21st Century
Classical Collapse in Naples and Milan
December 8 2025
Picture: NICOLA SAMORÌ / capodimonte.cultura.gov.it
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Pinacoteca Ambrosiana in Milan and the Museo e Real Bosco di Capodimonte in Naples have just opened a new exhibition of works by the contemporary artist Nicola Samorì entitled Classical Collapse. As the name suggests, the show features many Old Master motifs which have been defaced by contemporary sculptural (plastic vs. pictorial, apparently) interventions. Click on the link to see more (beware, some of works may be shocking to lovers of painting).
The exhibtions will run until January and March 2026 respectively.
Bendor on AI Connoisseurship
December 2 2025
Picture: FT
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
I'm sure Bendor would like me to draw attention to his recent article on AI & Connoisseurship in the FT. Click on the link to read what he has to say on the subject (I'm sure the majority of readers will be able to guess).
France to Tax the Possession of Art?
November 18 2025
Picture: artnews.com
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Artnews.com have reported on proposals the French government are drawing up to tax the possession of works of art in their 2026 budget. The French art world has rightly drawn attention to the absurdity of the idea, questioning how owners would 'declare' their collections alongside the inconsistency with other EU nations which would put those doing business in the country at a disadvantage. Click on the link to read more.
Viennese Prosecutors Order TEFAF Klimt to be Seized
November 17 2025
Picture: artnet.com
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
It emerged last week that public prosecutors in Vienna have ordered the seizure of Gustav Klimt's Portrait of Prince William Nii Nortey Dowuona. The painting, which had appeared that this year's edition of TEFAF (The European Fine Art Foundation), is alleged to have been improperly released from Hungary (a claim which the Wienerroither and Kohlbacher Gallery deny). Click on the link for the full story.
Sotheby's Reopens in Breuer Building
November 11 2025
Video: Sotheby's
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The auction house Sotheby's have just reopened their New York headquarters in the brutalist Breuer building at 945 Madison Avenue. The video above provides a tour of the site. Highlights of the upcoming sales held within the new site will include Gustav Klimt's $150m+ Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer on 18th November and a $10m golden toilet, Maurizio Cattelan's America, on 19th November.
Stolen Snuffboxes (including one from Royal Collection) Recovered after Fee Paid
October 30 2025
Picture: bfmtv.com
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Following the high-profile thefts from the Louvre the other week, more news has broken in France regarding the recovery of artworks stolen from the Musée Cognacq-Jay back in November 2024. It appears that burglars, who smashed their way into glasses cases to take 7 snuffboxes including those on loan from the Royal Collection, V&A and the Louvre, have been paid off by the insurers to return the stolen works. Two other objects remain missing. Click on the link above to read more.
Contemporary 'Annunciation' at the Palazzo Strozzi
October 29 2025
Picture: palazzostrozzi.org
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The contemporary sculptor KAWS is the latest artist to have a go at reinventing an Old Master theme in dialogue with an exhibition. The Message, which has been placed in the courtyard of the Palazzo Strozzi in Florence to coincide with their Fra Angelico exhibition, shows two figures representing Kaws characters, Companion and Bff, in the guise of the Archangel Gabriel and Mary. Instead of looking at each other, the modern reinterpretation shows them instead looking at their phones.
Rebuilt Princeton University Art Museum to Open on 31st October
October 27 2025
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Prince University's rebuilt Art Museum, designed by David Adjaye, is to reopen to the public on 31st October 2025. The brutal concrete structure, which the article linked above describes as 'a cluster of serrated concrete bunkers' and will house no fewer than 32 galleries, has come at a cost of purportedly $300m. Click on the link above to read more and view pictures of the new structure and its interiors.
National Gallery auctioning-off benches
October 8 2025
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Social media has been full today with news that The National Gallery in London are auctioning-off their rather comfortable leather gallery benches later this month. The old benches are a fire hazard and a potential home for pests, apparently. Images I've seen floating around of the plain wooden ones which are replacing the old appear incredibly uncomfortable and unwelcoming indeed.
New Taylor Swift Album Cover 'References' Tate Ophelia
October 6 2025
Picture: Tate / Taylor Swift via. Instagram
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The online Galerie Magazine has published an article on news that the billionaire musician Taylor Swift's new album cover The Life of a Showgirl 'references' John Everett Millais' Ophelia in Tate Britain.
