| The First Art Newspaper on the Net |   | Established in 1996 | Friday, November 2, 2018 |
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A field archaelogist uses a brush on a skeleton in an open coffin during the excavation of a late 18th to mid 19th century cemetery under St James Gardens near Euston train station in London on November 1, 2018 as part of the HS2 high-speed rail project. Tucked behind one of London's busiest railway stations, a small army of archaeologists shovel thick clay as they clear a vast burial site to make way for a new train line. They have already unearthed about 1,200 of the estimated 40,000 skeletons believed to lie beneath St James Gardens near Euston, which was a cemetery between 1788 and around 1852. It is one of more than 60 archaeological sites created as part of the construction of a new high-speed rail link from London to Birmingham. Adrian DENNIS / AFP.
by Alice Ritchie
LONDON (AFP).- Tucked beside one of London's busiest railway stations, a small army of archaeologists dig through clay as they clear a burial site of 40,000 bodies to make way for a new train line. They have already unearthed the first 1,200 skeletons from St James Gardens, a park next to the Euston terminal, which was a cemetery between 1788 and around 1853. It is one of Britain's largest ever digs, and one of more than 60 archaeological sites that have emerged during the construction of a new high-speed rail link from London to Birmingham. Since experts began work at Euston a few weeks ago, the site has been transformed into muddy, stepped trenches and excavations as deep as eight metres. Dozens of archaeologists in high-visibility orange suits and hard hats swarm one section of the plot under an 11,000 square-metre roof that protects them from the rain and prying eyes. Their work has exposed remarkably ... More |
The Best Photos of the Day Britain's Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge (R) visits the Imperial War Museum in London on October 31, 2018 where she was shown letters relating to the three brothers of her great-grandmother, ahead of Armistice Day. Her Royal Highness visited the IWM London to view letters relating to the three brothers of her great-grandmother, all of whom fought and died in the First World War. Frank Augstein / POOL / AFP
| Stedelijk Museum not obliged to restitute 'Bild mit Häusern' (1909) by Kandisnky | | Coloured bird, dinosaur eggs in same evolutionary basket | | White glove sale for Pierre Bergé Collection: Highest total for any sale of house contents at Sotheby's France | 
Wassily Kandinksy, Bild mit Häusern, 1909 (detail), collection Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, c/o Pictoright Amsterdam.
AMSTERDAM.- The Restitutions Committee has just issued a binding opinion about the application for restitution of the work Bild mit Häusern (1909) by Wassily Kandinsky. This oil painting is in the collection of the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam. The Stedelijk bought the painting on 9 October 1940 at the auction of Frederik Muller & Co. in Amsterdam. Heirs of previous owners of the work sought restitution of the painting. In late 2013 the City of Amsterdam, the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam and the heirs, represented by their lawyer, requested the Restitutions Committee to issue a binding opinion on this work. After considering the case, the Restitutions Committee today issued a binding opinion. The Committee has concluded that the municipality of Amsterdam is not obliged to restitute this painting to the Applicants. Over the past two decades, the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam has actively participated in a national research project into the provenance o ... More | | 
Assortment of paleognath and neognath bird eggs and a fossil theropod egg (on the right). Photo: Jasmina Wiemann/Yale University.
PARIS (AFP).- Birds have more in common with dinosaurs than previously thought as new research showed Wednesday they inherited coloured eggs directly from their scaly ancestors. The evolutionary link between dinosaurs and birds has been recognised for centuries but ornithologists long believed that birds evolved their coloured eggs several times over history, mimicking local hues to help their eggs blend in. Birds are the only creatures known today to lay coloured eggs, and do so using only two pigments -- red and blue. Researchers analysed 18 fossil samples of dinosaur eggshells in the US, Taiwan and Switzerland, using lasers to test for presence of the same pigments. They found them in eggs from dinosaurs including Velociraptor, which lived in the region of what is now Mongolia around 75 million years ago. "This completely changes our understanding of how egg colours evolved," said Yale University paleontologist and lead study author Jasmina ... More | | 
A recreation of the dining room at rue Bonaparte, designed by Roberto Peregalli and Laura Sartori Rimini. Courtesy Sotheby's.
