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Wednesday, 18 June 2014 11:08

He was carved nearly 1,000 years ago from the wood of a giant cryptomeria, a type of cypress native to Japan. Since then, he’s been worshiped as a god, survived a devastating fire, endured a lengthy ocean voyage and delighted generations of Rhode Island art lovers.

Still, there’s a good chance the majestic “Buddha Dainichi Nyorai” — better known as the RISD Museum’s big wooden Buddha — has never had it so good.

Indeed, the massive carving and dozens of other objects have been given a thorough primping and pampering as part of a two-year, $2.7-million renovation of the museum’s top-floor Radeke Building galleries. The new galleries, which house everything from Asian prints and ceramics to ancient Egyptian artifacts to contemporary fashions and textiles, open to the public Friday.

Wednesday, 18 June 2014 11:00

On a Saturday afternoon in Chelsea, a group of a few dozen people milled around the International Print Center New York, drinking Champagne and making small talk about the show New Prints 2014/Winter. But this wasn’t a gallery opening, nor was it an artist’s talk. Rather it was a salon by Gertrude, a new company organizing events to discuss art.

The company is named for the writer and art collector Gertrude Stein, who was well known for the gatherings of artists and writers she organized in her apartment on the Left Bank of Paris.

Wednesday, 18 June 2014 10:28

Fifty years ago, during the summer of 1964, Andy Warhol began working on silkscreen paintings of flowers, a subject that would preoccupy him for the rest of his life. When Warhol had his first solo exhibition at the prestigious Leo Castelli Gallery in New York in November 1964 it consisted entirely of Flowers. Best known for his vibrant pop imagery and searing commentary on art and popular culture, Warhol’s flower imagery reveals a softer, more intimate side of the artist. In retrospect, it is also a provocative series, appropriating a powerful symbol later identified with flower-power counterculture of the 1960s, the age of peace, love, and anti-war protest. The Flowers are the only subject that Warhol revisited throughout his entire career and in almost every medium. The artist’s floral imagery is among the quietest, most beautiful, and least studied. The Cheekwood exhibition is a rare occasion when Warhol’s artificial flower images meet the floral abundance of an actual garden. 

This exhibition traces Warhol’s engagement with floral images throughout his career, beginning with a group of his earliest commercial illustrations, drawn in the 1950s, and his creation of the Flowers series in 1964, to photographs, paintings, and screen prints through 1986 before his untimely death the following year. The development of Warhol’s career can be seen in the progression from the delicacy of the early illustrations to the boldness of the 1964 series to the tension between the beauty and banality of the photographs and prints late in his career.

Wednesday, 18 June 2014 10:01

Organized to mark the 50th anniversary of the death of Georges Braque (Argenteuil-sur- Seine, 1882−Paris, 1963), this large retrospective covers all the phases of the career of one of the most important artists of the 20th century. As one of the creators of Cubism, along with Pablo Picasso and Juan Gris, and a pioneer of the papiers collés (glued papers), Braque focused his later work on the methodical exploration of still-life and landscape. He was considered the French painter par excellence, inheriting the classical tradition and also a precursor for the abstraction of the post-war period.

Wednesday, 18 June 2014 09:52

In fall 2015, the Minneapolis Institute of Arts will present “Eugène Delacroix and Modernity,” the first major exhibition to explore the legacy of the celebrated French painter, an influential trailblazer and one of the first modern masters of the form. The exhibition takes Cézanne’s observation that “we all paint in Delacroix’s language” as its starting point to reveal how Delacroix revolutionized French painting for the next generation of artists, leaving an indelible mark on Matisse, Van Gogh, Gauguin, Renoir, Degas, Monet, and others. The MIA is partnering with the National Gallery, London, for this unprecedented survey, featuring important works from the museums’ collections as well as rarely seen works from private collections. The exhibition opens at the MIA on October 18, 2015, and runs through January 10, 2016. It is on view at the National Gallery, London, February 10 through May 15, 2016.

By the time of his death, Eugène Delacroix (1798–1863) was one of the most revered artists in Paris and a hero of the avant-garde. By challenging the status quo by pushing the boundaries of the “Grand Style” of painting into the realm of modernism, he paved the way for younger artists. His large-scale paintings were the first to use the expressive, improvisational markmaking of the Impressionists, the dreamlike allusion of the Symbolists, and the bold colors of Morocco made famous 80 years later by Renoir and Matisse.

Tuesday, 17 June 2014 17:43

On June 30, Sol LeWitt’s “Wall Drawing #370: Ten Geometric Figures (including right triangle, cross, X, diamond) with three-inch parallel bands of lines in two directions” (1982) will go on view at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The linear, black-and-white drawing will take five drafters four weeks to install.

