| The First Art Newspaper on the Net |   | Established in 1996 | Tuesday, April 5, 2016 |
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| | Russia's Hermitage Museum offers help to restore ancient Syrian city of Palmyra | |
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A picture taken on April 2, 2016 shows a woman looking at exhibits in the Palmyra Hall at the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg. OLGA MALTSEVA / AFP.
SAINT PETERSBURG (AFP).- The director of Russia's renowned Hermitage Museum, which has an important collection of sculptures from Palmyra, has offered its expertise to help restore the ancient Syrian city retaken by President Bashar al-Assad's forces from the Islamic State group. "Restoring Palmyra is the responsibility of all of us," Mikhail Piotrovsky told AFP, surrounded by displays of tomb stones, sculptures and coins from Palmyra at the museum in Saint Petersburg. Following the IS campaign of destruction, "restoring Palmyra is a long-term task, and it's essential that we take our time," said Piotrovsky, estimating that up to 70 percent of the ancient historic site could have been damaged or destroyed by the jihadists. "We will have to record where every stone was found before taking a decision on how to restore these historic monuments," he said of the painstaking work required. The Hermitage director insisted that only an "international association" including UNESCO member countries and Syria's Director ... More |
The Best Photos of the Day NEW YORK.- A chair used, and later decorated, by author J.K. Rowling while she wrote the first two Harry Potter books on display alongside a letter of provenance from the author at Heritage Auctions in New York on April 4 2016 ahead of its sale on April 6. William EDWARDS / AFP
| Swiss, German museums to show Nazi-era art hoard found in Cornelius Gurlitt's apartment | | Ancient burials revealed at mysterious Plain of Jars in Laos | | Exhibition exploring the evolution of Dutch flower painting over the course of two centuries opens in London | 
Christopher Marinello looks at Henri Matisses Femme Assise ("Seated Woman"). AFP PHOTO / ART RECOVERY / WOLF HEIDER-SAWALL.
GENEVA (AFP).- A Swiss museum is to exhibit works from a spectacular Nazi-era art hoard it inherited two years ago from a German recluse, gallery managers said Monday. The Museum of Fine Arts in Bern said the exhibit of works from the estate of Cornelius Gurlitt would run through the 2016-2017 winter season, in parallel with a similar exhibition at a museum in Bonn, Germany. "We will present the exhibits at the same time in Bonn and Bern," Maria Teresa Cano, a spokeswoman for the Bern museum told AFP. The museums, which are closely coordinating their exhibitions, said in a joint statement they aimed to present the collection "within a historically and scientifically contextualised framework", including details on efforts to determine the origin of some of the pieces. When Gurlitt died in 2014, more than 1,500 artworks, including valuable paintings and sketches by Picasso, Monet, Chagall and other masters, were discovered at ... More | | 
Unearthed 2,500 year old human remains at the Plain of Jars. Photo: ANU.
SYDNEY (AFP).- Archaeologists have uncovered ancient human remains and various burial practices at the mysterious Plain of Jars in Laos, Australian researchers said Monday, as scientists attempt to unravel the puzzle of the stone vessels. The Plain of Jars in Laos' central Xieng Khouang province is scattered with thousands of stone jars and scientists have long been perplexed by their original use. "This will be the first major effort since the 1930s to attempt to understand the purpose of the jars and who created them," Dougald O'Reilly from the Australian National University's school of archaeology said in a statement. He said excavations uncovered three types of burials at the site. In one practice, bones were buried in pits with a large limestone block placed over them, while other bones were found buried in ceramic vessels, separate from the jars. The researchers also found for the first time an instance of a body being placed in a grave. O'Reilly ... More | | 
Paulus Theodorus van Brussel, Fruit and Flowers, 1789. Oil on mahogany, 78.4 x 61 cm © The National Gallery, London.
LONDON.- The National Gallery welcomes spring with an exhibition exploring the evolution of Dutch flower painting over the course of two centuries. This is the first display of its kind in the UK for more than 20 years. Through 22 works, Dutch Flowers examines the origins of the genre, the height of its popularity in the Dutch Golden Age, and its final flowering in the late 18th century. Approximately half the works on display come from the National Gallery Collection, and the rest from private collections. Many of the paintings will be on display here for the first time, having only recently come to the Gallery on long-term loan. At the turn of the 17th century, Netherlandish painters such as Jan Brueghel the Elder, Ambrosius Bosschaert, and Roelandt Savery were among the first artists to produce paintings that exclusively depicted flowers. The sudden emergence of this genre is undoubtedly linked to the development of scientific ... More |
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| Syria monastery of Syriac Catholic Saint Elian ravaged by IS was symbol of coexistence | | Not-for-profit foundation Wikimedia art database breaks copyright law: Swedish court | | Squatters barrier to protecting New Delhi's ancient monuments in Nizamuddin area | 
A picture shows destroyed Christian graves at the devastated monastery of Syriac Catholic Saint Elian. JOSEPH EID / AFP.