PARIS.- Over the course of the last two days, Sothebys Paris gallery has been the stage for a landmark event in the art market. Almost 1,000 exceptional lots from the collection of Pierre Bergé found new homes, totalling 27,474,328 ($31,268,258) with 100% of lots sold and 95% of lots exceeding their high estimates bringing the great Pierre Bergé - Yves Saint Laurent auctions to a close with astounding results. The online auction catalogue for Collection Pierre Bergé: From One Home to Another, together with the individual lot pages, garnered just under 500,000 views from almost 80,000 visitors to the website. Madison Cox, President of the Fondation Pierre Bergé - Yves Saint Laurent (Paris), the Fondation Jardin Majorelle (Marrakech), and sole heir to Pierre Bergé said: This evening at Sothebys, one chapter has closed and another has opened. Yves Saint Laurent once said, One day, people will speak of a B ... More |
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| The V&A unveils plans for two new sites and the future of its collection in London's Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park | | Timothy Taylor presents new large-scale paintings by Alex Katz | | Christie's offers an important collection of paintings by Hudson River artists | 
Internal render view of the new V&A collection and research centre at Here East, with Altamira Palace ceiling installed © Diller Scofidio + Renfro, 2018.
LONDON.- The V&A has unveiled plans that will revolutionise how its world-leading collection of art, design and performance is accessed, explored and experienced. The V&A East project will create two interconnected sites in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park a brand-new museum at Stratford Waterfront, and a new collection and research centre at Here East. They will open in 2023 as part of East Bank, the £1.1bn powerhouse of culture, education, innovation and growth taking shape in the park as part of the Olympic legacy. V&A East will also host a unique and unprecedented partnership between the V&A and the Smithsonian Institution the largest museum and research complex in the world. V&A East will provide a 360-degree view of the V&A, and illuminate the breadth of its work in ways that have not been realised before. Situated within the vibrant creative hub of east ... More | | 
Alex Katz, Coca-Cola Girl 22, 2018. Oil on linen 84 Ã 126 in 213.4 Ã 320 cm.
LONDON.- Timothy Taylor, London, is presenting Coca-Cola Girls, an exhibition of new large-scale paintings by Alex Katz inspired by the eponymous, and iconic, figures from advertising art history. The Coca-Cola Girls were an integral focus of the companys advertising from the 1890s through to the 1960s, emanating an ideal of the American woman. Initially, the Coca-Cola Girls were reserved and demure, evolving during WWI, and through the era of the pin-up, to images of empowered service women in uniform, and athletic, care-free, women at leisure. In the context of pre-television advertising, the wall decals and large-scale billboards depicting these figures made a significant impact on the visual language of the American urban landscape. For Katz, this optimistic figure also encapsulates a valuable notion of nostalgia; Thats Coca-Cola red, from the companys outdoor signs in the ... More | | 
Frederic Edwin Church (1826-1900), On Otter Creek (detail), oil on canvas, 18 x 24 1/4 in. (45.7 x 61.5 cm.) Painted in 1850. $400,000-600,000. © Christies Images Limited 2018.
NEW YORK, NY.- Christies announced a prestigious collection of Hudson River School paintings from the Collection of Kevin and Barrie Landry will be offered in the American Art sale on November 20 in New York. One of the finest groupings of Hudson River School artists to appear on the market in decades, all sale proceeds will benefit philanthropies that support the global refugee crisis, UNICEF USA, RefugePoint, and The Young Center for Immigrant Childrens Rights. Inspired by their love for America the couple were drawn to the Hudson River School artists who celebrated nature, discovery, exploration and patriotism. Artists include Frederic Edwin Church, Asher Brown Durand, George Henry Durrie, Sanford Robinson Gifford, David Johnson and John Kensett, among others. Comprised of 13 lots, the collection is expected to realize ... More |
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| AGO launches crowdfunding campaign to bring a Yayoi Kusama Infinity Mirror Room to Toronto... forever | | Star soprano warns of rampant body-shaming in the opera world | | National Portrait Gallery opens "Eye to I: Self-Portraits from 1900 to Today" | 
Portrait of Yayoi Kusama. © Yayoi Kusama, courtesy Yayoi Kusama Inc.
