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I'm back from the press conference at the Metropolitan Museum (more later), where, as soon as I arrived, I first had to do a live phone interview on New York Public Radio, along with the NY Times' indispensable art critic, Roberta Smith. We were, of course, assessing the Met's Tom Campbell appointment, which I had already spoken about (solo) earlier today with WNYC's Richard … [Read more...] about More Campbell Commentary: Roberta Smith and Me on WNYC’s Brian Lehrer Show

You can hear me now. Click arrow on the left. Some of you have already heard my radio analysis of the new appointment at the Metropolitan Museum. The rest of you will have a second chance at about 8:41 and/or 9:41 a.m., if all goes according to plan: You can hear me at 93.9 FM, 820 AM (if you're in the NYC metropolitan area), or live on the web here (click the red-boxed arrow … [Read more...] about My Tom Campbell Appraisal on New York Public Radio UPDATED

The Metropolitan Museum earlier today: Always a work in progress.If all goes according to plan, I'll be commenting on Thomas Campbell's appointment as the Metropolitan Museum's new director on WNYC's The Takeaway tomorrow at about 6:42 a.m. (But I wouldn't count on such precision!)If you're in the NYC metropolitan area, you can hear me on 93.9 FM, and in Des Moines you can hear … [Read more...] about Coming Tomorrow: My New York Public Radio Commentary on the Met’s New Director

Tom Campbell, the Met's Director DesignateI love the fact that Tom Campbell, named today to be the Metropolitan Museum's ninth director, is a respected scholar who specialized an arcane field, tapestries, presented them in an erudite manner, and created exhibitions that became blockbusters for all the right reasons.But I worry about his lack of managerial and financial creds. … [Read more...] about My First Take on the Met’s Director-Elect: Ready to Lead?

Thomas Campbell[NOTE: Subsequent CultureGrrl coverage of Campbell's appointment is here and here,]The press release just hit my inbox, so read it along with me, won't you? The Metropolitan Museum of Art announced today that Thomas P. Campbell - an accomplished curator with a specialty in European tapestry who has worked at the Museum since 1995 - has been elected its next … [Read more...] about Metropolitan Museum Director Named: Thomas Campbell

Crystal Bridges Museum-in-Progress: The concrete is poured.Tennessee Attorney General Robert Cooper yesterday filed a brief in the appeals case brought by Fisk University in the Tennessee Court of Appeals. The school is still seeking legal permission to sell a half-share of its Stieglitz Collection to Alice Walton's Crystal Bridges Museum, now under construction (above) in … [Read more...] about Tennessee’s Brief Calls Fisk’s Proposed Art Sale to Crystal Bridges “Problematic” UPDATED

Philippe's "private" delectation: Metropolitan Museum's full-page NY Times adI did two double takes while perusing yesterday's The New Season section of the NY Times: One was caused by the full-page ad (above) taken out by the Metropolitan Museum to honor Philippe de Montebello and to trumpet the upcoming exhibition of works acquired under his watch.Do we really want to plant … [Read more...] about Don’t Drop That Duccio! Shocks of “The New Season”

Edward Hicks, "The Peaceable Kingdom with the Leopard of Serenity," 1846-48, from Ralph Esmerian's collection Photo: Sotheby's The Wall Street Journal's new lifestyles magazine, WSJ, which debuted Saturday, had already gone to press when news broke that the record auction price for American folk art---$9.67 million for an 1846-48 version (above) of Edward Hicks' "The … [Read more...] about WSJ Magazine’s Hicks Hiccup: Piece Features an Auction “Record” That Wasn’t UPDATED

In case you'd like to hear some of the outtakes from my brief remarks aired Thursday on WNYC about Ann Temkin's promotion at the Museum of Modern Art (and also my unaired comments about Richard Armstrong's expected appointment as next director of the Guggenheim), the radio station has posted two audio segments from my commentary on its culture blog, here. … [Read more...] about More of My WNYC Commentary on Museum Musical Chairs

Oops, he did it again.In May I reported that Francesco Rutelli's penchant for repatriation through the press, rather than through quiet diplomacy, had survived his terminated tenure as Italy's culture minister: He had, at that time, told the credulous Associated Press that Italy had reached a verbal agreement with the Cleveland Museum for the return of objects, which the … [Read more...] about Rutelli in LA: “The Great Repatriator” or “The Great Prevaricator”?

Okay, enough with health care, the housing crisis, the economy and Iraq. Let's focus on what really matters:I've already posted about Barack Obama's arts policy, and in the interests of equal time, I've been scouring the web, trying during this Republican National Convention week to find John McCain's cultural stance. On this, the celebrated POW appears to be MIA.I couldn't … [Read more...] about Desperately Seeking John McCain’s Arts Policy

Is this any way to treat the Wall Street Journal?Above is an ad for WSJ, the new "lifestyle magazine" being rolled out with this Saturday's edition of the newspaper for which I write frequently. Included will be an article on "the folk art revival." Didn't that happen with the Garbisch sale of 1974?Although you can't tell from the above picture, Obama figures twice in the … [Read more...] about New Wall Street Journal Magazine: Art and Fashion Included UPDATED

Ann TemkinYesterday's chosen sound bite on WNYC focused on my mild misgivings about Ann Temkin's appointment at the Museum of Modern Art. So I feel it's worth reiterating what I posted on this blog, before I spoke on the radio: I think she's a solid choice, with a creditable track record of acquisitions and exhibitions. What's more, I think there's a good chance that she'll … [Read more...] about More on New York’s Musical Museum Chairs: Temkin and Armstrong

Some time after 4 p.m. today, you can hear my brief comments on on WNYC's "All Things Considered" about the news of Ann Temkin's and Richard Armstrong's appointments at the Museum of Modern Art and the Guggenheim Museum, respectively. Before the taping, I contacted the Guggenheim for an update on the status of Armstrong's expected designation as director of both the … [Read more...] about My NY Public Radio Commentary on the MoMA/Guggenheim Appointments UPDATED

The Krensmobile, parked outside the Guggenheim's staff entranceWhat's the single laudatory word most often used to describe Tom Krens, whose successor as director of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation is expected to be Richard Armstrong, the director of Pittsburgh's Carnegie Museum of Art?VISIONARY.Wait a minute! That's the same word used to describe Armstrong in the first … [Read more...] about Guggenheim Candidate Richard Armstrong and the “V” Word