Chicago Museum Attendance Declines Fourth Straight Year "Attendance at Chicago’s top 10 museums fell for the fourth year in a row, although the pace of the declined slowed enough that museum officials expect a turnaround this year. In 2004, 7.48 million people visited at least one of the museums, down 1% from 7.57 million in 2003, according to a report released today from the Museums in the Park." Crain's Chicago Business 01/31/05

A Hirst "Chapel" In Rome? American collector Carlo Bilotti is working on setting up a centre for contemporary art which will display works by Damien Hirst and other artists from his collection in a former chapel in Rome. "Mr Bilotti says he aims to create a “modern meditative environment” in the chapel which will be modelled on the Rothko chapel in Houston, Texas." The Art Newspaper 01/31/05

Joseph Beuys - the Art Of Meaning Joseph Beuys was the greatest German artist of the 20th Century, writes Jonathan Jones. "Beuys was very articulate - almost too articulate - about the meanings of his performances, sculptures, installations and drawings. He was a charismatic man, dressed always the same, in his felt hat and hunter's or angler's waistcoat. And he said his art was about the rediscovery of Eurasian origins, the translation and storage of essential energies, the spiritual properties of fat... he spoke to a dead hare, he lived in a cage with a coyote. On the face of it, he was a prophet of the New Age, and his art, on that reckoning, ought to be gobbledegook." The Guardian (UK) 01/29/05

Free Marketeer - Saatchi Clears His Closets Collector Charles Saatchi has been selling off his BritArt stable and declared painting king once again. Really? "Does Saatchi really believe the claim publicity material makes - that painting continues to be 'the most relevant and vital way that an artist can communicate' in an age of video, photography and so forth? In which case, it would seem odd to inaugurate his triumphant year of painting with works made so long ago as to be anything but present in tense. Or is he just taking advantage of the current economic revival to make good in the secondary art market?" The Observer (UK) 01/30/05

Weak Dollar Sending Art Back Across The Atlantic The American dollar's slide against other currencies has apparently sparked a push by European art institutions to reacquire some of the countless works which had been bought up by American collectors over the decades. "The weak dollar offers European buyers some remarkable bargains. At Sotheby's Old Masters sale in New York, a Botticelli sold for the equivalent of £246,000. Sources said Italians were particularly active buyers. Italy having produced so much good art, there are plenty of works for Italians to repatriate." The Guardian (UK) 01/29/05

Long On Art, Short On Space Harvard University's art collection is the envy of museums worldwide, comprising more than 250,000 pieces. But having that much art is one thing: finding the space to display, or even to store it all is another matter entirely. For the recently arrived chief of the university's museum system, keeping the collection intact and secure is becoming a major challenge, especially with much of the available gallery space in desperate need of new climate-control technology and other upgrades. Boston Globe 01/30/05

A Connecticut Renaissance Greenwich, Connecticut "is the last place... that you would expect to find a major Vermeer on loan from Europe, or several roomfuls of works by Rubens - or, for that matter, hard-core Manhattanites on an art pilgrimage." But in the last four years, Greenwich's Bruce Museum of Art & Science has transformed itself into a major player in the East Coast art scene, under the stewardship of director Peter Sutton, who has mounted high-profile exhibits previously though to be beyond the Bruce's reach. "At the same time, playing on Greenwich's reputation for private wealth, he has provocatively embraced the art market, organizing exhibitions showcasing high-end private art collections - and even artworks currently for sale." The New York Times 01/30/05

Is Saatchi's New Direction Profit-Driven? As famed UK art collector Charles Saatchi revamps his collection and turns his focus away from the cutting-edge conceptual art with which he has been identified for fifteen years, many in the art world have begun to wonder exactly what drives the enigmatic Saatchi's tastes. "Some art critics have long accused Mr. Saatchi of being more dealer than collector, less art lover than marketing genius who exhibits his collection to increase its value... In the 1980's he built up a major collection of postwar American and European art. He then sold it at great profit and channeled his resources into a new generation of British artists." The New York Times 01/29/05

Art & Terror "An exhibition inspired by the radical leftist Red Army Faction, loathed by many for its violent attacks in the 1970's and 80's yet lionized by some, opens Saturday amid angry debate over the romanticization of terrorism. Critics accuse the organizers of glorifying the guerrilla group's campaign of bomb attacks, kidnappings and assassinations, which left more than 30 people dead. Curators and artists, however, defend the show as a subtle exploration of the ways images can traumatize a society." The New York Times 01/29/05

Living Here In Allentown, Tearing All The Sculptures Down "More than 23 years ago, an artist with a growing international reputation for public art made a brief stop in Allentown, [Pennsylvania] to grace the west wall of a popular downtown gathering place with a light sculpture. With much fanfare he strung together 35 galvanized steel bars, etched to catch the rays of the sun and reflect them in an ever-changing prism. Over time, the downtown struggled and the restaurant closed [and] officials made plans to tear down the former Good Spirit eatery and replace it with shiny new offices." Dale Eldred's sculpture very nearly went down with the building, but now, thanks to the tireless efforts of a city official, the work has been preserved, and will be moved to a prominent position on Allentown's new Arts Walk. Allentown Morning Call (PA) 01/29/05

Philly Mayor Proposes Big Cut In Museum Funding Philadelphia Mayor John Street proposes big reductions in the city's support of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. "Street's austerity budget proposes to cut city support for the Philadelphia Museum of Art by $250,000 to $1.75 million. City funding for the art museum provides for security and maintenance. By 2010, under the mayor's proposed five-year financial plan, city support would be scaled back to $500,000. Art museum officials called the proposed cuts a "major setback" and noted that there already had been a 7 percent reduction in staff and elimination of Wednesday-evening programs due to city funding cuts last year." Philadelphia Daily News 01/28/05

Whitney's New Expansion Plan New York's Whitney Museum has a new expansion plan. It calls for a new, nine-story building just a few feet south of the current museum. "The new plan, by Italian designer Renzo Piano, is "more moderate" than previous iterations, said Adam Weinberg, the Whitney's director. "What we want to do is balance the needs of preservation and the needs of the neighborhood with making great architecture," he said. Piano's design calls for demolishing two brownstones next to the museum, and using that space for a new entrance that would feed onto a plaza." Baltimore Sub (AP) 01/28/05

Madrid Museums Aim For Higher Profiles Three prominent Madrid museums are upgrading their fracilities in a long-awaited move. "The Prado, Reina Sofia, and Thyssen-Bornemisza museums have each embarked on ambitious renovation and expansion that, along with improved pedestrian access, promise to raise the Spanish capital's cultural profile." Christian Science Monitor 01/28/05

