Letter from the editor:

These days, I keep coming back to Maya Angelou’s famous line, “When people show you who they are, believe them.” How we handle crisis says a lot about us, and it’s been heartening to see thoughtful, responsive programming from folks like the organizers of the Immigrant Artist Biennial. Next week they’ll be co-hosting an artist-led virtual roundtable on anti-Asian racism, xenophobia, and immigrant-bashing, along with another iteration of the gloriously low-cost Visual Artists’ Immigration Clinic. (More details on both here.)

Elsewhere, we’ve seen more troubling responses to the current crisis — layoffs, furloughs, you name it — many of which have targeted those rare bastions of diversity in the art world: education departments. Arlene Dávila pens an astute op-ed on the long-term consequences these cuts may have for a field that remains overwhelmingly white, even in a majority-POC city like New York. Likewise, staff writer Hakim Bishara shares news of two petitions currently circulating online, each of which calls attention to the “hypocrisy on the part of institutions that have been championing diversity in the past few years.”

If you’re unclear on why museums can’t simply dip into their multi-million dollar endowments instead of initiating layoffs, I’d recommend checking out this excellent and thorough explainer from our staff writer Valentina Di Liscia. If you run an organization yourself, Valentina also wrote about new COVID-19 emergency relief grants from the NEH, designed to support humanities organizations around the country, New York ones included.

Need a break from the news? I’d recommend this insightful meditation on the paintings of Leidy Churchman, penned by Hyperallergic editor Natalie Haddad. Honing in on “the coexistence of philosophical and prosaic concerns in Churchman’s work,” Natalie’s extensive piece offers a means of experiencing works which were on view at Matthew Marks gallery, pre-quarantine. (Fingers crossed we get to see them in person when the gallery reopens.)

Lastly, if you’re able, I hope you’ll consider supporting our unique style of independent arts journalism by joining our new membership program, which helps ensure that we can continue to bring you stories like these, even amid tough times. And if you’ve already signed up, know that I’m sending you a big hug of gratitude, social-distance style. 

Stay safe and don’t forget to look out for each other. 

Artists, Scholars, and Museum Workers Petition Museums to Retain Staff During Pandemic

“Before a single museum worker is laid off, let every mid-six- or seven-figure museum director draw a salary of zero,” reads one petition.

Hakim Bishara

News

NYC’s Lesley Heller Gallery Will Close Permanently

The COVID-19 crisis has had tremendous impact on small and mid-sized galleries in New York.

NYC Man Arrested for Threatening to Bomb Central Park’s Alice in Wonderland Sculpture

Kevin Fallon, a 30-year-old New Yorker, was arrested on April 11 after police found three pipe bombs in his apartment.

NEH Announces COVID-19 Relief Grants Using Stimulus Funds

The National Endowment for the Humanities will offer emergency grants of up to $300,000 to organizations across the country.

Museum Directors Association Lifts Penalties on Museum Spending During Pandemic

The new resolutions do not grant institutions permission to access restricted funding sources, but museums who choose to do so will not be penalized by AAMD.

Projections Light Up Cities Worldwide Urging Community Care and Social Distancing

From Guadalajara to Portland, the “proyectorazos” lit up cities with messages for World Health Day.

Forward this newsletter to a friend!

If this email was forwarded to you, click here to subscribe