| | Italian Officials Unveil a Massive Statue Believed to Be of Roman Emperor Caligula
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Guardia di Finanza police officers inspect a statue believed to be that of Roman emperor Caligula in Nemi, north of Rome. Officials unveiled a massive statue believed to be that of Roman emperor Caligula sitting on a throne and said it came from an illegal dig south of Rome that may have been the site of one of his palaces. REUTERS/Guardia di Finanza.
ROME (REUTERS).- Officials on Tuesday unveiled a massive statue believed to be that of Roman emperor Caligula sitting on a throne and said it came from an illegal dig south of Rome that may have been the site of one of his palaces. The statue, which had been broken in several large pieces and a head, was first found last January when Finance Police stopped it from being smuggled out of the country by boat at a port near Rome. The operation led to the arrest of two so-called "tomb raiders" -- those who dig up the countryside looking for archaeological treasures to sell on the black market. But more importantly, the arrests led police to the site near Lake Nemi, just south of Rome, where Caligula was believed to have had one of his imperial residences. The statue, now cleaned of the earth that had covered it for 2,000 years, shows parts of a robed man sitting on an elaborate throne like the Greek god Zeus. Significantly, it shows a man wearing a "caliga," shoes worn by Roman legio ... More |
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Chinese Contemporary Warriors Stand in Formation at the Milwaukee Art Museum
Yue Minjun, Contemporary Chinese Warriors, 2006.
MILWAUKEE, WIS.- The Milwaukee Art Museum presents the installation Chinese Contemporary Warriors by world-renowned contemporary artist Yue Minjun, in conjunction with its Summer of CHINA series of exhibitions. This latest addition to the ambitious CHINA lineup will be on view through December 2011. “The work of Yue Minjun invites exploration into the relationship between contemporary art and current issues in modern Chinese society,” said Brady Roberts, chief curator of the Milwaukee Art Museum. “Yue provides another perspective to what currently comprises the Summer of CHINA experience.” Yue Minjun, a leading contemporary artist based in Beijing, China, is best known for his self-portrait paintings. Yue casts himself in a variety of large-scale compositions, and always with a grotesquely wide-mouthed, laughing face. Referencing the utopian propaganda of earlier Chinese Social realist paintings, his work creates ... More | | Smithsonian Astronomer Finds Evolved Stars Locked in Fatalistic Dance
The discovery team has been hunting for pairs of white dwarfs using the MMT telescope at the Whipple Observatory on Mt. Hopkins, Arizona.
WASHINGTON, DC.- White dwarfs are the burned-out cores of stars like our Sun. Astronomers have discovered a pair of white dwarfs spiraling into one another at breakneck speeds. Today, these white dwarfs are so near they make a complete orbit in just 13 minutes, but they are gradually slipping closer together. About 900,000 years from now - a blink of an eye in astronomical time - they will merge and possibly explode as a supernova. By watching the stars converge, scientists will test both Einstein's general theory of relativity and the origin of some peculiar supernovae. The two white dwarfs are circling at a bracing speed of 370 miles per second (600 km/s), or 180 times faster than the fastest jet on Earth. "I nearly fell out of my chair at the telescope when I saw one star change its speed by a staggering ... More | | Marc Pachter to Serve as Acting Director of National Museum of American History
Marc Pachter former Director of the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery. AP Photo/Neemah Aaron.
WASHINGTON, DC.- Marc Pachter, former director of the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery, has been appointed Acting Director of the National Museum of American History, effective Aug. 15. He will replace Brent D. Glass, who announced that he was leaving the directorship in August and retiring from Smithsonian at the end of the year. Pachter was with the Portrait Gallery for 33 years, beginning as a chief historian in 1974 and serving as director from 2000 until his retirement in 2007. He held a number of positions at the Gallery and at the Smithsonian when he served as chair of the Institution’s 150th anniversary celebration in 1996 and as a deputy assistant secretary for external affairs. Pachter retired in October 2007, one year after the National Portrait Gallery and the Smithsonian American Art Museum, which share the same historic building ... More |
Thai Authorities Find Smuggled Methamphetamine Shaped as Handicraft Art
Iranian Safi Zadeh Hossein, 28, covers his face as a custom official displays two pieces of methaphetamine. AP Photo/Apichart Weerawong.