A True Temple Of Modern Art "The Italian, US-based collector Carlo Bilotti is in discussions with Rome City Council to convert a former chapel in the north of the city into a centre for contemporary art which will display works by Damien Hirst and other artists from his collection... Mr Bilotti says he aims to create a 'modern meditative environment' in the chapel which will be modelled on the Rothko chapel in Houston, Texas." The Art Newspaper 01/27/05

Casting Stones The UK's National Trust is lashing out at the government for what it says is "an ominous silence" surrounding the Trust's plan to preserve Stonehenge by diverting auto traffic away from the historic site. The government has been considering such proposals for half a century, and the Trust fears that what appeared to be an impending agreement has been moved to the back burner yet again. The Guardian (UK) 01/28/05

More Space? How About More Art? Certainly, the Tate Modern has earned the right to expand its gallery space with five years of tremendous success as London's hottest contemporary art museum. But will there really be enough art to fill all that additional space? "Of immediate and growing concern is the oft-repeated criticism that Tate Modern's collection looks thin and impoverished compared with the scale and grandeur of its monolithic home, [and the museum's director] has in the past lamented the virtual non-existence of an acquisitions budget for the institution." The Guardian (UK) 01/28/05

Philadelphia Added To King Tut Tour Philadelphia's Franklin Institute has been chosen as the fourth and final stop of the blockbuster King Tut show touring America starting this summer in Los Angeles. "A consortium of three companies - National Geographic; AEG Live Exhibitions of Los Angeles; and Arts & Entertainment International of Aurora, Ohio - is organizing and touring the show for the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities. The Egyptian government hopes to raise at least $10 million from each venue to pay for restoration of ancient monuments and to build a new museum in Cairo." Philadelphia Inquirer 01/27/05

Tate Modern To Expand The Tate Modern is only five years old, but already there are plans to expand it. "The gallery's electricity sub-station is being upgraded freeing up more space behind the Turbine Hall. Tate Modern's outside area will also be redesigned and a new learning and extra viewing space will be created inside. Plans will be submitted in the summer." BBC 01/27/05

Man Caught Trying To Steal Artifact In British Museum A man was caught trying to pry open a display case in a Greek and Roman gallery at the British museum Wednesday. "He was foiled by a sharp-eyed attendant just before closing time yesterday afternoon, the museum said. The man ran off when he was approached by the attendant, but security guards later apprehended a suspect who was turned over to police." London Evening Standard 01/27/05

New "Super" Museum For North Of England An ambitious new £25.7 million 'super' museum in northern UK which would be home to more than 500,000 artefacts is gathering support and funding. "On Wednesday the Heritage Lottery Fund announced it was donating more than £9.2m to the Great North Museum scheme. It is due to be completed in 2009." BBC 01/27/05

Small Endowment - Why David Has A Small... "As every visitor to Florence will know, the modest dimensions of David's "pisello" are a running joke with Italians, and the stuff of irreverent postcards. But, in a paper to be published at the end of this month, two Florentine doctors offer a scientific explanation: the poor chap was shrivelled by the threat of mortal danger. Michelangelo's intention was to depict David as he confronted Goliath." The Age (Melbourne) 01/26/05

Report: Babylon Damaged By American Military The ancient archaeological site of Babylon in Iraq has been extensively damaged by a military base set up in the area by the American military. The Art Newspaper 01/26/05

Poland Pressures Cleveland Museum To Return Nazi-Looted Drawings "Poland is putting new pressure on the Cleveland Museum of Art and other major museums to return a widely dispersed collection of Albrecht Durer drawings looted by the Nazis during World War II. The 27 drawings, three of which are owned by the Cleveland museum, were removed by Nazi officers in 1941 from the Ossolinski Institute in the city of Lviv, which was then in Poland." The Plain Dealer (Cleveland) 01/26/05

Blockbuster Toronto Shows Fail To Blockbust Attendance at three blockbuster shows at Toronto museums was respectable but not great. "The numbers, while respectable, weren't record-smashers, and remain an indication that the city is still trying to shake off the effects of the SARS crisis of 2003 and the reluctance of tourists, especially those in the United States, to travel in the wake of the terror attacks of 2001 and the 2003 invasion of Iraq." The Globe & Mail (Canada) 01/26/05

Chris Burden Quits UCLA Over Gun Incident "Internationally known artists Chris Burden and Nancy Rubins have retired abruptly from their longtime professorships at UCLA in part because the university refused to suspend a graduate student who used a gun during a classroom performance art piece, a spokeswoman for the artists said Friday. 'They feel this was sort of domestic terrorism. There should have been more outrage and a firmer response'." Los Angeles Times 01/22/05

• The Incident That Led To Burden Resigning UCLA "A picture emerges of a crisis that began on November 29, when in the course of a performance for a class taught by visiting instructor Ron Athey, a graduate student entered a classroom at UCLA's Warner building where roughly thirty other students were gathered. The student, wearing a coat and tie, produced either a gun or a convincing replica of one, put what looked like a bullet into the weapon, spun the cylinder, and held it to his head, Russian-roulette style. He pulled the trigger, but the gun did not fire. The student then left the room; while he was out of view, a shot was heard, at which point he returned, now apparently unarmed." Artforum 01/20/05

Termite-Infested Eyesore... Or ART? What was the Los Angeles Cultural Heritage Commission thinking back in 1978 when it recognized a "22-foot stack of Schlitz beer pallets" as a historic monument? Now the tower is a crumbling, termite-infested hazard, and the artist's heirs want to tear it down and sell the property. But there's that problematic cultural designation... Los Angeles Times 01/25/05

Queens Changes Architects (Does It Say More About The Museum Than The Architect?) Three years ago, after extensive discussions and a competition, an architect was chosen for a redo of New York's Queens Museum of Art. Now the museum is abandoning the plan and starting over. "A change in architects may not seem earthshaking. But the Queens Museum's about-face suggests how a much-heralded public architecture project can be derailed by economics, politics, personalities and competing visions of how an institution operates day to day." The New York Times 01/26/05

Saltz: Reinventing MoMA Jerry Saltz can't stop going to the new Museum of Modern Art. Since it's reopened, he's made 14 visits. So he has some suggestions for how it could be improved. Nothing major... a rehang here, a new space there... Village Voice 01/25/05

Painting Is Dead, Long Live Painting? (Don't You Believe It) This is the year collector Charles Saatchi was supposed to be renewing the cause of painting. "In 2005, the celebrated Iraqi/British collector would be reviving the cause of painting. He would be bringing a new batch of painters to the world's attention with a series of exhibitions called The Triumph of Painting. Part One opens tomorrow. Its title makes a clear bid for legend. It sounds like a chapter in a history book already. So, to start with, let's put the record straight. All the above story is untrue. Whenever you hear about a revival of painting you should be suspicious." The Independent (UK) 01/25/05

