Earlier this month, with the Netherlands under COVID lockdown, raiders broke into a small museum and took van Gogh’s Parsonage Garden at Nuenen in Spring. Writer Daniel Dumas talks to two experts in the recovery of stolen art about where the painting might be now, how and where they might try to sell it, who likely buyers might be, and how art thieves get caught. – Esquire
Category: visual
I Donated My Paintings To A Prison. Did I Accomplish Anything?
“Who knows if the paintings I donated hold beauty in the harsh, isolated world of incarcerated people? I never ask these viewers directly; in prison, this question can beg answers like, “Your paintings? I love them. Get me out of here!” I wasn’t doing research, and didn’t need to know. The paintings just became part of the prison. It wasn’t until after teaching there that I got any sense of the paintings’ meanings in their context.” – Broad Street Review
What The Art Of The AIDS Era Has To Say To Us Now
Fear of and distancing from those who have or are suspected of having the virus counts as a similarity, the key difference being how AIDS became linked to identity . “In the early days of AIDS, all forms of contact were made fraught. I remember people going home and being told that they were not welcome.” – ARTnews
What Hope Is There For Rebuilding Notre-Dame Amid The COVID Economic Disaster? Another Cathedral May Provide An Answer
However difficult things may be once the coronavirus is under control, they likely won’t be as bad as in Germany just after World War II. Cologne Cathedral had been hit 14 times by Allied bombs. Yet it was rebuilt and reopened. Here’s a look at how. – National Geographic
Germany Will Provide Money And Craftspeople To Rebuild Notre-Dame’s Upper Windows
“The exact scope and nature of Germany’s contribution will be determined in the coming months on the basis of studies on the ground, [a] statement said, adding that three glass workshops at German cathedrals have the extensive expertise and experience necessary to undertake the restoration of the clerestory windows.” – The Art Newspaper
The Metropolitan Museum Turned 150 Monday – Its Doors Closed And Debts Mounting
So is Boston’s MFA 150. Both institutions are hemorrhaging money: a projected $100 million at the Met; $12 million to $14 million at the MFA by the end of June. Thousands of events, including long-planned 150th-anniversary celebrations and fundraising galas, have been canceled. – Washington Post
How To Reopen Museums – Quickly And Safely
Andras Szanto: “Museums could offer people who have experienced weeks of isolation a safe place to go, or a reprieve from cramped quarters. Their opening would signal the beginnings of a return to normalcy. What’s more, once the public is back, museums can serve as hubs of education, information-sharing, and collective reflection as we work together to surmount this crisis.” – Artnet
Here’s To The Workers Disinfecting The World’s Great Historic Sites
“While non-essential workers are still housebound, pictures from around the world show surreal scenes of Tyvek suit-wearing workers spraying down eerily empty spaces like Hagia Sophia in Istanbul and the Egyptian Museum in Cairo,” the Great Pyramids of Giza, the Leaning Tower of Pisa and the Great Mosque of Mecca. – Artnet
Rio Lights Up Christ The Redeemer Statue To Honor Healthcare Workers Treating Coronavirus
“The striking scene included messages of thanks in many languages, along with images of nurses and doctors smiling in protective gear. The word ‘hope’ was also projected onto the statue, along with the Portuguese phrase Fique Em Casa or ‘Stay at Home’.” – NPR
How Museums In Europe Are Faring
Most are shut down, though in places such as Albania and Sweden where museums remain open, they’re seeing increases in visitors. Closed museums report an 80 percent loss of income. Many are increasing digital content and there is a spike in visitors there. – Arts Professional