Archives for 2010

Michael Conforti, director of the Clark Art Institute, will be scurrying to Indianapolis from this Sunday's Picasso Looks at Degas preview party at his Williamstown, MA, museum, to turn over the presidency of the Association of Art Museum Directors to the Minneapolis Institute's Kaywin Feldman at AAMD's annual meeting, June 6-9.Will Feldman eye Conforti in the same way that … [Read more...] about AAMD Meeting: My Suggested Agenda CORRECTED and UPDATED

When I was at the Museum of Modern Art on Wednesday, I came upon this tribute to sculptor Louise Bourgeois, 98, who died on Monday---an installation of these ghostly sentinels at an entrance to the 4th-floor permanent-collection galleries:Louise Bourgeois, "Quarantania, I," 1947-53, reassembled by the artist in 1981In addition to the usual object label, there was this one:By … [Read more...] about Louise Bourgeois: MoMA’s Instant Memorial

Alex Nyerges, director, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts"There are two things that I need by the opening," Alex Nyerges, director of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, impatiently told the contractors whose work on outdoor amenities, related to the museum's Rick Mather-designed expansion, wasn't proceeding fast enough to suit him. "I need blue [the reflecting pool] and I need green … [Read more...] about More on the Virginia MFA: Last-Minute Frenzy, First-Rate Displays

Jeffrey Deitch, center, at the LA MOCA press conference announcing his appointment, with (left to right) museum co-chairs David Johnson and Maria Bell; LA Councilwoman Jan Perry; MOCA's founding chairman, Eli BroadLA Times art critic Christopher Knight offers some practical advice for NYC dealer-turned-director Jeffrey Deitch, as he takes the helm at LA MOCA today: Change the … [Read more...] about Deitch Assumes Directorship: What He Needs to Do at LA MOCA

You can read today's Wall Street Journal "Leisure & Arts" piece now---Virginia is For Art Lovers, about the well articulated Rick Mather-designed expansion of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. The photo accompanying the piece, also published on the VMFA's website, makes the atrium appear more barren than it feels when in use:Just add people (and more sculpture, soon to be … [Read more...] about Online Now: My WSJ Piece on the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts’ Expansion

Rick Mather, architect for the latest VMFA expansionAn under-the-radar museum gets an under-the-radar expansion by an under-the-radar architect. Considering the size, scope and importance of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts' collection, it generally receives surprisingly little attention from the media outside of Virginia. And considering the architectural importance of its … [Read more...] about MeTube: My Upcoming WSJ Review of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts’ Expansion

Agnes Gund, Museum of Modern Art's president emerita, as seen among the posted mug shots of Marina Abramović's visitorsPhotograph: Marco AnelliIf, unlike me, you want to endure a long wait in line in the Museum of Modern Art's atrium for the chance to sit opposite Marina Abramović, you'll have to do it today. The performance priestess' self-imposed penance, which began on Mar. … [Read more...] about Last Day with Marina at MoMA: The 15-Minute Limit UPDATED

Actor Dennis Hopper, best known for his 1969 "Easy Rider" film role, has died of prostate cancer at the age of 74. His less known visual arts work is the subject of the first show to be brought to LA MOCA by dealer Jeffrey Deitch, the museum's incoming director: Dennis Hopper Double Standard, July 11-Sept. 26.Coincidentally, today is the last day of the last show, Shepard … [Read more...] about LA MOCA’s Dennis Hopper Retrospective Becomes a Memorial Show

Cover of catalogue for Rose Art Museum's "permanent" collection In a detailed, thoroughly reported story for today's Boston Globe, Geoff Edgers' dropped this pre-holiday weekend bombshell: Brandeis to Loan Art to Boost Budget. In his account, Edgers repeatedly uses the "loan" euphemism, but what's really contemplated is renting the Rose Art Museum's collection for big … [Read more...] about Rent-a-Rose: Sotheby’s Persuades Brandeis to Lend Collection for Profit

The first Johns "Flag," 1954-55, collection of the Museum of Modern Art© 2010 Jasper Johns / Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY When we last discussed the Michael Crichton sale at Christie's, we had the NY Times' Carol Vogel fingering Bryn Mawr dealer Richard Rossello as the buyer of the record-breaking $28.6-million Jasper Johns "Flag" (not the one shown above) and everybody else … [Read more...] about My Q&A with Richard Rossello: Will the Real Johns “Flag” Buyer Please Salute?

Renzo Piano's back-of-a-placecard drawing of his plan for the expansion (left) of the Louis Kahn-designed Kimbell Art Museum (right)Just a day after the Whitney Museum's board green lighted its planned new Renzo Piano-designed facility in New York's Meatpacking District, the Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, has released details of its final design for its own Renzo Piano … [Read more...] about Renzo Piano Week: Details of Kimbell Addition Announced (day after Whitney’s green light)

Cross-section of Downtown Whitney, as presented in July 2008 to New York's City Planning CommissionIn a press release that just hit my inbox but is not up on the Whitney Museum's website at this writing [UPDATE: now it is], the museum announced that its board today agreed to break ground next May for the Renzo Piano-designed Downtown Whitney. The press release also detailed the … [Read more...] about Whitney Groundbreaking Plans Announced; Talks with Met on Breuer Building Disclosed UPDATED

With all the talk of future paywalls to view online articles from newspapers, bloggers are worried that many of the free links they provide to readers may be doomed to extinction.Peter Kafka of All Things Digital, part of the Wall Street Journal Digital Network, writes:Will the paywall the New York Times is building scare away the paper's natural allies---bloggers who like to … [Read more...] about NY Times Paywall: Some Good News for Bloggers!

The Critic Sees(Image from Mayo Clinic website)Can CultureGrrl be sweet?In gratitude and relief that my cataract surgery went well (or so I think---bandage comes off tomorrow), I'm dropping my usually truculent persona to applaud a few recent developments.I'm still recovering from the disconcerting experience of being completely conscious for the entire procedure, hearing words … [Read more...] about Feeling Sugary, Post-Surgery: A Paean to Good Ideas

Honoree Philippe de Montebello, speaking last night at the National Arts ClubI was on hand yesterday for the dinner honoring Philippe de Montebello at the National Arts Club in New York, where two of the originally announced speakers---Marc Porter, chairman of Christie's Americas, and Neil Shapiro, president of WNET/Thirteen (New York Public Television, where Philippe has a … [Read more...] about MeTube: Bionic Philippe on How Titanium Knees Influenced Departure from the Met