Add Moscow To the Biennale Circuit The first Moscow Biennale of Contemporary Art is about to open. "The main venue of the biennial is at the Lenin Museum, off Red Square, and it is titled “Dialectics of hope”, an ironic play on the theme of the utopia never found by Communism and now lost to the pressures of capitalism, and the expectations of improvement as Russia re-enters the Western orbit." The Art Newspaper 01/24/05

French Art Sales Fall Behind Art-selling in France continues to be tough going. "The art market in France shrank slightly in 2004 as Drouot, the umbrella organisation for Parisian auction houses, reported turnover of €365 million ($480 million). In addition, the gap is gradually widening between the two leading international auction houses, Christie’s and Sotheby’s and their larger French competitors, whose sales are stagnating or declining." The Art Newspaper 01/24/05

Netherlands Has Become Stolen Art Clearing House So you're an art thief, and you've stolen something valuable somewhere in Europe. Where do you go? The Netherlands, say experts. "Art stolen from northern and eastern Europe (Scandinavia, Germany and Russia) is often taken to the Netherlands. The south of the Netherlands near the border with Belgium is particularly popular with criminals. The artworks are smuggled from the Netherlands to Britain or the US." Expatica 01/24/05

Museum: We Should Have Told Investigator About Cancer Cases The National Gallery of Australia now admits it should have told a health inspector investigating the Gallery that it knew of multiple cancer cases on the staff of the museum. Sydney Morning Herald 01/24/05

Rome's Fabulous Maaxi Crippled By Money Issues Maxxi is Rome's new museum of 21st century art, and meant to be revolutionary in a city of art that hasn't invested much in its architecture in the past century. "Maxxi is intended to put Rome on the map as a city that takes modern art seriously. Choosing Zaha Hadid, who last year won the Pritzker Prize, underlined the importance of the project." Maxxi is "as revolutionary as anything that has emerged from her pen. It is not so much a building as some glass-and-steel worms slithering over each other." But now the construction is being handicapped by money issues... The Independent (UK) 01/23/05

Crisis Of Confidence - Why Peter Lewis Left The Guggenheim What caused the final split between the Guggenheim's Tom Krens and Peter Lewis that led to Lewis leaving the museum board? "In the months before his departure, Lewis had taken to asking: 'If franchising all these international museums is such a good idea, then why isn't Moma doing it? Why isn't the Whitney doing it?' The spin coming from the Guggenheim is that the outcome of the confrontation represents the triumph of culture, in the shape of Krens, a 6ft 5in former artist with a fondness for Harley-Davidsons, over commerce in the person of Lewis, chairman of a Cleveland insurance company. But the truth is that Lewis was becoming increasingly alarmed, not just about the financial position of a museum into which he had poured so much of his own money, but also its reputation." The Observer (UK) 01/23/05

Contemporary Africa - A Cinderella Story "While the traditional masks and figures that so influenced Picasso and other early modernists are now universally accepted as part of the canon of great art, contemporary work has remained on the margins – barely known in the West, even to the regular gallery-goer." A new show in Europe is the biggest-ever assemblage of contemporary African work. "Yet, if the exhibition gives an exhilarating sense of the creativity of the modern African city – a world where traditional masquerading exists alongside hip-hop, internet cafés and satellite TV – modern African art remains a Cinderella phenomenon." The Telegraph (UK) 01/23/05

Death At The National Gallery (What Caused Cancer Outbreak Among Staff?) Between 1997 and 2002, five security guards at the National Gallery of Australia were diagnosed with cancer. Nine others were also diagnosed over an unspecified period. "As management learned of the cancers, an investigation was already under way into the health and safety of the building, prompted by long-running allegations by staff and former staff that it was damaging their health and the priceless collection." An investigation showed staff has been exporsed to "a potentially deadly chemical." Sydney Morning Herald 01/23/05

Is The Art Market About To Bust? The art market has been soaring, with prices shooting up as many look to art as an investment. But some are worrying that the bubble may be ready to burst. "If anything, the feverish buying suggests a kind of herd instinct and the market may well be in for a serious correction. Many of the new collectors do not have a grounding in art history or a fundamental understanding of what they are buying." Miami Herald (Bloomberg) 01/23/05

Costco Sells Its Picasso US big box retailer Costco has sold the Picasso it put up for sale last week. "The work, signed and dated 29 November 1970, had a price tag of $39,999 (£21,483), and was sold on Wednesday. The artwork was described as a "doodle" drawn on the blank side of a book jacket. It had been authenticated by the artist's daughter." BBC 01/22/05

• The Art Of Costco (Literally) What's so strange about buying a Picasso at Costco? They have an excellent return policy. "By visiting costco.com and searching under 'fine art,' buyers can access a list of artworks for sale by Marc Chagall, Amadeo Modigliani, Henri Matisse, Georges Braque and others. On Wednesday, prices on the ever-changing list ranged from $21.49 to about $1,500, for a limited-edition lithograph. With a click of the mouse, you can add art to your cart." Philadelphia Inquirer 01/23/05

Protests Over Changing Linoln Center's Landscaping Preservationists are speaking out against plans to change the landscaping of Lincoln Center's plazas as part of the huge redevelopment of Lincoln Center. They say that altering the landscaping significantly will ruin the original design by Dan Kiley, one of the leading landscape architects of the last century. The New York Times 01/22/05

Guggenheim Power Struggle: Krens v Lewis Peter Lewis' departure from the Guggenheim makes him the loser in a struggle with director Thomas Krens. "For years the two had diverged on what the museum's focus should be. Mr. Krens was interested in creating Guggenheim satellites around the world to build on the raging success of its showy outpost in Bilbao. Mr. Lewis felt that Mr. Krens should keep the museum's attention on New York, getting the finances of the mother ship in order and perhaps seeking once again to open a branch elsewhere in the city. Each came to the conflict with distinct advantages..." The New York Times 01/21/05

Artists, Teachers Protest Paid Admission At The Louvre Some 200 artists and teachers protested outside the Louvre last weekend complaining about a decision to strip them of free admission to the museum. Since September, artists, teachers and students no longer have free entry to the Louvre. "For an artist, the Louvre is oxygen. People whose job it is to transmit art must have access to it." Rocky Mountain News (Bloomberg) 01/20/05

The Christo And Jeanne-Claude Show (Coming To A Central Park Near You) It's taken 26 years for Christo and Jeanne-Claude to get their Central Park Gates project approved and built. Now it's being sintalled in the park. "The Christos make no secret that their traveling show—from the political jockeying to the public debates to events like the signing of an original drawing, such as the one they’ve given to New York—is all part of what they consider their grand work of art. Whether this process is a critique of art and bureaucracy or simply great public theater, it’s an undeniably canny way to conduct business." New York Magazine 01/17/05

