| The First Art Newspaper on the Net |   | Established in 1996 | Wednesday, April 4, 2018 |
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| | The world's oldest bridge to be preserved by the British Museum's Iraq Scheme | |
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Aerial view of the bridge and the city of Girsu in the background
LONDON.- The worlds oldest bridge is to be saved for future generations thanks to a pioneering project as part of the British Museums Iraq Emergency Heritage Management Training Scheme. The bridge at Tello, in the south of Iraq, was built in the third millennium BC and will be preserved by British Museum archaeologists and Iraqi heritage professionals who are being trained to protect ancient sites that have suffered damage at the hands of Daesh (or the so-called Islamic State). Working with the Iraq State Board of Antiquities and Heritage, it is hoped that restoring the 4,000-year-old bridge will be a potent symbol of a nation emerging from decades of war and could one day lead to the site welcoming tourists from around the globe to learn about Iraqs rich heritage. The bridge will be restored in the latest phase of the successful Iraq Emergency Heritage Management Training Scheme, or simply Iraq Scheme, cre ... More |
The Best Photos of the Day Gallo Roman Pottery Head of Bearded Male - Royal Athena. Gallo Roman, A finely modeled pottery head presenting a likeness that may represent Emperor Macrinus who reigned from April 217 until June 8, 218. Estimate: Estimate: $7,500-$9,500.
| Report lashes France's 'lack of ambition' to return looted Jewish art | | Very rare Qing Dynasty bowl sells for $30.4 million | | Bid on Banksy in Prints & Multiples: The Premier Sale on artnet Auctions | 
French President Emmanuel Macron has asked French art historian Benedicte Savoy and the Senegalese writer and economist Felwine Sarr to examine the background of African art in French museums. FRANCOIS LO PRESTI / AFP.
PARIS (AFP).- An internal French government report has criticised the "inefficiency and lack of ambition" of official efforts to return art looted from Jews during World War II. The report, seen by AFP, was commissioned by the country's last culture minister and is scathing about the "40 years of inaction" over thousands of artworks confiscated from Jews during the Nazi occupation or which they were forced to sell for less than their real value. "The state and the national museums in particular are paying for 40 years of inaction," said its author David Zivie, a top civil servant and heritage expert. France has stepped up its efforts in recent years to return looted art to its rightful owners, using geneological experts to trace families. But the report said even this was ... More | | 
Nicolas Chow, deputy chairman for Sotheby's Asia, holds an extremely rare Qing Dynasty bowl -- one of only three known to exist -- during a media preview at Sotheby's in Hong Kong on April 3, 2018. An extremely rare Qing Dynasty bowl made for the Chinese emperor Kangxi fetched 30.4 million USD, Sotheby's said. ISAAC LAWRENCE / AFP.
HONG KONG.- An extremely rare Qing Dynasty bowl made for the Chinese emperor Kangxi fetched US$30.4 million (HK$239 million) at auction Tuesday, Sotheby's said. The bowl, just under six inches (14.7 cm) in diameter, is decorated with falangcai -- painted enamels combining Chinese and Western techniques -- and flowers, including daffodils which are not typically depicted on Chinese porcelain. The bowl, said to have been used by the emperor in the early 18th century, was sold within five minutes to an unnamed phone bidder from the "Greater China" region, said chairman of Sothebys Asia Nicolas Chow. "This is the absolute finest example to ... More | | 
Banksy, No Ball Games, 2009. Est. 25,00035,000 USD.
NEW YORK, NY.- On the heels of Banksys recent return to New York City, artnet Auctions is offering three works by the famed graffiti artist in Prints & Multiples: The Premier Sale, live for bidding now through April 17. The online auction is part of a series of five important sales focusing on different collecting categories that will run through mid-May. Among the notable Banksy prints offered in this sale is No Ball Games (2009), an image that has appeared as a number of outdoor murals. The artist's depiction of two children playfully tossing a street sign demonstrates the unique blend of iconic imagery and irreverent humor that typifies Banksys oeuvre. This otherwise idyllic rendition of childhood innocence is undercut by the signs deadpan and ironic message: "No Ball Games." This bright green impression of the print is signed and accompanied by a Certificate of ... More |
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| Hermann Historica GmbH announces highlights from its 76th auction | | Pace Gallery opens its second gallery in Hong Kong with exhibition of new works by Yoshitomo Nara | | Franciscan friars, guardians of Jerusalem's Holy Sepulchre | 
A South German baroque ivory box, circa 1680. Starting price 4.000 EUR.
