Art Basel Miami Faces Chanes Some "60 exhibitors from last year's Art Basel Miami Beach are not returning, including Berlin's Arndt & Partner, London galleries Waddington and Maureen Paley, and New York's Per Skarstedt. Fair organiser have added 65 new exhibitors, including some who had previously been turned away. The 2009 edition now boasts 266 dealers from 33 countries. Another big change is the fair's physical appearance..." The Art Newspaper 11/19/09

The Mystery Of Ancient Roman Painting "Very little remains, and what remains is puzzling. … [Most of the survivors] were mural paintings, preserved (ironically) by the lava of Vesuvius, while the paintings in other cities, such as Rome itself, were destroyed or faded away. Was the art of these two provincial towns inferior to the art of the capital? If we saw real Roman painting, would that make the work that's survived look very average? Or is this as good as it got?" The Independent (UK) 11/20/09

In Armenia, Spectacular New Arts Center Uplifts The Nation "The center, a mad work of architectural megalomania and historical recovery, is one of the strangest but most memorable museum buildings to open in ages. Imagine an Art Deco version of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon stretching nearly the height of the Empire State Building, its decorations coded with Armenian symbolism. Did I mention the artificial waterfalls?" The New York Times 11/19/09

For A Cowboy Ex-President, Stern Designs A Quiet Library "Architectural plans released today for the $250-million, 225,000-square-foot George W. Bush Presidential Center, to be built at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, carry no hint of the swagger, bravado or taste for confrontation that Bush was known for as president." Rather, Robert A.M. Stern's design is handsome and contextual. Los Angeles Times 11/18/09

U.Cal. Berkeley Abandons Plans For New Art Museum "A shortage of funds has prompted UC Berkeley to abandon its plan to construct a new Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive downtown. The building, a distinctive and innovative design by Tokyo architect Toyo Ito estimated to cost $143 million, was to replace the museum's present, seismically endangered quarters on Bancroft Way, completed in 1970." San Francisco Chronicle 11/18/09

Preserving A Wonderland Of Medieval Architecture, Using Medieval Techniques The Old City in the Yemeni capital, San'a, "is one of the world's architectural gems, a thicket of unearthly medieval towers etched with white filigree and crowned with stained-glass windows. But more unusual than their mere survival is the fact that the traditional building arts continue to thrive here." New York Times 11/16/09

Survey: US Architects Got More New Contracts In October "It was the highest level of new business for the nation's architects since August 2008, a report from the American Institute of Architects says. 'This news could prove to be an early signal toward a recovery for the design and construction industry,' said Kermit Baker, the AIA's chief economist." Los Angeles Times 11/18/09

Conserving Robert Smithson's Masterpiece "Preservation concerns about 'Spiral Jetty' have arisen lately not only because of the work's re-emergence from the water but also because of plans announced in the last two and a half years by companies to initiate industrial projects near the site." The piece's owner, the Dia Art Foundation, is trying a tack involving weather balloons. The New York Times 11/18/09

Bankrupt Ritchies Auctioneers Has $8.5 Million In Debt "It seems likely most creditors, especially consignors whose possessions were sold but who have yet to receive payment from Ritchies, are going to come out of the proceedings empty-handed." It appears that "the money Ritchies collected from auction sales was not put in a separate trust account for consignors." The Globe and Mail (Canada) 11/17/09

Police: Ex-Winterthur Staffer Stole Lavishly Via Credit Card "A former Winterthur Museum employee voluntarily turned himself into Delaware State Police today after a theft investigation revealed he had spent more than $100,000 of the museum's money." The News Journal (Wilmington, Del.) 11/16/09

Faithful To Utzon's Vision, Sydney Opera House Is Updated "Great views of Sydney Harbour from inside a stylish new foyer, better disabled access and more toilets are just some of the improvements transforming Australia's busiest building. The western side of the Opera House now has a colonnade and windows." Australian Broadcasting Corporation 11/17/09

Do Antiquities Really Belong To Their Country Of Origin? "Scientists and curators have generally supported the laws passed in recent decades giving countries ownership of ancient 'cultural property' discovered within their borders. But these laws rest on a couple of highly debatable assumptions...." The New York Times 11/17/09

