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Yesterday morning, in response to my query, the Guggenheim press office informed me that it would "be issuing a press release shortly" on the sudden resignation of Lisa Dennison from the New York museum directorship. It's noon the next day; still no press release. (Believe me, I've asked.). Could there be a little controversy over the wording? Meanwhile, for some stunning … [Read more...] about The Lisa Dennison Watch

UPDATE: The Getty has now confirmed the agreement, as described by AP and Corriere della Sera, below. UPDATE 2: The LA Times weighs in here. The NY Times here. The source for this story from Associated Press appears to be the Italian Culture Ministry. The negotiations about the so-called Getty Bronze have been postponed; "Aphrodite" stays at the Getty until 2010 and will be … [Read more...] about Italy Announces Agreement with the Getty UPDATED TWICE

The Signature Now On the Met Charles McGrath's Sunday NY Times article focused on Philippe de Montebello's formidable accomplishments as director of the Metropolitan Museum, as well as on people's fear of "le déluge" after he retires. One thing that everyone, including de Montebello, surely knows is that there are likely to be many changes under a new leader. But that's not … [Read more...] about Après Philippe: Whither the Met?

Should I cross Max Anderson off my list of hot prospects for the Metropolitan Museum directorship? Here's what he wrote me in response to yesterday's Who Should Succeed Philippe at the Met? An Update: Jacqueline and I are having a great time here and are in no hurry to leave! Let's see. If James Houghton were to call and say, "Max, we really need you at the Met," would the New … [Read more...] about More on the Met Succession; Musings on the Guggenheim Departure UPDATED

Today is the deadline imposed by Italian Culture Minister Francesco Rutelli for an antiquities agreement with the J. Paul Getty Museum. Failing a settlement, he had threatened the museum with "a full-scale embargo," which would mean "an end to cultural and scientific collaboration" between Italy and the Getty. Here's what Ron Hartwig, the Getty's vice president for … [Read more...] about Getty/Italy Deadline Update: “Useful Correspondence”

The Friends of the Barnes Foundation, who are the enemies of the Barnes' move to Philadelphia, have established a legal defense fund for donations supporting its planned court challenge to the move. Its solicitation of financial support lists the following recent developments favoring its cause: ---The Montgomery County Board of Commissioners is joining us to reopen the Barnes … [Read more...] about Friends of the Barnes Announce Legal Defense Fund

I had to be dumbfoundedly amused by my discovery, at the end of yesterday's de Montebello appraisal in the NY Times, that the men who happened to be my former top three choices for the Metropolitan Museum's succession---Neil MacGregor, Timothy Potts and William Griswold---were listed (in the very same 1-to-3 order) by Charles McGrath as "among the names most frequently … [Read more...] about Who Should Succeed Philippe at the Met? An Update

Philippe de Montebello is the last of a breed. Who can succeed him at the Met? So reads the teaser on the front page of the arts section of today's NY Times online. But Charles McGrath's valedictory (for tomorrow's "Arts & Leisure" section but online now) for a very active director who's not ready for his valedictory, says almost nothing about who might succeed Philippe. That's … [Read more...] about NY Times on the Reign of Count de Montebello

Marbles Moving Day Approaches The creators of the New Acropolis Museum, now finishing construction in Athens, have always said that they would leave empty gaps in their installation of the Greek-owned blocks from the Parthenon frieze, in the hope that Great Britain would eventually fill those voids by sending the slabs from the frieze that are now in the British Museum. But … [Read more...] about Parthenon Marbles: A Veiled Reproach from the New Acropolis Museum

Did I start something? A week ago, I mentioned Seattle's venerable peep-show palace, leering at the Seattle Art Museum from across the street, a few feet away from the Four Seasons luxury hotel and condominium complex that's now under construction. Yesterday, "Lusty" got national attention in the even more venerable Wall Street Journal: In Seattle...the 149-room Four Seasons … [Read more...] about Seattle’s “Lusty Lady” Has a Good News Week

I just had an I-don't-know-what-to-make-of-this moment. The website of collector Charles Saatchi's own gallery has just posted a screed by one Steve Pulimood, an Oxford doctoral candidate, about the recent fortunes of Damien Hirst's shark, which was a star attraction of the "Sensation" show of Saatchi's own collection. Either the website's blog operates with editorial … [Read more...] about Saatchi Gallery’s Website Snarks the Shark

Calvin Hunt (Tlasutiwalis), Thunderbird mask and regalia, 2006 You'd expect no less from a museum whose director's name is Gates (as in, stepson Bill Gates), but the Seattle Art Museum, which I visited a few months ago for the Wall Street Journal (here and here), has the most sophisticated and sensitive use of technology in its galleries of any museum where I've … [Read more...] about Seattle Art Museum’s World-Class Technology

My fellow (anonymous) art blogger, Mr. Modern Kicks, turned three this week. Congratulations, JL, and thanks for reminding me to be less obsessive-compulsive about blogging! … [Read more...] about Happy Anniversary to Modern Kicks

Stephen Persing, an administrative assistant in the director's office at the Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford, CT, responds to NY Times Editorial Snarks the Shark: I have to disagree with you regarding Damien Hirst, and especially the shark. To me, contemporary art at the Metropolitan Museum has always seemed the poor cousin, perhaps because it is just one facet of the museum, … [Read more...] about BlogBack: Wadworth Atheneum Staffer on Hirst’s Shark

What's the most popular show at the Museum of Modern Art right now? The Richard Serra blockbuster, right? Well, I did practically bump into aging rock star David Byrne last week, when he was exiting the Serra that I was about to enter on the second floor. Here's a picture of him leaving MoMA a few minutes later. (Will this get me on Gawker Stalker?): But celebrity sighting … [Read more...] about MoMA’s Summer Shows and the Cluelessness of Critics