| The First Art Newspaper on the Net | Established in 1996 | Thursday, December 15, 2011 |
| | Mexican archaeologists find original offering on the site of Teotihuacan pyramid
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Experts followed an old tunnel dug through the pyramid by researchers in the 1930s that narrowly missed the center, and then dug small extensions and exploratory shafts off it. Photo: INAH.
By: Mark Stevenson, Associated Press
MEXICO CITY (AP).- Archaeologists announced Tuesday that they dug to the very core of Mexico's tallest pyramid and found what may be the original ceremonial offering placed on the site of the Pyramid of the Sun before construction began. The offerings found at the base of the pyramid in the Teotihuacan ruin site just north of Mexico City include a green serpentine stone mask so delicately carved and detailed that archaeologists believe it may have been a portrait. The find also includes 11 ceremonial clay pots dedicated to a rain god similar to Tlaloc, who was still worshipped in the area 1,500 years later, according to a statement by the National Institute of Anthropology and History, or INAH. The offerings, including bones of an eagle fed rabbits as well as feline and canine animals that haven't yet been identified, were laid on a sort of rubble base where the temple was erected about A.D. 50. "We ... More |
| The Best Photos of the Day |  |  | LONDON.- Metal detectorist Darren Webster poses for photographs with a Viking arm-ring he discovered, estimated to date back to the late ninth, early tenth century, at the British Museum in London, Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2011. The arm-ring is part of the Silverdale Viking Hoard discovered by Webster in September 2011 in the Silverdale area of North Lancashire, England. It comprises of 201 silver objects including arm-rings, coins, finger-rings, ingots (metal bars), brooch fragments and a fine wire braid. AP Photo/Matt Dunham. | | |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
| Latest British Museum treasure report details an astonishing range of important finds | | Christie's to conclude 2011 in New York with two exhilarating photographs sales | | Day one of The Collection of Elizabeth Taylor, The Legendary Jewels achieves $115,932,000 | 
A Viking coin, dated between AD 900 and 910. AP Photo/Matt Dunham.
By: Ian Richardson
LONDON.- The saying goes that one waits an eternity for a London bus to arrive, only for two to eventually show up at the same time. Dot Boughton, Finds Liaison Officer (FLO) for Lancashire and Cumbria, is probably beginning to feel that the same rule applies to Viking silver hoards. It was only in April of this year that a hoard of over 90 coins and hacksilver from Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria was reported to Dot. For any FLO, and indeed for the British Museum, which provides expert advice to enable the coroner to hold an inquest into the case (as required under the Treasure Act 1996), this represented a lot of material to work on. Not since the discovery of the Vale of York hoard almost five years ago had so many Viking-age artefacts and coins from one find been reported as Treasure. But no sooner had the coroner concluded his inquest into the Barrow case than Dot was on the phone to our office again with news of an even ... More | | 
Ansel Adams, Winter Sunrise from Lone Pine, Sierra Nevada, c. 1944 Gelatin silver print, printed 1970s Estimate: $20,000-30,000. Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2011.
NEW YORK, N.Y.- Christie’s to conclude the year of sales in New York with Photographs including Crossing America: Photographs from The Consolidated Freightways Collection, Part II, taking place on December 19th. The Various Owners sale incorporates a wide range of 145 enticing works, which include a robust selection of fashion photography, a rare set from the highly coveted artist Miroslav Tichý, a unique group of Polaroids by Ansel Adams and an excellent representation of contemporary and modern photography. The Various Owners sale is expected to realize in excess of $525,000 with estimates that range from $1,000-30,000. In addition to the Various Owners sale, Christie’s presents the second installment of Crossing America: Photographs from the Consolidated Freightways Collection. This exceptional corporate collection, which hails from the freight transportation giant, was built to reflect the American Landscape ... More | | 
A woman displays "The Elizabeth Taylor Diamond," a 33.19 carat ring, which was a gift from Richard Burton. AP Photo/Akira Suemori.