MUNICH.- This year's Spring Auction at Hermann Historica GmbH will take place from 1 to 11 May with the usual wide range of high quality precious objects from all eras and originating from all over the world. Approximately 6,500 lots from all specialist areas represented by the auction house are to come under the hammer antiquities, arms and armour, works of art, hunting antiques, orders and collectibles from all fields of history and military history. The antiquities section includes a variety of unique and exquisitely worked objects that were crafted by the highly skilled smiths of yesteryear; some artefacts are known to have formed part of prestigious collections for many years. Once again, the line-up of early bronze helmets and antique swords promises several undisputed rarities, among them a late Illyrian bronze helmet embellished with a chased border of dots along the cheek pieces and face opening, ... More | | 
Yoshitomo Nara, Head 3, 2018. Ceramic, 12-7/16" x 10-3/4" x 8-7/8" (31.6 cm x 27.3 cm x 22.5 cm) No. 68821 © Yoshitomo Nara, courtesy Pace Gallery.
HONG KONG.- Pace Gallery inaugurated its second gallery in Hong Kong with an exhibition of new works by Japanese artist Yoshitomo Nara. On view March 27 through May 12, 2018 in H Queens, Yoshitomo Nara: Ceramic Works and
is the artists fourth solo exhibition with Pace Gallery worldwide. The exhibition includes new ceramic sculptures, paintings, and works on paper that continue the pioneering contemporary artists innovative approach to representation and form. The cornerstone of the exhibition comprises 12 new ceramic sculptures. The works were made in Shigaraki Japan, one of the oldest places in the country for production in the medium and a place where the artist has returned to work. With a dual focus on the form and materiality, Nara links together volumetric considerations with aesthetic qualities of the clay to service a conversation between the two. He ... More | | 
Father Francesco Patton, a superior in the Franciscan order known as a "Custo", poses for a picture at the Saint Saviour Convent, the Franciscan headquarters in the Middle East, in the Old City of Jerusalem. Thomas COEX / AFP.
JERUSALEM (AFP).- Wearing traditional brown robes held in place by a white belt with three knots symbolising vows of "poverty, chastity and obedience", Franciscan friars have long been a part of Jerusalem's landscape. Dispatched to the city 800 years ago by the Catholic order's founder, Saint Francis of Assisi, the Franciscans have for centuries ensured a permanent Christian presence in the Holy Land. Pilgrims know them primarily as the Guardians of the Holy Sepulchre, protecting the site where Jesus is believed to have been crucified and buried. Each year, hundreds of thousands of people visit the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, considered by many to be Christianity's holiest site. But the Franciscans, who are also responsible for the Church of the ... More |
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| Martin Luther King Jr: the dream, the man, the legacy | | MCA launches first major advertising campaign in 20 years with ad agency FCB | | Sotheby's Spring 2018 Hong Kong sales total US$466.5 million, second highest in company history | 
The Lorraine Motel is seen, where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was murdered, and is now part of the complex of the National Civil Rights Museum. Joe Raedle/Getty Images/AFP.
WASHINGTON (AFP).- Towards the end of his life, Martin Luther King Jr. lamented that his dream had "turned into a nightmare." The US civil rights leader was a weary man when he was cut down by an assassin's bullet at the age of 39 on the balcony of a motel in Memphis, Tennessee on April 4, 1968. He was also a controversial man -- unlike the iconic figure celebrated today with a national holiday and an imposing granite memorial in Washington. "He's become frozen in time -- not as the man he was in 1968, but in the image of August 1963 when he gives the 'I Have a Dream' speech," said David Farber, a history professor at the University of Kansas. "It's easy for Americans to forget how polarizing a figure King actually was in the 1960s," Farber said. "He'd become a really radical figure in the United States -- an outspoken opponent of American ... More | | 
The Made You Look campaign was created to re-introduce the museum after a highly regarded major redesign of the building by architects Johnston Marklee that blurs the boundaries between art, food, design, and learning.
