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French writer Emmanuel Carrere wins top Spain literature prize
MADRID (AFP).- Celebrated French writer Emmanuel Carrere was awarded Spain's prestigious Princess of Asturias prize for literature on Wednesday, one of the most important awards in the Spanish-speaking world. Carrere, a leading exponent of "autofiction" where writers fictionalise their own lives, is known for a string of books including "L'adversaire" (The Adversary, 2000), "Un Roman Russe" (My Life as a Russian Novel, 2007) and his new hit memoir "Yoga". In awarding the prize, the jury hailed the 63-year-old Parisian screenwriter and director for his "highly personal work that opens up a new space for expression that blurs the boundaries between reality and fiction". Over a writing career of nearly 40 years, Carrere has built up a body of work based on self-exploration, which often recounts the lives of others. Such was the case with "L'adversaire" which was based on the life ... More

Dr. Sarah Kennel named VMFA's Aaron Siskind Curator of Photography and Director of the Raysor Center
RICHMOND, VA.- The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts announced the appointment of Dr. Sarah Kennel to the position of Aaron Siskind Curator of Photography and Director of the Raysor Center at VMFA. She will begin the newly developed position in September. Kennel comes to VMFA from the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, Georgia, where she has served as the Donald and Marilyn Keough Family Curator of Photography and most recently organized the exhibition Underexposed: Women Photographers from the Collection. We are delighted to have someone with Sarahs deep knowledge, thoughtful vision and extensive experience joining the curatorial team at VMFA, said Alex Nyerges, VMFA's director and CEO. She will play a leading role in building the photography program and shaping the museums plans for an exciting new space devoted to collecting, caring for and ... More

Love in Bloomsbury at Bonhams Modern British and Irish Art sale
LONDON.- The art historian and critic Roger Fry (1866-1934) occupied a central role in British cultural life during the first four decades of the 20th century. A key figure in the influential Bloomsbury Group of writers, artists and freethinkers, and a founding member of both The Burlington Magazine and the Omega Workshops which gave practical expression to the Groups design aesthetics, Fry is, however, perhaps best remembered for organising the Manet and the Post-Impressionists exhibition at the Grafton Galleries in London in 1910. The exhibition not only introduced the work of painters such as Gauguin, Van Gogh, CÃ©zanne and Matisse to the British public, it also gave the world a new word Post-Impressionism, which has been a standard art history concept for more than a century. Roger Fry was himself a painter, and his Vanessa Bell in a Deckchair is one of the star ... More

Freeman's American Art and Pennsylvania Impressionists auction sets multiple auction records
PHILADELPHIA, PA.- Freemans announced the results of its June 6 American Art and Pennsylvania Impressionists auction, which far outperformed its overall estimate to achieve an impressive sale result of nearly $3.5M. The 89-lot auction featured a 91% sell-through rate and multiple standout sales, confirming Freemans strength in presenting important American art at auction. Between December 2020 and June 2021, Freemans has achieved their best year yet for American Art and Pennsylvania Impressionists: with over $10 million realized for fewer than 200 lots. I am extremely pleased with the strong results obtained Sunday, which contributed to Freemans most successful year for American Art yet, said Chairman Alasdair Nichol. We continue to prove our ability to sell fresh-to-market works from private collections, and I am pleased to announce a significant collection ... More

Jordan Chicago Bulls rookie shoes, Stan Musial World Series road uniform, Johnny Bench jersey lead Grey Flannel auction
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZ.- More than 950 generously illustrated, premium-quality sports memorabilia lots are now available to peruse and bid on in Grey Flannels Summer Games Auction. All major sports are represented, with an emphasis on provenance, authenticity and rarity throughout. Online bidding has begun and will continue through June 26. The sale opens with an unimprovable pair of 1984-85 Michael Jordan rookie game-used and autographed shoes that were gifted by Jordan to his favorite college photographer, Robert Crawford. Jordan had known Crawford from the basketball phenoms days on the hardcourt at the University of North Carolina. After he was drafted by the Bulls and left UNC, Jordan was thrilled to reunite with Crawford on ... More

