NEED-TO-READ
No Protests at Guston National Gallery Show – The delayed retrospective of Philip Guston following the murder of George Floyd made it to its third and final U.S. stop at the National Gallery of Art in Washington before heading to London’s Tate Modern, and it did not meet any protests as expected. As for the critics? While the show features some of the artist’s most compelling works, the lack of explanation of certain caricatures from the artist’s “Poor Richard” series was problematic, wrote curator and critic Aruna D’Souza. ()
Roald Dahl Museum Acknowledges Author’s Antisemitism – The museum in U.K.’s Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire named after the author of children’s classics including Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Matilda has acknowledged Dahl’s antisemitic statements, nearly three years after the author’s family and Roald Dahl Story Company’s apology for his antisemitic views towards Jewish people. The museum says it has kept a record of what the author wrote and said in the museum’s collection and displaying its statement at its entrance. ()
Sculpture of Alan Turing Proposed for Fourth Plinth – The outgoing U.K. Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has suggested that a statue of the wartime codebreaker be placed on Trafalgar Square’s Fourth Plinth in London. The Fourth Plinth does not have a permanent display and has been a key spot for public contemporary art installations under the London mayor’s Fourth Plinth Commission. ()
Repatriation of Cypriot Antiquities – Three Bronze Age (1600-1400 B.C.) pottery vessels that were seized by the Italian authorities have been returned to Cyprus upon request from the Cypriot authorities. A handover ceremony of the artifacts was held on Monday, July 17. ()
MOVERS & SHAKERS
FAMSF Names Chief Program and Strategy Officer – Veteran art world executive Lisa Grove is joining the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, which includes San Francisco’s de Young and Legion of Honor, where she will serve as chief program and strategy officer. Grove has previously worked at the Obama Foundation in Chicago, Telfair Museum of Art in Savannah, and the Contemporary Art Museum in St. Louis; she begins her role on August 28. ()
Ace Hotel Relaunches Artist In Residence Program – After a pandemic-induced hiatus, Ace AIR, the long-running residency program that featured artists including William Powhida, Rashaad Newsome, and Kandis Williams, is returning at 8 international locations where artists will live and work for one month before having their work exhibited. Each of the properties—in Palm Springs, New York, Brooklyn, Los Angeles, Kyoto, New Orleans, Toronto, and Sydney—are partnering with local organizations to co-curate the program. ()
Dulwich Picture Gallery Gets Permission to Expand – The Southwark Council has approved plans for a £4.6 million transformation of the South London-based museum, which is set to begin construction this winter and continue through 2025. Architects Carmody Groarke will carry out the design, which includes a new outdoor gallery, building, and extension on the Gallery Cottage. ()
FOR ART’S SAKE
Paula Rego’s Mural at National Gallery – Paula Rego’s impressive 32-foot-long mural titled (1990-91) has been unveiled at the London museum. The late Portuguese artist’s work features three panels depicting the Virgin Mary, Mary Magdalene, Judith, and Delilah, and is based on the 15th century work La Madonna della Rondine by Carlo Crivelli. Curator Colin Wiggins has implored members of the public to rally for the work to remain on permanent display. ()
Paula Rego, Crivelli’s Garden II (1990-1). The National Gallery, London. Presented by English Estates, 1991.
1990-1
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