Art Industry News: A Bored British Filmmaker Just Created a Star-Studded Art Exhibition for His Chickens + Other Stories

Art Industry News is a daily digest of the most
consequential developments coming out of the art world and art
market. Here’s what you need to know on this Tuesday, May
12.

NEED-TO-READ

Introducing the Drive-By Art Gallery – An exhibition in South Fork, Long Island, is
giving people the chance to see art without risking getting sick.
“Drive-By-Art (Public Art in This Moment of Social
Distancing)” features work by 52 artists, including Joan Jonas
and Eric Fischl, installed on lawns, porches, driveways, and garage
doors from Hampton Bays to Montauk. Conceived by artist Warren
Neidich, the show was designed as a way to “show empathy and
solidarity in this new age that is lacking in emotional
solidarity.” Neidich has planned another drive-by exhibition
in Los Angeles for Memorial Day weekend. (New York
Times)

V&A to Collect Signs Made During Lockdown –
The V&A has issued a public
call for donations of homemade signs created during the
social-distancing era, from handmade rainbow window crafts to store
notices. Curators have not set out strict criteria as they hope to
acquire a true picture of the world under lockdown. “Some signs
will resort to humor, but then some of them will be incredibly
prosaic and boring—and we need to reflect that,” says design
curator Brendan Cormier. (Guardian)

A Filmmaker Created a Star-Studded Art Show for Chickens
– They say necessity is the mother of invention, and
it seems to be true. Would anything but total lockdown have
inspired a filmmaker to create an extensive art exhibition for his
chickens? Some 50 artists—including Richard Wentworth, Goshka
Macuga, Amalia Pica, and George Shaw—contributed to Jared
Schiller’s open-call exhibition for the animals on his farm in
Kent, southeast England. (The works were solicited on Instagram,
submitted digitally, and then printed out.) The show, which closes
today, has received mixed reviews from the chickens themselves,
some of whom have taken to shredding the works to pieces. Tough
crowd. (The Art
Newspaper)

New York Public Library Acquires Martha Graham Archive
– Filling a significant gap in its story of early
modern dance in America, the New York Public Library has acquired
Martha Graham’s archive, which captures the history of her
influential company, the oldest in the country. The archive, which
comprises photographs and films (the sets and costumes are still in
use), includes rare footage of Graham dancing, a set drawing by
sculptor and collaborator Isamu Noguchi, and notes written to
composer William Schuman. (New York
Times)

ART MARKET

Gallery Weekend Beijing Will Return – The fourth edition
of Gallery Weekend Beijing, which was originally set to take place
in March, will now be held the week from May 22 through May
31. Some 22 galleries and institutions will present solo and
group exhibitions, public art installations, and
events. Philip Tinari, director of the UCCA Center for
Contemporary Art, says it signals a “return of cultural life
to our city.” (Artforum)

Art Basel Announces June Viewing Room – Are you just hankering for
another online fair? Never fear: the next edition of Art Basel’s
Online Viewing Room will be held from June 19 to June 26, with VIP
preview days beginning June 17. Galleries accepted to this year’s
Art Basel fair, now rescheduled for September, can participate at
no extra cost. The platform will boast improvements from the March
version that coincided with Art Basel Hong Kong including the
option to integrate YouTube or Vimeo videos and flexible ordering
of artworks. (Press
release)

COMINGS & GOINGS

Kinetic Artist Abraham Palatnik Has Died – The Brazilian artist known for his visually
striking geometric forms died on Saturday in Rio at age 92 from
complications relating to the coronavirus. Palatnik was a pioneer
of kinetic art who influenced the Brazilian art scene’s pivot
towards abstraction in the mid-20th century. (ARTnews)

National Trust Scotland Could Could Axe 50 Percent of Staff
– The Prospect union is
confronting the Scottish government following news that the
heritage body National Trust Scotland is considering making half of
its workforce redundant. “NTS has custodianship of many of
Scotland’s iconic landscapes and locations which are key to
rebuilding and recovering our economic and cultural life, they
can’t do that if they are closed,” a union rep says in a
statement.
(Press release)

Berlin Museums Are Now Open – Berlin’s Museum Island, home to six museums
including the Pergamon, Alte Nationalgalerie, and the Neues Museum,
is opening its doors to the public after prolonged closure due to
the public health crisis. The museums will operate with strict
social-distancing measures in place, including a one-way foot
traffic system and online booking for timed entry. (Monopol)

FOR ART’S SAKE

A Hotel Blocking the Acropolis Must Demolish Its Top Floors
– A five-star hotel in Athens
has been ordered by Greece’s central archaeological council to
demolish its top two floors because they were blocking views of the
Acropolis. The ruing was made after enraged citizens took their
concerns to the country’s highest court. (Guardian)

See Goshka Macuga’s Satirical Instagram Account –
The London-based artist has kept
herself busy during lockdown by creating a satirical Instagram
account that captures life from the perspective of her dog, Greka.
“I went into it with the aim of entertaining people, sharing, doing
something that existed outside the art market,” Macuga says. “I
think of it in the tradition of the political cartoon.”
(Guardian)

The post Art Industry News: A Bored British Filmmaker Just
Created a Star-Studded Art Exhibition for His Chickens + Other
Stories appeared first on artnet News.