LeWitt, a founder of both Conceptualism and Minimalism, made his first wall drawing in 1968. The process involved creating guidelines or diagrams so that the two-dimensional works could be drawn directly on a wall using everything from graphite and crayon to India ink and acrylic paint. LeWitt’s wall drawings were designed for limited duration and maximum flexibility within a broad range of architectural settings. Painstakingly executed by drafters, most of LeWitt’s wall drawings were eventually destroyed. “Wall Drawing #370” will be painted over when the exhibition ends on September 7, 2015.

Tuesday, 17 June 2014 11:53

Adam Weitsman is a 45-year-old mogul of a $1 billion scrap metal empire with a dozen locations in New York, stretching from the Port of Albany to Rochester and across the Southern Tier.

He flies in a private Gulfstream jet with his wife, Kim, a former fashion model in her early 30s. They drive a $250,000 Rolls-Royce Ghost between a condominium overlooking Central Park in New York City and their other homes. For a change of pace, they climb into a Lamborghini and cruise to a Finger Lakes summer retreat he renovated for $20 million and filled with museum-quality furnishings.

He employs a publicist.

Weitsman, president of Upstate Shredding, based in Owego in Tioga County, lives large while straddling the disparate worlds of his twin passions: hard-charging junk dealer by day, knowledgeable art collector by night.

Now, Weitsman has donated one of the world's largest private collections of 19th-century American decorated stoneware, valued at about $10 million, to the State Museum.

Tuesday, 17 June 2014 11:47

In a world of technology that grows at break-neck speed, our everyday life is constantly being altered. Everything from phones and cameras to sneakers, watches, air conditioners and even dog collars are “smarter” than us. As an art appraiser, my clients are prominent art collectors – predominantly high-net worth, sophisticated and tech-savvy. As such, they are often the first to try out the latest technological marvel. Except, as it turns out, when it comes to their art collection.

Considering that every week there is inevitably at least one news story relating to a high-value artwork theft, damage, fraud or authentication scandal, there is certainly a need for technologies to prevent such calamities. Those are only the stories that make the news, usually high profile works of art worth tens and even hundreds of millions dollars. As an appraiser, I am frequently called by clients who have had a theft, or even simply misplaced art, silver and decorative objects. The values are not comparatively impressive, but still worth a considerable investment in preventative technology.

Tuesday, 17 June 2014 11:35

Jane Chu, president and CEO of the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts since 2006, was confirmed Thursday by the U.S. Senate as chairwoman of the National Endowment for the Arts.

“She’s spent years enriching the culture and strengthening the business community in Kansas City,” Sen. Claire McCaskill, a Missouri Democrat, said in a statement. “I’m looking forward to seeing her bring that same leadership to the national stage.”

Sen. Roy Blunt, a Missouri Republican, said he “was impressed by her successful oversight of the more than $400 million Kauffman Center.”

Tuesday, 17 June 2014 11:30

From the Village to Vogue: The Modernist Jewelry of Art Smith features 26 pieces including silver and gold jewelry created by African American artist, Art Smith, as well as select pieces by his contemporaries. Inspired by surrealism, biomorphism, and primitivism, Smith was one of the leading modernist jewelers of the mid-twentieth century. His work is dynamic in both size and form.

Tuesday, 17 June 2014 11:24

Frieze has announced the participating galleries for Frieze Masters. Following acclaim for the first two editions of the fair, this year sees not only a particularly strong representation of galleries from the UK and US but also an ambitious global reach. Dedicated to art from ancient to modern, Frieze Masters will take place October 15–19, 2014 on Gloucester Green, Regent’s Park, London, and is sponsored by Deutsche Bank.

Described by the Financial Times as ‘Unrivalled among fairs worldwide for its quality, range, seductive displays and scholarly interest’, Frieze Masters is a carefully selected presentation of over 120 of the world’s leading galleries. Taking place at the same time as Frieze London, the two fairs ensure that London is the destination for the broadest international art audience and benefits from a crossover between audiences of contemporary and historical art.

Tuesday, 17 June 2014 11:15

Since the discovery of a long-hidden trove of masterworks in Germany last year, advocates have sought to shine a spotlight on looted artworks hiding in plain sight.

In other words, those hanging on the walls of Europe’s great museums.

Enter France, known as the art attic of Europe before World War II and where tens of thousands of works were taken from Jewish families by the occupying Nazis. Today, more than 2,000 pieces returned to France after the war — including canvases by Claude Monet, Peter Paul Rubens and Max Ernst — remain in the custody of the Louvre, the Musée d’Orsay and other celebrated French institutions.

Tuesday, 17 June 2014 11:10

"A Helsinki Guggenheim,” says Petra Havu of the Association of Finnish Artists, “is not a project for taxpayers’ money.”