Guggenheim Loses Its Whale The Guggenheim has lost its chairman and biggest donor. Citing "differences in direction," Peter B. Lewis, the Cleveland philanthropist who has been a trustee of the museum since 1993 and most recently its chairman, resigned yesterday. He has given the institution about $77 million, nearly four times as much as any other board member in its history. The New York Times 01/20/05

23 Superstar Architects, One Spanish Hotel Twenty-three superstar architects work on building a hotel in Spain. "Among those greeted by the mayor of Madrid when the project was unveiled yesterday, and pursued by what seemed like the entire Spanish press corps, were London architects David Chipperfield, John Pawson and Ron Arad. The Japanese master Arata Isozaki was seated next to France's Jean Nouvel, who has just completed a sparkling new addition to Madrid's Reina Sofia art gallery. Norman Foster, who couldn't be there, had made a video, and an ailing Zaha Hadid had sent her right-hand man to explain her contribution. I could go on, but suffice it to say, if architecture had Oscars, they would be like this." The Guardian (UK) 01/20/05

Uncovering Nero's Roman House When Nero's Rome fell, his palace in the middle of the city was buried. "This week, almost 2,000 years after Nero's rule, Rome city officials unveiled a new find from the palace that offers a tantalizing hint of the treasures buried beneath the hill. It is a large mosaic, more than 9 by 6 feet, showing naked men harvesting grapes and making wine, a typical illustration for a Roman palace of the time." MSNBC.com 01/19/05

Repatriating Remains - Let's Understand Why Aboriginals are asking for return of remains in museums. But the returns are controversial. "Large-scale and unique collections of valuable material could be destroyed, when very little is known about an object’s provenance." The Times (UK) 01/16/05

FBI Forms Art Theft Unit With art theft on the rise, the FBI is forming its first art theft unit. "The eight agents, who will be deployed around the country, are learning not just about art theft, but about art itself, including art history and how to distinguish artists, periods and styles." Philadelphia Inquirer 01/14/05

Art Of The Blind "The Helen Keller award began in 1933 as an essay competition, after the famous American campaigner visited Scotland, and has been an art award since 1992. Anyone can enter, as long as the art is on the subject of deaf-blindness; this year over 200 entries were sent from across the world. To create a level playing field, the judging panel - including, this year, sculptor Kenny Hunter - aren’t told which artists are deaf or blind, both or neither. This presents challenges, both for the judges and the organisers." The Scotsman 01/18/05

Redeveloping Manhattan (A Missed Opportunity?) A 40-block area on Manhattan's west side is a major opportunity for redevelopment, writes Nicolai Ouroussoff. But "despite the tinkering, the city is left with a vague, crudely executed master plan whose main selling point is that it gives developers the freedom to articulate their own visions. Even with a few interesting flourishes, it essentially relies on developer-driven planning formulas. What's missing is a voice that could give the plan a cohesive and vibrant identity." The New York Times 01/18/05

Get Your Picasso At Costco A Florida art dealer is offering a Picasso for sale through Costco. "Dealer Jim Tutwiler of Orlando, Fla., says collectors can find bargains when they buy from Costco because its markup is just one-tenth that of traditional galleries. He's been selling art through Costco for the past decade." Miami Herald (AP) 01/18/05

The Seattle Solution (A Public Nude) A computer analyst dies in Seattle, leaving the city $1 million for public art on the condition that an artist be commisssioned to create a male nude and place it in a prominent place. The city's solution? It approached sculptor Louise Bourgeois, and plans to place the work in the Seattle Art Museum's new sculpture park... Seattle Post-Intelligencer 01/15/05

Back To The 80s (We're Talkin' East Village) New York's East Village was an art phenomenon of the 1980s. But, writes Peter Schjeldahl, "there was something toxically facetious about the East Village versions of avant-gardism and la vie bohème which heralded a shift to arch self-consciousness in American culture. But the half-cooked epoch was significant in ways that merit closer consideration than it has received." The New Yorker 01/18/05

London Art Fair Tries Old School Approach The London Art Fair has undergone a bit of an identity crisis in recent years as it struggled to compete in a newly crowded marketplace where art fairs seemed to pop up like mushrooms in every available urban space. So this year, the fair is going back to basics, abandoning the flashy colors and irritating buzzwords of past years, and focusing hard on modern British art, with an eye towards attracting "collectors, not shoppers." The Telegraph (UK) 01/17/05

Russia To Consider Returning Dresden Collections Russian president Vladimir Putin seems to have opened the door to negotiating the return of German artwork looted by Soviet troops at the conclusion of World War II. "Putin said that an exhibition in Russia of art that has been returned to Germany, including Raphael's Sistine Madonna from Dresden's State Art Collection, as has been proposed by Lidia Ievleva, director of the Tretyakov Gallery, could be held. Such an exhibition would create an atmosphere that could allow further progress on the matter of trophy art." St. Petersburg Times (Russia) 01/18/05

A Bank That Looks Like Europe The unexpectedly vibrant design selected last week for the new headquarters of the European Central Bank has critics almost giddy with delight. "What makes the design more than a superficial attempt to spice up the European Union's image is its subtle relationship to 20th-century architectural history. Its bold forms nod to the idealism that was once embodied in International style Modernism but also critique it, expressing a more nuanced view of Europe's role in the emerging global culture." The New York Times 01/17/05

MoMA's Truitt Goes To The Hospital Tyler Green reports that an Anne Truitt piece on display at the Museum of Modern Art has come down. "She was a dame, a solid dame. They called her Catawba and she was short and squat, which is good enough for me. Her green and black bands soaked up light the way a napkin soaks up the sweat that falls down a beer glass." Why is it gone? Damage caused by a visitor... Modern Art Notes (AJBlogs) 01/14/05

Architecture Serving Art (What A Concept!) The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts is 200 years old this year, and it has been a year of great change at the venerable Philadelphia institution. Bigger isn't always better, of course, but thr Academy's considerable expansion seems to have increased its artistic viability as well. "The museum benefits enormously from the addition of six large gallery spaces, with more to come in a few years. The new galleries not only enable the museum to display considerably more of its permanent collection; they have also produced an unexpected dividend. This is a more agreeable marriage between art and architecture, especially in the institution's historic building." Philadelphia Inquirer 01/16/05

