WARNING: The video below (posted yesterday on Twitter) of the fire-ravaged interior of what was once the National Museum of Brazil (now largely reduced to rubble) may induce nausea and is not for the faint-of-heart: Inside the @MuseuNacional this morning. "The silence is like a thunder", in the words of @umac_icom Secretary Marcus Granato, who sent me the video #RiodeJaneiro … [Read more...] about Reduced to Rubble: Video from Incinerated Interior of National Museum of Brazil (plus: the aftermath)
Museum Inferno: Lessons from the Hellish Devastation at National Museum of Brazil
By now you have probably heard about the after-hours fire that yesterday ripped through the entire Museu Nacional (National Museum) of Brazil. The night guards in that eminent Rio de Janeiro institution reportedly escaped safely; the collections did not. Here is the 200-year-old museum, in better times: An editorial today in O Globo, the Rio-based newspaper, called … [Read more...] about Museum Inferno: Lessons from the Hellish Devastation at National Museum of Brazil
Yale’s Intriguing “Leonardo” Examination Gets a Grade of “Incomplete”: Few Leonardos, Many Photos
Road Trip! That was my enthusiastic response to the press release and the advance publicity for the Yale Art Gallery's summer exhibition, Leonardo: Discoveries from Verrocchio’s Studio (to Oct. 7). Since another Leonardo "discovery" has been much in the news of late (including this recent twist, questioning its authorship), the show has more topicality than the museum's … [Read more...] about Yale’s Intriguing “Leonardo” Examination Gets a Grade of “Incomplete”: Few Leonardos, Many Photos
Remember the Members: Parsing Max Hollein’s Letter to Metropolitan Museum’s Most Devoted Fans
Smart is the adjective that always crops up when people describe Max Hollein, the Metropolitan Museum's new director. Yesterday, he made one of his first smart moves by issuing a detailed letter to Met members, appending an email address through which they can share "any thoughts about the museum." To convey some idea of who Max is and what he plans to do, here are … [Read more...] about Remember the Members: Parsing Max Hollein’s Letter to Metropolitan Museum’s Most Devoted Fans
Profit Flop at Sotheby’s: Auction Houses’ Self-Defeating Assumption of Consignors’ Risk (UPDATED)
My critical analysis at the end of last spring's round of major New York art auctions, in which I argued that auction-house arrangements with consignors "have become too arcane, convoluted and counterproductive for the market’s (and the auction houses’) good," has been supported by the figures in Sotheby's earnings report issued Monday: It revealed that for the six months ended … [Read more...] about Profit Flop at Sotheby’s: Auction Houses’ Self-Defeating Assumption of Consignors’ Risk (UPDATED)
Grousing about Klaus: Is Biesenbach Right for MOCA?
Much as I try, I can't muster great enthusiasm for the appointment of Klaus Biesenbach to the directorship of MOCA, Los Angeles, mostly because the shows he organized in Manhattan, with the exception of this one (for me, a nostalgia trip), were not among my MoMA favorites. I've seen too few shows at MoMA's Queens outpost (an inconvenient drive for me from New Jersey) for … [Read more...] about Grousing about Klaus: Is Biesenbach Right for MOCA?