In Rome, Hadid's Maxxi Is Exhilarating (And Nearly Done) "There have been at least six changes of national government in Italy since the [museum] was first announced in 1998, from left to centre to right, and the future of many such public projects has often seemed doubtful. But now here it stands ... almost exactly as [Zaha] Hadid and her team first imagined it." The Guardian (UK) 11/16/09

LA-Area Cities Vie To Be Home Of Eli Broad's Museum Broad will "create a $200-million endowment that would generate $12 million a year to operate the privately run, nonprofit institution. The only bigger single cash donation to the arts in Southern California history would be J. Paul Getty's initial $700-million 1976 bequest to establish the J. Paul Getty Trust -- $2.65 billion in today's dollars." Los Angeles Times 11/16/09

New Museum's Joannou Show Will Be A Win For Audiences The sermonizing over the New Museum's upcoming show of a trustee's collection is a bit much, Jerry Saltz writes. "I like that the art world isn't regulated. I have seen [Dakis] Joannou's collection, and it is incredible. And despite the way it looks, I think in the end the whole deal is for the best--given the state of the art world." New York Magazine 11/15/09

A Wacky Public Access TV Art Show Revived On The Web "Because the Beatsters, as Paul H-O calls them, usually arrived unannounced, dealers sometimes kicked them out -- which made for great footage -- and those who didn't spent the evening on tenterhooks." The New York Times 11/15/09

Taking The Temp Of The Art Auction Market "While prices for the best works seemed high and bidding was often deep, the volume of sales -- nearly $600 million between the two companies -- was vastly diminished from a year ago, when Sotheby's and Christie's sold a combined $729 million or two years ago when the market peaked at $1.6 billion. But the relief that prices are crawling back up was palpable." The New York Times 11/16/09

Oxford's Ashmolean Museum Reopens With New Purpose "The latest and already much-feted makeover, which has cost £61m, was not prompted by any major crisis, but is as radical as any of its precursors. A sleek five-storey structure with 39 new galleries designed by the architect Rick Mather has been slotted with surgical precision behind Charles Cockerell's neoclassical temple of the arts, built in 1845 as a showcase for European sculpture and painting. It gives the museum a new heart and lungs." The Guardian (UK) 11/14/09

Damien Hirst Talks About Art Has he ever sold out? "I think I've got very close. There was a point I could have just churned out the spot and spin paintings for ever and laughed all the way to the bank." Was he taking the mick out of the art market? "No. You can take the piss out of art, but I don't think you can take the piss out of the art market. All markets are serious." The Guardian (UK) 11/14/09

Groundbreaking For The New Barnes Collection "Not everyone at the fenced-in future site of the Barnes, which has been in Lower Merion for more than 80 years, was pleased with the event. About 20 protesters stood on the Parkway and at the site entrance hoisting signs in opposition." Philadelphia Inquirer 11/15/09

Why Hasn't Tracey Emin Translated To America? "In London I'm in the papers every time I blow my nose, essentially. I'll be followed by paparazzi. I'm taught in the school curriculum in Britain. It's actually kind of nice when I come to New York and I don't have that recognized thing." The New York Times 11/15/09

Poland Becomes A Center For Contemporary Art "Poland's contemporary artists have put their country on the international art map. Once a must-see for tourists interested in the tragic aspects of Europe's past, Poland has now become an important destination for contemporary-art fans." The Wall Street Journal 11/14/09

LA's Museum Of Contemporary Art - Back From The Dead "This is the biggest turnaround of any art institution, whether it is performing arts or the visual arts, if you think of all that has happened in the last year," Eli Broad said Thursday. Yahoo! (Reuters) 11/13/09

Recession? Naw! Auction Market Races Forward "This week, those attending Christie's and Sotheby's evening sessions traditionally reserved for the most important works might have briefly thought that there never was a recession. No awareness of it appeared to linger in the bidders' minds as they ran up paintings, drawings and sundry three-dimensional works to three times the estimate, or more." The New York Times 11/13/09

A First For Tate Britain: A Female Director Penelope Curtis, 48, "the curator of the Henry Moore Institute in Leeds, takes the helm from Dr Stephen Deuchar who will leave the gallery in December after 11 years in the role. The Oxford modern history graduate is an established scholar and author with an interest in 20th-century British art." The Telegraph (UK) 11/12/09