TORONTO.- Today the AGO launched an ambitious crowdfunding campaign to acquire Canada's first Infinity Mirror Room artwork by internationally acclaimed artist Yayoi Kusama. Last spring, over 165,000 people were wowed by Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors at the AGO the huge demand for tickets was unprecedented, crowds lined up around the block and the AGO extended its hours, but not everybody could participate in Kusama's groundbreaking work. Inspired by the love for Kusama's unique and immersive Infinity Mirror Rooms, the AGO wants to give everyone the opportunity to see her work in Toronto
for infinity. The AGO announced that it has secured half the purchase price for an Infinity Mirror Room. The #InfinityAGO campaign invites Torontonians to donate the rest to ensure that current and future art lovers can experience Kusama's extraordinary and innovative exploration of ... More | | 
In this file photo taken on October 17, 2018 US soprano singer Lisette Oropesa poses during a photo session at the Opera Bastille in Paris. Lisette Oropesa will performs as Adina in the "l'Elixir d'Amour" (The Elixir of Love) at the Opera Bastille in Paris from October 25 to November 25, 2018. STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN / AFP.
by Rana Moussaoui
PARIS (AFP).- We tend to think of opera singers as a voluptuous breed: it's not over until the fat lady sings, or so the old saying goes. But as star soprano Lisette Oropesa knows all too well, directors are increasingly pressuring female stars into losing weight. Back in 2005, the Cuban-American singer -- sought by some of the world's most prestigious opera houses -- weighed 95 kilograms (210 pounds). Now, she weighs just 56. "That's a lot to lose. It took five years to get to this weight," Oropesa told AFP. The 35-year-old was used to being called fat -- she'd suffered such taunts since she was a schoolgirl in New Orleans. But as a singer, she soon found that her ... More | | 
Self-Portrait by Lee Simonson. Oil on canvas c. 1912. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; gift of Karl and Jody Simonson.
WASHINGTON, DC.- The Smithsonians National Portrait Gallery announces Eye to I: Self-Portraits from 1900 to Today, organized by the Portrait Gallerys Chief Curator Brandon Brame Fortune. At a time when countless selfies are being posted on social media channels and identity is proving to be more and more fluid, the Portrait Gallery will present a sampling of how artists have approached the exploration of representation and self-depiction through portraiture. With each self-portrait, artists either reaffirm or rebel against a sense of identity that links the eye to I. Drawing primarily from the National Portrait Gallerys vast collection, Eye to I will examine how artists in the United States have chosen to portray themselves since the beginning of the last century. The exhibition will be on view Nov. 2, 2018 through Aug. 18, 2019. Eye to I will feature more than 75 artworks in a ... More |
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| Gagosian opens High Noon, an exhibition of Desert paintings by Dan Colen | | Lark Mason announces European Furniture and Decorative Arts Sale | | Edwynn Houk Gallery opens an exhibition of thirteen large-scale photographs by Abelardo Morell | 
Artist in Red Hook, Brooklyn Studio, 2018. Artwork © Dan Colen. Photo: Eric Piasecki. Courtesy Gagosian.