AL-QARYATAIN.- On the wall of a monastery in Syria's desert, jihadists from the Islamic State group left a grim warning: "The lions of the caliphate are here to devour you." The Syrian army on Sunday drove out the jihadists, but the damage they have caused in a place that was once a symbol of religious tolerance seems almost irreparable. The monastery's old dry stone and mud brick church of Mar Elian has been reduced to a heap of rubble, according to a team of AFP journalists at the scene on Monday. IS razed the fifth-century church in August 2015 using explosives and bulldozers, as they have done with shrines and other religious buildings elsewhere, "under the pretext that people worshipped a deity other than God", according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Under the broken stone cover of a sarcophagus lay the skull and bones of Mar or Saint Elian -- a Christian from Homs province who was slain by the Romans for refusing to renounce his faith. ... More | | 
Wikimedia Sweden expressed disappointment at the ruling.
STOCKHOLM.- Sweden's highest court on Monday found Wikimedia Sweden guilty of violating copyright laws by providing free access to its database of artwork photographs without the artists' consent. Wikimedia, part of the not-for-profit foundation which oversees Wikipedia among other online resources, has a database of royalty-free photographs that can be used by the public, for educational purposes or the tourism industry. The Visual Copyright Society in Sweden (BUS), which represents painters, photographers, illustrators and designers among others, had sued Wikimedia Sweden for making photographs of their artwork displayed in public places available in its database, without their consent. The Supreme Court found in favour of BUS, arguing that while individuals were permitted to photograph artwork on display in public spaces, it was "an entirely different matter" to make the photographs available in a database for free and unlimited use. "Such a database can be assumed to have a commercial value th ... More | | 
An Indian Muslim sleeps at the entrance to the 16th century tomb of Chausanth Khamha (64 pillars) in the Nizamuddin area of New Delhi. SAJJAD HUSSAIN / AFP.
NEW DELHI (AFP).- In the crypt of a 16th-century nationally protected tomb in New Delhi, a family is busy preparing a meal in their brightly painted kitchen that boasts a fridge and electricity. New Delhi, where emperors ruled for at least 2,000 years, is rich with ancient tombs, shrines and forts which are packed into almost every suburb of the Indian capital. But the city is also teeming with millions of desperately poor and homeless and with land at a premium, the ancient monuments have become valuable homes, making removal of so-called squatters a tough battle. "There are far too many monuments and not enough resources. That means they are neglected and open to abuse and occupation," Delhi conservationist A.G.K Menon said. "Nobody occupies the Taj Mahal because it's looked after, but that's not the case for other precious monuments." Deep inside Delhi's packed Nizamuddin neighbourhood, past the ... More |
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| Bonhams to offer Indian royal family's treasure at its Indian and Islamic sale in London | | Exhibitions of new and recent work by François Morellet celebrate the artist's 90th birthday | | Sidney Williams, Curator of Architecture and Design at Palm Springs Art Museum, to retire | 
A jewel-encrusted dagger, estimated at £30,000-50,000, is one of the highlights of the Bonhams sale. Photo: Bonhams.
LONDON.- International auction house Bonhams is to offer a collection of jewels belonging to an Indian royal family at its Indian and Islamic sale at Bonhams New Bond Street on Tuesday 19th April. The family, who are based in the UK and wish to remain anonymous, will be parting with a number of treasures that have been in their possession for generations, including a South Indian marriage necklace, a jewel encrusted dagger, and extravagant princely jewels such as an emerald and diamond-set belt buckle. The manga malai necklace one of the highlights of the collection is composed of linked mango-shaped elements, lavishly set with rubies and diamonds, and estimated at £50,000-70,000. The mango garland design is unique to southern India, where the mango is regarded as a symbol of love and fertility. The manga malai was worn by women at special occasions such as weddings and ... More | | 
François Morellet, 4 trames de tirets du bleu au vert pivotées sur un côté, 1971 (detail), Silkscreen on wood, 23 5/8 x 23 5/8 inches, Courtesy The Mayor Gallery, London.
