Category: visual

Let’s go deep: “You are not a hopeless philistine if you find this all a bit foolish. Foolishness, and the deflating sensation that a culture that once encouraged sublime beauty now only permits dopey jokes, is Mr. Cattelan’s stock in trade. But perhaps you will find more to appreciate in Mr. Cattelan’s work if you take note of two points: one formal, one social.” – The New York Times

It’s a candy Venice. A Venice of candy and gingerbread, royal icing (“basically like glue”) and buttercream for decoration. And when roofs collapse? The teams soldier, or solder (with buttercream), on. – NPR

The now-18-year-old said he did it because “he had to prove a point ‘to every idiot’ who said he had no mental health problems, asking police if it was going to be on the news.” – BBC

A judge for next year’s Women’s Prize for Fiction probably won’t be awarding multiple prizes, looks like: “If you can’t get past this inherent flaw in the business of prizegiving – that there can only be one winner – then frankly you can’t be involved on any level and you should absent yourself from the process, whether as a judge, nominee or fan.” – The Observer (UK)

LA’s MOCA employees now won’t need to go through additional certifying steps – or employer “education” either. MOCA Director Klaus Biesenbach said recognizing the union was “in full alignment with this vision we have set forth for our institution. Ultimately, we’re taking this step to come together as one team, one MOCA.” – Los Angeles Times

The New York-based performance artist David Datuna recorded for Instagram (of course) the removal and eating of the banana, a much-discussed artwork by Maurizio Cattelan. But, plot twist: “Gallery officials replaced the banana with another one, saying that the artwork was not destroyed and that the banana was simply an ‘idea.'” – The New York Times

“In the 1980s, during the Iran-Iraq War, Saddam Hussein became obsessed with the Babylonian ruler Nebuchadnezzar, who is notorious for waging bloody wars to seize large swaths of current-day Iran and Israel. Saddam saw himself as a modern reincarnation of Nebuchadnezzar, and to prove it, he spent millions building a massive reconstruction of Babylon. … Today, it seems to fall between picnic site and abandoned theme park.” – Atlas Obscura

“On December 3, one day after Mira Dzhangaracheva resigned her post as director of the National Museum of Fine Arts in Bishkek, a commission of officials from the Culture Ministry confiscated half a dozen exhibits. Organizers the maiden Feminnale of Contemporary Art in Bishkek placed signs reading ‘censored’ in their place.” – Eurasianet

Don’t call it a name change, though. Museum officials say it is a rebranding that clarifies the missions of the joint institutions. And, they say, it has absolutely nothing to do with international protests over the Sackler family’s connection to the opioid crisis. – Washington Post

Armenian pottery has become synonymous with Jerusalem, so it’s a shock to learn that the city’s ceramic tradition, beyond major monuments such as the Dome of the Rock, is just 100 years old and that it was inspired by a single Turkish-Armenian master craftsman. – Times Of Israel