The Venice Biennale‘s jury said on Thursday that it would not consider nations whose leaders have been charged with crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court—a move that effectively tosses Israel and Russia out of the running for the top honors at the world’s greatest art exhibition. - ARTnews
“Another day, another setback for Berlin‘s long awaited Berlin Modern, as moisture damage in the building’s shell and microbial contamination in other parts of the structure have forced the postponement of the museum to 2030. … The latest delay adds approximately eight months to the construction timeline for the Herzog & de Meuron-designed building.” - ARTnews
“The European Commission has informed the Biennale foundation of the (€2 million/$2.3 million) funding cut over three years, and the Biennale has 30 days to defend its decision to include Russia for the first time since its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.” - AP
V&A East’s boxy, beige facade, pierced by pointed shards of window, was concocted by Irish architects O’Donnell + Tuomey and has received mixed reviews. Its futuristic appeal does, however, help establish a distinct identity from that of the original V&A in west London—an ornate Victorian shrine to the history of design and the decorative arts. - Artnet
“The first phase — removing grout from the massive concrete sculpture and cataloging the pieces for future reassembly — will take at least a week, officials said. Starting in May, cranes will begin removing the (Vaillancourt Fountain’s) 10-ton cantilevered arms and hauling them away (from Embarcadero Plaza).” - San Francisco Chronicle (MSN)
A 28-year-old visitor caused thousands of euros in damage when she climbed the fountain of Neptune in the Piazza della Signoria because her friends dared her to touch the sea-god’s genitals. - The Guardian
In a startling and largely gratifying way, LACMA has done what the poet Audre Lorde, alluding to a different but not unrelated aspect of patriarchal dominance, deemed impossible: used the master’s tools to dismantle the master’s house. The change goes far beyond a remodel. It’s a reinvention, a recalibration, a revisionist fever dream. - Los Angeles Times
What’s really wrong with Trump’s arch isn’t something that is always wrong with victory arches but, rather, something that is always wrong with all the architecture of autocracy. - The New Yorker
“(The donor is) Mitchell Rales, the 69-year-old billionaire art collector and co-founder of health care company Danaher. The contribution is the largest programming-related donation in the NGA’s history and will serve to indefinitely fund the museum’s Across the Nation program, which loans artwork to partner museums.” - The Washington Post (Yahoo!)
Lynda Roscoe Hartigan, who begins her term after Labor Day and who is currently CEO of the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts, in fact began her career at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, where she spent two decades and eventually rose to become chief curator. - ARTnews
While the V&A complies with all legal minimum-wage requirements, with some workers paid a living wage or above, campaigners say some of the lowest-paid contractors in London are not in receipt of the living wage. The UK minimum wage is £12.71 an hour and the living wage in London is £14.80 an hour. - The Guardian
Using artificial intelligence, researchers analyzed The Baptism of Christ at the microscopic level, looking for trends in the texture of the paint at the resolution of a single paintbrush bristle. The results suggest El Greco painted the majority of The Baptism himself—but some experts caution more research is needed. - Scientific American
The exhibitions showcase both the traditional and the unexpected, from portraiture to multimedia installations, from founding documents to found objects. Across the country, the joy, sorrow and humor of the nation’s history are on display. - The New York Times
