In Arles, with thousands of pieces taken from the so-called House of the Harpist, "the fragments, some barely bigger than a fingernail, have been washed, labelled and placed into the cases to be examined one by one to see where they might fit into a bigger picture." - The Guardian (UK)
What's up with U.S. arts audiences? "We have been at war with and occupied Afghanistan for two decades, yet culturally it has been a blip." - Los Angeles Times
At the end of the day Wednesday, a museum email arrived in my inbox with the almost-but-not-quite-news — along with a certifiably crazy list of demands for how the story must be covered by the Los Angeles Times. - Los Angeles Times
Joanna Burton joined the Wexner in early 2019 after its longtime director, Sherri Geldin, retired. In May, she hired Kelly Kivland away from the Dia Art Foundation in New York to be the Wexner’s chief curator and director of exhibitions. - ARTnews
A three-month trial at one of Belgium's largest hospitals involves selected mental health patients getting free visits — by prescription only! — to five of the capital's public art institutions." - Artnet
In joining forces, the foursome are betting they will be more effective together than separately at a time when the gallery sector has seen a 20 percent drop in sales, and many small and midsize galleries are closing. - The New York Times
The public sphere has been replaced with emotional outbursts and opportunities for consumption. Museums have followed suit, relinquishing their mission to enlighten and challenge the public and offering mere content instead. - ARTnews
With the post-Katrina levees and fortifications having done their job, the city's art institutions suffered no flood damage. The worry is how long the collections can tolerate Louisiana heat and humidity without electricity to run the climate control systems. - Artnet
The piece did enough to convince a buyer – confusingly named Pranksy – to pay the equivalent of hundreds of thousands of pounds only to have the currency returned after what appeared to be an elaborate hoax by a scammer. - The Guardian
Basquiat died in 1988 at 27, but in the last few days all sorts of people with various relationships to both him and his work have come out with their own theories on the painting’s origin story. - The New York Times
Justin Davidson: "This is a landscape shaped by fear. It has been formed not only by the reasoned response to a documented threat but by an amorphous, open-ended anxiety. You can see that disquiet embedded in the architecture … a monument to overweening caution." - New York Magazine
The museum occupies two historic buildings, with a large piazza in between, effectively reconfiguring a significant part of Rimini’s downtown. - The New York Times
The Museo de Arte Contemporâneo Atchugarry, now under construction in the exclusive seaside resort town of Punta del Este, is being built and funded by Pablo Atchugarry, perhaps Uruguay's most prominent living artist. Opening is planned for early January. - Artnet