Museums & Heritage

Mona Lisacomment

Why there is no case for returning the Mona Lisa to Italy

An archaeologist’s recent claim that illicit actions have led the painting to be in France mirrors that made by the man who stole it more than a century ago—and it is entirely false

From the courts to the British Museum—it’s time to stop hiding from the realities of climate breakdown

A reluctance to acknowledge hard facts is playing into a one-sided narrative around Big Oil—and the consequences are far reaching

Decision on Stonehenge at-risk status delayed by Unesco committee

The two-year delay may pave the way for controversial tunnel redevelopment scheme, say campaigners

Unesco warns that AI could rewrite Holocaust history

What can museums and heritage institutions do about disinformation powered by artificial intelligence?

Iowa museum becomes first in US to return looted Benin bronzes to royal ruler

The University of Iowa Stanley Museum of Art has defended its decision to hand back two objects to the Oba rather than the government

UK government commits to building national Holocaust memorial in London

Keir Starmer’s Labour administration is reintroducing a bill that will allow the monument and accompanying learning centre to be built, after the project was challenged in the courts

National Trust for Historic Preservation grants $3m to Black heritage sites across the US

Almost half of the funding will go towards preserving Modernist buildings designed by Black architects

Royal Academy removes works from young artists’ exhibition following accusations of antisemitism

A public letter from the Board of Deputies of British Jews criticised the RA's decision to display the works, and to do so without context

New York's Hispanic Society launches Goya Research Center

Headed by the Goya scholar Guillaume Kientz, the new project anticipates the 200th anniversary of the artist’s death in 2028

‘Don’t fudge the facts’: campaigners call on Science Museum to go further after cutting ties with oil giant Equinor

Questions have been raised about the UK museum’s decision to retain sponsorship from BP, in light of data relating to its alignment with the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement

Centre Pompidou Málaga to remain in place for another decade

Despite setbacks at satellite sites elsewhere, an extension to the gallery's collaboration with the Spanish city has been agreed

Government bail out for National Museum Cardiff 'won't go far enough', says chair of museum group

The Welsh government has promised over £3m to repair Wales' national cultural institution, but the true figure needed could be more than seven times higher

Technologycomment

Where is the big museum blockbuster on AI?

Even the science-themed PST Art exhibitions, opening in Los Angeles in September, avoid the tech revolutions of our day

Dia at 50: a new era

A look at the past, present and future of the famed New York contemporary-art institution, which started out with an ambitious mission to create massive public works and has morphed into a museum for the 21st century

UK’s Henry Moore Institute reopens after major redevelopment

The head of the organisation hopes the newly thought out spaces will prove inviting to artists in the city, during what is a difficult time for the British cultural sector

V&A beats Met to acquire medieval ivory sculpture of Christ for £2m

The purchase was made possible after an export license for the Romanesque carving was deferred by the UK authorities last year

Rare Caspar David Friedrich sketchbook jointly acquired by Berlin, Dresden and Weimar museums

The sketchbook will be shown in all three cities to mark what would be the artist's 250th birthday

Ex-Mormon artist pulls exhibition from Arizona museum over concurrent Mormon art show

The artist Angela Ellsworth withdrew her show due to a communication breakdown with Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum

The Broad will reimagine a famed Joseph Beuys reforestation project

Inspired by '7000 Eichen (7000 Oaks)' and organised in conjunction with PST Art, the initiative coincides with a major solo show of the artist’s work

Looted Asante treasures find a new palace home in Ghana

Objects from the British Museum and the Victoria & Albert Museum are on loan to the Asante king, while the Fowler Museum has transferred ownership of seven items

Artists shine a light on historic Black communities in Texas

Art projects in Dallas and Houston are looking to preserve what is left of neglected ‘freedmen’s towns’ created by formerly enslaved African Americans

A storied public art collection in California makes space for emerging artists

The Stuart Collection at the University of California San Diego is launching an emerging artist programme with a trio of new commissions

France’s leading arts PR firm Claudine Colin Communication acquired by Finn Partners

Founder Claudine Colin says she made the decision to secure the future of the communications company and to promote its development

Lacma accused of showing counterfeit Korean works

A panel of Korean art experts have deemed four pieces displayed in a recent exhibition to be fakes

Politicsanalysis

How Indian PM Narendra Modi’s weaponising of heritage backfired in Ayodhya

The politician lost the Faizabad constituency in which he built the controversial Ram temple

Workers allege redundancies at London’s Institute of Contemporary Arts are related to Palestine solidarity actions

The institution has made around ten redundancies due to budget cuts, but former staffers claim their dismissals have to do with the response to the war in Gaza

Oldest example of figurative art found in Indonesian cave

The picture depicting a wild pig and a trio of human figures dates from 51,000 years ago, according to researchers, and suggests that Europe was not the birthplace of cave art

British Museum’s historic Reading Room opens to the public after 11 years

The space, once used by the likes of Karl Marx, is finally available for all visitors to the London institution to see

State lawmakers pull funding for New Jersey's Centre Pompidou outpost

The mayor of Jersey City says the move to scuttle the Paris museum's first US location was politically motivated

Street behind Tate Modern closed after glass panels fall from building

Window panes from the Neo Bankside development, whose residents forced the museum to restrict access to its viewing gallery, smashed into the street