| | Celebrated Brazilian Architect Oscar Niemeyer Turns 103, Opens Museum of His Work
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A man walks past a building designed by the Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer during the inauguration of his new foundation building in Niteroi, Brazil, Wednesday Dec. 15, 2010. AP Photo/Felipe Dana.
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP).- Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer is celebrating his 103rd birthday with the launch of a museum dedicated to his career. The Oscar Niemeyer Foundation outside Rio de Janeiro will house exhibits about the legendary architect's 70 years of work. Niemeyer is responsible for more than 600 modernist projects around the world. They include the sweeping concrete structures that house Brazil's government in the capital, Brasilia, and U.N. headquarters in New York. Niemeyer is still working and has won numerous awards, including the Pritzker Architecture Prize in 1988. His birthday was Wednesday. ... More |
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Sotheby's Sale of 20th Century British Art Establishes a New Auction World Record
Sir Stanley Spencer's Hilda and I at Pond Street (detail) sold for £1,430,050 ($2,249,612), far in excess of its pre-sale estimate of £400,000-600,000. Photo: Sotheby's.
LONDON.- The sale of 20th Century British Art at Sotheby’s in London established a new auction record for a work by Sir Stanley Spencer (in pounds – see note at foot of email), when his Hilda and I at Pond Street sold for £1,430,050 ($2,249,612), far in excess of its pre-sale estimate of £400,000-600,000. (The previous auction record for Spencer was £1,320,000 ($2,161,454) and this was achieved for his The Crucifixion, which sold at Sotheby’s in London in 1990.**) Hilda and I at Pond Street, from 1954, was arguably the finest work by the British artist to appear at auction in the last five years. It was offered for sale by The Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago , to benefit the Museum’s acquisition fund. Talking about the record-breaking price, James Rawlin, Senior Director in 20th Century British Art at Sotheby’s, said: “We’re absolutely delighted to see such an amazing response to Spe ... More | | After Nine Months of Tests, French Scientists Identify Head of France's King Henri IV
A reconstruction of the face France's King Henri IV is seen, AP Photo/Jean-Noel Vignal and Isabelle Huynh-Charlier.
By: Maria Cheng, AP Medical Writer
LONDON (AP).- After nine months of tests, researchers in France have identified the head of France's King Henry IV, who was assassinated in 1610 aged 57. The scientific tests helped identify the late monarch's embalmed head, which was shuffled between private collections ever since it disappeared during the French Revolution in 1793. The results of the research identifying Henry IV's head were published online Wednesday in the medical journal, BMJ. Henry IV was buried in the Basilica of Saint Denis near Paris, but during the frenzy of the French Revolution, the royal graves were dug up and revolutionaries chopped off Henry's head, which was then snatched. "This case was considered with the same (level of severity) as if it were a recent forensic case," said Philippe Charlier, a forensic ... More | | Restored Masterpiece on View in New Installation at Metropolitan Museum
Filippino Lippi, Madonna and Child, Ca. 1485. Tempera, oil, and gold on wood, 32 x 23 1/2 in. (81.3 x 59.7 cm) The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Jules Bache Collection, 1949 49.7.10.
NEW YORK, NY.- Filippino Lippi (1457-1504) is one of the great artists of 15th-century Florence. Among his principal patrons was the wealthy banker Filippo Strozzi (1428–1491), who in 1487 contracted the artist to decorate his funerary chapel in Santa Maria Novella with an outstanding cycle of frescoes. Around the same time, Strozzi also commissioned a Madonna and Child for his villa at Santuccio, west of the city. This work was acquired from the Duveen firm in 1928 by Jules Bache and was bequeathed to the Metropolitan Museum in 1949. In preparation for an exhibition on the artist that will be held in Rome next year, the picture was taken to conservation for examination this fall. A test cleaning revealed that beneath a thick, discolored varnish there was a beautifully preserved, richly colored painting. ... More |
 | Israel Museum and Museum in San Diego Jointly Purchase Ann Lislegaard Video Installation
Crystal World (After J.G. Ballard), 2006. 2 channel 3D animation, 2 leaning screens, black and white, silent, 12min. Purchase, Barbara and Eugene Schwartz Contemporary Art Acquisition Endowment Fund. Co-purchase with The Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego.