LONDON.- This April, three important exhibitions will take place to mark the 90th birthday of François Morellet, a major international figure and widely regarded as one of the most important French artists working today. The exhibitions offer an exceptional opportunity to review the long and pioneering career of Morellet and will include 30 significant works from the 1960s and 1970s at The Mayor Gallery, London and Dan Galeria, São Paulo, as well as 16 new and recent neon works and paintings at Annely Juda Fine Art, London. Annely Juda Fine Art will publish a catalogue with a contribution from the artist and The Mayor Gallery and Dan Galeria will publish a catalogue with contributions from Serge Lemoine and Hans Ulrich Obrist. Few artists have enjoyed such a long and illustrious international career, pursued with playful invention at more than 130 solo ... More | | 
Williams has been part of the core team shepherding the museums expansion.
PALM DESERT, CA.- Palm Springs Art Museum announced today that Sidney Williams, Curator of Architecture and Design, will be retiring after twenty-two years of service. Williams has been part of the core team shepherding the museums expansion, starting as Director of Education and Public Programs, on to Community Access Coordinator, Associate Director of Architecture, and finally Curator of Architecture and Design. In 2003 Williams launched the Architecture and Design Council and has been its liaison ever since, growing it to more than 700 members, the largest of the museums nine councils. Williams achievements have included curating the 2014 inaugural exhibition, An Eloquent Modernist: E. Stewart Williams, Architect and the 2015 exhibition, Seeing the Light: Illuminating Objects, both at the Architecture and Design Center. She was also curator forthe 2013 exhibition Insights into Architecture at Palm Springs Art Museum and install ... More |
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| 1933 Goudey Set, Number 5 on PSA Set Registry, now open for bidding at Heritage Auctions | | Largest-ever UK exhibition of the works of Simon Starling on view at Nottingham Contemporary | | Never before seen private notebooks by British artist Joe Tilson on view at Alan Cristea Gallery | 
1933 Goudey Babe Ruth #53 PSA NM-MT 8.
DALLAS, TX.- One of the finest 1933 Goudey PSA Registry baseball card sets, an elite compilation of the first great bubble gum issue, is expected to approach nearly $1 million when it comes up for auction on April 14, 2016, in an online-only extended bidding format auction presented by Heritage Auctions. Scoffing at the Great Depression that held the United States in its merciless grip, the Goudey Gum Company innovated the first great trading card issue of the long-standing Bubble Gum Era in 1933, a set that holds sway as one of the hobby's "Big Three." "This is one of the finest assemblies of this beloved 240-card masterpiece," said Chris Ivy Director of Sports Auctions at Heritage Auctions. "Our consignor cut no corners in piecing together this set. Even the ultra-rare Napoleon Lajoie card is present, and the 241st lot of the auction is an uncut sheet which includes the sought after yellow Babe Ruth." Admittedly, the appearance of the ... More | | 
Simon Starling, installation view, Nottingham Contemporary 2016. Photo Andy Keate.
NOTTINGHAM.- Nottingham Contemporary is presenting the largest-ever UK exhibition of the works of Simon Starling the Turner Prize winner who studied at Nottingham Trent University. The exhibition includes a new commission and some of Starling's major projects, most of which have never been shown in Britain before. The exhibition is part of season two of The Grand Tour. Starling is interested in physical, poetic and metaphorical journeys. These include the journeys of objects and materials - geographic, economic and through time and their transformation. His celebrated 1997 work Blue Boat Black is included here. Originally a museum display case, it was remade by Starling into a fishing boat, and then turned into charcoal to cook the fish that had been caught. Today, when the charred remains of the boat are exhibited, the cycle of transformation has come ... More | | 
Joe Tilson, Metamorphosis of Daphne, 1987. Courtesy Joe Tilson and Alan Cristea Gallery, London.
