Art Industry News: Philadelphia’s Mayor Says the City’s Biggest Art Museum Needs an HR Overhaul Following Harassment Scandal + 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 Thursday, January
16.

NEED-TO-READ

Macklowe Collection Headed to Auction Soon – The battle
is on for what is expected to be the most lucrative consignment of
2020. Sotheby’s, Christie’s,
and Phillips have been invited to submit pitches to a
custodian—famed art dealer Michael Findlay—who has been tasked
with selling off the art collection of billionaire couple Harry and
Linda Macklowe as part of an ongoing effort to settle their bitter
divorce. According to a court
order, some 65 artworks
are due to be sold
and the profits split between the
feuding exes. The trove is said to be worth up to $700 million and
includes works by Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol, and Mark
Rothko. (Bloomberg)

Ed Ruscha Gets the Profile Treatment – T Magazine‘s M.H.
Miller meets the celebrated 82-year-old LA-based artist—who he says
has the charisma of a cowboy and the looks of a movie star—at his
studio in Culver City. Over the past 50 years, Ruscha has become a
master at deconstructing American imagery, from road signs (he
wanted to become a sign painter when he was 18) to the 20th Century
Fox logo. But he remains even-tempered regarding his recent
stratospheric auction sale, when one of his works sold for $52.5 million.
“It’s just the flow of commerce, and here we are, little helpless
creatures while it all whooshes by,” he says.  For his newest
works, the Oklahoma-born artist worked with drum skins, painting
patois sayings from his home state (one says: “I Never Done Nobody
No Harm”). His newest show, “Drum Skins,” at the Blanton Museum of
Art is on view until June. (New York
Times)

Mayor Encourages Philadelphia Museum to Revamp HR Policies
– Fallout continues from
the investigation surrounding Joshua Helmer, the former assistant
director of interpretation at the Philadelphia Museum of Art who
was dismissed from his current role at the Erie Art
Museum after the New
York Times revealed
accusations of harassment from nine women, eight of which dated
from his time at the PMA. Now, the city’s mayor, Jim Kenney, has
called for the institution to revamp its personnel policies. A
spokesman for the mayor said that the museum “should review and
strengthen its policies regarding anti-fraternization and sexual
harassment, and require training for all staff.” (Philadelphia
Inquirer)

The New Museum Is Opening a Mixed Reality Lab –
The New Museum is teaming up with
the Onassis Foundation to launch a mixed reality lab in New York,
which will include artist residencies and an exhibition gallery. In
its first year, ONX Studio, located in the Onassis Gallery of
Midtown’s Olympic Tower, will welcome a dozen artists for a
year-long residency. (The Art
Newspaper)

ART MARKET

George Condo’s Move to Hauser & Wirth Is Official
– It was reported in Wet Paint back
in December, but now it’s press-release
official: The mega-gallery has
announced representation of the New York-based artist and market
heavyweight George Condo. His first exhibition will take place
ahead of Art Basel in June at Hauser & Wirth in Zürich. Condo will
no longer work directly with longtime New York dealer Skarstedt,
though he will continue to be represented by Spruth Magers.
(Press
release)

Condo Is Coming to Berlin – In other Condo news that has nothing to
do with George, art dealer Vanessa Carlos told
the Financial
Times that she is
planning to launch the gallery-sharing event she founded, Condo, in
Berlin later this year. “I’ve been approached by some galleries
there to organize something in September, when they no longer have
an art fair,” Carlos said, referring to the recent news that
Art Berlin would close up shop. (Financial
Times)

Paris Auctions Surged in 2019 – Global sales at Sotheby’s, Christie’s,
and Phillips fell 20 percent in 2019, according to a new report
from ArtTactic. But while New York and Brexit-battered London saw
sharp dips in total sales, Paris was on the rise: the City of
Lights saw its global market share rise from 4.4 percent in 2018 to
6.8 percent last year. (FT)

COMINGS & GOINGS

Former Pompidou Chief to Lead Palazzo Grassi –
Billionaire art collector François
Pinault has named Bruno Racine as the new director of his two
Venice museums, Palazzo Grassi and Punta della Dogana. Racine, a
former director of the Centre Pompidou, will take up the post at
the end of March so that the Palazzo’s current director, Martin
Bethenod, can focus on heading up Pinault’s forthcoming Paris
museum at the former stock exchange. (Press release)

Forensic Artist Betty Pat Gatliff Dies – Betty Pat Gatliff, a forensic sculptor who
helped solve crimes by using clay to reconstruct the faces of
murder victims and missing people, has died. Gatliff was a pioneer
of facial reconstruction and had a 70 percent identification rate
over some 300 faces in 40 years. She died on January 5, at age 89,
from complications of a stroke. (NYT)

Cindy Sherman Wins Wolf Prize – The decorated photographer has won the 2020
Wolf Prize in Art, which is given annually by the Wolf Foundation
for “achievements in the
interest of mankind and
friendly relations among peoples.” Sherman is being recognized for
“redefining the concept of art made with a camera.” The prize will
be awarded at a ceremony on June 11 in Jerusalem.
(Press
release)

FOR ART’S SAKE

NEA Announces Art Grants – The chair of the National Endowment for the
Arts, Mary Anne Carter, has announced that organizations in all 50
states, plus Washington, DC, and Puerto Rico, will get funding for
arts projects this year. Some $27.3 million will be spread across
1,187 grants for projects ranging from visual art programs for
incarcerated youth to celebrations marking the centennial of
women’s suffrage. (Artfix
Daily)

Instagram Photoshop Crackdown Hits Digital Artists –
An algorithm designed to detect
fake news is flagging digitally altered photos on
Instagram—including digital art made using Photoshop. Now, artists
are up in arms over the new policy to hide “faked” images, which it
introduced in December and has since declined to alter to
accommodate art. (Peta
Pixel)

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City’s Biggest Art Museum Needs an HR Overhaul Following Harassment
Scandal + Other Stories appeared first on artnet
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