ARTFIXdaily News Feed - Breaking News from the Art World

DIA Collection Value Estimated for City's Creditors

Chicago Tribune / June 17th, 2013

An estimate of about $2.5 billion has been pinned on the collection of the Detroit Institute of Arts. The city owns the collection and has a debt of around $11 billion. The city manager in charge of balancing the books says creditors will want to...

Cadmus Drawing Leads Swann Galleries' American Art Sale

ArtfixDaily / June 17th, 2013

A male nude rendering by Paul Cadmus fetched a record price for a drawing by the artist at Swann Galleries' first stand-alone American art auction on June 13 in New York City.

German Police Bust International Art Forgery Ring

ArtfixDaily / June 13th, 2013

A multimillion-dollar art forgery ring that allegedly made 400 fake artworks by Russian avant-garde artists has been busted by German police. Forged paintings copying the styles of such artists as...

Damien Hirst Counts his Spot Paintings for Catalogue Raisonne

New York Times / June 12th, 2013

A catalogue raisonné of contemporary artist Damien Hirst's work will reveal just how many of his easily recognizable spot paintings there are. The official count is...

French Feminist Trumps F. Scott Fitzgerald in Sotheby's Sale

ArtfixDaily / June 12th, 2013

A Sotheby's auction in New York saw a rare 16th century erotic polemic soar far above a buzzed-about first edition of F. Scott's Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby," offered on the heels of this summer's hit film.

Oprah Winfrey Gives $12 Million to Smithsonian's African American Museum

ArtfixDaily / June 11th, 2013

Media mogul Oprah Winfrey has donated $12 million to the National Museum of African American History and Culture, a new museum planned for Washington, DC's National Mall.

Art Basel Bursts with Big-Ticket Offerings from Moore to Magritte

ArtfixDaily / June 11th, 2013

Following a heady series of auctions in New York totaling $1.1 billion, Art Basel brings up another $2.2 billion worth of 20th-century and contemporary art for sale. The annual Swiss fair has ushered in...

WWII Documentary Reveals Ghost Army of American Artists

/ June 10th, 2013

Now available on DVD and as a book, a new PBS documentary premiered last month about the little-known Ghost Army of American artists who helped defeat Hitler's forces in World War II.

Google Art Project Redesigns for Better Navigation

ArtfixDaily / June 10th, 2013

Google Art Project launched its faster navigation and new image-driven search features on Monday. The improved search tools make it easier to...

Kobe Bryant Agrees to Auction of his Memorabilia

ArtfixDaily / June 10th, 2013

After settling a disagreement with his mother, NBA star Kobe Bryant has given the green light to a sale of his memorabilia at a New Jersay auction house starting this month. The Los Angeles Lakers’ player reached a settlement with...

Baltimore Museum of Art Battles in Court for Flea Market Renoir

ArtfixDaily / June 9th, 2013

Arguments were heard in federal court over a disputed Renoir that the Baltimore Museum of Art (BMA) says was stolen from an exhibit there decades ago and a Virginia woman claims she is rightfully the owner after finding the work at a flea market.

California Couple Gifts $25 Million Japanese Art Collection to Minneapolis Institute of Arts

ArtfixDaily / June 9th, 2013

A California cattle breeder who amassed a top-notch collection of Japanese art worth $25 million has gifted it to the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. Nearly 1,700 objects spanning 1,000 years...

Nazi-Seized Old Master Painting Leads New York Auction

ArtfixDaily / June 6th, 2013

A recently restituted painting by 17th-century Dutch master Gerrit van Honthorst was the top lot in a Christie's Old Masters sale on June 5 in New York. Once part of the collections of Catherine the Great's art adviser and Russia's Hermitage Museum, The Duet was confiscated by the Nazis...

State Senate Passes Bill to Protect DIA Collection

ArtfixDaily / June 4th, 2013

A Michigan state Senate committee swiftly approved a bill that aims to protect the holdings of the Detroit Institute of Arts, and other Michigan museums, from the possibility of deaccessiong to cover municipal debts

Munch Museum Gets Thumbs-Up to Open on Oslo Waterfront

ArtfixDaily / June 3rd, 2013

Go-ahead was finally given to the Munch Museum to build a 12,000 sq. ft. glass structure on Oslo’s waterfront. The decision was annnounced last Tuesday and came four years after...

55th Venice Biennale Turns in New Direction

The Guardian / June 3rd, 2013

The world's foremost contemporary art festival has opened in Venice for its 55th year of presenting the most wonderful--and weird--art being made today. Newcomers and exhibits outside the official pavilions are turning heads.

Whitney Redesigns its Graphic Identity Prior to 2015 Grand Opening

ArtfixDaily / May 22nd, 2013

As the Whitney Museum approaches the opening of its new building in 2015, all aspects of programming and operations are being reconsidered.

Opportunity Knocks for American Art Collectors

New York Times / May 30th, 2013

After the skyrocketing post-war and contemporary art auctions in early May, prices in the historic American art sales last week were seemingly modest, reports the New York Times. Several lots soared, a few soured, but overall a renewed market strength was evident for American paintings of the 19th and early 20th centuries. Yet...

Bill Proposed to Protect Detroit Institute of Arts Collection from Sale (UPDATE)

ArtfixDaily / May 30th, 2013

A Michigan lawmaker has proposed a bill to protect artwork held by the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) from being sold by the city to cover billions of dollars of debt. Detroit's $15 billion to $17 billion in bond debts...

Diamond, Qianlong Vases Boost $418 Million Hong Kong Auction

ArtfixDaily / May 30th, 2013

Christie's five-day auction in Hong Kong ended with total sales of HK$3.2 billion ($418 million), indicating a renewed uptick in the Asian market. Chinese buyers were back to a more competitive stance, bidding up...