Jewish Simcha: Acquisition of Early, Rare Hebrew Bible Celebrated by the Getty
With Christianity predominant in religious works owned by this country's preeminent museums, two recently announced acquisitions (by the Getty Museum and the Metropolitan Museum) of splendid Hebrew manuscripts are cause for celebration by the museums' visitors in general and Jewish audiences in particular. In last month's announcement of its recently purchased "Rothschild … [Read more...] about Jewish Simcha: Acquisition of Early, Rare Hebrew Bible Celebrated by the Getty
New Slick Frick: Improved Circulation, Bigger Gallery Space, More Concert Seats (Banished Library Books)
I had a sense of déjà vu when I heard that the Frick Collection's expansion plan grew out of the necessity of repeatedly de-installing portions of the its renowned permanent collection to accommodate major temporary exhibitions, such as... "We had to take down two permanent-collection galleries to make our current Canova exhibition happen," noted Ian Wardropper, the Frick's … [Read more...] about New Slick Frick: Improved Circulation, Bigger Gallery Space, More Concert Seats (Banished Library Books)
Jaw-Dropper from Wardropper: Expansion to Temporarily Expel Frick Collection’s Collection
More on this here. It was bad enough when we learned that the Frick Collection might need to close its New York home for about two years to accommodate the construction for its latest (downsized) expansion plan, designed by Selldorf Architects. But until Monday, when director Ian Wardropper extensively briefed me on the project, I hadn't understood that the entire collection … [Read more...] about Jaw-Dropper from Wardropper: Expansion to Temporarily Expel Frick Collection’s Collection
Second Thoughts: Two High-Profile Hires Depart Sotheby’s Advisory Service
In rapid succession, two ballyhooed recruits to Sotheby's Fine Art Division (the firm's art advisory service) have left their posts: ---Eric Shiner, whose departure was reported today by Anny Shaw in The Art Newspaper, will be artistic director of the London-based White Cube gallery's new office in New York. He had come to Sotheby's from the directorship of the Andy Warhol … [Read more...] about Second Thoughts: Two High-Profile Hires Depart Sotheby’s Advisory Service
Go with the Bowie Flow? Fans Usurp the Brooklyn Museum’s American Art Galleries (with video)
Ground Control to Major Anne (Pasternak): Why have you allowed the your museum's American art galleries to be commandeered by throngs of David Bowie fans? Just a month ago, I had taken the Metropolitan Museum to task for allowing its Medieval and Byzantine art galleries to be invaded and upstaged by the crowded "Heavenly Bodies" exhibition of contemporary … [Read more...] about Go with the Bowie Flow? Fans Usurp the Brooklyn Museum’s American Art Galleries (with video)
Wanna Direct the National Gallery of Art? (Job Description Below)
When Earl (Rusty) Powell III announced his intention to retire in early 2019 from the directorship of the National Gallery of Art (NGA) in Washington, I wrote that our country's "two preeminent [art] institutions could be going head-to-head for top candidates." With the vacant Metropolitan Museum directorship's chair soon to be occupied by Max Hollein (after what turned … [Read more...] about Wanna Direct the National Gallery of Art? (Job Description Below)
Trend Bender: Baltimore Museum’s “Canon Correction” Needs Correction
In the interests of "canon correction" (as he calls it), Christopher Bedford, the Baltimore Museum of Art's director, is doing the wrong things for the right reasons: He has acquired seven recent works (five of which were created within the last two years) with some of the proceeds of sales from the BMA's collection of seven older contemporary works by artists who have stood … [Read more...] about Trend Bender: Baltimore Museum’s “Canon Correction” Needs Correction
What’d I Miss? News Flashes from the Berkshire Museum & Frick Collection
I leave town for a five-day vacation and news breaks out on several important art-museum stories that we've been following (not to mention on several much more important national news stories that we've been roiled by). Here's what my family (including my three little grandchildren) gazed upon while I took my eyes off the ball: And here's the first of my catch-up … [Read more...] about What’d I Miss? News Flashes from the Berkshire Museum & Frick Collection
BlogBacks: Cultural Property Lawyer Rick St. Hilaire & Getty Spokesperson Ron Hartwig on the Getty Bronze
Cultural property lawyer (and blogger) Ricardo St. Hilaire responds to Antiquities Ambiguities: Parsing the Legal Arguments in the Battle of the Getty Bronze. I'm glad you are covering this case. Cases in Italy can be dragged out for years, as you know. But if the Italians ultimately win, there next big challenge will be to enforce the judgment in the U.S. It's one thing to … [Read more...] about BlogBacks: Cultural Property Lawyer Rick St. Hilaire & Getty Spokesperson Ron Hartwig on the Getty Bronze