UK Artist Nasser Azam Completes Major Antarctic Performance Painting Series

LONDON.- Artist endures extreme weather conditions in sub-zero temperatures to produce a series of large-scale outdoor paintings inspired by the Antarctic continent.
Painter and sculptor Nasser Azam has today returned to the UK having endured temperatures of -30˚C (wind chill of -45˚C) and battled winds as high as 100kph, whilst completing a series of large-scale paintings in the Antarctic tundra.
Over the course of a nine days on the continent (20–28 February), Azam produced a total of 13 paintings in response to [...]

Thirteen’s SundayArts Teams Up with New Arts Correspondent Melissa Chiu

NEW YORK, NY.- SundayArts — THIRTEEN’S unique broadcast and online showcase for the arts – adds its newest correspondent, Melissa Chiu , in March 2010. Chiu will conduct a series of interviews with tastemakers in the arts who are multi-generational and culturally diverse; her interviews will focus on the compelling life stories of her subjects, who include The Nose opera director William Kentridge, Oscar Award- winning composer Tan Dun, painter Chuck Close, filmmaker and artist Shirin Neshat, and conceptual artist [...]

Johanna Unzueta Presented Named Recipient of PULSE Prize New York 2010

NEW YORK, NY.- Johanna Unzueta, presented by RJ Fine Arts, was announced yesterday as the recipient of the PULSE Prize New York 2010. Unzueta was selected by the PULSE Committee as an emerging artist of distinction from her presentation in the IMPULSE section of the fair. The announcement was made by PULSE Executive Director Helen Allen at 2:00 pm in the IMPULSE Café, where the artist was presented with the $2,500 award.

Johanna Unzueta, “Transition”, 2010. Felt and thread, 12 x [...]

Sophie Calle Announced as The 2010 Hasselblad Award Winner

GOTHENBURG.- French artist Sophie Calle from Paris has been selected as the 30th winner of the Hasselblad Foundation International Award in Photography. The prize, consisting of SEK 1,000,000 (approximately EUR 100,000) a diploma and a gold medal will be presented to Sophie Calle on Saturday 30 October 2010 at a ceremony at the Göteborg City Theatre. In conjunction with the ceremony an exhibit of the award winner’s work, Sophie Calle – 2010 Hasselblad Award Winner will open at the Hasselblad [...]

James Murdoch Nominated to the Board of Sotheby’s

NEW YORK, NY.- Michael Sovern, Chairman of Sotheby’s, announced that James Murdoch had been unanimously nominated by the Board of Directors of Sotheby’s to stand for election as a Director of Sotheby’s at the Company’s May 6, 2010 Annual Meeting of Shareholders.
“James has impressive experience in several important areas that will be immensely valuable to Sotheby’s” said Mr. Sovern. “His knowledge of Asia and his media perspectives which include his sophisticated understanding of digital media and the Internet are a [...]

Canadian Glass Artist Laura Donefer Named Fourth GAPP Artist

TOLEDO, OH.- Canadian Laura Donefer, who has been using glass as a primary medium in her work for more than 27 years, is the fourth artist invited to participate in the Toledo Museum of Art (TMA)’s prestigious Guest Artist Pavilion Project (GAPP). She The American-born Donefer, who now lives in Harrowsmith, Ontario will be an artist in residence from May 14-22, 2010 and will return in the fall to continue her work.
The GAPP program invites one glass or contemporary artist [...]

Fondation Beyeler Founder Ernst Beyeler Dies at 88 in Basel

GENEVA.- Ernst Beyeler, whose early eye for undervalued Picassos and Impressionists helped him assemble one of Europe’s most famous art collections, has died, his Beyeler Foundation said Friday. He was 88.
Beyeler died Thursday evening at his home near Basel, said the museum, which he created 13 years ago out of his sprawling gallery of masterpieces.
Beyeler, the son of a Swiss railway employee, became a widely respected art patron after World War II by acquiring hundreds of works by Pablo Picasso, [...]

