Art Grant Hits Bottom

The British Press is calling it “cheeky” and a “bum deal.” Welsh artist Sue Williams, 53, was awarded a £20,000 ($32,760 US) grant to study cultural attitudes towards female buttocks. Mrs. Williams explained, “The project is taking on the issues around the bottom and how it is viewed in contemporary culture and viewed by the [...]

Congressman Comments on Ronald Reagan Statue

Congressman Wally Herger, representing the people of California’s District 2, was on hand at the unveiling of the Ronald Reagan statue in the Capitol Rotunda on June 3, 2009. Below are his written comments about the event, and a video he recorded as he stood in front of the statue: I wanted to let you [...]

Reagan Statue in National Statuary Hall Collection

Nancy Reagan will be on hand for the unveiling of the Ronald Reagan statue in the National Statuary Hall at the United States Capitol on Tuesday, June 3, 2009. On Monday, Mrs. Reagan was at the side of President Barack Obama as he signed the Ronald Reagan Centennial Commission Act, which calls for national celebrations [...]

Damien Hirst, Dead Cows and Cradles of Hope

“I have a really good business manager,” said Damien Hirst. “He told me a long time ago ‘You’d better make sure that you’re using the money to chase your art ideas rather than the art to chase your money ideas.’ Which is a very important thing to never forget.” That is sound advice coming from [...]

Happy Birthday to David Gilhooly

On any given April 15th, many Americans are sweating out last minute tax returns. But my thoughts always turn to my good friend David Gilhooly. He was born April 15, 1943, in the Sierra Nevada foothills of California. A sculptor, painter, printmaker and all-around fine artist, David rose to prominence in the 1960s as a [...]

Castrobama

The first major group show of American artists in Cuba opened on Saturday, March 28, 2009. It’s called “Chelsea visits Havana.” No, not that Chelsea. Even though Ms. Clinton’s father was sympathetic to the frequent visits to Cuba by American art dealers, this show got its name from the Manhattan district where the 30 artists [...]

Las Vegas Art Museum to Close

The Las Vegas Art Museum is shutting down on February 28, 2009. “We’ve tried everything to keep this afloat. It’s just a challenging time,” said Patrick Duffy, president of the museum’s board. “The economic climate has eliminated several of our donations or reduced them significantly.” The museum got its start in 1950 as the Las [...]

Obama, Churchill, the Mau Maus and Artless Diplomacy

A bronze bust of Sir Winston Churchill, created by American-born artist Sir Jacob Epstein in 1946, was loaned to the White House in 2001 by the Tony Blair administration as a symbol of the enduring special relationship between the United Kingdom and the United States. President George W. Bush kept the sculpture on display in [...]

Plunder Under the Hammer

Fashion designer Yves Saint-Laurent died in June 2008. Now his companion, Pierre Berge, has put up for auction a substantial number of works from the famed designer’s art collection. The money raised by the sale will go to fund HIV-AIDs research. Included among the pieces at auction are two bronze animal heads, a rabbit and [...]

Traditional Art in an Economic Downturn

There were signs this week that the commodity value of traditional art may be adversely affected by the struggling economy. That’s what the early indicators show, even though a bronze version of Edgar Degas’ sculpture “Little Dancer” (Petite danseuse de quatorze ans) sold at Sotheby’s in London on Tuesday night for a record £13.3 million [...]