BANGKOK (AP).- Thai authorities have arrested an Iranian man who allegedly tried to smuggle more than 50 million baht ($1.6 million) worth of crystal methamphetamine into the country disguised as handicraft art. The Customs Department said 28-year-old Safi Zadeh Hossein was carrying two plaque-shaped sculptures when he was arrested Tuesday on arrival at Suvarnabhumi International Airport from Damascus, Syria. Customs officials demonstrated to reporters Wednesday how the sculptures were pressed and molded from the illegal stimulant. One 22-pound (10-kilogram) object was the image of a yellow rose, while another 11-pound (5-kilo) piece looked like a framed cameo. Official Vorapat Jaovisidha says it's the first time his agency had seen this method. ... More | | Outspoken Artist Ai Weiwei's Design Firm Granted Hearing with Chinese Tax Agency
Chinese women with their bicycles stop outside the home of activist artist Ai Weiwei in Beijing. AP Photo/Ng Han Guan.
By: Gillian Wong, Associated Press
BEIJING (AP).- Outspoken Chinese artist Ai Weiwei's design firm will use a closed hearing Thursday to challenge a $1.85 million tax bill delivered by authorities after the dissident was released from nearly three months' detention. The prominent government critic was the most high-profile target of a sweeping crackdown on activists this year and his detention sparked international outcry, with some countries saying it was a sign that the human rights situation in China was deteriorating. Tax officials visited Ai's studio late last month to say his design company Beijing Fake Cultural Development Ltd. owed $770,000 in back taxes from the last decade and $1.1 million in fines. Company lawyer ... More | | Israeli Government Gives Go-Ahead to Museum of Tolerance Opposed by Muslims
A Muslim cemetery is seen, near the construction site of a museum dedicated to tolerance and coexistence, in downtown Jerusalem. AP Photo/Dan Balilty.
By: Amy Teibel, Associated Press
JERUSALEM (AP).- The Israeli government has approved a Jewish group's plan to build a museum over a centuries-old Muslim graveyard in Jerusalem, an official confirmed Wednesday, in the final go-ahead for a project delayed for years by Muslim opposition. The bitter wrangle over construction of the Museum of Tolerance reflects the explosive potential of religion-based disputes in Jerusalem, where Jews and Muslims often play down the other side's historical ties to the city. The museum, which is meant to promote coexistence, is a project of a U.S.-based Jewish group, the Simon Wiesenthal Center. Israel's Interior Ministry granted a building permit on Tuesday and construction can begin ... More |
Online Community Participates in Brooklyn Museum's Latest Exhibition "Split Second"
Unknown Indian Artist, Led by Songhur Balkhi and Lulu the Spy, the Ayyars Slit the Throats of Prison Guards and Free Sa'id Farrukh-Nizhad. Folio from the Qissa-I Amir Hamza place made: India, 1557-1572. Akbar Period. Opaque watercolor and gold on cotton cloth. Overall: 30 7/8 x 24 1/2in. Museum Collection Fund.
BROOKLYN, NY.- Split Second invited the Brooklyn Museum’s online community to participate in a project that resulted in a small installation of Indian paintings from the Museum’s permanent collection. Taking its inspiration from the critically acclaimed book Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking, by Malcolm Gladwell, this online experiment and resulting installation explores how our initial reaction to a work of art is affected by what we know, what we’re asked, and what we’re told about the object in question. Split Second begins with a three-part activity that explores the Museum’s collection of Indian paintings; participation is open to anyone with an Internet connection. The first stage explores split-second reactions: in a timed trial, participants ... More | | Custom Billy Haines Furnishings from the Brody Collection to Highlight Christie's Interiors Sale
A velvet upholstered and stained walnut hostess chairs, by William (Billy) Haines, circa 1950. 29¾in. high, 25in. wide, 24in. deep. Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2011.
NEW YORK, NY.- Christie’s announces a highlight of its upcoming Interiors sale on July 18, 19 and 20 is an extraordinary selection of original custom furnishings and decorative arts from the Collection of Mrs. Sidney F. Brody, the late Los Angeles-based art collector and philanthropist. The Brodys celebrated collection of modern art made headlines in 2010 when it sold at Christie’s New York for a record-breaking $227 million, led by Pablo Picasso’s 1932 masterpiece Nude, Green Leaves, and Bust. The upcoming sale will feature an expansive collection of custom furniture, lighting, accessories and decorative arts from the Brody residence in the Holmby Hills area of Los Angeles, including one of the largest selections of items designed by the legendary Hollywood designer William “Billy” Haines. Over 100 items from the Brody collection will be featured in this special three-day Interiors sale, which is ex ... More | | Alexander Calder's Horizontal Permanently Installed in Front of Centre Pompidou
The 8-meter sculpture had been in storage following its last exhibition.
