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Artnet’s “The Worst Art We Saw In 2025”

By no means is all of this bad art actually from 2025, though a fair bit of it is. In fact, one choice (this writer’s personal favorite) has been on display in Philadelphia for more than a century, and it just keeps on looking god-awful. - Artnet

Twelve Stories That Defined 2025 For Museums

In the U.S., a tense political climate and moves by the Trump administration to exert more control over the country’s cultural institutions is creating new challenges for museums, both financially and ideologically. - Artnet

2025’s Big Art World Controversies

The (let’s say) unfortunate ways in which the Louvre’s inadequate security and deteriorating physical plant were revealed, a major gallery abruptly shutting down, two different arguments involving Vincent van Gogh, dissension among the heirs of one of Europe’s great art mystics, and, as usual, the Parthenon Marbles. - Artnet

Was The Bayeux Tapestry Meant To Be Lunchtime Reading For Monks?

That’s the theory proposed by historian Benjamin Pohl. It’s fairly certain that the tapestry was conceived and designed by the monks of St. Augustine’s Abbey in Canterbury and stitched by skilled embroiderers nearby; Pohl argues that the 230-foot work was intended for, and first hung in, that abbey’s refectory. - Artnet

2026’s Most-Anticipated Museum Openings

Will the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi finally open its doors after all this time? That remains to be seen, but there’s certainly a chance! Here’s what you can look forward to in the coming months: - The Observer

The Louvre Is Astonishingly Popular. It’s Facing Collapse From All Sides

Over time, this popularity has become both a blessing and a terrible burden, and daring jewel heists are only the most eye-catching of the museum’s problems: it is bursting at the seams, at times literally. - The Guardian

How Architecture Shapes/Frames Politics

While it’s easy to see buildings and public spaces as somewhat neutral or superficial, it’s not. Like the frame of a painting, it frames the spaces in which politics takes place, both literally and symbolically. - The Conversation

How The Trump Administration Is (Mis)Appropriating Norman Rockwell

“They used . . . as though his work aligned with their values, i.e., promoting this segregationist vision of America. And so of course we were upset by this, because Norman Rockwell was really very clearly anti-segregationist.” - The Bulwark

UK Taxpayers To Insure Bayeux Tapestry For $1 Billion While It’s At British Museum

The UK Treasury is guaranteeing around £800 million to insure the 230-foot-long tapestry against damage or loss during its journey to and from its home museum in France to the UK. No money will be paid in advance, however; the £800 million comes into play only if something goes wrong. - ARTnews

A Biennale That Wants To Make The World A Better Place

There are more than 1,200 works by 125 artists and collectives in the exhibit, titled “Not All Travelers Walk Roads,” with many of them proposing ways of creating new, kinder, more just forms of existence. - The New York Times

Kyiv’s Rebuilders Try To Retain Architectural Heritage In The Midst Of War

“A group of activists have been attempting to preserve the city’s crumbling mansions, built in a playful style known as Ukrainian modernism.” - The Guardian (UK)

Apparently, One Can Insure The Bayeux Tapestry

Does £800 million seem like enough? Hm. - The Guardian (UK)

The ‘Craftivists’ Using Fiber Arts To Fight Back Against The Current US Regime

“For some fiber artists, craft is inherently political. ‘Creating in a time of destruction and chaos, that is resistance in and of itself,’ said Downey. … But she thinks one of the other successes of craftivism is that “‘it centers joy’” - The Guardian (UK)

The London Eye’s Architect Has Designed A Renewable Energy AI Source

The tidal power station "would curve from Minehead to Watchet and use 125 underwater turbines to harness the power of the second-highest tidal range in the world” - and also become a race track for cyclists. - The Guardian (UK)

Designing A Mostly Happy, Hippie Sci-Fi Apolcalypse

For instance, in Pluribus, “the music was designed to explore the tension between the pain of individuality and the comfort of surrender.” - Fast Company

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