Displaying items by tag: Contemporary Art

Nan Rosenthal, a curator who helped bring the 20th century to the National Gallery of Art in Washington and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, died on Sunday at her home in Manhattan. She was 76.

The cause was heart failure, her sister-in-law Wendy Mackenzie said.

Over three decades, Ms. Rosenthal organized exhibitions and oversaw the acquisition of contemporary art, first at the National Gallery, which she joined in 1985, and afterward at the Met, with which she was associated from 1993 until her retirement in 2008.

When demolition begins on 540-544 West 26th Street in New York, three prominent contemporary art galleries -- Tony Shafrazi Gallery, Lehmann Maupin, and Stephen Haller Gallery -- will say goodbye to their current spaces. Located in Manhattan’s booming Chelsea neighborhood, the two-story property, which includes a neighboring parking lot, will be transformed into a 130,000-square-foot commercial and office space with community facilities. The site will be co-developed by commercial real estate broker, The Manhattes Group LLC, and Savanna, a real estate private equity firm and asset management company.

Stephen Haller Gallery, which has been in Chelsea for over a decade, plans to open a new location in the neighborhood. Lehmann Maupin and Tony Shafrazi Gallery have yet to announce their plans for the future. Lehmann Maupin has a second gallery on Chrystie Street in Manhattan’s Lower East Side.

The Manhattes Group and Savanna have not released a start date for the project.

The Louvre’s new outpost in Abu Dhabi, which is slated to open in December 2015, will showcase highlights from its collection during an exhibition in France in May. “Birth of a Museum” will include over 160 objects and will give visitors a glimpse of the museum’s impressive collection as well as demonstrate the project’s cultural and architectural significance.

Louvre Abu Dhabi’s collection, which includes everything from ancient to contemporary artworks, has been gradually growing since 2009. “Birth of a Museum” will present a rare Greek archaic sphinx, an Italian brooch from the 5th century AD, and paintings by Edouard Manet, Rene Magritte, Paul Gauguin, Pablo Picasso, and Cy Twombly. A similar exhibition was held in Abu Dhabi from April 22 through July 20, 2013, at a gallery on the island of Saadiyat, close to where construction for the new museum is underway.

Louvre Abu Dhabi, which was designed by the French architect Jean Nouvel, aims to be  a place of conversation between civilizations and cultures. Works on view will be drawn from French collections as well as the museum’s own holdings.

“Birth of a Museum” will be on view at the Louvre in Paris from May 2 through July 28.

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) acquired ten artworks during the institution’s 29th annual Collectors Committee fundraiser, which began on Friday, April 25 and continued through the weekend. The new additions to the museum’s robust permanent collection include an autograph reduction of Jean-Auguste Dominique Ingres’ celebrated “Odalisque,” a print by Pablo Picasso from 1952, and an 18th-century painting of the Virgin of Guadalupe by the important Mexican painter Antonio de Torres. LACMA also acquired contemporary works by Roni Horn, Feng Mengbo, and Mitra Tabrizian.

LACMA’s Collectors Committee Weekend is one of the museum’s most significant fundraising events of the year. Throughout its 29-year history, the event has facilitated 202 acquisitions through donations totaling more than $32 million. Funds for this year’s acquisitions were raised by Collectors Committee membership dues, with additional funds provided by individual members. Another $800,000 was raised by a live auction.

For the sixth consecutive year, LACMA’s Collectors Committee Weekend was led by museum trustee Ann Colgin. Colgin said, “Collectors Committee Weekend is a celebration of LACMA’s timeless artworks, and I am delighted that these new acquisitions will further strengthen the museum’s collection.”

The Currier Museum of Art in Manchester, New Hampshire, announced that it has received a significant gift from the estate of May Gruber, a legendary New Hampshire businesswoman and civic leader. Included in the donation are works by Rembrandt, Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, Pierre Bonnard, James McNeill Whistler, David Hockney, and Jim Hodges. many of the works are currently on view in the museum’s European, Modern, and Contemporary art galleries.

Gruber, the former head of Pandora Industries, a Manchester institution that created iconic sweaters and knitwear in the city from 1940 until 1983, helped found Child Health Services and the Manchester Community Music School. Gruber and her first husband, Saul Sidore, began collecting art in the 1960s based on advice from Charles Buckley, then director of the Currier.

