Archives for December 2011

David BomfordMore instability has hit the J. Paul Getty Museum. A bombshell from its press office exploded in my inbox this afternoon: David Bomford, the museum's acting director for almost two years (and associate director before that), is leaving on Feb. 1, to "return to London where he plans to pursue research, scholarship and writing," according to the Getty's press … [Read more...] about News Flash: David Bomford to Leave Getty; James Cuno to Assume Acting Directorship

Paddy JohnsonWe learned this in our libel-law course at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism:If you repeat someone else's libel, you too can be sued for libel. That doesn't mean the libel suit has merit or that the person bringing the suit will win. There are lots of legal defenses against the charge that you have damaged someone's reputation or livelihood. … [Read more...] about Paddy Johnson of “Art Fag City” Blog (and 10 others) Sued by Controversial Art Authenticator

Scene of my Blogger-on-the-Street interview: Between me, Ivan and the lamppostI've gotten the chance to do a lot of radio work (thanks to my five and a half years of blog-slogging), but ever since my 2007 BBC television debut, I've been waiting in vain for TV stations to clamor for my commentary.At last, it's finally happened!Okay, so it wasn't an American TV station. I had to … [Read more...] about The Importance of Art Blogging: CultureGrrl’s Finnish Television Debut (with video)

James Levine, the Metropolitan Opera's music director, plagued with back injuries (the painful effect of which I witnessed while attending his nonetheless powerful performance of Wagner's "Die Walküre" last April), has come to terms with the obvious: He needs an extended rehabilitation period before he can commit to the rigors of conducting at the Met. In a statement … [Read more...] about James Levine Withdraws from Met Conducting through 2012-13 Season

Marble head of Zeus Ammon, Roman Imperial, c. 120-160 A.D., bought yesterday at Sotheby's by Metropolitan Museum for $3.55 million (presale estimate: $800,000-$1.2 million)Through prior display in its own galleries, the Metropolitan Museum may have increased the price it had to pay last night at Sotheby's for the Roman Imperial head (above) from the collection of Dodie … [Read more...] about Met Stretches to Buy Roman Head It Once Exhibited (plus Sotheby’s Big Oops!)

Dan Monroe, President of the Association of Art Museum Directors At the end of my recent report on the Tennessee Court of Appeals' regrettable approval of Fisk University's proposed $30-million sale of a half-share of its Stieglitz Collection to Alice Walton's Crystal Bridges Museum, I called upon the Association of Art Museum Directors to "strongly exert its influence" on … [Read more...] about AAMD Issues New Statement Deploring Fisk’s $30-Million Crystal Bridges Deal

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton's signature on the Memorandum of Understanding with GreeceThe wheels of diplomacy grind very slowly. The U.S.State Department has finally gotten around to releasing the full details of its Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Greece, which for the next five years (renewable) will restrict imports into the U.S. of Greece's … [Read more...] about Slow Diplomacy: Greek Cultural-Property Agreement, Belatedly Released, Now in Effect

Wall text about Moshe Safdie at the inaugural installation of Crystal Bridges As I mentioned in my previous post, Moshe Safdie, the Haifa-born, Montreal-bred architect (now based in Boston and Jerusalem) is on a roll in this country, having recently completed not only the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, AR, but also the widely admired Kauffman Center … [Read more...] about Crystal Bridges Challenge: Molding Moshe Safdie’s Arki-tecture into Art-chitecture

The friendly driver who took me to Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport.Do major national art and architecture critics know the way to XNA?In a form of reverse snobbery, some commentators (including the author of the BlogBack below) from the region surrounding the new Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Arkansas have periodically charged big-city art critics with … [Read more...] about BlogBack: Why Do Big-City Critics Scorn (or ignore) Crystal Bridges?

Sixth Annual Art Basel Miami Sour Grapes SouffléI failed this year to reprise my annual cynical Art Basel Miami Sour Grapes Soufflé, reserving my curdled commentary for the serious art-market mess back home.But critic Lance Esplund, who actually did make it to last week's fair, today more than made up for my delinquency with his pungent report for Bloomberg that could not be … [Read more...] about Lanced by Lance: Art Basel Miami’s Belated Sixth Annual Sour Grapes Soufflé

Patricia Cohen I was more than a little surprised by Patricia Cohen's NY Times scoop in Thursday's paper (online Wednesday) about the precipitous, unceremonious shuttering of the venerable Knoedler & Co. gallery, New York, which terminated its 165-year run with this terse notice. On Saturday, we learned how Cohen most likely got her scoop: She was working on a … [Read more...] about Knoedler Curdler: Lessons to be Gleaned from the Authenticity Allegations

Gary Tinterow, incoming director, Houston Museum of Fine Arts The center of gravity for consummate U.S. art museum professionals is shifting towards Texas: Max Anderson to to the directorship of the Dallas Museum of Art; George Shackelford to the senior deputy directorship of the Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth; and now the just announced appointment of Gary Tinterow, 58, to … [Read more...] about Texas Tinterow: Met’s Loss is Houston’s Gain (with valedictory video)

Among the many works promised to Crystal Bridges by Alice Walton, but not yet given: John Singer Sargent, "Under the Willows," 1887 In my previous post about the megabucks finances of Alice Walton's Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art---gleaned from the information provided in the 990-PF tax returns of 2005-2010, (the last of which is not yet online)---I mentioned that … [Read more...] about Crystal Bridges Accounting: How Much Did the Art Cost?