CHICAGO, IL.- This weekend, the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago officially launches MADE YOU LOOK, the first major advertising campaign for the museum in 20 years. The launch is in conjunction with the MCA's first-ever pop-up experience dedicated to the work of groundbreaking artist Howardena Pindell, whose retrospective is currently on view at the museum. This free, two-day pop-up experience takes as its theme the year 1979, which was a pivotal time in Pindell's life and work. Attendees can interact with and experience the music, art and pop culture of 1979, created by advertising agency FCB Chicago. The pop-up event takes place on Saturday, April 7 (10 am to 5 pm), and Sunday, April 8 (noon to 5 pm), at 1330 N Milwaukee Avenue in Chicago. The Made You Look campaign was created to re- ... More | | 
Two Sets of Ming Dynasty Imperial Sutras Achieve HK$239 Million / US$30.4 Million / £21.7 Million. Courtesy Sotheby's.
HONG KONG.- Sotheby's Spring 2018 Hong Kong auction series concluded today with a grand total of HK$3.64 billion / US$466.5 million, against a pre-sale estimate of HK$2.75 3.86 billion / US$353-495 million, and with a strong combined sell-through rate of 89%. We delivered outstanding results for our clients and shareholders this week, said Tad Smith, Sothebys CEO. Outstanding prices across different categories coupled with a strong sell-through rate indicate that clients throughout Asia are engaged at every level. The past week of auctions, exhibitions and art fairs has left no doubt of Asias central position in the art market. With an overall total that is second only to our 40th anniversary celebrations back in 2013, this is an historic result for both Sothebys and the art market in Asia, commented Kevin Ching, CEO of Sothebys Asia. Our strength in both tradition ... More |
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| Moniker International Art Fair announces exhibitor lineup | | Phillips Editions Department to celebrate first decade this spring with tenth-anniversary sale in New York | | DeCordova explores the psychology of architecture in lived space | 
The new american flag, by Icy and Sot,Image by Icy & Sot, Exhibiting with Moniker Art Fair.
NEW YORK, NY.- Moniker International Art Fair presents its New York debut with some of the worlds most renowned urban & contemporary artists. The four-day event, May 3-6, is the first international outing for the fair, which has for the past nine years built a reputation as Londons must-visit festival for art collectors. Held in the cavernous industrial space of Greenpoint Terminal Warehouse, Monikers highly-curated, hand-picked lineup features 27 exhibitors presenting the best of international galleries and individual artists, including acclaimed emerging talent from both sides of the pond. Brooklyn is the perfect place to make our international debut, as it has always had a long history with urban and contemporary art." said Tina Ziegler, Fair Director. "Weve been careful to avoid the trappings of elite art fair traditions and ensure that Moniker welcomes everyone equally. Inclusivity and a sense ... More | | 
Robert Indiana, NUMBERS ONE through ZERO, 1978-2003. Estimate: $700,000 - $1,000,000.
NEW YORK, NY.- On the heels of its most successful ever Editions sale in London, Phillips announced the departments 10th anniversary auction on 24 April in New York. The Editions team was founded at Phillips in 2008 by Cary Leibowitz and Kelly Troester, who both remain at the helm today. In the 10 years since its inception, Phillips team has elevated the status of Editions as an artistically significant, often experimental and endlessly fascinating collecting category. The auction on 24 April will offer works by Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol, Brice Marden, Peter Doig, David Hockney, Jackson Pollock, Sam Gilliam, Keith Haring, Joseph Beuys, and Vija Celmins, among others. In the past decade, we have seen tremendous growth in the market for prints and multiples, said Cary Leibowitz and Kelly Troester, Worldwide Co-Heads of Editions. Phillips has prided itself on offering fine art original editions, which are many ... More | | 
Sarah Malakoff, Untitled Interior (Lion In Stairwell), 2002, C-print, 1/12, 24 1/2 x 21 inches, Museum Purchase with funds provided by Joyce and Edward Linde, Courtesy of the artist and Howard Yezerski Gallery.