MIA Looks To Replace A Local Legend Evan Maurer's impending departure from the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, the Twin Cities' most visible mainstream museum finds itself at a crossroads. Maurer's reaction to a city famous for its embrace of modern art was a "populism-with-panache approach to shows and collecting" for the formerly staid and decidedly unsexy MIA. "He led the nation in collecting American Indian artifacts as art, helped set up an important French-American museum collaboration, oversaw two expansions of the Minneapolis museum's building and was, at his peak, a money-raising powerhouse." Minneapolis Star Tribune 01/16/05

Who Says Parks Close For The Winter? Chicago's Millenium Park made a big splash when it debuted in the heart of the Second City last summer. But winter has brought a whole new character to Chicago's downtown gathering place, and "on Sunday afternoon, park organizers will add to the park's dazzling array of attractions by kicking off a series of free concerts on the stage of the Frank Gehry-designed Pritzker Pavilion." Chicago Tribune 01/16/05

U.S. Troops Decimate Babylon "Troops from the US-led force in Iraq have caused widespread damage and severe contamination to the remains of the ancient city of Babylon, according to a damning report released today by the British Museum... The ancient city has been used by US and Polish forces as a military depot for the past two years, despite objections from archaeologists." The Guardian (UK) 01/15/05

London Gallery Accused Of Prejudice London's Hayward Gallery is being accused of racial discrimination in a £65 million lawsuit brought by a Harvard-educated Pakistani painter who says that the gallery lost or damaged 300 of his works. "The lawsuit might sound nearly as quixotic as his approach to selling his art - Geoffrey prices his work according to the relative wealth of his clients - but it is likely to shine an uncomfortable spotlight on the London art world's treatment of foreign artists." The Observer (UK) 01/16/05

Baltimore's Architectural Future Takes Shape Like many other American cities, Baltimore is in a building boom, and new office towers and residential complexes are rising at a nearly unprecedented rate. "While there is no shortage of new buildings opening in the Baltimore region this year, many simply reinforce the status quo. For those seeking signs of fresh thinking about architecture," though, there are a number of diamonds in the rough just waiting to be built. Baltimore Sun 01/16/05

Big Tasks Ahead For The Barnes Winning the years-long court battles over its proposed move to central Philadelphia may have been the easy part for the Barnes Foundation. "In the months to come, the Barnes must expand its board, collect $100 million in capital pledges, raise at least $50 million more for an endowment and figure out how to cover its interim operating costs. And while stepping up its fund-raising, the foundation must select an architect and decide how to continue its educational mission." And as if that weren't enough, the opponents to the Barnes move haven't conceded defeat just yet. The New York Times 01/15/05

DaVinci's Workshop Leonardo DaVinci's Florence workshop may have been discovered by researchers at an Italian military installation. "Italian museum officials are hoping that the discovery of the frescoes and five small rooms where Leonardo might have lived and worked, in a building just off the Piazza of the Santissima Annunziata in central Florence, will help flesh out the life of the artist, inventor and scientist." The New York Times 01/15/05

Those Lonely, Lonely Germans Something about the sight of a lone figure wandering along a remote road was an irresistable inspiration for countless German artists of the mid-1800s. "The early 19th century in Germany was tough on intellectuals; in the wake of the Napoleonic wars and the Congress of Vienna came a fierce persecution of democratic ideas and those who held them, so that to assert one's 'German-ness' as an artist, one's allegiance to folk culture and local history, was in some ways a radical act." Inherent in the theme of the lonely exile was "an inwardness, whispering and pleading to be let out." The Guardian (UK) 01/15/05

Whitney Biennial Curators Named The Whitney Biennial will be curated for the first time by two Europeans in 2006, with British-born Whitney curator Chrissie Iles teamed with Frenchman Philippe Vergne, senior curator at the Minneapolis-based Walker Art Center. "Both curators say it is too early to give any specific details about the direction the biennial will take or what themes, if any, will be addressed. Nor do they know if works will be shown in Central Park, as in the last two biennials." The New York Times 01/14/05

EU Bank Looks Forward With New Headquarters "The European Central Bank, seeking a home worthy of its growing stature in the financial world, on Thursday awarded the design of its new headquarters here to a Viennese firm, Coop Himmelb(l)au, which proposed a bold pair of twisted towers linked by a soaring atrium... Design professionals were pleasantly surprised by the choice, saying that the bank's headquarters would be a landmark on Frankfurt's skyline - perhaps even a powerful symbol of Europe's economic integration - provided it was not watered down too much during the building process." The New York Times 01/14/05

Chicago, City Of Wacky Bridges "Offering a major surprise, the City of Chicago on Friday will announce winners in its international design competition for pedestrian bridges along the lakefront, choosing a bold new look for the North Avenue Bridge instead of a plan that would have echoed the gently curving profile of the existing bridge." Among the winners are a boomerang-shaped bridge with solar-powered lighting, two S-shaped specimens, and a curving suspension bridge. Each bridge will cost several million dollars to build, and construction is slated to begin in 2007. Chicago Tribune 01/14/05

Alaskan Museum Counting On "Bilbao Effect" Fairbanks, Alaska's Museum of the North is expanding, hoping to generate some Bilbao-type publicity in the hopes of becoming a tourist destination. "Other museums that have created what we call signature buildings have experienced the same 'Bilbao effect,' where the building becomes a destination. I said, 'We really need to do this because we need to get tourists here in the summer to help us pay our bills."' CNN.com 01/13/05

Physicist: Hockney Theory Is Wrong A California physicist says he has proof that David Hockney's controversial theory that Renaissance artists traced their work is wrong. "David Stork used computer imaging of a 1645 painting, Christ in the Carpenter’s Studio, by Georges de la Tour, to show that the only source of light in the work was a candle shown in Christ’s hand. It means the image could not have been projected, he said." The Scotsman 01/13/05

Guggenheim Update: Expanding Into What? It's been a while since the Guggenheim generated much heat with its global outpost strategy. So where do the various Guggenheim satellite projects stand? "At present, four additional satellite facilities are in their early stages: Rio de Janeiro, Taichung, Hong Kong and Gaudalajara. The projects all face a certain amount of local opposition, and the Gugg's current strategy is to leave the local politics to the local politicians." Artnet 01/13/05

SFMoMA At Ten It's been ten years since San Francisco's Museum of Modern Art opened in a new building. "Beyond the flaws and virtues that were on display from the start, the building's craftsmanship shines more clearly with age. And it is now self-evident that Swiss architect Mario Botta designed with an eye to the future, not just the opening-day crowd and critics." San Francisco Chronicle 01/13/05

Aboriginals Consider Suing Museums For Remains Aboriginal groups are contemplating suing British museums to force them to return ancestral remains. "Many British institutions have been returning body parts over the past decade, but several of the largest and most prestigious, such as London's Museum of Natural History and Duckworth Laboratory in Cambridge, continue to refuse to release remains." Herald Sun (Australia) 01/13/05

