VISUAL

The AI Design Aesthetic That’s Taking Over The Internet

As Claude Design catches on among Anthropic users, a generic-design aesthetic is emerging that’s as noticeable as text-based A.I. tics such as overenthusiastic em-dash usage or “not X . . . but Y” constructions. - The New Yorker

Did Marcel Duchamp Wreck Modern Art?

Duchamp left behind a legacy that people either love or loathe. He is known as the father of conceptual art, but his so-called ideas were mostly idle notions, provocations, speculations. Opinion divides on whether he snuffed out or emancipated art.  - The Atlantic

Restorers Discover How A Rembrandt Painting Was Altered

Layers of overpaint have been removed from a 17th-century painting, confirming that it was painted by Rembrandt and revealing that a turban on one of the figures had been replaced with a traditional Dutch soft cap. - The Guardian

An Aboriginal Artist Reclaims The Ocean

Dharug artist Billy Bain: “You know, the beach was and still is an Aboriginal space, but in popular culture it has been represented as a very white space.” Bain has set out to change that. - The Guardian (UK)

Trading Manhattan Art Meet-Ups For A Farm, And A Huge Studio As Well

Uman: “I love working on the floor. I start with a mood, a color, and I determine the size of the canvas or linen. … I always wanted the color to go straight onto the canvas, and that will probably be a problem for restorers in the future.” - The New York Times

The Artists Who Painted Early Hollywood Into Existence

“‘In general, at the studios, they systematized the production design, so that it was fast,’ Kanjo said, describing the rigid process as militaristic. ‘Five artists at a time work day after day to get these things done.’” - Los Angeles Times (MSN)

The Real Story Of What Happened At Pace Gallery

Said one hastily removed artist, "They assured me many times — as recently as two days before the article in the New York Times came out — that there would be no public announcement. … It’s a callous breach of trust.” - Hyperallergic

When The Curator Retires From A Weird But Cool, Isolated But Well-Trafficked, Museum Along The Columbia River

The Maryhill Museum of Art, on the Washington State side of the Columbia River Gorge, is 150 miles upriver from Portland. Its permanent collection is eclectic, to put it mildly. So how does it get exhibitions, or even help revitalize its own collection? - Oregon ArtsWatch

Crystal Bridges Gets a New Chief Curator

Courtenay Finn is currently chief curator and director of programs at the Orange County Museum of Art, which merged with the University of California, Irvine last year. She has previously served as the chief curator at moCa Cleveland in Ohio, senior curator at the Aspen Art Museum in Colorado, and curator at Art in General in New York.

After 83 Years, Norman Rockwell’s White House Painting Is Finally On Public View

In 1943, Rockwell painted a four-panel portrait of people waiting to see President Roosevelt. The artwork, called So You Want to See the President!, spent 40 years hanging in the West Wing; last year the White House Historical Association purchased the piece, which is now in a nearby museum. - USA Today

Ancient Roman “Curse Tablet” Translated

Dutch archaeologists found this curse tablet in a pit beneath Heerlen‘s town hall square. Archaeologists often frequent this area situated amid the former site of Coriovallum, a Roman military settlement along the Via Belgica, which once connected Belgium’s Tongeren region to Cologne.  - Artnet

Archaeologists Discover Intact Ancient Mayan City

Located deep within the jungles of the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve, the city—which the researchers have named “Minanbé,” a Maya Yucatec phrase meaning “there is no road”—had been hidden by vegetation for over a thousand years. - ARTnews

NYC’s Street-Scaffolding Sheds Are Ugly. Can We Design Something Better?

The city wants structures that will go up smoothly, look good while they last, and go away quickly. Those are separate goals, none of them easy to achieve. - New York Magazine (MSN)

The New Republic’s 20 Images That Define American History

In 15 photographs, four paintings, and one very iconic sculpture, “a visual chronicle of the national experience, from Iwo Jima to Emmett Till to January 6.” - The New Republic

Vatican Begins First-Ever Restoration Of Raphael Frescoes In Apostolic Palace

“The Vatican Museums on Wednesday announced the start of a five-year, $5.5 million project to clean and restore the Raphael Loggia, a 65-meter (yard) long, 4-meter (yard) wide corridor that is considered one of the highest expressions of Renaissance figurative art.” - AP

Our Free Newsletter

Join our 30,000 subscribers

Latest

Don't Miss