Art Industry News: The First Real-Life, Honest-to-God, In-Person Art Fair of 2021 May Take Place in March in Dubai + Other Stories
Plus, New York City awards $47 million in cultural grants and German auction houses had a surprisingly good year.
Visitors to the Elmarsa Gallery booth at Art Dubai 2019. Courtesy of Photo Solutions.
Art Industry News is a daily digest of the most consequential developments coming out of the art world and art market. Here’s what you need to know on this Wednesday, December 16.
NEED-TO-READ
Spanish Scholars Divided Over Murillo Painting – Painter Bartolomé Esteban Murillo’s canvas in a Seville Church is at the center of a debate in Spain. The work, which depicts the Immaculate Conception and dates to the 1640s, arrived at the church under “mysterious circumstances.” But is it really by Murillo’s hand? One skeptical scholar said the piece “lacks the characteristics that are present in youthful works by Murillo.” Another defended its at
The Victoria and Albert Museum tweeted that it will close on Wednesday Photo: David Iliff
Public museums and galleries across London will close their doors on Wednesday (16 December) as the capital moves into the highest tier of Covid restrictions (Tier 3). The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) confirmed that museums and galleries in London will be forced to shut down again as infections rise, leading to further revenue losses and ongoing disruption of exhibition schedules. Museums in London only reopened early December after a lockdown across England was lifted. Commercial galleries fall under different restrictions (see update below).