| | The First Art Newspaper on the Net | | Established in 1996 | Friday, April 17, 2020 |
| | | Early string ties us to Neanderthals | |
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In a photo provided by, M-H. Moncel, a scanning electron micrograph of Neanderthal cord from Abri du Maras. A 50,000-year-old fragment of cord hints at the cognitive abilities of our ancient hominid cousins as a new study, published today in Scientific Reports, adds another talent: fiber technology and perhaps, by extension, numeracy, because strands of string are combined in pairs and sets to form cord. M-H. Moncel via The New York Times.
by Siobhan Roberts
NEW YORK (NYT NEWS SERVICE).- Building a curriculum vitae is a time-consuming process just ask Homo neanderthalensis. First unearthed in the Neander Valley in Germany, Neanderthals were long known for one quality: their extinction, about 40,000 years ago. In the late 19th century, German naturalist Ernst Haeckel didnt do the species any favors when he recommended the name Homo stupidus. In recent decades, however, the Neanderthals skill set has expanded. They now are known to have made a gluelike birch-bark tar (no trivial task), cave art and shell beads. They hunted large mammals like stags and bulls as well as fish, ducks, raptors and rabbits. And they made stone tools and projectiles. A new study, published in Scientific Reports, adds another talent: fiber technology and perhaps, by extension, numeracy, because strands of string are combined in pairs and sets to form cord. ... More |
The Best Photos of the Day Venus Over Manhattan is presenting an exhibition of work by Roy De Forest, organized in collaboration with the Roy De Forest Estate. Following the recent retrospective of his work, "Of Dogs and Other People: The Art of Roy De Forest," organized by Susan Landauer at the Oakland Museum of California, the exhibition marks the largest presentation of De ForestÂs work in New York since 1975, when the Whitney Museum of American Art staged a retrospective dedicated to his work.
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| | Petzel to show small and large-scale paintings and drawings by Stefanie Heinze | | 'Beyond the Visible: Hilma af Klint' review: What did she see, and when? | | Yale Center for British Art makes more artwork available on the Google Arts & Culture online platform |
Stefanie Heinze, Odd Glove (Forgetting, Losing, Looping), 2019. Oil and acrylic on linen, 137.8 x 110.24 inches. 350 x 280 cm. 4 parts: 50 x 280 cm / 1 part: 250 x 180 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Petzel, New York.
NEW YORK, NY.- Meet Berlin-based Stefanie Heinze, the next artist to present new work at Petzels recently inaugurated parlor floor gallery at 35 East 67th Street. This exhibition, which will include small and large-scale paintings and drawings, is forthcoming. In Stefanie Heinzes playful figurative paintings, abstracted and ambiguous forms become recognizable as unexpected subjects. From disembodied body parts, to everyday objects, to animal-like figures, her subjects melt into colorful, fantastical backgrounds to create vivid visual worlds which reveal an interplay between high and low culture. Heinzes brightly colored, imaginative compositions are cleverly subversive in their details and symbolism. They convey rebellious but humorous social critiques, complemented with equally witty, lyrical titles. Although considered a member of the abstract expressionism and the Leipzig schools of painting, Heinze is ... More | |
A scene from Beyond the Visible, a film by Halina Dyrschka.
by A.O. Scott
NEW YORK (NYT NEWS SERVICE).- The career-spanning exhibition of the work of Hilma af Klint that toured the world a few years ago including a sojourn at the Guggenheim Museum in Manhattan upended the conventional narrative of modern art history. This is hardly an academic matter. As Roberta Smith wrote in her review of the Guggenheim show, af Klints paintings definitively explode the notion of modernist abstraction as a male project a revolution thought to have started with Vasily Kandinsky and Piet Mondrian in the years just before World War I and carried to heroic fruition by the likes of Mark Rothko and Jackson Pollock after World War II. But af Klint, as Smith put it, got there first. Born in 1862 to an aristocratic Swedish family and raised partly on the grounds of the military academy where her father was an instructor, she trained at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Stockholm, mastering the traditional genres ... More | |
Mary Beale, Bartholomew Beale, ca. 1660, oil on paper laid to canvas, Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Fund.