JERUSALEM.- The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, and the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego (MCASD) announced the joint acquisition of Ann Lislegaard’s Crystal World (after J.G. Ballard) (2006), a silent two-screen video installation from a trilogy of three-dimensional animations based on science fiction novels. Inspired by J.G. Ballard’s dystopian 1966 book The Crystal World, which tells of a landscape and its inhabitants slowly petrifying into crystal, the video installation depicts a surreal architectural landscape being overtaken by crystalline forms, and incorporates text from the novel. Like many of the artist’s works, Crystal World (after J.G. Ballard) investigates spatial perception and cognition and explores divergent ... More | | Robert A. M. Stern Named 2011 Driehaus Prize for Classical Architecture Laureate
Stern has built a reputation as a modern traditionalist architect.
NOTRE DAME, IN.- Robert A. M. Stern, whose influential designs have revitalized traditional architecture, has been named the 2011 recipient of the Richard H. Driehaus Prize for Classical Architecture. Stern will receive $200,000 and a model of the Choregic Monument of Lysikrates during a March 26 ceremony in Chicago. As Founder and Senior Partner of Robert A. M. Stern Architects, and as Dean of the Yale School of Architecture, Stern has built a reputation as a modern traditionalist architect. In his work as an architect, as a scholar, and as a teacher, he is dedicated to reconnecting the present and future with the past, building upon what went before to extend the trajectory of architecture. Stern's work as an architect is rooted in the principles, values, and ideals of classicism and traditional architecture. Comcast Center, a prismatic glass curtainwall office tower in Philadelphia carries forward the proportion ... More | | Currier Museum of Art Adds Major Contemporary Work by Glenn Ligon to Collection
Invisble Man (Two Views), Glenn Ligon, 1991, oil and gesso on canvas, in two parts, 28 x 20 inches each. Museum Purchase: Henry Melville Fuller Acquisition Fund, 2010. Courtesy Regen Projects, Los Angeles © Glenn Ligon.
MANCHESTER, NH.- The Currier Museum of Art unveiled its recent acquisition, Invisible Man (Two Views) by Glenn Ligon, an internationally acclaimed, New York-based artist represented in the collections of this country’s most respected institutions. Ligon (born in the Bronx, NY in 1960) is a prominent African American artist whose works are in New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Whitney Museum of American Art and Museum of Modern Art, as well as The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. His art has been exhibited before at the Currier in New York, New Work, Now! (2002) and Community of Creativity: A Century of MacDowell Colony Artists (1996.) The Whitney will present a retrospective exhibition of Ligon’s work this spring. Ligon uses a ... More |
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Stunning Watercolour of East Sussex Cottage by Helen Allingham to be Sold at Bonhams
Painted by the artist who illustrated Thomas Hardy’s Far From the Madding Crowd and the first woman admitted as a full member of the Royal Watercolour Society. Photo: Bonhams.
LONDON.- A beautiful painting by the Victorian watercolourist Helen Allingham entitled By the cottage gate, Mayfield, East Sussex is estimated to sell for £7,000-10,000 in Bonhams 19th Century Pictures auction on 27th January 2011. East Sussex was a county well known to Helen Allingham. Watercolours dating from the late 1870s show her children playing on the beach at Eastbourne or Beachy Head during the family's summer holidays. She painted the church at Etchingham, sketched in Robertsbridge and painted the countryside around Mayfield. This house, which she painted in the late 1890s, still stands today and has changed little over time. In 1867 Allingham entered the Royal Academy schools, and she provided the illustrations for Thomas Hardy’s Far From the Madding Crowd as well as other books. In 1874 she ... More | | Adam Szymczyk Named 2011 Recipient of the Walter Hopps Award for Curatorial Achievement
Adam Szymczyk is the director and chief curator of Kunsthalle Basel.