Susan Strickler, the director and CEO of the Currier, said, “May Gruber felt strongly about giving back to the community that helped her company to grow. Her tastes were eclectic and wide-ranging, as is evidenced by the works she gave to the Currier. Because of her bequest, the region has an even more exceptional collection of art to cherish.”

Founded in 1929, the Currier Museum of Art’s collection includes European and American paintings, decorative arts, photographs, and sculpture.

On May 13, Christie’s will offer a rare painting by Jean-Michel Basquiat during its Evening Auction of Post-War and Contemporary Art in New York. The work, which has resided in the same private collection since it was acquired from Annina Nosei’s SoHo gallery in 1982, is expected to fetch between $20 million and $30 million.

Basquiat’s graffiti-inspired Neo-expressionist and Primitivist paintings are highly sought after by collectors and remain influential in the realm of contemporary art. “Untitled,” which was created in 1981, the year that Basquiat transitioned from the underground art scene to international stardom, is frenetic, bold, and colorful -- characteristics that define the artist’s style. Brimming with gestural lines, broad strokes, and flat expanses of color, the work also exemplifies Basquiat’s technique during this period.

“Untitled” ranks among Basquiat’s largest canvases and has not been seen publicly until now. The work is being offered by the heirs of the painting’s original owner, Anita Reiner.

Sotheby’s will offer a rare series by Andy Warhol titled “Six Self Portraits” during its Evening Auction of Contemporary Art on May 14 in New York. Created in 1986, the self-portraits are among the last works created by the pioneering Pop artist.

“Six Self Portraits” was acquired by the current owners in July 1986 from the London gallery of dealer Anthony d’Offay for $57,500. The works anchored the first and only show in Warhol’s career dedicated to his self-portraiture. Purchased the Sunday before the exhibition opened to the public, it was the first sale in an ultimately sold-out and fabled exhibition. “Six Self Portraits” is expected to fetch between $25 million and $35 million next month at Sotheby’s. 

Warhol made his first significant self-portrait in 1963, followed by a small series in 1964. In 1966, Warhol constructed a series of self-portraits in what would become one of his signature styles -- a grid of bright, repeated images. In wasn’t until he made “Six Self Portraits” twenty years later that he would find an equally powerful self-image.

Edward Dolman, the former Chief Executive and Chairman of Christie’s, has announced that he will leave his current post as Executive Director and Acting Chief Executive of the Qatar Museums Authority. Dolman will return to the auction world in July when he assumes the role of Chairman and Chief Executive of Phillips.

During his three-year tenure with the Qatar Museums Authority, Dolman oversaw the construction and opening of several new museums. He also presided over the state’s collections, spearheaded new acquisitions, and organized exhibitions.

Phillips, which sells contemporary art, design, photography, limited edition prints, and jewelry, was founded in 1796 by former Christie’s employee Harry Phillips. The auction house is currently owned by the Russian luxury goods company, the Mercury Group.

The Smithsonian’s Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, D.C. has received a gift of $1 million from British artist and philanthropist Basil Alkazzi for the acquisition of paintings and drawings by contemporary American and British artists. Alkazzi decided to make the generous donation to the Hirshhorn because of his admiration for the museum’s commitment to supporting emerging artists.

Kerry Brougher, the Hirshhorn’s interim director and chief curator, said, “His gift will allow the Hirshhorn to significantly enhance its holdings of hand-painted paintings and drawings by key figures in the U.S. and U.K. As we celebrate and highlight our collection this year during our 40th anniversary, we are thrilled that thanks to the public-spiritedness of donors like Basil Alkazzi this collection will continue to grow and be a lasting legacy to the nation.”

The Hirshhorn focuses its collection-building and exhibition-planning on modern and contemporary art and sculpture.

After closing his firm Exis Capital Management Inc., hedge-fund manager Adam Sender announced that he will sell nearly half of his contemporary art collection at Sotheby’s. Since 1998, with guidance from New York-based art adviser Todd Levin and various Chelsea gallerists, Sender has amassed a collection of approximately 800 works by 139 artists.

Over the course of 18 months, Sotheby’s will sell about 400 works from Sender’s collection, including pieces by Cindy Sherman, Richard Prince, John Baldessari and Dan Flavin. The collection is expected to fetch over $70 million.

The first selection of works from Sender’s collection will be offered on May 14 at Sotheby’s important evening sale of contemporary art.