Category: visual

Rowan Atkinson is not happy with the proposed tower or its boosters’ claims that it will make London, exhausted from the battle with COVID-19, feel better. “Its outdated futurism resembles nothing more than the fantasies of a third-world dictator.” – The Guardian (UK)

Perhaps, as one museum director claims, we’re “at a moment for complete reimagination of museums,” but it’s a painful one with the pandemic shutdowns mixing with a long overdue racial reckoning. “Museums are caught in a disheartening dilemma: They’re facing growing calls for diversity, equity, and inclusion, but without the funding they need they’re more likely to close than to be able to meet those demands.” – The Atlantic

Jocelyn Bell Burnell discovered a new type of star – the pulsar – when she was in grad school. A Nobel Prize for its discovery went to her male PhD supervisor. Now her portrait is going into the Royal Society at its headquarters in London. “‘I’m sure that will upset a few fellows,’ she said, chuckling, when told by the Guardian of her position at the top of the grand staircase. ‘It is really prominent I must say, I’m surprised at that.'” – The Guardian (UK)

McCracken’s son says maybe. “He was inspired by the idea of alien visitors leaving objects that resembled his work, or that his work resembled. This discovery of a monolith piece — that’s very much in line with his artistic vision.” – The New York Times

Ideas about statues change as society changes. As this happens, different groups contest the meanings behind the sculptures, leading to disagreement about whether they should be kept or taken down. But while ideologies can change, causing this iconoclash, communities retain their collective memories about something, whether they are good or bad. – The Conversation

“No museum has been able to escape the impact of the pandemic, from long periods of closure decimating revenues, to the continuous landslide of the exhibitions calendar. But in periods of crisis, there can also be opportunity. One idea that came up repeatedly throughout [the Louvre Abu Dhabi and NYU Abu Dhabi’s ‘Reframing Museums’ symposium ] was that many of these problems were identified years ago. But now, there is a real urgency to solve them. Here are three key takeaways for the industry from the discussions.” – Artnet

As one of the judges said of this costly procedure, the law has “to fall on someone“, as “obviously it did not fall on the forger“. – The Art Newspaper

Wildlife officials spotted the “unusual” object while counting sheep during a flyover in a remote south-eastern area of the US state. They said the structure had been planted in the ground between red rock. There was no indication who installed the monolith, which was about 10 to 12ft (3.6m) tall. – BBC

“These artefacts belong to me, because I am African and Congolese. But also because I am a descendant of Ntumba Mvemba, one of the royal families that founded the Kingdom of Kongo in 1390. … People have to understand that if someone stole their heritage they would react as I am now. Many of my ancestors died protecting these items: they were beheaded. … Their pain is inside me.” – The Guardian

Mwazulu Diyabanza and three accomplices were found not guilty of attempted theft by a judge at Marseille’s High Court over a July 30 incident in which the four men took a ceremonial ivory spear from its perch in the city’s Museum of African, Oceanic, and Amerindian Arts, carried the object to the museum’s courtyard, denounced the “plunder” of African art by European colonials during the 19th and 20th centuries, and awaited the arrival of the police. – Artnet