Dave Eggers: Curator?

Memoirist, novelist, editor, champion of irreverence, and ubiquitous tastemaker Dave Eggers has organized a show at Apex Art that features a who’s-who of contemporary artists who share his sense of humor. Many of his choices are quite well known, having become as exposed and “hip” as he is, and some have lent their vision to […]

Jeff Koons sued for child support

Reporting on one of the more bizarre domestic disputes because of the parties involved, the NYPost printed today:
The notorious Italian actress and former member of Parliament has filed suit demanding that her controversial artist ex-husband pay her $2.3 million in back child support for the son she kidnapped from him a decade ago.
Cicciolina - […]

kaikai&k i k i: Takashi Murakami’s feature-length animation

The © MURAKAMI retrospective at the Los Angeles MOCA, while spanning a massive 35,000 sq. ft. and nearly fifteen years of Takashi Murakami’s work, it’s the inclusion of his newest and most unique works that matter in this instance:
Of particular importance, is the debut of Oval Buddha, an enormous self-portrait sculpture in the guise of […]

Spotted in the wild: Banksy at work

Less than two weeks after a successful showing at auction, Banksy once again explodes onto headlines, allegedly unmasked, working, and on camera. The Times Online (UK) reports that a passerby was able to take a camera-phone snapshot of the man who had extended the street’s double yellow line into the flower you see pictured, as […]

Prankster Banksy’s Work Breaks Records At Auction

Eleven originals created by the cheeky, sneaky graffiti artist Banksy sold for over £540,000 at Bonham’s auction house in London last Wednesday. The Bristol-born artist, who has managed to keep his identity a secret despite worldwide notoriety, is a divisive figure in the art world, at once infuriating the establishment with his bold stunts and […]

Hirst’s skull goes for $100 million in dubious sale

Since Bloomberg first reported the news that Damien Hirst’s diamond-studded, platinum skull piece, For the Love of God, had sold for the asking price of £50 million, there has been a flurry of scepticism surrounding the purchase.
The ‘consortium of businessmen,’ or, “unnamed investor group,” includes Hirst, and why that raised eyebrows was dissected by […]

Richard Serra at The Strand (Tonight)

You should already know about Richard Serra Sculpture: Forty Years, the massive retrospective at the MoMA that opened June 3rd. Anyone and everyone has been nattering about it, but as the buzz subsides, what you have left is the cold, contemplative grandeur imposed on you by one of the last living and compelling late Modernists.
You […]

Damien Hirst’s $98 million diamond-encrusted Skull

The BBC (and everyone else) reports on For the Love of God, Damien Hirst’s oeuvre of oppulence:
Artist Damien Hirst has unveiled a diamond-encrusted human skull worth £50m - said to be the most expensive piece of contemporary art.
The 18th Century skull is entirely covered in 8,601 jewels, while new teeth were made for the artwork […]

High Line Festival: Claude Cahun [Update]

The High Line Festival is a multi-disciplinary arts event in its inaugural year. Each year, one artist will curate the music, film, visual art, and comedy; David Bowie has the honour this year. Part of the proceeds of ticket sales goes to Friends of the High Line, the not-for-profit working with the City towards […]

Tranquillity of the Heart, Torment of the Flesh

Carol Vogel of the NYTimes reports on Takashi Murakami’s new works and opening at the Gagosian Gallery:
In the central gallery stood the Japanese artist Takashi Murakami. In place of his usual garb — baggy cargo pants, T-shirt and sneakers — he was done up in a traditional hakama, his hair pulled back in a neat […]