Museum's role in police mural outside Detroit draws criticism
NEW YORK (NYT NEWS SERVICE).- They unveiled the mural outside the Sterling Heights police station with fanfare June 1. The mayor of the city in the Detroit suburbs cut the red ribbon to mark the installation of the artwork, which had been three years in the making and depicts police officers bowing their heads and clasping hands in front of an American flag. But in the week since then, the work, which was sponsored by the Detroit Institute of Arts, has become a touchstone for controversy as critics have denounced it as badly timed and overtly pro-police when they say the public discussion should be about police aggression. Some have called for it to be removed, and following the backlash, the artist herself said she no longer believes it is appropriate and that she feels used by the museum, which paid for the work as part of an initiative to work with surrounding counties whose tax ... More

Christie's auction features highlights of Marni's SS21 Marnifesto collection
LONDON.- Christies Jewels & Handbags Online: The London Edit from 9 to 23 June will present four one-of-a-kind pieces from Marnis SS21 Marnifesto collection, sold to benefit the Alliance of Artists Communities, an international association of artist residencies that support artists of any discipline in the development of new creative work. The selection of Marnifesto highlights will comprise of upcycled leather coats from the brand's archives, featuring hand-painted words and drawings inspired by Marni's community. The online auction is now open, with bidding starting from Â£100, and the unique pieces will be available to view at Christies London from 11 to 16 June. During the Covid-19 pandemic, Marnis Creative Director Francesco Risso opened up a dialogue between the talents, photographers and creative consultants who have collaborated with the brand over the ... More

New York Theater Workshop plans a summer reopening
NEW YORK (NYT NEWS SERVICE).- One major off-Broadway institution announced its return to live performances Tuesday when New York Theater Workshop unveiled its 2021-22 season, which will begin in August and overwhelmingly feature projects by women and people of color. Among the five productions announced is Sanctuary City, by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Martyna Majok, which was eight preview performances into its run in March 2020 before the pandemic brought live theater to a standstill. The play, about two teenage children of immigrants living in the United States without legal permission, will be directed by Rebecca Frecknall and is planned for September. New York Theater Workshop also said it had slated four shows so far for 2022-23, including a staging of Chekhovs Three Sisters that had originally been planned for 2020. Directed by Sam Gold and ... More

Douglas Cramer, producer of TV hits and art aficionado, dies at 89
NEW YORK (NYT NEWS SERVICE).- Douglas S. Cramer, who produced some of the most successful television shows of the 20th century, many including The Love Boat and Dynasty in partnership with Aaron Spelling, and who used his substantial wealth to become a leading art collector, died on Friday at his home on Marthas Vineyard in Massachusetts. He was 89. His husband, Hubert Bush, said the cause was kidney failure. Cramer had a long career in television, producing or helping to develop shows including Peyton Place in the 1960s, The Odd Couple in the 1970s and Hotel in the 1980s. In the 1990s he produced a string of television movies based on novels by Danielle Steel. Today, television producing credits are handed out for a variety of reasons, and those given them often have little direct involvement in the show. But in Cramers day the producer was often ... More

Robert Hollander, who led readers into 'The Inferno,' dies at 87
NEW YORK (NYT NEWS SERVICE).- Robert Hollander was the sort of literature professor to recommend years of rereading to understand a great book. To study his own favorite masterpiece, Dante Alighieris The Divine Comedy, Hollander held himself to a yet higher standard. He mastered seven centuries of line-by-line commentary about the poem. Such a body of writing more closely resembles Talmudic exegesis than literary criticism. Devotion to it is devotion to an extreme form of traditionalism. Yet the commentaries became, for Hollander, the engine of his most innovative work. In the early 1980s, when few scholars had ever applied computer technology to the study of literature, Hollander set out to digitize the Divine Comedy commentaries. He secured funding from Apple and AT&T for what came to be known as the Dartmouth Dante Project. Undergrads used scanners the ... More

William Powell Frith and Pre-Raphaelite drawings head the cast for country house sale at John Nicholson's on June 25
HASLEMERE.- Millais, Burne-Jones and William Powell Frith are just three artists whose work will feature in John Nicholsons sale of the contents of Selham House, Sussex on June 25. Described by Country Life as having a grand entrance hall worthy of Downton Abbey, Selham House stands in 15 acres of landscaped gardens between Petworth and Midhurst. Dating to about 1900, Selham House, its owners have included the Cowdray family and the Maharajah of Bahawalpur, who bought it in 1948. Furniture, porcelain, clocks, tapestries and fine art come together in this rare country house sale the dream of any auctioneer these days with the paintings and drawings leading the way thanks to a connoisseurial eye that favoured Pre-Raphaelites and choice ... More