Ali Gass, formerly the head of the ICA San Jose and the Smart Museum of Art at the University of Chicago, has raised $2.5 million to start a new institution called the Institute of Contemporary Art San Francisco. - The New York Times
The province has five UNESCO World Heritage sites and 420 sites with national heritage status. Record rain in July led to floods that killed more than 300 people and caused $18 billion in damage — including to ancient monuments and active archaeological sites. - The Art Newspaper
“Behind every antiquities trafficking ring preying upon cultural heritage for profit, there is someone reassembling and restoring these looted pieces to lend the criminal enterprise a veneer of legitimacy.” - The Art Newspaper
Every One, a glass mosaic that's the first of three to be installed in the pedestrian tunnel for the 42nd Street Shuttle, depicts vividly colored anthropomorphic shapes inspired by the horse-costumed dancers Cave used in HEARD•NY at Grand Central Terminal in 2013. - The New York Times
"I't’s been a real grassroots, community-led effort,' Abdul Aziz, a photojournalist, told Hyperallergic. 'It’s overwhelming and beautiful, and I don’t want to say shocking, but it is incredible that we’ve been able to create this sort of de facto emergency response government.'" - Hyperallergic
In Spain, an archaeology team looking at ancient Roman cities "routinely uses technologies such as ground-penetrating radar, drones and magnetometers – devices that measure magnetic fields – and over the years it has become a leader in this non-destructive way to interpret a country’s archeological heritage." - El Pais (Spain)
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