LOS ANGELES, CA.- Gagosian is presenting High Noon, an exhibition of Desert paintings by Dan Colen. Colens early works were hyperrealistic paintings of lived-in interiorsa cluttered bathroom, a messy bedroom, a camping tentthat included supernatural or religious figures, including Jesus Christ, the ghost of his grandfather, and flying cartoon cherubim. Frustrated by what he perceived as a limited discourse surrounding photorealism, Colen shifted his focus to making paintings using unconventional mediachewing gum, trash, tar and feathers, soil, and metal studsas well as papier-mâché works, animatronic sculptures, lifelike nude self-portraits, and uncanny installations incorporating flags, sneakers, and handmade replicas of beer bottles and cigarette butts. Over the last four years, Colen has returned to representational oil painting through more formalist investigations into the ... More | | 
Byzantine Bronze Cross, 6th / 10th Century, Dutch School.
NEW YORK, NY.- Lark Mason Associates will offer a diverse selection of works of art, paintings, furniture, textiles, metalwork, and ceramics from the Byzantine period through the early 20th century. The auction is now online at www.iGavelauctions.com, and runs through November 14, 2018. The exhibitions can be seen at two locations: 210 West Mill Street in New Braunfels,Texas and in New York at 227 East 120th Street. Says Lark Mason: This is a fantastic sale that includes wide swathe of period furniture and decorative arts. Many of the lots are being offered without reserve, giving new collectors a marvelous opportunity to buy authentic and important items. Consigned by prominent American collectors, highlights include a Dutch School oil on canvas of the Flight from Egypt, estimated at $20,000-40,000; a Rare and Large Byzantine Bronze Cross estimated at $20,000-30,000; an Amsterdam Inlaid Ebony and ... More | | 
Abelardo Morell, Flowers for Lisa #69, After Van Gogh. © Abelardo Morell. Courtesy of the artist and Edwynn Houk Gallery, New York.
NEW YORK, NY.- Edwynn Houk Gallery is presenting an exhibition of thirteen large-scale photographs by Abelardo Morell (American, b. Cuba, 1948), from his series Flowers for Lisa. The exhibition marks a culmination of the series, originally debuted by the gallery in 2017, and features a selection of never-before-seen photographs in which Morell delves deeper into his experimentation of variations on floral still lifes. Titled after Morell's wife of more than 40 years, Lisa McElaney, Flowers for Lisa evolved from the artists quest for a birthday gift that would endure beyond the brief lifespan of the bouquets Lisa was accustomed to receiving, and impress her with its bold, lasting visual impact. The process of creating this initial work for his wife spurred an intensive investigation into the theme over several years, resulting in a series of more than seventy examples that span a range ... More |
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Larry Bell: Seeing Through Glass
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 First major museum survey of Larry Bell in four decades opens at ICA MiamiMIAMI, FLA.- This November, the Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami mounts a focused survey of work by pioneering American artist Larry Bell, marking the artists first major museum exhibition in over four decades. Spanning three pivotal decades for the artist and the development of contemporary sculpture, Larry Bell: Time Machines illuminates the ways in which the artist has been both a pioneering force and distinct voice in minimalism and contemporary art. Bringing together a wide range of media including seminal and large-scale sculpture, photography, and rarely-seen immersive architectural installations the exhibition traces the evolution of Bells innovative use of technology, space, and light to push the boundaries of perception and contribute a distinct perspective to art of the post-war period. A critical focus of ICA Miamis exhibitions program ... More Lévy Gorvy announces appointment of Bona Yoo as Sales DirectorNEW YORK, NY.- Dominique Lévy and Brett Gorvy welcome Bona Yoo to the Lévy Gorvy team in New York, where she will join as a sales director, starting November 1, 2018. Previously Yoo was a director at Lehmann Maupin, where she worked with notable artists from the program, as well as important collectors and institutions internationally. With her diverse cultural sensibility and unique curatorial insight, Yoo was key in developing the gallerys global strategy and initiatives, and was instrumental in strengthening their international sales. She played a pivotal role in the introduction of the gallerys program and market development efforts in Asia, particularly in Korea, where Yoo spearheaded the opening of the gallerys Seoul location in 2017. Prior to Lehmann Maupin, she worked as a sales director at Kukje Gallery in Seoul, where she had ... More Morphy's to auction 950+ lots of superior-quality edged weapons, armor & militariaDENVER, PA.