News From the Art World: January 12, 2021
Curators Scour Capitol for Damage to the Building or Its Art
Barbara A. Wolanin did not leave her TV much on Wednesday afternoon, watching terrified, she said, as hundreds of Trump rioters rushed into the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol building where eight large, framed historical paintings hang.
She once was curator for the Architect of the Capitol, the office that preserves and maintains the building’s art and architecture. She knew much better than most the horrific possibilities that were presenting themselves.
Via New York Times
The Smithsonian Is Rushing to Collect Flags, Protest Signs, and Other Ephemera From the Pro-Trump Insurrection in the US Capitol
The storming of the US capitol by a pro-Trump mob on January 6 brought insurrectionists in close contact with Congress’s historic art collection, which includes monumental John Trumbull paintings and 100 statues of notable Americans.
But while the artworks appear to have escaped direct harm from the violent invaders—who smashed windows, destroyed AP camera equipment, vandalized Nancy Pelosi’s office, and killed one capitol police officer—many of the items they left behind may could end up in a museum.
Via Artnet
City of Chicago Announces $2.5 Million in Arts Funding
As Chicago’s art scene continues to weather unprecedented hardship during the pandemic, the city plans to fund major public art projects in neighborhoods disproportionately impacted by COVID-19.
A $750,000 Artist Response Program was announced Monday by Mayor Lori Lightfoot and the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, as part of a $2.5 million effort to fund Chicago artists and arts organizations.
Via Chicago Sun Times
EXPO CHICAGO Becomes First Art Fair to Postpone In-Person Edition of 2021
As the coronavirus’s second wave continues to restrict in-person gatherings throughout much of the United States, one art fair has decided that it will postpone its upcoming edition until later in 2021. Expo Chicago, which had postponed its 2020 edition originally scheduled for September until April, has made the decision to push the fair, now four months away, until later in the year, becoming the first international art fair to postpone a scheduled event in 2021.
Via ARTnews
Champs Élysées—one of Paris’s most polluted roads—to be transformed into ‘extraordinary garden’
The Champs-Élysées, a 1.9km-long avenue in central Paris, will undergo a major €250m makeover following the 2024 Summer Olympics.
The renovation was announced by the mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo, who said the plans will transform the congested road into an "extraordinary garden".
Via The Art Newspaper
