Pepón Osorio, Las Twines, 1998. Smithsonian American Art Museum Can a sculpture convey power? Historically, sculpture has been one of the key ways to depict who is in charge and who is worth remembering. That has been the case in the United States where the Lincoln Memorial and Mount Rushmore recall the country’s most revered …
John Wilson, Black Despair, 1945. ©Estate of John Wilson/Museum of Fine Arts, Boston To be Black in America, artist John Woodrow Wilson (1922–2015) once said, was to endure “a kind of slow death.” How best to fight that protracted, demoralizing violence? For Wilson, one solution was to produce art. In his paintings, sculptures, and prints, …
Photo collage by Daniela Hritcu. The Harlem Renaissance, also known as the New Negro Movement, was a movement of the 1920s and ’30s that sought to redefine Black identity through literature, music, painting, photography, and intellectual thought. It was a direct response to negative stereotypical images that proliferated throughout popular culture in the United States …
The 2024 Venice Biennale. Simone Padovani/Getty Images The central attraction at the Venice Biennale is its main exhibition, a curated show meant to pinpoint a dominant theme in art as it stands right now. But all around it are pavilions staged by countries, with each nation selecting one or more artists to mount their own …
A Guide to the 2026 Venice Biennale National Pavilions Read More »
Larry Gagosian was recently featured on the CBS Sunday Morning. Van Tine Dennis/Sipa USA CBS Sunday Morning recently aired a profile of gallery owner Larry Gagosian and how the 80-year-old art dealer navigates the “brutal business” while overseeing 18 locations around the world. The seven-minute segment aired on CBS Sunday Morning on February 23. Early …
Larry Gagosian Talked the Future with CBS: ‘I’m Not Ready to Pass the Reins’ Read More »
A view of the entrance of Frieze Los Angeles 2025. Maximilíano Durón/ARTnews The sun was out and shining all day Thursday in Los Angeles. It seems a fortuitous sign for the 2025 edition of Frieze Los Angeles, which opened to VIPs in the morning. From 10am onward, the custom-built tent at the Santa Monica Airport …
Photo collage by Daniela Hritcu. There are Black people in the future.” In 2017, contemporary visual artist Alisha B. Wormsley began placing those words on billboards across the country in cities including Pittsburgh, Detroit, Charlotte, New York City, Kansas City, and Houston. According to Wormsley, the phrase started out as a “Black nerd sci-fi joke.” …
Afrofuturism: Reimagining the Past and Telling a Black Fantastic Future Read More »
The tomb of King Thutmose II, near the Valley of the Kings in West Luxor, Egypt. Courtesy the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities The tomb of ancient Egyptian King Thutmose II has been found, the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities announced. This is the first royal burial chamber to be discovered since 1922, …
First Royal Tomb Since King Tutankhamun Unearthed in Egypt Read More »
A picture shows the newly renovated baldachin, a large Baroque sculpted bronze canopy over the high altar of St. Peter’s Basilica, 2024. Photo Tiziana FABI/AFP via Getty Images A Romanian man who jumped onto the main altar at Saint Peter’s Basilica was apprehended by security staff at the Vatican on February 7. A video capturing …
Romanian Man Defaces Vatican Altar, Damaging Objects Worth Thousands of Dollars Read More »
The sale generated $17.3 million, with Islamic art selling well. Getty Images for Sotheby’s Sotheby’s laid down a marker in the Middle East on Saturday evening by hosting Saudi Arabia’s first major art auction. The results were like the two-part evening sale’s lineup: a mixed bag. The house took in $17.3 million (estimate: $14 million–$20 million) …