- Morphy Auctions invites collectors of edged weapons, armor and militaria to take a trip back in time on November 7 and 8 at their central Pennsylvania gallery with a 950-lot sale that ranges from suits of armor to flags, daggers, swords and historical relics of the Civil War and World War II. Fascinating examples of antique body armor will be offered, including a 19th-century copy of a mid-16th-century German fluted (partial) suit of armor likely from the atelier of the famous master armor dealer Ernst Schmidt. The neck lame of the helmet is struck with a Nuremberg mark. Auction estimate: $25,000-$35,000. Also, one of the most attractive full suits of armor to be offered in some years features a finely formed escot breastplate with articulated lance rest, winged pauldrons, mitten gauntlets, and a helmet of extremely well crafted hammered steel. ... More Original copy of the 19th Amendment granting women the right to vote will headline auctionCORAL GABLES, FLA.- An original copy of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution extending the right of suffrage to women, an Act of the Second Congress relating to trade with Indians issued by George Washington and signed by Thomas Jefferson, and a Thomas Edison patent pertaining to the light bulb are part of an auction online now and ending November 15th. Its David Gindys One of a Kind Collectibles Rare Autographs & Manuscripts Auction, which went online Thursday, October 25th, at www.OAKauctions.com. People can register and bid there now. The online-only sale features 228 lots of autographs, books, manuscripts, historical and political items, space memorabilia, sports lots, comic and animation art and rare newspapers. Other expected top lots will include an exceedingly rare William Henry Harrison signature as president ... More New-York Historical Society opens exhibition of works by Betye SaarNEW YORK, NY.- The New-York Historical Society presents Betye Saar: Keepin It Clean, a solo exhibition of work by the key figure of the Black Arts Movement and feminist art movement of the 1960-70s, on view November 2, 2018 May 27, 2019. The exhibition features 22 works created between 1997 and 2017, from the artists ongoing series of washboard assemblages utilizing the washboard as a symbol of the unresolved legacy of slavery and oppression that black Americans, particularly black women, continue to face. Betye Saar: Keepin It Clean, which fuses the historical and collective memory of race and gender in the United States with personal autobiography, joins Black Citizenship in the Age of Jim Crow (September 7, 2018 March 3, 2019) as part of New-York Historicals new initiative to address topics of freedom, equality, and civil rights ... More Richard Saltoun Gallery announces representation of Italian Feminist artist Silvia GiambroneLONDON.- Richard Saltoun Gallery announces representation of the feminist artist Silvia Giambrone. Combining a practice that encompasses performance, installation, photography, sculpture and sound, Giambrone explores contemporary body politics, with a particular focus on violence against women, both physical and psychological. Employing an almost ethnographic approach, Giambrone casts a critical gaze on the traditional domestic environment and excavates the inherent yet often hidden power dynamics between men and women. By addressing the social taboo of domestic violence, Giambrone positions herself next to a long line of historical Feminists from Helen Chadwick and Judy Chicago to Margaret Harrison, Linder and Gina Pane who used art as a vehicle to uproot inequality within the household and workplace, challenge social ... More Miyako Yoshinaga opens a solo exhibition of mixed media collage works by New York-based artist Hai ZhangNEW YORK, NY.- From November 1 to December 8, 2018, Miyako Yoshinaga presents The eye is not satisfied with seeing, a solo exhibition of mixed media collage works by New York-based artist Hai Zhang. The romantic picture of America is often at odds with the jarring reality of living within its complex workings, a rift especially pronounced for Hai Zhang. At the age of 24, Zhang departed his home country of China and arrived at a small town in Alabama, the start of a connective thread that would drive his pursuits as he periodically traversed the South, Midwest and West. After nearly two decades spent living in both urban and rural locations in the U.S., his vision of America as a symbol "has transformed into unsettling curiosity and suspicion." With a diverse repertoire of experience that includes years of work in photojournalism, he understands that ... More Louise Bourgeois leads Contemporary Sale at SwannNEW YORK, NY.