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The Headlines
COLLECTOR WATCH.The billionaire art collector who founded theNeue Galeriein Manhattan,Ronald S. Lauder, hasspent at least $11 millionto support RepublicanLee Zeldinin the New York gubernatorial race, theNew York Timesreports. His art-collecting brother,Leonard Lauder, has donated to the Democrat in the race, Kathy Hochul. They are just two of manyarts patrons pouring moneyinto the U.S. elections, asAngelica Villareported. Over in Greece, meanwhile, on the private island ofSkorpios,collectorDmitry Rybolovlevisbuilding a luxury resort, theArt Newspaperreports. Some 400 construction workers are on the job, and the property—scheduled to open in 2024—will include a soccer field, a marina, and quite a few other impressive amenities. A one-week stay is slated to cost a cool $1 million.
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LOST AND FOUND.More than 50 years after a 19th-century portrait was stolen from the museum at Staten Island’sHistoric Richmond Town, ithas been returned, theNew York Postreports. Astonishingly, an eagle-eyed collector from the Bay Area spotted it listed for an auction in Alameda, California, after visiting the New York institution and learning about its theft. It had been put up for sale by a conservator who said it was left with him in the 1990s and never picked up. Meanwhile, theNorth Dakota Museum of Artin Grand Forks is looking for a sizable sculpture thatvanished from its groundsrecently,Valley News Livereports, and the caretaker of a home in Cavite, the Philippines, has beencharged with stealingpaintings and religious statues worth P2.1 million (some $36,000) from his employer, theManila Bulletinreports.
The Digest
Climate activists with the groupFuturo Vegetalglued themselves to the frames of two paintings byFrancisco Goyaat thePradoin Madrid. “We condemn the act of protest that has taken place in the museum,” the Prado said. “The works have not been damaged, though the frames are slightly damaged.”[ARTnews]
Museums inJapanhave been been raising ticket prices on blockbuster loan shows from abroad, responding to increases in shipping expenses, which are “triple what they were before the coronavirus,” one organizer said.[Nikkei]
With $1 billion in art fromPaul Allen’s collection coming to auction this week, journalistJames Tarmylooked who can afford its prime pieces. DealerChristophe Van de Weghesaid there are around 300 people who could spend $120 million on a work (the estimate of Allen’sCézanne). “But who will bid is a different story.”[Bloomberg]
TheJohn Kaneshow at theSenator John Heinz History Centerin Pittsburgh includes a painting that the long underrecognized artist gave to a doctor who treated him for tuberculosis. As attention grows for Kane, who died in 1934, his fans are hoping that more paintings he gave to friends and acquaintances will turn up.[Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]
FewerNFTmarketplaces are offering royalties to creators, which was once heralded as a game-changing aspect of the technology.[Axios]
IN PROFILE.ArtistJennifer Guidiis in theNew York Times, the Indigenous artist–focused organizationMeztli Projectsis in theLos Angeles Times, designerPeter Marinois in theFinancial Times, and artistMatt Mageeis inInterior Design.
The Kicker
RUBBER BAND MAN.In theSunday Times, formerTatedirectorNicholas Serotaspoke about how theArts Council England, where he is chairman, has been decreasing its funding to some London arts institutions in order to give more to groups beyond the capital city. But he alsosounded a cautionary note about funding in the U.K.“We’ve seen austerity applied to the arts and the arts have been incredibly resilient, but how far can you stretch this rubber band?” Serota told the paper. “I think it will snap if we see serious cuts. There’s a degree of fragility in the arts world now that wasn’t there three years ago before the pandemic.”[The Sunday Times]