“It represents a supreme lack of imagination,” adds Jörn Donner, the veteran Finnish politician, actor, director and producer who won Finland’s only Oscar for his work with Ingmar Bergman on Fanny and Alexander. “It is part of an insecure, provincial view of the world.”

As you might gather, the announcement made in Venice at the beginning of this month of an international competition for the design of a new Guggenheim museum for the Finnish capital is already raising hackles in Helsinki.

Tuesday, 17 June 2014 11:02

The Hood Museum of Art at Dartmouth received an anonymous $10 million donation. The gift, which will be put towards building the centerpiece of the two-year renovation and expansion project:  a new Museum Learning Center.

The renovation project, helmed by Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects—designers of the American Folk Art Museum building and the new Barnes Foundation—is part of Dartmouth’s aim of beefing up its campus arts district. The expansion will increase the museum’s current 39,000-square-foot space by 15,000 square feet, giving it more room to show off the museum’s collection, which touts some 65,000 objects including paintings by Perugino, Pablo Picasso, Georgia O’Keeffe, and Rockwell Kent, along with a collection of Assyrian stone reliefs. The expansion will also add three classrooms for the use of digital technology.

Tuesday, 17 June 2014 10:56

Isabelle Collin Dufresne, the French-born artist, actress and author known as Ultra Violet, the beauty among the superstars of Andy Warhol’s glory days at his studio, the Factory, died early Saturday morning at a Manhattan hospital. She was 78 and lived in Manhattan and in Nice, France.

The death was confirmed by William Butler, a family friend. A cousin, Carole Thouvard Revol, said the cause was cancer.

Monday, 16 June 2014 16:02

Design Miami/Basel, a global forum focused on collectible design, offered select guests a sneak peek of its offerings during a VIP preview on Monday, June 16. The event, which takes place alongside Art Basel in Switzerland, is open to the public from Tuesday, June 17 through Sunday, June 22.

Bringing together collectors, gallerists, designers, and curators, Design Miami/Basel celebrates design culture and commerce through museum-quality exhibitions, educational lectures, and commissions from the world’s top emerging and established designers and architects. The marketplace portion of the fair features celebrated design galleries from around the world exhibiting furniture, lighting, and objets d’art. Offerings range from 18th- and 19th-century antiques to early Modernist objects and contemporary design.

Monday, 16 June 2014 11:52

Whitney Museum of American Art Director Adam Weinberg spoke with The Chronicle while visiting the Bay Area for the opening of "Legacy: The Emily Fisher Landau Collection," a major show at the San Jose Museum of Art of contemporary works on loan from the New York museum.

Like the Robert and Jane Meyerhoff Collection sampled in "Modernism from the National Gallery of Art" at the de Young Museum in San Francisco, the Landau Collection includes works by many names considered safe, if not already canonical: Andy Warhol, Cy Twombly, James Rosenquist, Willem de Kooning, Jasper Johns and Agnes Martin.

Monday, 16 June 2014 11:39

Museums throughout Illinois are expecting millions of dollars in grant money to pay for facility improvements and added exhibits.

Gov. Pat Quinn announced Saturday that 47 museums operated by local governments or cities will get $20 million in capital funds. The money comes from a five-year $31 billion capital construction program passed in 2009.

Monday, 16 June 2014 10:54

The Shelburne Museum is expecting a lot of visitors for its new exhibition that features some of the most famous paintings in the world. It's a very rare chance for people to see the paintings from French masters.

Museum staff was putting the finishing touches on a new exhibition that opens to the public Saturday. It is called "In a New Light; French impressionism arrives in America." The centerpiece is Monet's "Le Pont, Amsterdam." It is the very first painting by Monet to become part of an American collection. It was bought from the artist in Paris by Louisine Havemeyer, mother of Shelburne Museum found Electra Havemeyer Webb.

Monday, 16 June 2014 10:47

Banksy paintings on canvas bought during his 2013 'residency' in New York are to go under the hammer at Bonhams London. Purchased for just $60 apiece they will feature in their next sale of Contemporary Art on July 2nd for a price which reflects their true value.

Estimated at £50,000 – 70,000 and £30,000 - 50,000 Kids on Guns and Winnie the Pooh were both acquired from Banksy's Central Park stall where an unassuming trader sold his paintings to passing tourists.

Film footage shows Banksy's immediately recognizable black and white stenciled canvases stacked on a trestle table or suspended on the stall's makeshift metal framework. One canvas was stenciled with a discount store label announcing the price of each work as $60. The following day the event was documented on the artist's website: "Yesterday I set up a stall in the park selling 100% authentic original signed Banksy canvases. For $60 each."

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