Category: visual

“As protesters have remade this avenue, forcing the removal of memorials to men who betrayed their country, covering the remaining plinths with graffiti and activating the street day and night with new forms of protest and community, they also have underscored deep connections between urban planning and old ideologies of whiteness, greatness and cultural ambition. They have made problematic the idea of the City Beautiful, a powerful late 19th-century American contribution to the annals of urban design.” – Washington Post

The study, conducted by outside consultants at the board’s request after two major scandals broke earlier this year, “found problems and deficiencies at all levels of the hierarchy — from the boardroom on down, museum leaders told staff members at an online meeting Tuesday.” At least, said one staffer, “I was encouraged by how honest [the presentation] felt.” – The Philadelphia Inquirer

Joseph del Pesco, International Director of KADIST: “Sales of art in the US reached $29.9 billion in 2018 … Imagine if just 2 percent of that $29.9 billion did some good. That’s 600 million dollars reaching charitable organizations, about four times the yearly budget of the National Endowment for the Arts. Now imagine if that $600 million was controlled by non-profits run by artists …” – Artnet

“A new report [by the RAND Corporation] claims that … the true size of the market in illicit antiquities may be ‘much smaller’ than is regularly reported. Perhaps more controversially, the report claims that ‘fuelling this disconnect between reported looting and assumed markets for these goods is the problem that bloggers, journalists and advocacy groups, although often producing high-quality research, are rewarded for sensational headlines and claims that bring attention to their issues and readers to their pages or sites’.” – The Art Newspaper

“I think that’s an exciting direction for public art to take, for people to feel a sense of authority and ownership over their shared space and what it should look like. We have a city full of blank walls, of boring, drab streets, of spaces where we could have more public conversations. We have a city full of brilliant artists who want to contribute to those conversations, and a city full of activists who have messages to share, so this is a really exciting moment during which people are taking to the streets and just making art.” – SpacingToronto

If you’re Los Angeles artist Michael Gittes, you paint 1800 small pieces of work, one for each worker, and deliver them to Brooklyn. The artist: “I decided to paint flowers because even though these people are all part of a big beautiful garden, I wanted them to know they were all individual flowers, and without them, there would be no garden. I wanted it to have a ‘secret admirer’ kind of vibe.” – Washington Post

The volunteer’s lawyer: “He bitterly regrets his actions … My client is consumed with remorse,” after admitting he set three small fires that destroyed the organ and stained glass dating back to the 16th century.. – The Guardian (AFP)

The school said in March that it was likely to close, but after more than $4 million in donations, the 149-year-old institution says it can open in the fall for one more full year. But it will need to raise money, specifically from the sale of art by faculty and alumni, to keep afloat after years of declining enrollment. – Hyperallergic

Some images of New York’s abandoned schools: The final, haunting date on the calendar that says “Today is … “; lessons still up about the coronavirus on science classroom whiteboards; all of the school’s plants consolidated into one room, with a couple of turtles, for ease of care. – The New York Times