HOUSTON, TX- Menil Director Josef Helfenstein has announced the 2011 recipient of the Walter Hopps Award for Curatorial Achievement: Adam Szymczyk, director and chief curator of Kunsthalle Basel. Established in 2001 in honor of Menil Founding Director Walter Hopps (1932-2005), the award recognizes curators in early to mid-career who have made significant contributions to the field of contemporary art. The Walter Hopps Award for Curatorial Achievement carries a stipend of $15,000. A distinguished panel of three arts professionals made the selection: Iwona Blazwick, director of the Whitechapel Gallery in London; Donna De Salvo, chief curator, the Whitney Museum of American Art and former senior curator at Tate Modern, London; and Hamza Walker, director of education and associate curator for the Renaissance Society at the University of Chicago (and the 2005 recipient of th ... More | | A Group of Masterpieces from the Besselaar Collection are Sold for $2.8 Million
Andreas Schelfhout, Numerous skaters and a horse-sledge by a refreshment stall (detail), 96 by 145 cm., estimate €280,000 – 450,000. Photo: Sotheby's.
AMSTERDAM.- On Dec. 13th at Sotheby’s Amsterdam, during the sale of 19th Century European Paintings, a group of exceptional masterpieces from the Besselaar Collection, are sold for a total of €2.1 million/ £1.8 million/ $2.8 million, a figure within the pre-sale expectations of €1.4 million – 2.1 million. The star of the evening was Andreas Schelfhout’s, Winterscape with skaters, one of the finest paintings appeared on the market of the artist. Four clients on the phone and two in the room began to battle. In all, it took almost 5 minutes, when the widding bidder, a buyer from Europe bought the lot at €480,750/ $640,162, well in excess of pre-sale expectations of €280,000 – 450,000. Painted in 1857, Winterscape with skaters is without any doubt one of the artist’s masterpieces. The wonderfully detailed figures, some gathered around a refreshment stall, others ... More |
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Cantor Arts Center's Contemporary Gallery Features New Works and Old Favorites
Alice Neel, “The Arab,” 1976. Oil on canvas, 44x 32-1/2 inches. Museum purchase made possible by the Robert and Ruth Halperin Foundation, Cantor Arts Center at Stanford University, 2010.25
STANFORD, CA- The Cantor Arts Center at Stanford University announce a floor-to-ceiling reinstallation of its contemporary gallery with a new exhibition of art dating from the 1950s to the present. The Freidenrich Family Gallery's new look juxtaposes recent acquisitions with familiar pieces and artworks that have been off view, increases space for two-dimensional works, and places more sculpture throughout the gallery. “Extreme Makeover: A Fresh Look at the Cantor Art Center’s Contemporary Collection” opened today, December 15. “The Center’s contemporary California holdings are strong, and include an exceptional collection of works by Bay Area figurative and abstract expressionist sculptors and painters,” said Hilarie Faberman, curator of modern and contemporary art. “A number of new objects — such as sculptures by Manuel Neri, Jeremy Anderson, John Cederquist, and Alvin Light, and ... More | | Blue and White Porcelain Dragon Jar Sells for $7.66 Million at Bonhams & Butterfields
A blue and white porcelain meiping, Qianlong Mark, Late Qing/Republic Period, 14in (35.5cm) high. Est. $10,000-15,000. Courtesy of Bonhams & Butterfields.
