In 1969, thieves cut Caravaggio's Nativity With Saints Lawrence and Francis of Assisi from its frame at the Oratory of Saint Lawrence in Palermo. Since 2010, there's been an annual commission for a new painting for the empty space, and Beecroft's work is a sly homage to the original. - Artnet
"Archaeologists (have) discovered 168 geoglyphs near the arid Nazca plain in southern Peru. The new findings, which encompass images of humans, birds, snakes, cats, and killer whales, date between 100 BCE and 300 CE, when the pre-Incan Nazca civilization lived in the region." - Hyperallergic
The new limitations of his body became an opportunity for renewal. There is a lesson here about what it means to care for the body, to inhabit the bodies we have not merely with acceptance and love, as we are often rightly advised to do. - The New York Times
When it comes to artist-driven community work, private versus grant funding isn’t an either-or proposition. Using the art market “is not just about making sales,” said artist Edgar Arceneaux, “it’s in the associated power that comes from leveraging relationships inside it.” - Artnet
ArtStation (which was acquired by Epic Games in 2021) is considered to be the leading online portfolio and community for artists working in video games, film, and comics. - The Verge
"There were long-lost tombs uncovered during renovations of Notre-Dame in Paris, the mosaic floors upon which Santa Claus — well okay, St. Nicholas — once trod, multiple hordes of ancient coins ..., and the latest discoveries in the Amazon thanks to LiDAR, the laser-powered gift that keeps on giving." - Artnet
"Staff at the Royal Museum of Fine Arts are speaking out against the museum's director, Michel Draguet, after 31 of 176 employees signed an open letter condemning a toxic work culture. ... Six current or former employees criticised inappropriate behaviour from the museum director." - The Brussels Times
“I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw Bereny’s long-lost masterpiece on the wall behind Hugh Laurie. I nearly dropped Lola from my lap. A researcher can never take his eyes off the job, even when watching Christmas movies at home.” - The Guardian
"It cracked. It creaked. It leaked. Ever since (it was designed), it's been a source of wonder. It's also been a cause for worry and woe, requiring seemingly endless repairs. After a painstaking three-year, $17 million rehabilitation ... the dome's 113-year-old aches and pains have been tended to." - The New York Times
"The vandals entered Koonalda Cave on the Nullarbor Plain (in South Australia) and scrawled graffiti across the heritage-listed site, writing 'don't look now, but this is a death cave'. Authorities say the vandals dug under a steel gate to gain access to the site." - The Guardian
The dealer and collector Giuliano Ruffini, who is suspected to be the mastermind behind a major Old Master forgery scandal, has transferred to France following his arrest in Italy last month. - The Art Newspaper
Clifford Schorer saw the painting, described as in the "manner of Rembrandt" in an auction catalogue with a high estimate of $1,500, he smelled a super-bargain. He's certain the piece is the Dutch master's Old Man (ca. 1627-29), and he's figured out where it's been since 1935. - Artnet
The plaintiffs claim the artwork were stolen from Fritz Grünbaum by the Nazis via an unlawful power of attorney while he was imprisoned and tortured at Dachau. - The Daily Beast
The Gospels don't really tell much about the birth of Jesus: the shepherds are only in Luke, the Wise Men only in Matthew. So depictions of the Nativity over the centuries — what they include, what they leave out, what they add — offer something of a history of Christianity. - Smithsonian Magazine