According to the article:
Swift herself confirmed the artwork’s influence in a recent interview with BBC Radio 1’s Greg James, stating, “the album cover is a reference to the famous Ophelia painting, which then ends up being referenced in the music video.” In true Swift fashion, this was a moment of foreshadowing that there is more to come concerning the painting’s inspiration for her new album, with The Official Release Party of a Showgirl set for a later release than the music itself. “There’s more references to this painting,” Swift added.
Well, it sounds like they did their art historical homework...
Digital Reconstruction of Emma Hamilton's Face
September 30 2025
Picture: The Guardian
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News broke over the weekend of the latest efforts of French specialists to digitally reconstruct the face of Lady Emma Hamilton from the skull which is purported to have been hers. The remains, which were originally placed in the churchyard of St Pierre’s in Calais, formed the basis of a digital reconstruction allowing us to compare her features to those found in countless paintings by the likes of George Romney, Joshua Reynolds, Hugh Douglas Hamilton, Thomas Lawrence, Vigée Le Brun and others. Click on the link above to see the image for yourself.
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The result? Personally, I would trust (perhaps rather foolishly) the brush of the artists listed above, who truly captured the spirit of Emma a thousand times more convincingly than the odd B&W image produced here...
Caravaggio gets the AI Treatment
September 29 2025
Picture: The Guardian
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Guardian have run another AI story over the weekend regarding claims from Swiss Art Authentication Specialists 'Art Recognition' that a copy of Caravaggio's famous Lute Player is exactly 85.7% by the artist himself. The painting, which was sold at auction in 2001 as 'Circle of Caravaggio', is currently owned by British art historian and gallerist Clovis Whitfield who has decided to go down the AI route of connoisseurship.
To quote a section of the article:
Whitfield made his purchase with Alfred Bader, a collector who died in 2016, to whom [Keith] Christiansen [former European Paintings Curator at the MET in New York] wrote in 2007: “No one – certainly no modern scholar – has ever or ever would entertain the idea that your painting could be painted by Caravaggio.”
Whitfield said Christiansen and some Italian scholars were “a bit stuck in the traditional mud” in refusing to accept the attribution, even though other experts support it. “The AI result knocks Mr Christiansen off his perch,” he said.
Art Recognition’s analysis also concluded that the Wildenstein [which has a much better claim to be by Caravaggio, according to Christiansen] was “not an authentic work”. Popovici said: “Our AI returned a negative result.”
Well, there we have it.
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As it happens, I decided to test out the connoisseurship of 'Grok' the other week, the AI arm of the social media platform 'X' (formerly known as Twitter). I decided to feed it with an unattributed head study in the V&A, which I have a feeling may be by Henry Fuseli. Here's the thread if you want to read how that went.
Despite the best efforts of AI, it seems strange that it failed to spot any connection it may have to Fuseli's The Oath on the Grütli, which was my best guess having spent a good deal of time surfing through the relevant literature on the artist before hand (just to make sure I can still do it, just about...). It's a good job another AI Art APP called 'Bendor Grokvenor' also pipped in with their thoughts.
Museums Association propose to update Code of Ethics
September 24 2025
Picture: Museums Association
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The former culture secretary Ed Vaizey has written an article on the Arts Professional website providing his view on the UK Museums Association's upcoming proposed updates to their Code of Ethics. In particular, questions regarding the future of commercial sponsorships and partnerships are posed in the face of increasing debate on whether funding sources are 'ethical' or not.
The proposed updates will be debated and voted on at the association's AGM in October.
The National Gallery to start collecting Contemporary Art
September 9 2025
Picture: The National Gallery, London
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Big announcements this morning that The National Gallery in London will be planning a £400m extension and will be heading up a new acquisitions policy in collaboration with Tate that will see the scrapping of its 1900 cut-off date. The gallery has already quietly raised £375m for the building project, which will include the demotion of St Vincent House located at the rear of the site to make way for the new galleries. A competition for its design will open on 12th September 2025.
According to The Art Newspaper:
Finaldi envisages the 20th-century collection as starting with the later French Impressionists, then the arrival of Picasso and Matisse, the Italian Futurists, German Expressionists, Surrealists, American Abstract Expressionists, and up to the near the present, with a good chronological and geographical spread. No longer will the gallery’s collection be almost entirely European.