Judge: Whitney Thief Walks Over the strong objections of prosecutors, a Manhattan judge yesterday sentenced a Whitney Museum of American Art employee to probation and community service for stealing more than $850,000 in ticket receipts. New York Daily News 01/13/05

Four-Year-Old Wows Artworld Marla Olmstead is making an impression with her art. She's had a gallery show, and the critics were impressed. Of course, Marla is only 4 years old. "She builds her paintings in layers. Children don't do that. She starts with big swatches of colours and then adds details and accents onto that. That's what is so impressive and beyond what other children do. She paints with emotion." The Independent (South Africa) 01/13/05

Hadid Gets Architecture Foundation Job Zaha Hadid has been chosen to design the home of the Architecture Foundation in London. "On a site close to Tate Modern in south London, Hadid's riveting sense of occasion has found appropriate fulfilment, as the winner of a competition staged to give a home to the Architectural Foundation." The Guardian (UK) 01/13/05

Frankfurt Garbage Collectors Destroy Artwork Frankfurt sanitation workers mistakenly removed and destroyed some yellow plastic sheets on the street that were part of an art installation. "Thirty of the dustmen are now being sent to modern art classes to try to ensure that the same mistake never happens again. The head of Frankfurt's sanitation department, Peter Postleb, took responsibility for the destruction of the sculpture, saying that confusing the plastic sheets with rubbish was an easy mistake to make. He thought they were abandoned building materials." The Guardian (UK) 01/13/05

A Find: Leonardo's Studio "Researchers have discovered the hidden laboratory used by Leonardo da Vinci for studies of flight and other pioneering scientific work in previously sealed rooms at a monastery next to the Basilica of the Santissima Annunziata, in the heart of Florence." The Independent (UK) 01/12/05

Expert: Ruskin's Turner Bonfire Never Happened Evidence suggests that celebrated art critic John Ruskin didn't burn a stack of Turner's work, as he claimed. "Ruskin appears to have been tried and convicted by the standard version of his involvement with the Turner bequest, which characterizes him as the man who destroyed any surviving evidence of his hero's sex life. Although the bonfire incident has passed into the popular imagination as one of the defining landmarks of Victorian censorship, what evidence there is to support this version of events is surprisingly slight." The New York Times 01/13/05

• Previously: Claim: Ruskin's Turner Bonfire Never Happened John Ruskin famously said he had made a bonfire of a pile of JMW Turner's paintings. But a researchers now says it never happened. "It looks as if the notoriously prudish Ruskin, who worshipped Turner to the point of idolatry, could not bring himself to destroy his work. Instead he buried them in paper, interring them in a tortuous numbering system he devised himself, or in the case of some detailed anatomical details of women's genitals, folding over the page to conceal them, undoubtedly with a shudder of revulsion." The Guardian (UK) 12/29/04

Painting - In... Or Out? So some are prepared to declare that painting is back in. "An art form commonly reported to be on its last legs is about to skip jauntily back into the aesthetic arena. The tortoise of tradition catches up with the hare of technology. The old-fashioned canvas overtakes newfangled conceptualism. Or does it? I would not start peeling the champagne foil yet." The Times (UK) 01/12/05

Designing A Headquarters For Architects Here's an intimidating project - designing the headquarters for an institution devoted to contemporary architecture. London's Architecture Foundation will be the city's first completely new cultural building in 27 years. From the beginning, the group "was determined that the competition should be as open as possible, not only to well-known names but also to those who had never built. An initial list of 208 entrants from as far afield as Mexico, Japan and Lithuania was reduced to the shortlist of eight, half of whom are based in London, half abroad, but none of whom had built a new building in London. All were paid to produce a design." The Telegraph (UK) 01/12/05

Manchester On Spikes Britain's tallest sculpture has been errected. It's in Manchester and rises 180 feet. It's a starburst of spikes "designed by Thomas Heatherwick and took 20 months to put together from 180 tapered steel spikes, connected 22 metres above the ground. To keep it anchored it has foundations weighing 750 tonnes, including a 400-square-metre reinforced concrete slab. The sculpture itself weighs 300 tonnes and leans at an angle of 30 degrees - 10 times more than the leaning tower of Pisa." The Guardian (UK) 01/12/05

Perreault: Time For A Virtual Barnes? John Perreault visits the Barnes Collection while it's still in the original. "Yes, the ideal would be to replicate exactly the Barnes art ensembles. But you and I know that only in Artopia are ideals achieved. In real life, time goes by and there are emergencies, fancied and otherwise. Someone might come up with a new way of teaching art that is much more effective than Barnes' juxtapositions. Or people may just become bored with the same old arrangements. So, not only as an educational creation in itself but also as a fallback, the Barnes should create a virtual tour of the museum to record exactly the way the founder of the foundation intended the art to be shown." Artopia (AJBlogs) 01/09/05

Whitechapel To Double Down London's Whitechapel Gallery is expanding. moving next door to its current location. "The former library space, once the home of the largest collection of Yiddish books in Europe, will provide space for site-specific commissions, the display of rarely seen collections, and a new restaurant, bookshop and education room. It will also display work from the archives, which includes material relating to visits to east London by artists including Picasso and Rothko. The architects are Robbrecht and Daem." The Guardian (UK) 01/12/05

Student Appeals Barnes Move Decision A Barnes Foundation art student is appealing a ruling last month that permits the Barnes to relocate to downtown Philadelphia. "I don't want the art to be relocated away from where it is suppose to be. I was disappointd in the court's decision and felt the evidence did not support the decision." Philadelphia Inquirer 01/11/05

Entry-Level Art On The Internet Selling art online was one promise of the internet. But it's never really caught on. Now an artist in Washington State is offering art to be digitally printed for prices beginning at about $25. It's not schlock but the kind of art you might find in reasonable galleries. Artists receive 75 percent of a sale, with the remaining 25 percent going to maintain and expand the site... Seattle Post-Intelligencer 01/11/05

Still Searching For Kuwait's Art Where did the art stolen by Iraq from Kuwait during the Gulf War in 1990-91 go? "Although most of the collection looted from Kuwait's National Museum has been recovered, almost all the jewellery, Islamic art and other works taken from wealthy Kuwaitis by the Iraqis during the six-month occupation has vanished. Only a few pieces have surfaced on the international art market, and none of it was found in Iraq after the war in 2003." The Telegraph (UK) 01/10/05

MoMA's Art For The Hard-of-Seeing The Museum of Modern Art now offers audio description tours for the visual-impaired. "The regular tour takes about two-and-a-half hours, with 75 stops, and is available in six languages. What's new here is a multiplicity of voices, including some from the past read by actors. Also, instead of hearing from one curator, visitors now hear from many, with additional perspective from conservators and artists, including Chuck Close, Marcel Duchamp and Lorna Simpson." The New York Times 01/11/05

