Titian gets vandalized, but its Okay.

The Minneapolis Institute of Arts maintains its sense of humor after a billboard, advertising its notable Titian exhibition, was vandalized.  The bare-chested beauty portrayed on the billboard was given a spraypainted red top to keep her warm in the cold winter weather, with the word, "Brrr!" accompanying the spraypainted adjustment. 
Rather than taking it down however, the museum decided to leave the billboard up, stating that there was some truth to the new display. "It is cold!" states the Minneapolis Institute of Arts head of PR, Anne-Marie Wagener, "it has that whole sort of funny element." 
Kudos to the Minneapolis Institute of Arts for exercising a sense of levity and some flexibility.

The Art Newspaper

The Met goes virtual

The Metropolitan Museum of Art has plans to turn their prestigious art museum more "technology-friendly". The museum has taken on the daunting task of wiring its huge facility for Wi-Fi, so that visitors can access the app that correlates to the artwork on display.  In the future, a more advanced program will be available to visitors with smart phones or tablet computers, so that they can quickly view text, narrations, and images of the artwork. This more entertaining approach to museum experiences will hopefully draw a broader audience and help "demystify the museum". 

Read The Met's Plans for Virtual Expansion for more information. 

Google Art Project

Now you can tour internationally renown museums from your desktop at home. Google's new Art Project uses their "Street View"technology to allow viewers to digitally walk through museums such as the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, the MoMA in New York, the Palace of Versailles in France, and the National Gallery in London.  With advanced zoom capabilities and easily-accessed information on each of the paintings, these virtual tours are almost better than the real thing!

GOOGLE ART PROJECT

Ongoing Search for Art Forger, Museums Beware

A man by the name of Mark A. Landis has been traveling around the country, most prolifically throughout Louisiana, attempting to donate his forged paintings to various museums. Unlike most forgers however, he does not seem to be in it for the money. Landis rather seems to do it for a kind of satisfaction at seeing his works accepted as authentic. He takes nothing in return for them other than an occasional lunch or a few items from the gift shop and turns down tax write-off forms. It’s unclear whether he has broken any laws so far. Nonetheless, his activities have still ended up costing museums. They have had to pay for analysis of the works, for research to figure out if more of his fakes are hiding in their collections and for legal advice.  Mark Tullos Jr., Museum Director at the Paul and Lulu Hilliard University Art Museum in Louisiana, states that Landis is “very well read and knows a lot about art history, and so he can be very convincing.”

Landis’ whereabouts at the moment are still unknown as museums and their lawyers attempt to locate him.  He was last seen in November trying to donate a French Academic drawing to the Ackland Art Museum at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, but has since disappeared.  The above image is a photo of Landis from the Louisiana State University.

So museums, keep a sharp eye out for the elusive Mark Landis.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/12/arts/design/12fraud.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1

Jeff Koons Sues SF Gallery for Copying Balloon Animals

The Park Life art gallery and store in San Francisco recently received a "cease and desist" letter from Jeff Koons regarding their sale of resin balloon animal bookends.  Koons claims the bookends rip-off his stainless steel, multi-million dollar balloon animal sculptures, and demands that they be pulled from the shelf immediately.
Jamie Alexander, co-owner of Park Life, has pulled the bookends but is outraged by Koons' claim over the image of balloon animals.  She states, "This man can't own something that existed before him." Local copyright lawyer Simon Frankel agrees by saying, "The idea that Jeff Koons would have an exclusive right to make objects in the shape of a balloon dog simply because he made one is surprising and inconsistent with copyright law".


As The L Magazine puts it...
"So there you have it, Jeff Koons is now the world's only licensed balloon animal artist.  Puppies start at about $2 million. See you at the state fair."

http://bit.ly/giDOr9

Museum Unaware of Missing Edvard Munch Painting

Three stolen paintings from the Malmo Art Museum in Sweden, including an Edvard Munch valued at $1.5 million (the painting of two dogs titled, Two Friends), were recovered in October earlier this year. A 52-year-old-man, later given extended probation on theft charges, claimed that he found the paintings amongst debris on a wharf near the museum.  The police, who discovered the paintings while investigating a separate crime, contacted the museum to report the paintings' ascertainment.  The museum had not been aware that the paintings were missing from their storage racks.


Since the recovery of the paintings, the Malmo Art Museum has upgraded their security measures and experienced an increase in funds, presumably due to the amount of attention surrounding the museum after the incident.

http://www.cbc.ca/arts/artdesign/story/2010/12/29/munch-theft.html

Andy Warhol

As the New York MoMA exhibits original footage and print material from Andy Warhol's creative process, intrigue and fascination have once again fallen upon this inspiring father of Pop Art. In response to this, we at the Bentley Gallery have found a delightful video relating to the unique personality and style that is Andy Warhol..

ANDY WARHOL'S WIGS

Steve Martin on "The Colbert Report"

After publishing his new novel, "An Object of Beauty", Steve Martin has gained much attention for his knowledge about the art world, especially on Stephen Colbert's show, The Colbert Report...

Steve Martin on The Colbert Report

Frank Stella, Shepard Fairey, and Andres Serrano help create Stephen Colbert's portrait

MoMA May Be in Posession of Stolen Cezanne

French engineer, Pierre Konowaloff, has filed a lawsuit against the Metropolitan Museum of Art, claiming his rightful ownership of a Cezanne painting that the museum holds in its private collection. Konowaloff states that the painting was stolen from his great-grandfather in 1918 by Lenin’s Bolshevik army after they raided his house and looted his extensive art collection. Konowaloff’s attorney argues, “This goes to the heart of how these highly respected institutions acquire what they have and what responsibilities they have in getting them.” In response, the MOMA issued a statement defending its ownership of the painting and claims that “this lawsuit is totally without merit”. Konowaloff also has a similar lawsuit against Yale University for ownership of Vincent van Gogh’s “The Night Café”.

http://bit.ly/h0ws2Y

Steve Martin writes about Art

Steve Martin, the acclaimed comedian and actor, takes on the art world in his new book titled, "An Object of Beauty". Martin's knowledge about the art world is well displayed as he discusses the tale of Lacey Yeager, the book's main character, in her trials and tribulations at moving her way up from the basement of Sotheby's to a space all her own. Sketchy dealings, affairs with rich collectors, and a close association with a rising star artist, lead to further entertainment in the story.

http://www.theartnewspaper.com/articles/Steve+Martin+takes+on+the+art+world/21935