NEW YORK, N.Y.- The Collection of Elizabeth Taylor: The Legendary Jewels Evening Sale achieved $115,932,000 (£74,196,480/€89,267,640), becoming the most valuable jewelry auction in history* and setting the tone for Christie’s highly anticipated four-day series of landmark auctions devoted to the iconic collection of Elizabeth Taylor (13-16 December 2011). A tribute to the discerning eye of this celebrated film star, fashion icon, and humanitarian, the sale was 100% sold by lot and 100% by value, with 24 of the 80 jewels fetching over $1 million and 6 jewels over $5 million. 7 new world auction records were established: price per carat for a colorless diamond and for a ruby; a pair of natural pearl ear pendants; a pearl jewel; an Indian jewel and an emerald jewel. The top lot of the sale was the legendary 16th century pearl La Peregrina which realized $11,842,500 (£7,579,200/ €9,118,725), setting two world au ... More |
| You have been there: Departures, bifurcations - A proposition by Marie Muracciole at Marian Goodman Gallery | | 1000Museums.com announces the ART CARD, Ideal for holiday shoppers, last-minute gift ideas | | Reopening of the "Old Masters" collection in the refurbished old Stadel Museum building | 
Zoe Leonard, Observation Point / Observation Point, 2011. Two vintage postcards, 3.5 x 5.5 in. each / 8.8 x 13.9 cm. Courtesy of the artist.
Marian Goodman Gallery announces a group exhibition curated by Marie Muracciole which opened on Tuesday, December 13th and will be on view through Saturday, January 21st. This exhibition began in Paris last summer. This second iteration assembles a renewed selection of works organized around the idea of departure. Here some works relate to the passage from one place to another, from one time to another. Some refer to changes in life, to the end of a story or a belief. Each one shows, in its own way, the energy and the loss generated by mutations of trajectories, by choices and separations. The title evokes a fugitive vision or, in a more analytical way, the distance covered or imagined, the metamorphosis and birth that inhabits some process of displacement. Fourteen artists, whose practices are distinct, from different generations and contexts, meet around a state of departure or bifurcation. Cartographies, transitory surve ... More | | 
With the ART CARD, available now from Costco.com and 1000Museums.com it’ll feel just like shopping at a museum when browsing the stunning new Archival Print Collection.
SEATTLE, WA.- This holiday season wouldn’t it be great to walk into a museum like the Louvre, pick out a few great works and pass them out as gifts (or keep a few for yourself)? With the ART CARD, available now from Costco.com and 1000Museums.com it’ll feel just like shopping at a museum when browsing the stunning new Archival Print Collection from 1000Museums.com with more than 4,000 museum-curator-approved works from the world’s greatest museums and collections such as the Guggenheim, Phillips Collection, Musée d’Orsay and many more. The Archival Print Collection from 1000Museums.com are not posters but super high-quality art reproductions; once framed and matted many would be hard-pressed to tell the difference from the original. Each print has a color permanence rating of greater than 100 years, and are published on an acid free 300gsm archival cotton rag paper that yields a slight watercolor ... More | | 
Pontormo (Jacopo Carrucci, Portrait of a Lady with Lapdog, ca 1537?1540. Poplar, 89,8 × 70,5 cm. Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main. Photo: Städel Museum - ARTOTHEK.
FRANKFURT.- The reopening of the Main River wing with the new presentation of the Städel’s “Old Masters” (1300–1800) collection on December 15, 2011 marks the conclusion of the comprehensive refurbishment measures in the old museum building. Developed by Prof. Dr. Jochen Sander, chief curator of the “Old Masters” collection and Deputy Director of the Städel, the new presentation benefits essentially from the recovery of the historical main axis of the Main River wing, which, starting from the central Rotunda, connects the large skylight galleries and their related cabinets. While the eastern part of the building is reserved for German, Dutch, and Flemish painting with masterpieces by Dürer, Grünewald, Holbein, and Elsheimer, Rembrandt, Vermeer, Brueghel, and Rubens, the rooms following the cupola hall in the west mainly accommodate works by artists from Romance countries’ schools, sp ... More |
| South Africa's Johannesburg rises again as the city celebrates its 125th birthday | | Bonhams to hold auction of rare Disneyana from a single-owner collection | | Amundsen's South Pole feat remembered 100 years on by scientists and the prime minister of Norway | 
A pedestrian walks past the outside of the sleek new Wits Art Museum. AP Photo/Denis Farrell.
By: Donna Bryson, Associated Press
JOHANNESBURG (AP).- Johannesburg dates its beginnings to the discovery of gold in 1886. Its downtown, where skyscrapers tower over deep mines, was abandoned by business in recent decades, and squatters turned the office towers into high-rise slums. But now, as the city celebrates its 125th birthday, creative South Africans are seeing gold in warehouses and cheap office space, and they're revitalizing neighborhoods with galleries, museums, shops, studios, clubs and restaurants. When Fiona Rankin-Smith was making plans to renovate an office building to house a major new museum, she thought she'd be building a lonely outpost for art in gritty central Johannesburg. But nine years and 38 million rand (about $4.7 million) later, as she prepared to move nearly 10,000 African paintings, sculpture and ... More | | 
The collection includes toys from the 1930s through contemporary eras. Photo: Bonhams.