Major Painting Theft In Netherlands A number of 17th Century paintings worth 10 million euros were stolen from a Dutch museum Sunday. "Up to 20 Dutch paintings and numerous silver items were taken during the Sunday night break-in at Westfries Museum in Hoorn. 'The heart of our collection is gone, including top artworks of national importance'." BBC 01/10/05

Architects Rush To Help Architects around the world are volunteering to help in the tsunami-affected region. "Many feel that sitting at a screen sweating over the design of handrail details for the next cute downtown boutique hotel just doesn't make sense when more than 150,000 people have lost their lives, more than five million people have been made homeless and whole towns have been swept away." The Guardian (UK) 01/10/05

MoMA Neighbors Unhappy With Museum Views "In a case of life imitating art, the renovated museum, with a clear glass floor-to-ceiling wall looking out onto West 54th Street, gives its 10,000 daily visitors a bird's eye look into the upmarket apartments across the road. Even in a city where gazing into other people's apartments is an acceptable pastime, the residents of West 54th, who include the former Beatle Paul McCartney, have had enough." The Guardian (UK) 01/10/05

Louvre, Pompidou To Open Branches Two big French museums are opening satellite branches. "The Louvre is to open a $100 million satellite in the northern French city of Lens, near Lille, in 2009 and will occupy a new annex at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta for three years from 2006. Still, the Louvre's director, Henri Loyrette, has said he considers Britain's Tate to be a closer role model than the Guggenheim. The Tate, founded a century ago on London's Millbank, now runs three other museums in Britain, but it has no permanent presence abroad. In contrast, while the Pompidou will inaugurate a new $68 million branch in the northeastern French city of Metz in 2007 it is also looking beyond France." The New York Times 01/10/05

Gehry Works On His House Finally, at 75, Frank Gehry is building himself a house. "It is the work of a man who has achieved a measure of inner peace - someone who no longer feels a need to rage against established institutions. Yet it is anything but complacent. Its lightness of spirit is a testament to Mr. Gehry's creative stamina at a point in life when many architects of his stature are content to recycle well-tested formulas. If only as an example of his willingness to venture into unexplored territory, it will undoubtedly rank as one of his most important works." The New York Times 01/09/05

Reconsidering Kahn's Roosevelt In 1972, Louis Kahn designed a memorial to FDR on New York's Roosevelt Island. It never got built, and now the city is considering another plan for the site. But "devotees of Roosevelt and of Kahn are hoping that it is not too late to reconsider Kahn's 2.8-acre memorial as part of the 14-acre site. With renewed interest in the art of memorial-making (because of plans for ground zero) and in the work of Kahn (because of a film made last year by his son, Nathaniel), the time is finally ripe, they say, to realize Kahn's plan." New York Times Magazine 01/09/05

The Joy Of Painting Painting became the unloved orphan child of the art world in the 20th century, derided by critics as passe and insufficiently adaptable in an age when everything in art had to be new and exciting. But these days, painting is hot again, to the extent that it seems absurd for anyone ever to have suggested its impending demise. The Telegraph (UK) 01/08/05

Breitweiser Gets Two Years Art thief Stephane Breitweiser was sentenced to 26 months in prison this weekend, one day after attempting suicide in his jail cell. Breitweiser will have to pay significant damages for works ruined by his ax-wielding mother, who was also sentenced to prison. The Guardian (UK) 01/08/05

Frankly Suburban "If Fallingwater in Pennsylvania is Frank Lloyd Wright's greatest work, then a house he designed in this Cleveland suburb is one of his most livable. Owner Paul Penfield has opened up the Louis Penfield House to guests after spending four years restoring it to the architect's original vision. It is one of three Wright houses in the United States — and the only one outside of Wisconsin — that allows visitors to spend the night." Toronto Star 01/08/05

Grand Opening Set For Baltimore Museum Baltimore's much anticipated new museum of African American art and culture finally has an official opening date, after months of delays and setbacks. The Reginald F. Lewis Museum will open to the public on June 25 as the second-largest museum of its kind in the U.S.. The state of Maryland will pick up the tab for 75% of all operating costs for the museum's first year of operation. Baltimore Sun 01/08/05

MoMA's Growth Management Act The new MoMA is so much larger, it has reinvented itself. But this very ambitious museum has a problem. "If it continues adventurously to acquire new works, it will soon run out of space —as, in fact, it already has. Yet no other American museum is so generously committed and dedicated to continuing to present international developments in contemporary art. It is clear that selling off valuable parts of the basic collection to make room for novelties, however promising or prestigious, is a form of vandalism. As it now stands, the greater part of the collection should, by moral right, be accorded public landmark status." New York Review of Books 01/13/05

Who's On Top - The Top 100 Artists Who are the top 100 artists? One website quantifies artists' popularity by the exhibitions they've been shown in since 1999. "The Artist Ranking reflects the artists exhibition career from 1999 to today as seen from the perspective of the organizing curators of museums and private galleries." Artifacts 01/05

Look Out Art, Mama's Got An Ax! (Her Day In Court) The mother of Europe's most prolific art thief was in court in France Thursday, charged with throwing away art her son had stolen. "When Mireille Breitwieser, a former nurse, found out that her son Stephane, 33, had been arrested on suspicion of stealing paintings worth tens of millions of pounds from museums across Europe, she rushed into his bedroom and started chopping up all the canvases she found there, prosecutors said yesterday." The Guardian (UK) 01/07/05

• Accused Art Thief Attempts Suicide The art thief accused of stealing 23 works worth an estimated €1bn in France, plus two in Denmark and one in Austria, has tried to commit suicide in his cell. "Police have put Stephane Breitwieser, 33, under suicide watch following the attempt, which could delay his trial in Strasbourg, officials said. A fellow detainee alerted authorities to the hanging attempt, the officials said." Irish Examiner 01/07/05

Experts: SF Van Gogh Is Authentic The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco's "Still Life" (1880-1885) has been officially declared a genuine work by van Gogh. Okay, you say, it's been labeled as such since its aquisition in 1960. But the painting's authenticity has been questioned over the years, and kept in storage. But now a team of experts has pronounced it genuine, and the painting has been brought out in public. San Francisco Chronicle 01/06/05

Finding Wright Buyer A Chore Great to own a Frank Lloyd Wright house, eh? But "some owners of one-of-a-kind houses conceived by the iconic architect are discovering it's not easy selling them in an era when cathedral ceilings and easy commutes are on the wish lists of many prospective purchasers. But the sellers are also concerned about finding the right Wright buyers - ones who will cherish, not demolish, his creations." San Jose Mercury News 01/06/05