SAN FRANCISCO, CA.- A blue and white porcelain Dragon jar sold for $7,658,000 in the Fine Asian Works of Art sale on Monday December 13th at Bonhams & Butterfields in San Francisco. The 360-lot sale brought more than $19 million with the vast majority of the lots fetching multiples of their estimates. The excitement in the standing-room-only saleroom was palpable, as determined bidders on the telephone and in the audience fought to win the much-coveted jar. Brooke Sivo, the sale's principal auctioneer and a 22-year veteran of the art world, expertly guided the bidding along until it culminated in the record price. There was much anticipation and deliberation over the Dragon jar. Following careful pre-sale research and consultation, the firm described the jar conservatively as Qianlong Mark, Late Qing/Republic Period and gave it a pre-sale estimate of $10,000-15,000 USD. Ultimately, two key bidders backed their own judgment an ... More | | Contemporary Works in Clay from Kansas City Collection Featured in Exhibition at The Nelson-Atkins
Akio Takamori, Japanese, b 1950. Kanzan from “The Laughing Monk” series, 2006. Stoneware with underglazes. Promised gift the the Lennie and Jerry Berkowitz collection in honor of the 75th anniversary of The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.
KANSAS CITY, MO- Contemporary works in clay from the outstanding collection of Lennie and Jerry Berkowitz are on view at The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in an exhibition that opened today, Dec. 15, in the Bloch Building. Collecting with Passion: Contemporary Ceramics from the Lennie and Jerry Berkowitz Collection features works of art by such noted American artists as studio potter Ken Ferguson and sculptor Akio Takamori. Each of the 17 works of art in the exhibition is among 24 that the Berkowitzes promised to the Museum in honor of the 75th Anniversary of the Nelson-Atkins. The couple has served as an inspiration for other Kansas City collectors. “This installation celebrates the generosity of Lennie and Jerry Berkowitz, and it illustrates their passion for collecting extraordinary contemporary ceramics,” said Catherine Futter, the ... More |
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Stephenson's to Welcome 2011 with Auction of Fine and Decorative Art; Superb Silver and Jewelry
SOUTHAMPTON, PA- Philadelphia-area estates, residences and private collectors were the sources contributing to the outstanding lineup of fine paintings, decorative art, silver and jewelry to be offered by Stephenson’s Auctioneers over the first weekend of 2011. The opening session on Saturday, Jan. 1 is laden with beautiful antique silver and jewelry. One of the premier lots is a 19th-century Russian enameled-silver inkwell by Pavel A. Ovchinnikov (estimate $10,000-$18,000). The marble-based inkwell is intricately beaded and enameled, and is topped by a realistically crafted three-dimensional silver bear with ruby eyes. “Its central subject is very appealing, and the craftsmanship is simply exceptional,” said Cindy Stephenson, auctioneer and owner of Stephenson’s Auction Co. “We ... More
Exhibition Marks Eric Zimmerman's First Solo Museum Show on View at the Austin Museum of Art
AUSTIN, TX.- The ongoing quarterly series, New Works, debuts art in diverse media with an emphasis on work by artists taking steps forward in new directions. The next installment, Eric Zimmerman’s painstakingly rendered graphite drawings, sculptures, texts, and sound installations, focuses on American history, exploration, and industry. Assistant Curator Andrea Mellard explains, “The Austin Museum of Art is thrilled to present Eric Zimmerman’s first solo museum project. Detailed drawings celebrate dreamers who tested man’s boundaries of speed, height and distance. Newspaper, a reading desk, and audio documentation symbolize the ways we learn about historical achievements that we didn’t experience firsthand. His conceptually rich, multi-media project is a reminder of when innovations, like man’s visit to the moon, were just the realm of imagination.” With painstaking detail, Zimmerman skillfully ... More
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art Announces Works in Wood