Fashion World’s Provocateur Alexander McQueen Dead at 40

LONDON.- British fashion designer Alexander McQueen, whose provocative collections made him a global star, was found dead at his London home on Thursday in what media said appeared to be suicide. He was 40.
Nicknamed the “hooligan” of British fashion for his close-cropped hair, trademark Doc Marten boots and shocking catwalk collections, McQueen rose from teenage trainee tailor to runway darling before the age of 30. He had been expected to unveil his new collection at Paris Fashion Week in March.
“He [...]

High Museum of Art Names Artist Renee Stout as David C. Driskell Prize Winner

ATLANTA, GA.- The High Museum of Art has named artist Renee Stout as the 2010 recipient of the David C. Driskell Prize. Named after the renowned African American artist and art scholar, the Driskell Prize is an annual award that recognizes a scholar or artist in the beginning or middle of his or her career whose work makes an original and important contribution to the field of African American art or art history. Based in Washington , D.C. , Stout [...]

Hamza Walker and Artur Zmijewski Win $100,000 Ordway Prize

NEW YORK, NY.- Creative Link for the Arts and the New Museum have announced Hamza Walker, the Director of Education and Associate Curator at Chicago’s Renaissance Society, and Polish artist Artur Żmijewski, as the recipients of the Ordway Prize. An international panel of Nominators and a Jury of leading arts world figures-led by Jennifer McSweeney, Director of Creative Link for the Arts, and Richard Flood, Chief Curator at the New Museum-selected the Ordway Prize recipients from a global pool of [...]

Marika Rivera, Daughter of Artist Diego Rivera, Dies in England

LONDON.- Marika Rivera, a daughter of the Mexican artist Diego Rivera, has died in England, her son said Tuesday. She was 90.
She died Jan. 14 of advanced dementia at Chestnut House nursing home in Charlton Down, England, said David Phillips, her son by her second marriage.
Rivera, a film and stage actress who had little contact with or support from her father, was born from his tempestuous affair with the Russian-born artist Marevna Vorobieff. They moved in the same revolutionary avant [...]

Spanish Royal Society Awards Robert Descharnes Gold Medal as World’s Leading Dali Expert

BARCELONA.- On December 17, 2009 the Real Círculo Artístico of Barcelona (Royal Artistic Circle of Barcelona – RCAB), Spain, issued a proclamation awarding French photographer Robert Descharnes, long term friend and associate of Salvador Dalí and expert in his work, its coveted Gold Medal “For the merit which he displays, the greatest authority in the world in the knowledge and defense of the work of the artist Salvador Dalí i Domench.” The award was accepted on Robert Descharnes’ behalf by [...]

Jack Becker Named New Joslyn Art Museum Executive Director

OMAHA, NE.- Jim Young, chairman of Joslyn Art Museum’s board of governors, announced today that Jack F. Becker, Ph.D., has accepted the position as executive director of Joslyn Art Museum.
Dr. Becker, 46, comes to Joslyn from Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art in Nashville, Tennessee, where he has served as president and chief executive officer since 2005. He joined Cheekwood in 2002 as vice president/director of its art museum. Prior to that, Dr. Becker worked as curator of the [...]

Leading Contemporary Australian Artist Commissioned to Paint for FIFA World Cup 2010

ADELAIDE HILLS.- Leading contemporary Australian artist Chris Wake has been commissioned to do a painting for the 2010 International Fine Art Project to celebrate the FIFA World Cup 2010 South Africa.
It is one of the largest and most ambitious art collaborations in history. In a few months South Africa will host the FIFA world cup South Africa – the biggest and most-watched sporting event in the world. In the eighty years of the FIFA World Cup fine art has never [...]

Noted African-American Art Collector Paul R. Jones Dies in Georgia

ATLANTA, GA.- Paul R. Jones, a collector of African-American art who donated troves of works to universities in Delaware and Alabama, has died. He was 81.
Jones died in Atlanta on Tuesday after a brief illness, said University of Alabama spokeswoman Angie Estes. The university established an art collection in Jones’ name after receiving some 1,700 pieces valued at $5 million in 2008.
Despite humble beginnings in Alabama and never independently wealthy, Jones began buying pieces in the 1960s after noting African-American [...]