Art News

"How do remains convey what's no longer present?" Curator Janice Kamrin and Conservator Anna Serotta on the coffin of Nedjemankh

The Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery recognizes the life of acclaimed singer and musician Aretha Franklin. Her portrait will be installed in the museum’s In Memoriam space on the first floor, and it will remain on display through Aug. 22.

Robert Townsend’s new solo exhibition, Wanderlust, is now at Altamira Fine Art, in Jackson, Wyoming. Los Angeles-based photorealist painter Robert Townsend is known for his boldly colored paintings of Americana. Wanderlust explores the life and times of his 1960’s muse, Helen, featuring new large-scale oils and watercolors.

Lindsay Seers focuses on the relationship between subject and object in photography. Objectifying her body, the Mauritius born British artist has literally used her figure as a flower vase and photography camera. By placing a light sensitive paper in her mouth and using her lips as the aperture and shutter, Lindsay developed images in a black sack resulting in compelling circular images tinged red by her cheeks.

August Americana was another success for Skinner with an auction total of $2.7M (All prices realized include the standard buyer's premium). Stephen Fletcher, Partner and Americana Department Director said: "We exceeded our expectations and were thrilled to see fresh to the market material, with compelling provenance performing well and oftentimes with no regard to auction estimate

The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs announced today that artist Martin Puryear to represent the US at the 2019 Venice Biennale. In its 58th year, the Biennale will run May 11 through Nov. 24, 2019. The Madison Square Park Conservancy will serve as this year’s curator of the United States Pavilion and will commision site-specific work from Puryear. Puryear follows 2017’s representative for the US, painter Mark Bradford.

Sculptor Petah Coyne treats her materials as a sort of language with which to share stories, drawing inspiration from literary sources as diverse as Greek mythology and Charles Dickens. (Untitled #1181) Dante’s Daphne (2004–6), which was given to SFMOMA in memory of the poet Leslie Scalapino, is made from an array of unconventional materials including feathers, velvet, wax, silk flowers, black spray paint, and pearl hatpins.

Christie's announces the sale of An American Journey: The Diann G and Thomas A Mann Collection of Photographic Masterworks. On public view in Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York – the sale will take place at Christie’s Rockefeller Center the evening of October 4, followed by a morning session on October 5.

In this episode of Anatomy of an Artwork, explore the details of Double Portrait with Wine Glass, an iconic painting from Marc Chagall that resides in the permanent collection of the Georges Pompidou Center in Paris. Using a synthesis of different styles, including Cubism, Surrealism and Russian folk art, Chagall masterfully renders a portrait of love that eclipses the political upheaval surrounding its creation.

Now at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), In and About LA showcases the late Robert Rauschenberg’s photographic exploration of Los Angeles. A pioneering American artist whose groundbreaking work anticipated the Pop Art movement, Rauschenberg worked in a wide range of subjects, styles, materials, and techniques, utilizing photography, printmaking, papermaking, and performance. In 1950, he began making "Combines," which bridged photography, found objects and painting, blurring the line between painting and sculpture, merging kitsch and fine art.