NEW YORK, NY.- The Calder Foundation announced the permanent installation of Calder’s 1974 monumental standing mobile Horizontal in front of the Centre Pompidou’s iconic façade. The placement of the sculpture on the museum’s beloved plaza was determined in accordance with architect Renzo Piano. The 8-meter sculpture, which had been in storage following its last exhibition in Bonn in 1993, recently underwent extensive restoration with the collaboration of the the Calder Foundation and the sponsorship of KPMG France. The Centre Pompidou possesses one of the largest public holdings of Calder’s work, thanks to a gift of thirty works made to the institution by the artist during his lifetime in 1966 and a subsequent donation of an additional eight by the artist’s estate in 1983, including Horizontal. Alexander S.C. Rower, President of the Calder Foundation and Calder’s grandson, explains, “France ... More |
Czech Abstract Painter Zdenek Sykora, Known for Computer Geometrical Paintings, Dies
File picture of Czech painter Zdenek Sykora. AP Photo,CTK/Libor Zavoral.
PRAGUE (AP).- Czech painter Zdenek Sykora, who was one of the first to use computers for his geometrical paintings, has died aged 91. Sykora's aide Veronika Hudeckova says he died at his home in the town of Louny on Tuesday evening. Born Feb 3, 1920, in Louny, Sykora's style gradually developed from landscape paintings in the late 1940s to geometrical abstract structures. In the 1960s, he became one of the first artists in the world to use computers to help him create geometric abstract paintings. Later on, Sykora turned to a less strict system of line paintings with lines of color moving across large canvasses in random directions. His paintings are owned by galleries around the globe, including the Pompidou Center in Paris. ... More | | Berlin's University of Arts Says Recently Freed Artist Ai Weiwei Accepts Job Offer
A file photograph shows Chinese Artist Ai Weiwei holding up a handful of his porcelain sunflower seeds. EPA/ANDY RAIN.
BERLIN (AP).- A German university says recently released Chinese artist Ai Weiwei has accepted an offer to join the Berlin institution as a visiting lecturer. Berlin's University of Arts said Wednesday it was unclear when Ai will be able to start in his new position due to his legal troubles in China. University president Martin Rennert says he hopes Ai will be able to join "in the near future." The university first published the offer — in the works since December — following Ai's arrest on tax fraud charges in April. He was released June 22, but Chinese authorities say he is still under investigation for at least a year. The prominent government critic was the highest-profile target of a crackdown on activists in China this year. His ... More | | Director of Tate Liverpool, Dr. Christoph Grunenberg, Concludes Ten Successful Years
The new director of the Kunsthalle Bremen, Dr. Christoph Grunenberg. Photo: Harald Rehling.
LIVERPOOL.- It is announced today that Christoph Grunenberg, Director of Tate Liverpool, has been appointed Director of the Kunsthalle Bremen in Germany. Christoph leaves Tate after a decade as Director of Tate Liverpool. He has made a critical contribution to the cultural regeneration of Liverpool and the city’s extraordinarily successful year as European Capital Culture of Culture in 2008 in which Tate Liverpool attracted over one million visitors. In that remarkable year he also co-curated the exhibition Gustav Klimt: Painting, Design and Modern Life in Vienna 1900 which remains Tate Liverpool's most popular exhibition to date. He created a highly distinctive and memorable exhibition programme, frequently touring to or developed in collaboration with major European and American galleries. ... More |
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 Fotoevidence Announces Publication of Bronx Boys Photographs by Stephen ShamesNEW YORK, NY.- For over two decades (1977-2000), Stephen Shames photographed a group of boys coming of age in the Bronx in a neighborhood ravaged by drugs, violence and gangs. These young men allowed Shames extraordinary access into their lives on the street and in their homes. Shames met the "Bronx boys" as children, and tracked them growing up, falling in love, and having children of their own. His work explores the interplay between good and evil, violence and love, chaos and family. He captures the brutality of the times - the fights, the shootings, the arrests, the drug deals - but also revelatory moments of love and tenderness. FotoEvidence Press will publish Bronx Boys as a first of its kind photo Ebook on July 13, 2011. Bronx Boy resides on the viewer's computer, and has the look and feel of a physical book with high-resolution images that can be viewed full screen. A special feature allows the viewer to zoom into ... More Florence Ostende Announced as New Adjunct Curator at Dallas ContemporaryDALLAS, TX.