The 20th-century collection will be built up with both acquisitions and loans. Acquisitions will be dependent on raising yet more funding. To assist with loans, Finaldi intends to approach the estates of leading artists. With Tate, there would hopefully be an even greater exchange of loans between the two galleries.
Update - Here's the official press release from the NG.
Update 2 - Here is a thread on 'X' with Bendor's own thoughts.
Ed Sheeran's Dabbling in Art
July 10 2025
Picture: BBC
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
It has been widely reported this week that the pop singer Ed Sheeran has been turning his creative energies to art recently. His works, which he has styled 'Cosmic Carpark Paintings', will be on display at the Heni Gallery in London until August.
There is some irony in the fact that a singer, who has faced multiple lawsuits on accusations of copyright infringement regarding his songs, is now being accused by many in the art world for ripping off Jackson Pollock. At least funds from the sale of his painted pastiches will go to his foundation, that helps works to offer music education and opportunities to young people from all backgrounds.
Dior borrows Louvre & NGS Chardin for Summer 2026 Launch
July 5 2025
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Fashion House Dior borrowed the Louvre newly acquired Strawberries and the National Gallery of Scotland's Vase of Flowers by Chardin for their recent Summer 2026 launch in Paris this week.
According to their website:
Dior is part of the collective imagination. It is embedded in culture and popular culture. Initiating the recoding according to the view of Creative Director Jonathan Anderson – inside a room modeled on the velvet-lined interiors of Berlin’s Gemäldegalerie – is a programmatic act that speaks a language of understatement and poise. On the walls hang two modest yet beautiful paintings by Jean Siméon Chardin (1699-1779). At a time when art was often concerned with excess and spectacle, Chardin revered the everyday, trading grandeur for sincerity and empathy. A museum is a public space where conversations happen and history becomes part of the everyday. Museum rooms, occasionally, also host breathless, liberating and joyful runs amidst masterpieces.
Pennsylvania College says Sell the Art - 'It's outside of our mission'
July 5 2025
Picture: Albright College
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Artnet have reported on news that Albright College in Reading, Pennsylvania, has been quietly selling off artworks from the college's collection. The story revolves around the families of donors who discovered this was happening under the radar, in an effort (apparently) to reduce a budget shortfall of $23m.
To quote an interview with the college's President Debra Townsley:
“When it came to the artwork, we are not a museum, that is not our business, and we don’t have the talent or the controlled environment for artwork,” she said in an interview. “It’s outside of our mission. So my feeling is, look, we should sell the artwork to people where it is their mission. They can take care of the artworks and do it right.” The college is working with area institutions that can preserve regionally significant artworks, she said, so she’s unable to say how much of the collection will be offered for sale.
But she guesses that the sale will likely only net a few hundred thousand dollars. This sale, she acknowledged, “isn’t going to save the school.”
Tate Chairman announces £150m fund for acquisitions and new garden entrance
June 27 2025
Picture: The Times
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Here's a thread from Bendor on 'X' regarding Tate Chairman Roland Rudd's recent interview in The Times, announcing a £150m fund to help with acquisitions (a very good thing) and a new garden entrance (less interesting). Bendor weighs up the increasing fascination that British galleries and museums have for fancy and expensive new entrances (which carry the aesthetic charms of a car park).
Xavier F. Salomon appointed Director of the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum
June 25 2025
Picture: gulbenkian.pt
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Congratulations to Xavier F. Salomon who has just been announced as the new director of the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum in Lisbon, Portugal. He will succeed António Filipe Pimentel who is due to retire next year. Click on the link above for the museum's press release, which provides a full overview of Salomon's career thus far.
New EU Cultural Property Laws
June 25 2025
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Financial Times have published an article by Melanie Gerlis today on the EU's new Cultural Property Laws which will be coming into effect this week. Essentially, objects older than 200 years, worth more than €18,000 and that were created outside of the EU, will have to be accompanied by proof of their legal export before importing it into the EU. This would affect, let's say, the importing of objects like early British portraits for example - which many dealers know very rarely come with full provenances. The intention of this legislation is of course to stop the illegal trade of good such as stolen antiquities, but, it seems possible that other objects will now increasingly be caught up within its web. The article draws attention to the effect this will have on fairs such as TEFAF in Maastricht, with concerns that older art will gradually be cut-out due to increasing bureaucracy. However, it remains to be seen how individual countries will be adopting these laws in due course.