LONDON.- Never before seen private notebooks, dating from 1970 to the present day, by British artist Joe Tilson RA (b. 1928) are on display, alongside related works, at the Alan Cristea Gallery, London, from 21 March-7 May 2016. An original protagonist of the British Pop Art movement, and a contemporary of Frank Auerbach, Leon Kosoff, he also formed close attachments to Peter Blake, Allen Jones and Patrick Caulfield. These personal notebooks full of his notes, lists, poetry, studies, drawings, photographs and his insights into art, literature and cultural history give unprecedented insight into Tilsons working methods and the philosophy that governs his work and life. For almost 45 years Tilson has been making and publishing prints with Alan Cristea. Tilson, who trained as a carpenter and completed his National Service in the 1940s, attended St. Martins School of ... More |
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 Inaugural Lind Prize awarded to Simon Fraser University student Vilhelm SundinVANCOUVER.- The winner of the first-ever Lind Prize for Emerging Artists is Vilhelm Sundin of Simon Fraser University. Sundin receives $5000 and will have his work exhibited in the forthcoming Polygon Gallery when it opens in 2017. In a surprise announcement, judges also awarded runner up prizes to two students: Kerri Flannigan of the University of Victoria and Polina Lasenko of Emily Carr University. Each received $1000. Presentation House Gallery director Reid Shier and the prize's namesake, Philip B. Lind, were on hand to congratulate the young artists. Sundin was one of 8 students shortlisted for the prestigious new art prize. His work, along with that of other nominees, is currently on exhibit at Vancouver's Roundhouse Community Centre as part of the Capture Photography Festival. Sundin's video installations bring together the sublime and the everyday. In one ... More Renaissance plot thickens as Medicis get their TV seriesCANNES (AFP).- After the bed-hopping Borgias and the head-chopping Tudors, it is now the turn of another Renaissance dynasty, the Medicis, to get the television series treatment. The Florentine family, which spawned no fewer than three popes and two queens of France, have now got their own period drama starring Dustin Hoffman. The Hollywood star plays Giovanni de Medici the patriarch of the banking family, who like many in the Machiavellian clan came to a nasty end. His charismatic son Cosimo is played by "Game of Thrones" heart-throb Richard Madden, who was Rob Stark in the dwarves and dragons epic. The first of its 50-minute episodes are being premiered as part of the official selection of the world's best new series at the MIPTV festival in Cannes, France, which runs until Thursday. While sexual intrigue and power were driving forces for the Borgias ... More Tai Hwa Goh transforms Wave Hill's Sunroom Project SpaceBRONX, NY.- Tai Hwa Goh, the first artist in Wave Hills 2016 Sunroom Project Space, creates delicately layered installations from printed and cut paper that evoke biological forms and landscapes, reflecting on the external and internal worlds of the human body. At Wave Hill, Goh creates an immersive installation that explores the controlled environment of greenhouses, contemplating the intersection of organic and human-made realms. Imagining what would happen if human attempts to contain nature collapsed, Goh surrounds viewers in an alluring, yet unsettling overgrowth of both botanical imagery and architectural forms. Gohs installation pushes the boundaries of traditional printmaking from two-dimensional images on paper to three-dimensional sculptural installations that transform space. Starting with handdrawn illustrations of organic shapes and patterns, she scans and ... More Gallery opening and worldwide call for artists LONDON.- On 9 June, London will see the arrival of Nahmad Projects, an exciting new contemporary art space opening at 2 Cork Street, W1. An initiative of London-based gallerist Joseph Nahmad, in collaboration with former Sotheby's Tommaso Calabro, Nahmad Projects will bring a radical edge to Mayfair's contemporary art scene. Through an innovative program of multidisciplinary exhibitions, from performances to site-specific art installations, the new space aims to contribute to contemporary culture by investigating and challenging the boundaries of contemporary art practice. Emerging and established artists from around the world, together with leading international curators will be invited to reflect upon the most pressing issues surrounding contemporary art today. For its inaugural show this summer, Nahmad Projects is pleased to announce its collaboration with ... More Life's precious moments captured in the Garment DistrictNEW YORK, NY.- The Garment District Alliance today unveiled the latest in its ongoing series of public art exhibits, showcasing three works that symbolize profound moments in life. Crafted by New York City-based artists Patricia Cazorla and Nancy Saleme, the exhibit will feature, Nostalgia, Where The Warm Light Hides, and Across the Bridge. Located inside the Kaufman Arcade building on 132 West 36th Street, the free exhibit is accessible to the public through May 27. These works are part of the Garment District Space for Public Art program, which showcases artists in unusual locations throughout the year. Nostalgia, Where The Warm Light Hides and Across the Bridge are wonderful, inspiring works of art that truly capture the creative and imaginative essence of our neighborhood, said Barbara Blair Randall, president of the Garment District Alliance. Patricia and Nancy are ... More No Dar Papaya: Colombia in Polaroids by Matthew James O'Brien NEW YORK, NY.