NEW HAVEN, CONN.- The Yale Center for British Art announced their latest contribution of collections data and images to Google Arts & Culture, which allows the public to explore collections from around the world. The publication of 16,392 works through Googles online platform represents an increase of more than 10,000 works since the last data exchange in 2011. In keeping with Yale Universitys open access policy, all of these artworks in the Centers collection are believed to be in the public domain and are now accessible through the Google Arts & Cultures website and mobile app. "The Yale Center for British Art is proud to expand its collection offerings in partnership with Google Arts & Culture and in support of Yale University's ambitious Open Access Policy, which seeks to enhance access to the collections in the museums, archives, and libraries for students, faculty, and the world," explained Director Courtney J. Marti ... More |
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| | Photojournalists struggle through the pandemic, with masks and long lenses | | Sotheby's first "Watches Weekly" sales set new benchmarks for online watch auctions | | What historians will see when they look back on the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 |
Caitlin Ochs, a photojournalist, prepares to clean her equipment with isopropyl alcohol in her home after an assignement in New York, March 31, 2020. As practitioners of a craft that requires long hours of getting up close and personal with their subjects, photographers have been affected by social distancing restrictions perhaps more than other media workers. Caitlin Ochs/The New York Times.
NEW YORK (NYT NEWS SERVICE).- March was shaping up to be a good month for Brian Bowen Smith, a photographer in Los Angeles who has worked for Vogue and GQ. He had five big jobs lined up, including shoots for two Netflix posters. All five were canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic. There is no work whatsoever, he said. Its kind of scary, actually. To fill his newly free hours, Bowen Smith drove to Joshua Tree National Park and trained his camera on the barren landscape. It was a long way from the work that usually pays his bills. In recent years, when he is not photographing Christian Bale, Miley Cyrus and Issa Rae for major magazines, Bowen Smith has shot ad campaigns for Marc Jacobs and other fashion companies. ... More | |
A Rolex Daytona, reference 6263 in stainless steel, made for made for Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, circa 1975 realised HK$2m (US$ 258,000) (lot 5 in the first sale, est. HKD 1.6-2.4m / USD USD 206,400- 309,500). Courtesy Sotheby's.
GENEVA.- Sothebys first two weekly online watch auctions have achieved great success since their launch on 1st April. The new format, designed to provide great responsiveness to trends in the market and more ways for sellers to offer their property, attracted collectors from around the world, many of whom were new to Sothebys (54%) and under 40 (40%). The sales also set new benchmarks for online watch auctions, including a record for a watch sold in an online sale. The first two sales totalled HK$ 17m (US$ 2.2m) (est. HK$ 12-19m / US$ 1.5-2.4m) 95% of the lots sold, with over half of them achieving prices above their high estimate 100% of the lots sold in the first sale which featured a selection of 19 stunning Rolex wristwatches and rare pieces by Audemars Piguet Participants from around the world (incl. Asia, Europe, North and South America and the Middle East) 54% of ... More | |
A journal entry by Sherri Denney. Wright State University via The New York Times.
by Audra D. S. Burch
NEW YORK (NYT NEWS SERVICE).- Sherri Denney was in the fourth day of quarantine in her home in Springboro, Ohio, when she thought about the toll the coronavirus was taking. She sat in her recliner chair and cried as the states governor checked off the number of dead and sickened, knowing there would be more the next day. Overwhelmed, Denney, 55, tried to put her feelings into words. Wow, she began writing on an old sketch pad, quickly realizing the precise words would not come easy. Thats all I can say. My emotions are ranging from sadness to fear to anger. The week before, a woman in Nevada turned to her own version of journaling. Mimi J. Premo recorded a video on her cellphone, giving voice to a kind of stunned weariness so many Americans are feeling. And in Indianapolis, in an interview recorded by two university research assistants, a man who is diabetic and HIV positive talked about how ... More |
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| | AFP's Yasuyoshi Chiba wins top World Press Photo prize for Sudan protest picture | | In virus lockdown, Moulin Rouge dancers go through their paces | | Lee Konitz, jazz saxophonist who blazed his own trail, dies at 92 |
This undated photo shows AFP photographer Yasuyoshi Chiba, who won the World Press Photo of the Year and first prize in the General News-Singles category on April 16, 2020, posing in an unknown location. Shiggy Yoshida / AFP.
by Jan Hennop
THE HAGUE (AFP).- Agence France-Presse photographer Yasuyoshi Chiba won the prestigious World Press Photo of the Year Award on Thursday with a picture of a mobile-lit Sudanese demonstrator reciting protest poetry in which judges saw a symbol of hope. Chiba's picture, taken during the popular uprising in Sudan calling for the return to civilian rule last year, showed the power of youth and art while itself possessing a "poetic" quality, the judges said. Nairobi-based Chiba's picture also won the General News - Singles category. Beijing-based AFP staffer Nicolas Asfouri meanwhile won the General News - Stories category for his pictures of protests in Hong Kong. In other categories, Sean Davey's picture for AFP of girls playing at a bushfire evacuation centre in Australia took second place in Contemporary Issues - Singles, while British-based AFP lensman Oli Scarff won third place in Sports - Singles. Taken on June 19 last ... More | |
French dancer from the Moulin Rouge, Mathilde, practices at home in Paris on April 8, 2020, on the 23rd day of a strict lockdown aimed at curbing the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the novel coronavirus. FRANCK FIFE / AFP.
