BERNARD GAGNON/VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
ANTIQUITIES
The U.S. Senate voted yesterday to ban the importation of Syrian artifacts. The vote, which was unanimous, was done in hopes of discouraging buying work trafficked by ISIS. [The New York Times]
Carlos A. Picón, the Met’s curator of Greek and Roman art, discusses curating a historic loan from the Pergamon Museum in Berlin. “This won’t happen again,” he said, of the loan, which includes 73 ancient Greek works. [The Wall Street Journal]
CURATORIAL DEVELOPMENTS
MoMA is temporarily closing its architecture and design galleries. Though the museum hasn’t made a statement about the matter yet, the implication seems to be that this is the result of its upcoming Diller Scofidio + Renfro–designed renovation and expansion. [The Architects Newspaper]
The Art Institute of Chicago recently rehung its postwar and contemporary galleries, and apparently the results are not too good. The rehang is being called “nothing short of a cosmic disaster.” [The Chicago Tribune]
LIVES
Julie Becker, known for imbuing interiors with a psychological presence in her multimedia work, died at 44 in Los Angeles. She is currently represented by Greene Naftali. [Artforum]
THE GERMAN SCENE
As Art Cologne celebrates its 50th year, its cofounder Rudolf Zwirner reflects on the fair’s history. Zwirner says Art Cologne allowed collectors to “buy things that could until then only be seen at exhibitions and in museums.” [Deutsche Welle]
Meanwhile, things aren’t looking too good for the German art market. Controversial laws about protecting cultural assets are keeping collectors from making major purchases. [The Art Newspaper]
ELSEWHERE IN EUROPE
The Irish Museum of Modern Art has launched a fund to support contemporary art. Called IMMA 1000, it will begin as a three-year initiative. [Artforum]
EXTRAS
Chris Burden, Maurizio Cattelan, and Elizabeth Murray are all subjects of documentaries at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival. A preview of these films, including a few art-centric ones. [The Los Angeles Times]
A new study finds that U.S. millennials experience art mainly through Instagram. Those millennials! [Business Wire]
Brendan Fowler at Mathew in New York. [Contemporary Art Daily]