Archives for 2010

Artist-turned-curator Jeff Koons in his studio recently With more details having emerged about the New Museum's upcoming Jeff Koons-curated show of Dakis Joannou's collection, Mar. 3-June 6, including a list of artists (scroll down), it seemed to be time for me to re-send my question that had gone unanswered by the museum's press office, despite my repeated attempts to … [Read more...] about Dakis Fracas, Continued: The Artists, the Funders and the AAMD President’s Statement UPDATED

The 1999 Abrams catalogue for a traveling exhibition of Polaroid's photography collection Cover image: detail from Silvia Taccani's "Composite #115"The Polaroid Corporation's decades-old Artist Support Program (through which it bartered equipment for a collection of photographs by distinguished artists) has now become a Creditor Support Program.In her e-mail accompanying the … [Read more...] about Polaroid Collection Dispersal: From Museum Exhibition to Presale Exhibition

Morrison Heckscher, chairman of the Metropolitan Museum's American Wing, in the refurbished Engelhard Court last May (prior to the public opening) Following up on my President's Day post, where we tracked down the Metropolitan Museum's George Washington-in-exile, here's my very belated take on the museum's refurbished Engelhard Court and period rooms in the American … [Read more...] about Met’s American Wing: Brilliant Period Rooms, Kitschy Sculpture Court, Truth-in-Advertising Alert

During my visit to the Metropolitan Museum late last week, to catch up on some exhibitions that I'd missed (including the glorious Bronzino show---another attribution exhibition but so much more!), I encountered this reminder of "Met Holiday Mondays," beside the $20-suggested-admissions-fee cash register:"The Met is Open on Presidents Day"Wait a minute! I thought that George … [Read more...] about MeTube: Whither George Washington? President-in-Exile Racked at the Met

Picasso, "Self-Portrait with Palette," 1906, Philadelphia Museum of Art© Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New YorkIn her rundown last month of upcoming museum exhibitions of note, the Wall Street Journal's Candace Jackson highlighted the Metropolitan Museum's big spring show (which I later referred to in my own WSJ piece) of some 150 Picassos from its own … [Read more...] about Picasso Glut and the Met’s (very blue) Blue Period Lovemaking

"Victorious Youth," Greek, 300 - 100 B.C., J. Paul Getty Museum''Today marks the end of the sacking of our archaeological treasures,'' former Italian Culture Minister Francesco Rutelli exulted after today's ruling by an Italian appeals court that ordered the immediate seizure and return to Italy of the Getty Bronze.Not so fast.Here, in full, is the statement that just hit my … [Read more...] about Getty Bronze Ruling: Museum to Appeal Italian Court’s Order for Immediate Return

Christie's New YorkBear with me art-lings. It's CultureGrrl number-crunching time!Christie's has had a penchant for what we can euphemistically describe as "creative accounting" in reporting its year-end sale totals. Apparently, my past critiques of that auction house's self-serving statistical shenanigans (here and here) didn't make much of an impression. So fire up your … [Read more...] about Apples-to-Oranges: Christie’s Purported 56.4% Auction Market Share

Marc Wilson, director of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, in his office in the museum's Steven Holl-designed additionThe Nelson-Atkins Museum's recent announcement of 75 donors' gifts of 400 artworks in honor of the Kansas City museum's 75th anniversary and its soon-to-retire director, Marc Wilson, makes this a good moment for me to publish excerpts from my conversation with … [Read more...] about My Q&A with Marc Wilson of the Nelson-Atkins: “Getting Back to the Core”

University of Iowa Museum of Art's "Mural," 1943, by Jackson Pollock, as installed at the Figge Art Museum, Davenport, IAThe "Envisioning Committee," appointed last year by the University of Iowa's president, Sally Mason, to brainstorm about a new facility to replace its flood-ruined art museum, has just issued its final report, which calls for a new, bigger facility to be … [Read more...] about Flood Toll: Rebuilding the University of Iowa Museum of Art

My e-mail inbox tells me that getting your exhibitions (or other art-related announcements) on CultureGrrl is the goal of many readers. But few of you will make it to the end zone: Although I'm swarmed by by galleries seeking publicity, you should know (if you read me) that I cover almost no gallery exhibitions and I generally review museum shows only if I deem them highly … [Read more...] about Onside Kick: A Winning Strategy in the CultureGrrl Playbook UPDATE

Chuck Close, Self-Portrait, 1997, Museum of Modern Art© 2010 Chuck Close I don't have a link to this yet, but the list of President Obama's six new nominees to the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities (PCAH) just hit my inbox. The visual-arts notable is artist Chuck Close, who served from 2000 to 2008 as the artist-member of the Whitney Museum's board of … [Read more...] about Chuck Close, Five Others, Nominated for President’s Committee on Arts and Humanities

Rendering of Frank Gehry's planned Abu Dhabi golf clubhouseA 19th hole by Frank Gehry?Apparently the architect is having such a good time on Saadiyat Island, where his Guggenheim Abu Dhabi is to supposed to open in late 2013, that he's accepted another commission there.The Abu Dhabi-based The National reports that the golf clubhouse Gehry is designing will "put a postmodern … [Read more...] about Gehry Golf Clubhouse Planned for Abu Dhabi’s Saadiyat Island

Michael Brand, ex-director of the J. Paul Getty MuseumMichael Brand has now left the building and the Getty Museum is beset by yet another period of administrative instability. There has been no official explanation of why Brand threw in the towel, creating an informational vacuum inadequately filled by Jason Felch's analysis of the contretemps in the LA Times (which was … [Read more...] about Getty-Brand Face-Off: Ex-Director Gives Me His Side of the Story

The $104.3-million man: Giacometti, "L'Homme Qui Marche I," 1960 (cast in 1961) If you're looking for a symbol of a more robust art market, this emaciated six-footer could be it. At today's Impressionist/modern auction at Sotheby's London, Giacometti's "L'Homme Qui Marche I," estimated to bring a "mere" £12-18 million ($19.33-28.99 million) sold for what the auction house … [Read more...] about Is Sotheby’s $104.32-Million Giacometti the “Most Expensive Art Work Ever Sold at Auction”?

It's an exercise in painting-by-numbers. (Scroll down to the video to see.)The New York studio of Jeff Koons was abuzz last night with such artworld luminaries as Richard Armstrong, Adam Weinberg, Lisa Dennison, Agnes Gund, Lowery Sims, Richard Meier and, of course, CultureGrrl, ogling his paintings-in-progress, which were executed by underlings while the artist himself mingled … [Read more...] about MeTube: Jeff Koons Paints a Picture (or doesn’t)