This week’s top headlines – from Frieze LA’s kick-off to Art Basel’s 2019 exhibitor list.
New research shows bees are able to differentiate between styles of art
Christie’s announce revival of June PWC sale
The auction house announced that they’ll be holding a Post War and Contemporary Evening Sale this June. Since 2017 the auction house canceled their June sales in a bid to increase October consignments, a risk that paid off in the first year especially. According to Katherine Arnold, Christie’s Head of Evening Auctions, the decision to bring back the sale was in the interest of their consignors.
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Frieze opens its first Los Angeles Edition
Adding to London and New York, Frieze launched its third location this weekend. The fair will take place on Paramount Studios from 15-10 February. It’s invitation only, with 68 blue-chip exhibitors and high-profile members on the committee. With many LA fairs failing in the past, the art world is preparing to see whether the new launch is selling-out or taking a leap.
Artist hacked her way into Frieze LA
Gretchen Andrews harnessed Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to ensure her art appeared first on Google image search results for “Frieze Los Angeles.” Calling her work “search engine art”, she dispersed her images on her own site, Frieze-los-angeles.com, as well as sites like Soundcloud or Myspace.
Art Basel releases 2019 exhibitior list
The 2019 edition of its flagship fair in Basel will feature 290 galleries from 34 different countries, 19 of which will appear for the first time. Galleries include David Zwirner (New York, London, Hong Kong), 303 Gallery (New York), and Galeria Jaqueline Martins (São Paulo). The fair will run from June 13 – 16.
London’s Royal Academy of Arts appoints new Chief Executive
Previously director of the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, Rϋger will start in 2019, taking over from Charles Saumarez Smith.
Leonardo da Vinci’s works to appear on stamps
The UK’s postal service, the Royal Mail, is creating a series of stamps featuring the artist’s drawings. It’s to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the artist’s birthday. The stamp collection coincides with the multi-institutional series of UK exhibitions currently on show as part of Leonardo da Vinci: A Life in Drawing.
Marina Abramovic choses female artists for Forbes list
The performance artist appeared as a judge for Forbes‘s list of 30 under 30 European creatives. Females picked include Violet Dennison, Lisk Feng, Issy Woods, Katja Seib, and Valeria Palmeiro. Johnny Burt and Joe Kennedy, the gallerists behind Unit London, are also identified.
Documentary shows that bees can differentiate between works of art
In The Great Australian Bee Challenge, an experiment shows honey bees telling the difference between Australian Indigenous and European art in just one afternoon. The experiment showed bees paintings by Claude Monet and an Australian Indigenous artist Noŋgirrŋa Marawili, with a sweet solution on the latter as a reward and a bitter one on the other. After removing this rewarding system, the bees continued to land on the Marawili, suggesting that they can tell the difference between the two styles.
The Great Australian Bee Challenge >
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