BENTONVILLE, ARK.- Two striking portraits in wood by female artists – one a rising star, the other an icon of the 1960s art scene – are the most recent works announced by Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. Room (2007-08) by Alison Elizabeth Taylor is a life-size architectural portrait created using the craft of marquetry, or inlaying sections of wood on a flat surface to form an image. Portrait of Martha Graham (1977) by Marisol, one of the few female artists to be associated with the Pop art movement, is a wood, plaster, oil and graphite rendering of the woman who pioneered modern dance in America. Both works are examples of female artists taking on art forms traditionally created by males. These two artists are a couple of generations apart, but they both work on a large scale, with strenuous techniques and materials: Marisol with her heavy, chopped woodworks and Alison Elizabeth Taylor with ... More
The Morris Announces Appointment of New Curator of Education
AUGUSTA, GA.- The Morris Museum of Art staff announce that Michelle Schulte has accepted the position as the Curator of Education. Schulte, the former associate curator of education at the Morris, is assuming the duties of David Tucker who retires on Wednesday, December 15, 2010. “All of us at the Morris Museum are saddened by the departure of David Tucker,” said Kevin Grogan, Director of the Morris Museum of Art, “but we feel completely confident that Michelle Schulte is the ideal person to fill his shoes. Her academic credentials and prior experience—she has been a classroom teacher and has worked in the education department at the Telfair Museum, for a time as its interim curator—and her complete familiarity with this museum, its collections, personnel, and volunteers really set her apart from the other applicants.” Schulte holds degrees in photography and art education from Armstrong Atlant ... More
Artist Sam Gilliam Creates Site-Specific Work for the Phillips Collection's 90th Anniversary
WASHINGTON, D.C.- In conjunction with The Phillips Collection’s 90th anniversary celebration in 2011, Washington-based, internationally recognized artist Sam Gilliam creates a site-specific work for the museum’s signature, elliptical staircase, on view Jan. 29–April 24, 2011. Gilliam, known for his innovation with unsupported canvas, plans to suspend and drape nylon panels along the east wall of the staircase, which he describes as “a beautiful, curved frame.” These large-scale, abstract panels refer to nature and at least one will have a cut-out, inviting viewers ascending and descending the stairs to engage with the surrounding area. For inspiration, Gilliam turned to paintings in the Phillips’s permanent collection, noting specifically Arthur Dove’s Flour Mill II (1938), which the artist remembers seeing early in his career. As with many of Gilliam’s other works, the piece ... More
Rare Desk Clock Steals the Show in Sotheby's Sale of Watches
LONDON.- The sale of Fine Watches at Sotheby’s saw a rare gold & enamel ball-shaped Desk Clock by Cartier sell for £79,250 ($124,668) - some ten times its pre-sale estimate. Continuing a pattern that has been a feature of many recent sales at Sotheby’s, strong prices for pocketwatches were again a feature of today’s sale. Joanne Lewis, Head of Watches at Sotheby’s London , said: “We saw some exceptionally strong prices today for exactly the types of watch we have seen consistently performing well in our auctions over the last 24 months or so. The fantastic price for the Cartier desk clock, which made some ten times its pre-sale estimate, is further evidence of the strong demand we’re seeing now for desk clocks, especially for those of the highest quality. Pocket watches also performed well, attracting interest from around the world, and good wristwatches by leading names continue, as ever, to hol ... More
Heritage Announces "The Savannah Collection" of More than 40,000 Comics Valued at $1 Million to be Auctioned
DALLAS, TX.- Heritage Auctions has announced that a newly discovered collection of more than 40,000 comic books, “The Savannah Collection,” spanning from 1958 to the present and valued in total at more than $1 million, will be sold by the firm beginning Feb. 24, 2011. The collection has already been recognized as a pedigree collection by the certification service CGC, one of few collections from this era to receive that designation. The comics are being put up for auction by Shelton Drum, proprietor of the Charlotte, NC comic store Heroes Aren’t Hard to Find, and a comic seller for three and a half decades. Drum purchased the comics from the original collector, a Savannah, GA resident who was middle-aged in the late 1950s when he began collecting in earnest, but continued purchasing every comic he could for the following 50 years. “I was amazed by the consistent quality of the comics from 1959 and up,” Drum ... More
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