SAN FRANCISCO, CA.- Bonhams looks forward to presenting its Disneyana and Fine Toy Auction, January 30, 2012 in San Francisco, featuring 130 lots of historic Disney toys and memorabilia from a single-owner collection. The collection includes toys from the 1930s through contemporary eras. Leading the auction will be a rare Mickey Mouse Circus Train Set, including a lithographed circus train from the 1930s, made by Lionel for Disney (pre-sale est. $4,000-6,000). The wind-up train features its original paper cutouts of circus tents and tickets, and is accompanied by its original box. Another top highlight is a collection of 1930s delicate celluloid figures (pre-sale est. $2,000-2,500). One of the celluloid pieces features Mickey riding Pluto, accompanied with its original box. An Ensign (British) Magic Lantern set in its original leather case, with 10 individual boxes of black and white glassine images will also be available (pre ... More | | 
Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg joins three polar adventurers heading to the South Pole. AP Photo/Ole Mathismoen.
By: Nils Myklebost, Associated Press
OSLO (AP).- Polar adventurers, scientists and the prime minister of Norway gathered at the bottom of the world Wednesday to mark the 100th anniversary of explorer Roald Amundsen becoming the first to reach the South Pole. Under a crystal blue sky and temperatures of minus 40 F (minus 40 C), the group remembered the Norwegian explorer's achievement on the spot where he placed his flag on Dec. 14, 1911. "We are here to celebrate one of the greatest feats in human history," Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg said as he unveiled an ice sculpture of Amundsen. Several expeditions skied across Antarctica to attend the ceremony, which was broadcast on Norway's NRK television. Many were delayed and had to be flown the last stretch. ... More |
| Collection of Confederate notes and southern obsoletes headlines Heritage sale | | Landmark public art collection premieres in Sacramento's new Terminal B | | Sotheby's New York to offer schoolgirl embroidery from the Betty Ring Collection | 
Detail of T1 $1000 1861 PF-1 Cr. 1 CC & HOC. From The Honorable William H. Kelly Collection Estimate: $35,000 - $50,000.
DALLAS, TX.- The Honorable William H. Kelly Collection of Confederate Notes and Southern Obsoletes is already creating buzz with collectors in advance of Heritage Auctions 6,700+ lot 2012 Orlando, FL FUN Signature® Currency Auction, Jan. 5-10. Among the offerings are a large number of Confederate notes issued in Montgomery, AL, when it was the first capital city of Confederacy. The capital was moved to Richmond, VA in late May 1861, after Virginia seceded from the Union. The rare T1 thru T4 notes are the centerpieces of the collection, known as the “Montgomeries” and eight examples of each number are being offered: T1 $1000 1861 PCGS Choice About New 58, T2 $500 1861 PCGS Extremely Fine 45PPQ, T3 $100 1861 PCGS Apparent Extremely Fine 40, and T4 $50 1861 PCGS Apparent About New 50. “The Act of March 9, 1861 authorized $1,000,000 worth ... More | | 
The Terminal is the largest construction project in the history of Sacramento County.
SACRAMENTO, CA.- Twelve major public artworks are premiering in Sacramento with the opening of the new Terminal B at the Sacramento International Airport. The first commercial flight embarked from the new Terminal on October 6th. Airport passengers from everywhere are now able to view the collection, and the general public is invited to attend guided tours that will run through the end of 2011. The Terminal is the largest construction project in the history of Sacramento County, and the artworks there represent the largest public art project in the history of the Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission. These public artworks, shepherded by the Commission’s Art in Public Places program, are both an integral component and featured attraction of the new Terminal. Each of the 12 artworks activates and responds to the larger environment of the Terminal—conceptually and architecturally. They range in scale, form and materials from a 56-foot sculpture of a red rabbit suspende ... More | | 
Rare and Important Embroidered and Painted Silk Mourning Picture: Betsey Clarke, Miss Patten’s School, Hartford, Connecticut, circa 1809. Est. $50/75,000. Photo: Sotheby's.