LINCOLN, MASS.- Starting April 4, 2018, deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum presents Lived Space: Humans and Architecture, which features photographs, paintings, and drawings that explore our psychological and physical attachments to the spaces we build and inhabit. The exhibition will be on view through September 30, 2018. The artists featured in Lived Space examine the link between architectural elements and our inner world. In their work, interior rooms function as receptacles of memory, emotion, and identity. Some artworks show the human body merging with the built environment, while others present imaginary structures that exist solely in the artists mind. Drawn from deCordovas permanent collection, the exhibition addresses our impulse to adapt and relate ... More |
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First Look: An Exceptional Pair of Singing Bird Boxes
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 Baltimore Museum of Art presents two recent films by acclaimed artists Mary Reid Kelley and Patrick KelleyBALTIMORE, MD.- In collaboration with the Johns Hopkins Universitys Center for Advanced Media Studies, The Baltimore Museum of Art presents Mary Reid Kelley and Patrick Kelley: We Are Ghosts on view April 4 through August 19, 2018 in the Contemporary Wing. The exhibition presents two dramatically stylized films that artfully resurrect history and poetry. For This Is Offal (2016), which won the Baloise Prize at Art Basel, and their most recent film, In The Body of The Sturgeon (2017), they reanimate the dead, empowering a drowned woman to tell the story of her suicide, and envision the final moments of an American submarine crew. These unorthodox ghost stories are told in careful meter and rhyme with wild wordplay and wickedly funny twists throughout the films scripts. More broadly, the artists choice to focus on subjects who represent life experiences ... More Neha Dani debuts at PAD Paris PARIS.- Neha Dani, jewelry designer known for her unique, sculptural artistry, will make her debut at the prestigious international PAD Paris show in April, represented by the Karry Gallery. Art is one step from the visibly known towards the unknown. For an artist the experience of capturing a feeling through a perfect set of interconnected curved forms and planes is absolutely gratifying, said Neha Dani. Time and again I have be inspired by works of different artists of different medium like the great works of Vincent Van Gogh , Monet, Emile Galle in creating my own pieces of art form with a stir in them making them feel like almost alive. Neha Danis sculptural wonders are inspired by the natural world. Designing, creating and imagining come naturally to Dani. She conceptualizes 3-dimensional objects, and works patiently as she modifies and reworks the model until she feels it is perfect. She ... More Spring Dance to open at Jason Jacques GalleryNEW YORK, NY.- The Jason Jacques Gallery announces the opening of Spring Dance, a joint exhibition featuring new work of Michael Geertsen and John Souter. Each artist expands the limits of the ceramic medium and the preconceptions and connotative biases with which it is viewed. There will be a reception for the artists on April 4, from 6 to 8pm and the exhibition will be on view at 29 East 73rd Street through April 26th. Michael Geertsen, a Danish sculptor, is known through his works interrogation of the cultural and artistic places that ceramic inhabits, as well as its position in the future. His work is assemblages of thrown, cut, and rearranged forms that are glazed in striking, bright colors, and placed in exacting positions. They exist in a world between still life and sculpture, on the cusp between imagined utility and brokenness. His intention is not to copy ... More China cracks down on spoofs of 'Communist heroes'China's culture watchdog has slapped fines on websites that posted parodies of "Communist classics and heroes", as the authorities further restrict what people can say -- or even laugh at -- online. Major video sites iQiyi and Sina were handed undisclosed fines for "distorting or mocking" classic works, the culture ministry said, less than two weeks after new rules were issued to ban online spoofs. The ministry did not describe the offending videos. But another company in southwest China's Sichuan province, Sichuan Shengshi Tianfu Media, was given "the highest fine according to law" for creating a popular parody of a revolutionary ballad, the ministry said in a Monday statement. "Yellow River Cantata", a patriotic song written in 1939 encouraging youth to fight during the Sino-Japanese war, has inspired several humorous remakes that have chafed ... More Bonhams appoints Jennifer Jacobson and Caitlyn Pickens to new positionsNEW YORK, NY.- The international auction house Bonhams announces the appointments of Jennifer Jacobsen as Director of American Art and Caitlyn Pickens as Head of Sale, Impressionist & Modern Art. Both will be based in New York. Bonhams Global CEO Matthew Girling said, I am delighted to welcome both Jennifer Jacobsen and Caitlyn Pickens to Bonhams. Their experience will greatly add to the strength of our fine arts departments as we continue to grow our business in the United States. Jennifer Jacobsen is the Director of American Art at Bonhams in New York. Prior to joining Bonhams, she was at Christies New York for about nine years. Most recently Jennifer was a specialist and head of sale for American Art. She also worked on significant private sales as well as some of the strongest online auctions for the category. She has an extensive research ... More Renowned Egyptian author Ahmed Khaled Tawfik dies at 55CAIRO (AFP).