- Swann Auction Galleries Contemporary Art sale on Thursday, November 15 offers a myriad of important and museum-quality works from key artists in the contemporary market. The sale is led by Louise Bourgeois' remarkable artists book, He Disappeared Into Complete Silence, 1947. Complete with text and nine engravings, the portfolio is an early set from the first edition and is one of only 19 known complete examples, more than half of which are in institutional collections. The work marks Bourgeois transition from life in Paris to New York and was used by the artist as an introduction to New York's art society. The publication is expected to bring $250,000 to $350,000. Alfonso Ossorio makes an appearance with the 1962 mixed-media assemblage, Untitled (Sidrach, Misach and Abednego). The work exemplifies what Ossorio ... More Walking Batman strolls across the auction block for a record $16,800 at Milestone's Premier Toy AuctionWILLOUGHBY, OH.- Batman first captured the publics attention in 1939, when he appeared on the cover of Detective Comics #27. Since then, the masked crime-fighter has remained in the forefront of American pop culture, dominating all media and delighting generations of children in the form of toys that reflect Batmans complex world of heroes and villains. On October 13, a classic battery-operated Walking Batman coolly strolled across the auction block at Milestone Auctions and in so doing set a new world auction record at $16,800. Made in the postwar Japan by TN, the 12-inch Walking Batman was new/old store stock and appeared never to have been played with. Its original Japanese-version box was a rare bonus and depicted Adam West as Batman with sidekick Robin in the Batmobile. There was a lot of action on that toy from all over ... More Lehmann Maupin presents works from Catherine Opie's series The ModernistNEW YORK, NY.- Lehmann Maupin announced Catherine Opies next exhibition with the gallery, The Modernist. The photography series and related filmOpies firstoffer a distinct narrative arc as they follow a fictional artist character on an arsonist spree across Los Angeles, targeting the citys iconic modernist buildings. The 21:44 minute photo-roman is comprised of 852 black-and-white photographs, and builds off the formal legacy of Chris Markers revolutionary La Jetée (1962). A work that envisions memory, dystopia, and the postapocalyptic world through still photographs, Markers film is apt art historical inspiration for Opies observation on the volatility and disjoint in present day America. Opies adopted city of Los Angeles, her home since 1988, has long served as a formal and conceptual landscape in her photography, capturing ... More Springfield Art Museum announces over 90 new acquisitions in 90th anniversary yearSPRINGFIELD, MO.- The Springfield Art Museum announced the acquisition of 98 works of art to our permanent collection. These works range in media from original illustrations, to large-scale watermedia, to photography, linocuts, cartoons, and mixed media. Artists range from Pablo Picasso to local notables Rose ONeill, Bob Palmer, and Bruce West, to contemporary diverse voices, Romero Britto and Jordan Eagles. Fifty-nine of the works are by Rose ONeill and were gifted to the Museum from the Rose ONeill Foundation. Fifteen of the 59 gifted works were recently on view in the retrospective exhibition, Frolic of the Mind: The Illustrious Life of Rose ONeill. The Rose ONeill Foundations generous gift substantially enriches the Museums small extant collection of ONeills work and will allow the Museum to continue to mount focused exhibitions ... More |
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Flashback On a day like today, French painter Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin was born November 02, 1699. Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin (November 2, 1699 - December 6, 1779) was an 18th-century French painter. He is considered a master of still life, and is also noted for his genre paintings which depict kitchen maids, children, and domestic activities. Carefully balanced composition, soft diffusion of light, and granular impasto characterize his work. In this image: People look at two different versions of "The Young Schoolmistress" by French painter Jean Baptiste Simeon Chardin during a preview of the exhibition at the Prado museum in Madrid, February 28, 2011.
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