Art Industry News is a daily summary of the most important developments in the art world and the art market. Here’s what you need to know this Wednesday, July 12.
NEED TO READ
Belarusian artist and political prisoner dies in custody – Ales Pushkin died on Tuesday July 11 after being transferred from a prison to a hospital. The reasons for the 57-year-old dissident artist’s hospitalization in intensive care and his death are unclear, and he had no previous health problems, according to human rights groups and his wife. The acclaimed artist organized anti-government and anti-Lukashenko performances and was very active in the protests that swept the country in 2020 and 2021. He was arrested and imprisoned in March 2021 for a painting he made depicting an anti-Soviet Belarusian activist and poet. Evgueni Zhihar. (Moscow time)
Repercussions escalate amid protests by activist artists – Around this time last year, climate activists stepped up the frequency of their vandalistic attacks on museums in the hope of raising awareness of the climate crisis. Since then, institutions have had to tighten security and place items behind protective glass for fear of damage. Museums are, in some cases, suing activists. (New York Times)
The United States joins UNESCO – On Sunday July 9, the Secretary of State of the United States of America signed the document of acceptance of the United States to the Constitution of UNESCO. The nation’s return to UNESCO comes after former President Donald Trump stepped down while in office. “This is a historic moment,” said UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay. “If we are to meet the challenges of our century, there can only be a collective response. (Press release)
OpenSea impersonator indicted by DOJ – Soufiane Oulahya is facing fraud charges related to an alleged scheme to impersonate the NFT trading platform OpenSea. The US Department of Justice alleges that Oulahya created a copycat website in September 2021 and paid for advertisements so that his fraudulent site appeared first in searches. An anonymous individual lost approximately $450,000 worth of Ethereum and NFT after logging in. (ART news)
MOVERS AND SHAKERS
Opening of a museum in the first bank of the United States – The Philadelphia-based First Bank of the United States, built in 1797 to house Alexander Hamilton’s new banking system, will experience new life as a museum dedicated to the history of the American economy. The Independence National Historic Park building has not been accessible to the public for 50 years, but hopes to reopen by 2026 to coincide with the 250e United States birthday. (FOR WHAT)
Wales to scatter its contemporary art collection across the country – The Welsh Government has announced a new plan to disperse objects from the permanent contemporary collection to galleries across the country, to help engage the community. An “anchor gallery” will be built to house the works, and a digital platform with some 25,000 digitized images has been created. (Association of Museums)
Curator of the names of the Front International Triennial – New York artist Asad Raza and curator Magdalena Moskalewicz will lead the next edition of the Cleveland Triennale in 2025. Raza’s work was recently presented at Portikus in Frankfurt and participated in the 2022 edition of FRONT, as well as at the 2017 Whitney Biennial. (ART news)
FOR ART
Damien Hirst adorns the facade of Tiffany in Tokyo – A new flagship in Ginza has a massive cherry blossom facade by English artist. The design begins at street level with a practical Tiffany blue backdrop before bursting into pinks as the eye moves upwards. It was made with 292 aluminum and glass honeycomb panels. (Designboom)
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