- Influential Egyptian novelist Ahmed Khaled Tawfik, widely considered the first contemporary Arab writer of horror and science fiction, has died at the age of 55. Since his death on Monday, condolences have poured in from fellow authors and fans, many of whom said his thrillers had filled a gap in Egyptian literature during their adolescence. "Egyptian and Arab culture has lost a great novelist who enriched culture in Egypt and the Arab world," Egyptian Culture Minister Inas Abdel-Dayem said. "He was one of the most prominent writers of thrillers and youth stories... (and) was renowned for his enjoyable and captivating style." Among his most well-known works are "Utopia", "Fantasia", and "The Supernatural" series, whose main character Refaat Ismael is a medical doctor like Tawfik. "He helped shape my personality," said 31-year-old Sameh Afifi, who ... More H&H brings the glamour of classic car auctions back to Buxton LONDON.- H&H Classics auctioned cars at The Pavilion Gardens, Buxton from 1993 to 2015 when the Octagon Theatre closed for refurbishment but as of April 25th 2018 the company will be back again selling classic cars in this charming setting. One of the many interesting cars to be offered by H&H Classic for sale is an MG TF 1250 like the one that was turned into a Corgi toy for children. It is estimated to sell for £24,000 to £26,000 rather more than the toy version. Launched in 1953 its engine was later boosted to a 1500 version. H&H Classics is one of just five classic car auctioneers to have sold a car for more than $11m. Three years ago a Ferrari 250 GT SWB sold for £7,550,400, and a 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB made £2,207,920. Commenting on the companys return to Buxton, Simon Hope, Chairman of H&H Classics, says: We are delighted to be ... More Spanish street scene by Ludwig Bemelmans will be in Bruneau & Co.'s April 14th auctionCRANSTON, RI.- A wonderful selection of exterior architectural antiques and fine artworks that include a Spanish street scene by Ludwig Bemelmans (Fr./Am., 1898-1962), will headline Bruneau & Co. Auctioneers 356-lot Antiques & Fine Art Estate Auction on Saturday, April 14th, online and in the Bruneau & Co. gallery at 63 Fourth Avenue in Cranston, at 11 am Eastern time. Internet bidding will be made available through Bidlive.Bruneauandco.com, Invaluable.com, LiveAuctioneers.com and Bidsquare.com. Phone and absentee (left) bids will also be accepted. Previews will be held on Thursday, April 12th from 9-5; on Friday, April 13th, from 12 noon until 9 pm; and on Saturday, April 14th, the date of auction, when doors open at 8 am Eastern time. With spring upon us, we secured a delightful selection of exterior architectural antiques for all collectors, said Kevin Bruneau, ... More Art Central closes energetic art month in Hong KongHONG KONG.- Art Central with Lead Partner United Overseas Bank (UOB) closed the Fair on 1 April. The 102 participating galleries presented a curated selection of artworks which widely appealed to collectors and the general public alike, strengthening its standing as one of the most dynamic and progressive art events in the region. Art Centrals popularity was reaffirmed with record attendance of 39,000 over the seven-day period. Garnering private and institutional interest, strong sales were reported throughout the week. Art Central will return for the 5th edition in 2019. Charles Ross, Managing Director, Art Central notes, Art Central returned to Hong Kong with the aspiration to elevate the Fair experience and we are proud to have delivered a showcase of the best of contemporary art practices from Asia and across the globe. The success and positive ... More Sotheby's Hong Kong Spring 2018 Important Watches totals US$17.7 Million HONG KONG.- Sam Hines, Sothebys Worldwide Head of Watches, commented: We are pleased to have achieved our highest total for a sale of watches in Hong Kong since Spring 2015. The market for vintage masters remains strong, in particular for Patek Philippe and Rolex Daytonas. We saw collectors compete for rare and unusual watches, while rare contemporary timepieces fresh-to-the-market performed well. We are now looking forward to our Spring auctions in London, Geneva, and New York, as well as our online sale which opens for bidding on 18 April. Vintage masters were led by a Very Important, Extremely Rare and Possibly Unique Stainless Steel Chronograph Wristwatch with Registers and Pulsation Dial Ref 1579. o Sold for HK$8,760,000 / US$1,116,199 (Lot 2906, est. HK$6,200,000 12,000,000 / US$800,000 1,540,000) o One of only ... More |
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Flashback On a day like today, French painter and poet Maurice de Vlaminck was born April 04, 1876. Maurice de Vlaminck (4 April 1876 - 11 October 1958) was a French painter. Along with André Derain and Henri Matisse he is considered one of the principal figures in the Fauve movement, a group of modern artists who from 1904 to 1908 were united in their use of intense colour. In this image: CaixaForum Barcelona, "la Caixa" Community Projects exhibited in 2009 "Maurice de Vlaminck, a Fauve Instinct: Paintings from 1900 to 1915".
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