by Gersende Rambourg
PARIS (AFP).- Dancers from the Moulin Rouge in Paris, used to strutting their stuff before large, enthusiastic audiences, now have just the mirror, or sometimes a cat to perform for, as they combat lockdown stagnation with a strict exercise regime at home. Alone. Dancers of the famed cabaret who usually perform French cancans twice a day, six days a week, suddenly find themselves homebound, along with the rest of France due to the coronavirus outbreak. "Working out in my small 30 square-metre (apartment) can be a bit tricky," said Australian Courtney Male, 23, who has performed with the cabaret in Paris' touristy Montmartre district for over a year. "I try to keep everything as normal as possible," said the brunette, in a black leotard and ponytail, using the fireplace, as the highest feature in her apartment, for a dance bar. "I work out in the afternoons, ballet bars, whole body workout" in an effort to stay fit ... More | |
Lee Konitz in performance at Jazz at Lincoln Centers Rose Theater in New York, Feb. 26, 2011. Richard Termine/The New York Times.
by Peter Keepnews
NEW YORK (NYT NEWS SERVICE).- Lee Konitz, a prolific and idiosyncratic saxophonist who was one of the earliest and most admired exponents of the style known as cool jazz, died on Wednesday in Manhattan. He was 92. His niece Linda Konitz said the cause was complications of the coronavirus. She said he also had pneumonia. Konitz initially attracted attention as much for the way he didnt play as for the way he did. Like most of his jazz contemporaries, he adopted the expanded harmonic vocabulary of his fellow alto saxophonist Charlie Parker, the leading figure in modern jazz. But his approach departed from Parkers in significant ways, and he quickly emerged as a role model for musicians seeking an alternative to Parkers pervasive influence. Where modern jazz in the Parker mold, better known as bebop, tended to be passionate and virtuosic, Konitzs improvisations were measured and understated, more thoughtful than heated. I knew and loved Charlie Parker and copied his bebop solos like every ... More |
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| | Luis Sepulveda: best-selling exiled Chilean writer | | The future that Hollywood feared is happening now | | 'First Blood' actor Brian Dennehy dies aged 81 |
Chilean writer Luis Sepulveda attends the signing of his book "L'ombre de ce que nous avons ete" (The Shadow of What We Were). ETIENNE DE MALGLAIVE / AFP.
by Claude Casteran
PARIS (AFP).- Chile's celebrated author Luis Sepulveda, who died Thursday aged 70 from COVID-19, was a committed writer exiled by the Pinochet dictatorship for his political activities. Best-known for his 1992 novel, "The Old Man Who Read Love Stories", Sepulveda was particularly successful in Europe, where he had been based since the 1980s. His works, appreciated for their simple humour and depictions of life in South America, have been translated in some 50 countries and range from novels, chronicles and novellas to children's stories. Sepulveda was born on October 4, 1949, at Ovalle, north of the Chilean capital Santiago. From a young age he was a political activist, first for Chile's Communist Youth, and then for the Socialists. He was arrested and jailed for treason for two-and-a-half years in 1973 under the military regime of Augusto Pinochet. He wrote of this dark period in "La locura de Pinochet" (2003), ... More | |
A movie theater in Cynthiana, Ky., on March 13, 2020. Maddie McGarvey/The New York Times.