- In 2003, American photographer Matthew James O'Brien travelled to Colombia for the first time to photograph the country through the prism of its wildly popular local and national beauty pageants. He was invited to exhibit the resulting body of work, Royal Colombia, the following year at the Centro Colombo Americano in MedellÃn and at the Museo de Arte Moderno de Cartagena, and to teach at several institutions. His fascination and affection for Colombia grew, and over the next eleven years he would return to Colombia regularly, including as a Fulbright Fellow, to continue his photographic exploration of the country. His travels would take him to tropical rain forests, snow-capped mountains, bucolic beaches, tranquil countryside villages, the tough inner city streets of MedellÃn, and upscale neighborhoods in Bogotá, among other places. Created between 2003 ... More Cao Guimarãe's first solo exhibition in New York on view at Galeria Nara RoeslerNEW YORK, NY.- Galeria Nara Roesler is presenting Cao Guimarãe´s first solo exhibition in New York at Galeria Nara Roesler´s recently inaugurated New York space. The exhibition has been curated by Moacir dos Anjos, the editor of Guimarães´s first monograph Cao (published by APC and Cosac Naify, November, 2015) and the curator of his mid-career survey at Itau Cultural in 2014. The gallery show consists of 8 very rarely seen films by Guimaraes, focusing on a body of work that centers around children and the elderly. The 8 films on view in this exhibition were all shot in various film mediums and sizes. The artist asserts, through these films, that adulthood does not exist and is simple a period full with memories of what has passed and expectations of what is to come. Contrary to adulthood, childhood and old age are free from the obsession with the chronological passing ... More Spring Auction offers a wealth of fine model locomotives and engineering works of art NEWBURY.- Dreweatts & Bloomsbury Auctions announced The Transport Sale which will take place on Wednesday 27th April, 12 noon, at Donnington Priory, Newbury, Berkshire
RG14 2JE. With over 150 lots on offer, The Transport Sale will present buyers with the opportunity to acquire attractively priced fine model engineering and transport related items, with estimates ranging from £5,000£40,000. The auction has attracted a wealth of fine model locomotives in various gauges as well as a large collection of scale working model stationary steam engines from various UK locations. Leading the transport related items is the original Baglan Hall Great Western Railways nameplate which was removed from the engine when the train, like so many others, fell victim to the Beechings cuts inflicted on the British rail system in 1963. Rescued from R. Hayes scrapyard, Bridgend, the ... More JJ PEET receives Rose Art Museum's 2016 Perlmutter Award WALTHAM, MASS.- The Rose Art Museum announced that JJ PEET is the recipient of the 2016 Ruth Ann and Nathan Perlmutter Artist-in-Residence Award. The New York-based PEET is a celebrated ceramicist who works in a range of media, including installation, video, painting, and sculpture. PEETs multi-faceted residency will take place at pop-up locations across the Brandeis campus, and at the Rose Art Museums satellite gallery Rosebud, this April and May. Established through the generosity of Ruth Ann Perlmutter and given in recognition of an emerging artists achievement, the Perlmutter Award allows the museum to bring artists on the cusp of national and international acclaim to Brandeis. The Perlmutter Award supports PEETs exhibition series at Rosebud, as well as his residency on campus and engagement with Brandeis students and the broader academic ... More Handwritten working notes by Boris Pasternak for Dr Zhivago in Bonhams Fine Book SaleNEW YORK, NY.- Handwritten working notes for two chapters of one of the 20th centurys most controversial novels, Dr Zhivago, are among a host of fascinating literary gems at Bonhams Fine Literature Sale in New York on 11 April. The books author, Boris Pasternak (1890-1860), gave the notes for safe-keeping to the woman who inspired the novels central character, Lara, and whom had been imprisoned in the gulags under Stalin. The notes estimated at £28,000-42,000 ($40,000 - 60,000). The recipient of the notes - which cover events in chapters three and four of the published work - was Pasternaks mistress, the poet Olga Ivinskaya, who worked at Noyi Mir, a leading literary magazine. Pasternak wrote on the cover of the composition book Olga please save as is. 7 May 1956. Dr Zhivago is set in Russia between the 1905 Revolution and the Civil War of the early 1920s. ... More |
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Flashback On a day like today, French artist Jean-Honoré Fragonard was born April 05, 1732. Jean-Honoré Fragonard (5 April 1732 - 22 August 1806) was a French painter and printmaker whose late Rococo manner was distinguished by remarkable facility, exuberance, and hedonism. One of the most prolific artists active in the last decades of the Ancien Régime, Fragonard produced more than 550 paintings (not counting drawings and etchings), of which only five are dated. Among his most popular works are genre paintings conveying an atmosphere of intimacy and veiled eroticism. In this image: A man visits an exhibition of French Baroque painter Jean-Honoré Fragonard's works at CaixaForum Museum, on Thursday 09 November 2006 in Barcelona, Catalonia, northeastern Spain. The exhibition features 120 works including paintings by Fragonard, Renbrandt, Ruysdael, Tiepolo, Boucher and Grimou.
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