French Art Thief Faces Another Trial "A French thief already convicted in Switzerland for stealing dozens of valuable artworks has gone on trial in Strasbourg, eastern France. Stephane Breitwieser, 33, has admitted stealing 239 artworks - including priceless masterpieces - in seven European countries in 1995-2001. He claims a love of art motivated him. He was given a four-year jail sentence in Switzerland in February 2003. He was extradited last year to face charges for 20 works stolen in France." BBC 01/06/05

The New Art Buyers - Going Contemporary The taste of art buyers is changing in London. Where formerly Old Masters and Impressionists were most highly coveted, now the young and wealthy are buying contemporary. "Most people buying contemporary art in London are still foreign, but the enthusiasm has proved contagious. A new breed of rich British collectors and investors now chase work by both established and emerging artists - things that their friends can admire - rather than a Regency dining room table and chairs." The Telegraph (UK) 01/05/05

Iraq's Heritage Still At Risk Iraq's cultural heritage continues to be at risk, though some progress has been made. "The challenges facing archaeological and other historic sites are even more complex, given their remote and dispersed locations. Most of these sites are not safe to visit and have no guardians. Looting, now often carried out by bands of armed professionals, has caused irreparable damage to many archaeological sites and has scattered objects not seen in centuries among smugglers and collectors around the world." OpinionJournal 01/05/05

Seattle Museum Expands Staff "Gearing up for an expansion downtown that will more than triple its gallery space by 2007, the Seattle Art Museum has created a new curatorial position and hired a conservator of sculptors, installations and other objects." The hires are part of a larger strategy to raise SAM's profile and enourage donations to enrich the museum's collection. Seattle Post-Intelligencer 01/05/05

Art Amidst The Ads Amid the inescapable glut of billboards and oversized wall advertisements in New York City, a giant 1300-square-foot digital video screen is garnering attention. And it isn't selling anything. "Operating on the notion that New York deserves art where it least expects it, SmartSign Media is presenting a month-long exhibition of images from Magnum Photos, the legendary photojournalism collective." The images appear on the giant screen which wraps around Port Authority, the city's main bus terminal. New York Daily News 01/05/05

Artists Of The Under/Over (Reputation That Is) The whole idea of overrated and underrated artists is an odd one. Are we talking about quality not recognized? Is it reputation imbalance? ARTnews takes a survey of artfolk to take on the question... ARTnews 01/05

Art For Your TV Flat screen high-definition TVs are becoming popular. But there still isn't a lot of programming to take advantage of the screens. So one company is introducing the GalleryPlayer. "It will allow subscribers to purchase and display high-resolution digital images of "museum-quality" art and photos on their high-definition digital TV displays." ABCNews.com 01/04/05

"Wall Of Air" To Protect David? Officials in Florence are considering installing machinery that would envelope Michelangelo's David in a constant stream of air. "The "wall of air" is one of several steps the museum is considering that could protect the statue from dirt particles without encasing it in glass. More than a million tourists are said to visit the statue every year in the Italian city of Florence." BBC 01/04/05

Central Park "Gates" Begin Installation Installation of Christo and Jeanne-Claude's "The Gates" in Central Park has begun. "The $20 million project, a quarter-century in the making and financed by the artists, will go on full view on Feb. 12 and remain until Feb. 27. It is expected to attract thousands of art lovers from around the world. The artists are trying to create "a visual golden river appearing and disappearing through the bare branches of the trees, highlighting the shapes of the footpaths," according to a brochure explaining the project. The color was chosen to cast a warm glow over the park at a gray time of year." The New York Times 01/04/05

Looking Around At 2005 Is 2005 the start of a new era in art? "We don’t have art movements any more, for one thing. We have market movements. In the place of successive modernist and post-modernist esthetic revolutions -- now decades in the past -- we have fads and collector enthusiasms, things like Japanese anime, Chinese photography and the new Leipzig painters. Such developments are symptoms of a fallow, second- and third-generation period, and at the same time indicate new levels of competition in the continuously expanding, robust international art market." Artnet.com 01/03/05

Istanbul's New Modern Istabbul has its first museum of modern art, newly located in a former customs warehouse. "While Turkey has a solid tradition of painting and a lively private gallery scene, the museum could provide a much-needed, stable institutional base, acting as a two-way bridge to Europe and other established centers of Western art." The New York Times 01/03/05

The EU's Resale Madness A proposed levy in the European Union would grant a resale tax on every resold piece of art. "The measure will give artists, and their descendants for 70 years after their deaths, claims upon a levy imposed every time one of their works is resold. Very fair, some will say. Yet in practice, it will simply cause owners of contemporary art to send works for sale in markets where the levy is not applied, notably Switzerland and the US." The Guardian (UK) 01/03/05

A Big Buisness In Stolen Religious Art Stolen religious art is big business in Mexico and all over Latin America. "Churches, convents and shrines all over Latin America are under siege. The Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency in Washington and the FBI, which will soon unveil a "rapid response" task force to fight trafficking in smuggled art, say they are beefing up enforcement efforts. A key tactic is monitoring the Internet, where much of the loot is sold." Los Angeles Times 01/02/05

Art Of The Moment (After The Moment Has Passed) "Art made from obviously impermanent materials that is being painstakingly preserved; art made to stay shiny and new that is being treasured for its age; art challenging the notion of originality that is being scrutinized for that quality; once-standard, off-the-shelf materials that are now hard to find; collectors who cling to a piece of paper that proves their dated light fixture is worthy of a museum, not a recycling bin; and caretakers of a reputation who make decisions that they readily admit run counter to the artist's original intentions. Such is the strange afterlife of work that produces beauty from the banal, an object lesson in how the legacy of a strong-willed radical can be brought to heel by an even stronger force, the market." The New York Times 01/02/05

The Temporary Contemporary What is with contemporary art's fascination with disposable art? "Our age is obsessed with the glory of spent materials: we love scattered detritus, piles of old tyres, dirty beds surrounded with rubbish. The Young British Artist is part of a dumbshow now, each of them a performer too hung up on the joke of disposability, too unintelligent about language and image to avoid becoming poster campaigns for their own boredom." The Telegraph (UK) 01/01/05

Victoria And Albert Museum Worker Stole Thousands Of Objects The Victoria and Albert Museum suffered a series of losses to its collection that went unnoticed for decades, say records in the National Archives. "The thief, a man called Nevin, stole 2,544 items from the museum, prompting a security report in 1954. A subsequent stock-take revealed about 5,000 objects were missing, although not all were attributable to Nevin." BBC 01/02/05