by Kyle Buchanan
NEW YORK (NYT NEWS SERVICE).- The movie industry was already on a precipice. Did the pandemic just give it a push? With theaters shuttered all over the world and hundreds of millions of people ordered to stay at home, its unclear when the movie industry can resume business as normal, or even whether that normal will look anything like Hollywood wants it to. Pivotal pieces of the film calendar including the summer-blockbuster season and the year-end awards gantlet have been thrown into disarray, and in their absence the gulf between streaming media and the theatrical experience may only widen further. How will the movie industry cope with these disruptions, and what will happen to the rest of 2020 if fearful audiences cant be coaxed back to the theater? Season by season, the outlook is bleak. Summer: Blockbuster Season Evaporates If a magic wand could be waved that would eradicate the coronavirus and free people from their homes, the most lucrative summer movie season ever would ... More | |
Brian Dennehy, the versatile Tony and Golden Globe-winning actor known to wider audiences for blockbuster movies "First Blood" and "Romeo + Juliet," has died aged 81. Astrid Stawiarz / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / AFP
LOS ANGELES (AFP).- Brian Dennehy, the versatile Tony and Golden Globe-winning actor known to wider audiences for blockbuster movies "First Blood" and "Romeo + Juliet," has died aged 81. His career spanned four decades, including early television roles in "Dynasty" and "Dallas," acclaimed Broadway performances such as in "Death of a Salesman," and voice work on the Pixar hit movie "Ratatouille." Dennehy passed away from natural causes not related to coronavirus at his Connecticut home Wednesday evening, with his wife Jennifer and son Cormac by his side, his agent said in a statement to AFP. "Larger than life, generous to a fault, a proud and devoted father and grandfather, he will be missed by his wife Jennifer, family and many friends," tweeted daughter Elizabeth, also an actress. After a recurring role in "Dynasty" in 1981, Dennehy came to prominence the following year playing the overzealous sheriff who takes on Sylvester Stallone's ... More |
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Curators' Choices, 1982 | From the Vaults
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Cyprus imam revives island's historic Islamic sites
LARNACA (AFP).- Like the pink flamingos that winter on the salt lake nearby, most worshippers at the Hala Sultan Tekke mosque in Cyprus have travelled from afar. The fact they are praying at the pilgrimage site at all is largely thanks to Shakir Alemdar, a Cypriot imam determined to revive key Islamic places of worship on the divided Mediterranean island. "For the Turkish Cypriots, this place has great meaning," he told AFP. "Everyone has a love for this place." The cheerful 51-year-old grew up in the capital Nicosia and recalls visiting the most holy Islamic site in Cyprus, near the southeastern city of Larnaca, as a child. But shortly afterwards, in 1974, an Athens-backed coup aimed at unification with Greece sparked a Turkish invasion of the northern third of the island. Greek Cypriots, mostly Orthodox Christians, fled south. Majority-Muslim Turkish Cypriots took refuge in the north, ... More
£25,000 fund for Brent artists launched by Metroland Cultures
LONDON.- The Metroland Cultures Fund a brand new £25,000 fund to provide financial support to Brent artists and creatives during lockdown is being launched to support and encourage the vibrant creative life of the borough during the COVID-19 crisis. The Metroland Cultures Fund will be the first initiative by Metroland Cultures - the charity set up by Brent 2020, London Borough of Culture to help deliver its cultural programme for the year and ensure its legacy for local people beyond 2020. Metroland Cultures is offering grants of up to £1,000 to artists and creatives living in Brent who have been impacted by loss of work and income to enable them to use this time to develop and sustain their practice. Lois Stonock, Artistic Director of Brent 2020, said: Brent 2020 is more than just a programme of events. It is an investment in the creative life of the borough, now and in the future. ... More
Jeffrey S. Evans & Associates announces an outstanding auction of 18th & 19th century glass and lighting
MT. CRAWFORD, VA.- Jeffrey S. Evans & Associates will conduct their 21st annual spring auction of 18th & 19th century glass and lighting on May 20th beginning at 9:30 a.m. ET. The sale will featuring part one of the collection of the late Alexander Hierholzer (Holt) and Harry Saunders, Philadelphia, PA: the Duane Sand collection, Eureka Springs, AR; the cup plate collection of the late Dolores J. Bowler, Ayer, MA; the collection of Lynne and the late Philip Blaker, Austin, TX; material from the Thomas Bredehoft collection, Saint Louisville, OH, and the Harold Smalley collection, Osterville, MA; property of the Russell and Doris Evitt estate collection, Jackson, CA; material deaccessioned from a private institution to benefit its Conservation and Acquisitions Fund; plus others. The auction will comprise free-blown and pattern-molded glass including lily-pad ... More
Works, From Home, A new mural project from the Albright-Knox Public Art Initiative