- Dallas Contemporary announced the addition of Florence Ostende as it’s Adjunct Curator. Florence Ostende is an independent curator and art writer based in Paris, France. The Adjunct Curator position at Dallas Contemporary will begin 1 August 2011 and will further enhance the institution’s mission of presenting regional, national and international projects by artists. In her new position as Adjunct Curator, Florence Ostende will further expand an ongoing exchange between artists and contemporary culture. “It is important to keep an international view of the world and Florence will play an important role in our curatorial vision for the future,” said Dallas Contemporary Director, Peter Doroshenko. “Dallas Contemporary is interested in creating a two-way path of bringing the best international emerging artists to Dallas and creating opportunities for regional artists to exhibit glo ... More Eiffel Tower: A Part of the Legend Enters the Sorgente CollectionROME.- A piece of one of the world’s most beloved monuments will soon arrive in Italy: the Fondazione Sorgente Group has acquired at auction from Christie’s in New York a section of the helical staircase which connected the second and third levels of the Tour Eiffel. With this acquisition the Institute for Art and Culture enhances its collection by adding an object of historic design. “What better way to welcome the arrival of the Expo 2015? – declares Valter Mainetti, Chairman of the Fondazione Sorgente Group – our initiative creates the ideal bridge between Paris’ Exposition Universelle in 1889 and the Expo being organized in Milan. In fact, the Tour Eiffel was built in 1889 as the entrance for the historical edition of the Exposition. Moreover, the intention of the Exposition Universelle in Paris was to celebrate the centenary of the French Revolution. Therefore we fly high with a monume ... More Texas Artist's Work Hurtling through Space with AtlantisHOUSTON, TX.- It's a rare person who can say that her artwork is hurtling through space. But Rachel Hobson, a self-proclaimed space geek and crafts blogger, can certainly claim those bragging rights. As millions watched the launch of the final U.S. shuttle mission, Atlantis, Hobson had the added thrill of knowing that a photo of her needlework moonscape was on board. Hobson, a Houston mother, crafter and space enthusiast, won a contest last fall sponsored by NASA and Etsy, an online crafters' marketplace, with her depiction of the moon's surface. The 4- by 6-inch embroidery and crochet project of silk and cotton threads, ribbons and beads was photographed and turned into a lighter weight print for the trip into space. "My hope with this small piece of artwork is that I can help inspire people to get back in touch with that thing that sparked them as a child, whether it was space or dance or whatever," Hobson wrote ... More Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute's Ira Rubinoff to Receive the Smithsonian's Highest HonorWASHINGTON, DC.- The Smithsonian Regents will present Ira Rubinoff, Director Emeritus of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, with the Institution’s highest honor. The Joseph Henry Medal will be presented to Rubinoff July 14 in the Smithsonian building (the “Castle”). Renowned for his scientific leadership, Rubinoff directly supervised the construction or modernization of every STRI facility during his tenure there, while building the staff from a handful to an international group of 35 scientists and 300 staff who also support approximately 1,000 visiting scientists and students each year. An endowment fund created by Rubinoff includes more than $17 million to support research and fellowships at STRI, augmenting the $20 million annual budget in federal and non-federal funds. As the first marine scientist at STRI, Rubinoff took advantage of the unique natural experiment that Panama provides through its geogra ... More Jimi Guitar Strap, Jackson Glove Offered by Gotta Have It! Collectibles Inc.NEW YORK (AP).- A strap from the guitar Jimi Hendrix burned on stage at the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival is being offered by a New York City auctioneer alongside memorabilia from Michael Jackson and Kurt Cobain. The online Gotta Have It! Rock & Roll Auction runs Wednesday through July 22. Gotta Have It! Collectibles Inc. says the seller of the Hendrix guitar strap is the audience member who caught it at the three-day rock concert in Monterey, Calif. The auction also includes a guitar smashed by Nirvana lead singer Cobain in 1993, the year before he died. There's a glove worn by Jackson at a 1997 concert in London. And there's a dress worn by Katy Perry in her video for "I Kissed a Girl." The late King of Pop's glove is being sold by his friend and publicist Steve Manning. ... MoreTriumphant Sales at Masterpiece London 2011 Herald a Superb End to the FairLONDON.- Masterpiece London, featuring the best of the best from around the world, closed yesterday following an action-packed week of superb sales, huge visitor numbers and attendance by some of the world’s most important collectors, members of the royal family and high-profile guests. Visitors were astounded at the quality and attention to detail at every level; from the calibre of exhibits to the design and presentation, and not least the exceptional fine dining proffered by Le Caprice, Harry’s Bar and the Mount Street Deli. Major sales took place throughout the week of the fair, many fetching six-figure sums: Ronald Phillips owned by Simon Phillips, co-founder of Masterpiece London, sold a Regency brass and polychrome Japanned copper twenty four chandelier for approximately £500,000. The piece is in the manner of Henry Holland and dates from circa 1825. Rolls-Royce Motor Cars sold its bespoke Phantom Dro ... More |
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