galleries mount virtual shows on lockdown using new digital tool
Art UK's Curations initiative enables “anyone anywhere with internet access” to create an exhibition using the national image database
NewsBiennials & festivals
Venice Art Biennale delayed until 2022, now the same year as Documenta
Organisers say "it is impossible to move forward within the set time limits in the realisation of such a complex and worldwide exhibition"
NewsSocial media
What are some of Tracey Emin's favourite works? Musée d'Orsay invites artists to delve into its collection on Instagram
British artist chooses some of the Paris museum's sexiest art in new lockdown project
FeatureBook Club
Extract | The story of Ruth Asawa and the secret gift from her teacher Josef Albers
An excerpt and images from a new biography on the sculptor who studied at the famous Black Mountain College and was interned during the Second World War
PreviewThree to see
Three shows to see online this weekend
From a collaborative series between the New Museum and Rhizome to Modern Art Oxford's virtual tours
NewsSocial media
Long lost families reunited: social media campaign uncovers the links between objects across UK museums
Galleries on lockdown connect online during coronavirus pandemic using #CollectionsUnited
BlogBook Club
What has the art world been reading during the coronavirus lockdown? Part two
Curators, directors and art historians tell us about the books they have been reading and revisiting
NewsHeritage
Battle to save concrete Picasso murals in Oslo intensifies after MoMA steps in
“Workers at the Y-Block site have started drilling, but it’s worrying as once they start moving the mural, it will crack,” says co-creator’s daughter
NewsPrizes
Hong Kong artist's sombre still life with a tear gas canister vase wins Human Rights arts prize
Jeremy Deller judged the sixth edition which is backed by the European Union
NewsMuseums
Blockbuster Edward Hopper show is relaunched as Swiss museums come out of 'recent slumber'
Museums in South Korea and Hong Kong have also started reopening after coronavirus lockdowns
NewsExhibitions
Salisbury Cathedral marks 800th anniversary with virtual show featuring Mark Wallinger and Grayson Perry
Works were installed throughout the historic building before lockdown
NewsBiennials & festivals
‘In two and a half years, who knows where the world will be’—Lyon Biennale curators reveal why exhibition was pushed back from 2021 to 2022
Pressure on resources play a part as well as ethical issues in the wake of coronavirus
ReviewThree to see
Three artsy culinary challenges for homebound cooks this weekend
From the Museum of Modern Art's home cooking interviews to the Blanton Museum's bakeoff
NewsFelix Gonzalez-Torres
Felix Gonzalez-Torres’s fortune cookie piece to pop up in 1,000 locations worldwide
“Writers, curators, artists and friends of Felix’s” will be asked to take part in participatory work
NewsCathedral of Notre Dame
Notre Dame spire competition has stalled, says artist Wim Delvoye who submitted a 'fireproof' design
Debate about the spire is intensifying with battle lines drawn between traditional and contemporary camps
NewsPrizes
Artist Gary Hume says National Portrait Gallery should 'bite the bullet' and cut ties with oil giant BP
Fuel company's decision to withdraw from the BP Portrait Award judging panel was a missed opportunity to end sponsorship relationship, artist believes
NewsPrizes
Los Angeles Times art critic Christopher Knight wins Pulitzer prize
Writer was recognised for his criticism of Lacma’s controversial expansion plan
NewsFrieze New York
Wanted: land-art sponsor to bury Christoph Büchel's aircraft in sand
The Swiss artist is seeking sponsors this week at Frieze New York for his new project Terminal, which involves burying a Boeing 727 jetliner in the California desert
NewsControversies
Director of France’s national furniture collection defends plans to sell 100 items at auction to aid healthcare workers
Move prompts fears that works from national museum collections could be sold off too
BlogBook Club
What is the curator Hans-Ulrich Obrist reading during lockdown?
The artistic director of the Serpentine Galleries has been inspired by his daily walks and ‘animal interviews’ to revisit one of his favourite books about trees
Newscoronavirus
Reopenings update: Uffizi Galleries drastically cut capacity and launch TikTok account
Perrotin Gallery leads commercial charge by launching two-month rotating show involving 26 Paris dealers
ReviewThree to see
Three museum collections to explore from home this weekend
From the Centre Pompidou's #PompidouVIP to the Whitney's focus on recent acquisitions by living artists
NewsControversies
'Intrusive addition': Antony Gormley’s memorial to mathematician Alan Turing draws fire
Some critics support the proposed sculpture for Cambridge University while others question the competition process
Commentcoronavirus
Why I made a mountain of fortune cookies in my little London flat during lockdown—all in the name of art
Biscuit sculptures have sprung up worldwide as part of a global initiative to celebrate the late artist Felix Gonzalez-Torres
Gareth Harris