london
Gagosian Plans Zeng Fanzhi Show in London
New York is now in recovery mode, but here’s some non-hurricane news from across the pond. In November, Gagosian on Britannia Street in London will open the first U.K. solo show of Chinese artist Zeng Fanzhi. Mr. Zeng was born in 1964. His work prominently features landscape painting, and several canvases in the new exhibition have been inspired by the brush drawings of Albrecht Dürer. Read More
Christie’s James Bond Auction Brings in $2.6 M.
Fifty Years of James Bond, the live/online combo auction at Christie’s London, brought in a total of $2.6 million and brought out some celebrities to sell off tricked out cars and other merch used by the fictional man of mystery. The auction, the proceeds of which went to various charities including UNICEF, was one of many events celebrating Global James Bond Day, the 50th anniversary of the first screening of Dr. No. Read More
Damien Hirst ‘Spin-Painted’ Rifle Sells for $89,000, Leads Charity Auction
Damien Hirst’s “spin-painted” assault rifle led the charity auction yesterday at Phillips de Pury in London, which raised a total of $675,000, according to Bloomberg. The work, titled “Spin AK-47 for Peace One Day,” sold for $89,000, exceeding its high estimate of $57,000. All 24 lots in the auction sold. Read More
Dorothy’s Ruby Slippers Head to London’s V&A
Dorothy’s original ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz (1939) will be making their first trip out of the U.S. But rather than landing in Munchkinland, the pair, which are being loaned by the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, are headed to the Victoria and Albert Museum in London where they’ll be presented at “Hollywood Costume.” Opening Oct. 20, the exhibition plumbs cinematic history to examine how costume design has influenced storytelling. Read More
Damien Hirst ‘Spin Paints’ AK-47 for London Art Show
For a new London art project, rifles have been decomissioned and customized—getting covered with flowers or pulverized into a fine dust. Bran Symondson, a photographer and former army reservist, came up with the idea for the project, “AKA Peace,” which opened yesterday at London’s Institute for Contemporary Arts, when he noted how policemen in Afghanistan would jazz up their guns with flowers and stickers, kind of like a teenager. With a little help from curator Jake Chapman, he got Damien Hirst to “spin-paint” one of them. Read More
Damien Hirst at Tate Sees Half a Million Visitors in Five Months
Double-Decker Bus Makes $106,120 at Christie’s London–Themed Sale
Seven of Margaret Thatcher’s suits, a solid gold medal won by a British athlete at the 1908 Olympics, a photograph of Amy Winehouse and a candy apple red double-decker bus were all items that sold at the London Sale at Christie’s London today. The sale, which brought in a total of $2,286,859, was the culmination of an extended six-week selling exhibition that was timed with the Olympics. Read More
Marlborough Contemporary London Announces Details of First Exhibition
Marlborough Contemporary London, which opens this October, has announced the details of its first exhibition, which will be a solo show of work by artist Ângela Ferreira. Read More
Report: British Museums Not Exactly Rushing to Accept Charles Saatchi’s $47 M. Art Gift
According to The Guardian, Charles Saatchi’s proposed gift to the nation, a trove of late-20th-century British art estimated to be worth £30 million ($47.1 million), which he offered up two years ago, still has no takers. A proposed deal with the Arts Council hasn’t panned out, and now it appears that Tate has rejected Mr. Saatchi’s gift, which includes Tracey Emin’s My Bed, a collection of Grayson Perry ceramics and Richard Wilson’s 20:50—a pool of recycled engine oil. “I find this snub baffling,” writes critic Jonathan Jones, whose musings about the aesthetic divide between Tate and its would-be patron prove resonant on this side of the Atlantic. Read More