BUFFALO, NY.- Today the Albright-Knox announced that the museums Public Art Initiative has partnered with sixteen artists throughout Western New York to create a mural, painted in sections in each artists own home or studio, that will be displayed after the COVID-19 crisis subsides. Each artist will work in their own space with materials provided by the museum and will document their progress on their personal social media channels using the hashtags #AKPublicArt and #WorksFromHome. The location of the finished work is yet to be determined. The Public Art Initiative has assembled small kits containing mural supplies from the museums inventory, including precut sections of primed material called Polytab, and high-pigment, UV-resistant acrylic paints. Polytab, when painted with acrylics, can be adhered to a wall using a clear acrylic gel, creating ... More
Essence Festival canceled amid coronavirus outbreak in New Orleans
NEW YORK (NYT NEWS SERVICE).- Essence magazines annual festival, which draws hundreds of thousands of people to New Orleans over the Fourth of July weekend to celebrate black culture, was canceled Wednesday to prevent the further spread of the coronavirus. From the beginning, we have shared that the health, safety and well-being of our festivalgoers, local citizens and others who contribute to making the festival such a unique experience were our top concerns, festival organizers said in a statement, and would be the foremost considerations in our decision-making. The festival hosts citywide events over the holiday weekend that include concerts and workshops on economic empowerment, advocacy and entrepreneurship. Last year, Mayor LaToya Cantrell of New Orleans and Essence magazine agreed that the city would ... More
In Syria, online salsa class sidesteps lockdown gloom
DAMASCUS (AFP).- Inside her living room in the Syrian capital, Aline Srouji steps forward and backward at a near-dizzying pace, demonstrating to her students locked down at home how to Salsa. Performing to a phone camera across the room, the 35-year-old records a lesson she will share on social media networks, more than a month after she first closed her Latin dance school due to confinement measures designed to forestall the pandemic. Dressed casually in jeans and a black T-shirt, Srouji's heels barely tap the floor when she performs an elaborate and complicated dance to Colombian music. "We had started this year by seeing a rise in the number of dance students," she tells AFP, from the marble steps of her living room. "We would have reached more people had it not been for the coronavirus, which forced us to take a step back." Syria's government ... More
Head On(line) Photo Festival reveals interactive digital program
SYDNEY.- Head On Photo Festival has today revealed highlight events for its diverse public program presented entirely online. Running from 1-17 May 2020, Australias leading annual international photography event will present over 100 exhibitions and a daily program of over 80 online events. The 2020 program features more than 50 artist talks and panel discussions presented by internationally celebrated photographers and leading industry professionals from around the globe and a series of free photography workshops led by award winning photographers including Oded Wagenstein and experts from Adobe and Sony. The winners for the 2020 Head On Awards will be announced at the Festivals launch party held online on Friday 1 May from 6pm. A highlight of the Sydney arts calendar, this free public event will showcase the works ... More
August Wilson African American Cultural Center launches virtual gallery tours
PITTSBURGH, PA.- The August Wilson African American Cultural Center announced today that it is launching its first-ever virtual tours of its two most recent visual arts exhibitions: Vanishing Black Bars & Lounges: Photographs by L. Kasimu Harris and I came by Boat so Meet me at the Beach: Ayana M. Evans and Tsedaye Makonnen . Following the decision to close its doors to ensure the health of its staff, patrons, and community, the Center made the difficult decision to postpone programming and end its gallery exhibitions early due to COVID-19. In response, the Center, one of the largest non-profit cultural organizations in the country focused exclusively on the African American experience and the arts of the African diaspora, has created virtual gallery tours to provide a platform to showcase the work of these artists, providing an online, artist- ... More
Museum of the Moving Image to debut 'ROOM H.264: Quarantine, April 2020'
NEW YORK, NY.- In response to the cancellation of film festivals around the world and disruption in the lives and work of filmmakers, the documentary ROOM H.264: Quarantine, April 2020filmed and edited over the course of the last two weeksmakes its debut online on Sunday, April 19, 12:00 P.M. EDT on Vimeo and will remain online until May 3. A live discussion with filmmakers Eric Hynes, Jeff Reichert, and Damon Smith will take place on Sunday evening at 8:00 P.M. Shot via Skype, ROOM H.264: Quarantine, April 2020 features those whose work was slated to screen at festivals like SXSW, CPH:DOX, Tribeca, First Look and more. The documentary depicts a broad range of filmmakers, each sequestered in their own spaces in locations throughout North America, Europe, Africa and beyond, responding to a question first posed by Wim ... More
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PhotoGalleries
Roy De Forest
Franz Klainsek
Niclas Riepshoff
Charles Atlas
Flashback On a day like today, Ukrainian-American sculptor Louise Nevelson died April 17, 1988. Louise Nevelson (September 23, 1899 - April 17, 1988) was an American sculptor known for her monumental, monochromatic, wooden wall pieces and outdoor sculptures. In this image: Installation view.of an exhibition at McCabe Fine Art that presented a diverse selection of Louise NevelsonÂs late career Works.
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