NEW YORK, N.Y.- Sotheby’s New York announces that it will offer schoolgirl embroidery from the collection of Betty Ring in a dedicated sale on 22 January 2012. Mrs. Ring is the foremost scholar and collector of American schoolgirl embroidery – superb needlework samplers, elegant pictorial embroideries and mourning pictures made in the earliest American cities and towns by the daughters of the prosperous ‘entrepreneurial’ elite. Important American Schoolgirl Embroideries: The Landmark Collection of Betty Ring consists of a comprehensive group of approximately 175 examples, assembled by Mrs. Ring starting in the 1960s, with pieces from all regions, periods and forms. The sale will be on exhibition in Sotheby’s York Avenue galleries during Americana Week in New York, beginning 14 January. “Betty Ring was amongst the first serious scholars ... More |
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 Jeffery Potter, FAIA, Inaugurated as 2012 AIA President WASHINGTON, D.C.- Jeffery Potter, FAIA, vice president of POTTER Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Planning, was inaugurated as the 88th president of the American Institute of Architects during ceremonies held on December 9th at the Library of Congress. He succeeds Clark D. Manus, in representing the more than 76,000 AIA members. “My primary goal as president is to ensure that the AIA speaks more powerfully for the profession,” said Potter. “Communication to our members, to policy makers and to the public at large is essential to the health and relevance of architecture. Another key priority I have for the Institute is to help address the challenges of emerging professionals so that we can develop, mentor and retain young and aspiring architects so that our organization and the profession at large can thrive well into the future.” Potter began his AIA career as president of the AIA Northeast Texas Chapter ... More Diamonds attracted a crowd at the Bonhams Fine Jewelry auction NEW YORK, N.Y.- Outstanding colored and colorless diamonds highlighted the Fine Jewelry sale on December 13 at the New York headquarters of Bonhams. Due to trimulcasting to San Francisco and Los Angeles, large in-house participation, active international online and phone bidding, this holiday jewelry auction realized $4.83 million with 80% sold by lot. Matthew Girling, the Group Jewelry Director at Bonhams, states about the sale, “The sale showed the underlying strength in the jewelry market. We exhibited the sale in Hong Kong, London and California prior to the sale in New York and we had participation in the sale across the globe.” The Fine Jewelry sale was lead by a Cartier art deco emerald bead, onyx and diamond necklace. These 32 graduated fluted emerald beads, with onyx and single cut diamond rondell spacers sold for $266,500 (pre-sale est. $80,000-120,000). Elsewhere in the auction was property ... More Vintage and Modern launches collection of photographs by Stanley Kubrick NEW YORK, N.Y.- VandM.com introduces an exclusive sale of photographs by the late director Stanley Kubrick. These 25 dramatic black and white limited-edition images, available to the public for the first time, represent the iconic director’s first job as staff photographer for LOOK Magazine from 1945 to 1950. Stanley Kubrick’s New York has been made available to the public through an exclusive partnership with the Museum of the City of New York, which archived the negatives. VandM will offer these fine art prints in limited editions of 50 with a numbered certificate of authenticity signed by the museum’s Curator of Prints and Photography. They will be priced from approximately $400 to $2,500 per photo. The sale will last until the end of December. The collection offers a glimpse into post-war New York City and subjects range from a reflection of Kubrick photographing showgirl Rosemary Williams to ... More Boston Cyberarts at Atlantic Wharf presents Vast Vistas: Landscape in New Media BOSTON, MA.- Boston Cyberarts presents its second exhibition in Atlantic Wharf's new dedicated art gallery - Vast Vistas: Landscape in New Media, an exhibition of work by four artists - Julia Hechtman, Georgie Friedman, Jane Marsching and Luke Strosnider. On view at Atlantic Wharf, 290 Congress Street, Boston, from December 12 through February 10, 2012. Landscapes are more the product of culture than nature. When artists try to reproduce the world in its natural state, they create a vision of how they wish nature would be. This is as true of the Hudson River School as it is of Ansel Adams. How does new media reflect the natural world? One would think that the most technological of art forms would not be a good fit with nature, but as the artists in this exhibition illustrate, new media can reveal an undiscovered depth to nature that a painting, for instance, cannot. ... More The Arts Catalyst / FACT presents Republic of the Moon LIVERPOOL.- As the players in the 21st century race for the Moon line up—the USA, China, India and Russia jostling with private corporations interested in exploiting the Moon's resources—a group of artists are declaring a Republic of the Moon: a 'micronation' for alternative visions of lunar life. Republic of the Moon challenges utilitarian plans for lunar mines and military bases with artists' imaginings and interventions. Combining beguiling fantasies, personal encounters, and playful appropriations of space habitats and scientific technologies, it reclaims the Moon for artists, idealists and dreamers. The last Moon race was driven by the political impulses of the Cold War, but shaped by extraordinary visions of space created by writers, film-makers, and artists, from Jules Verne, Lucien Rudaux, and Vasily Levshin, to HG Wells, Stanislav Lem and Stanley Kubrick. Can artists' quixotic visions reconcile our romantic notions ... More |
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