Hrag Vartanian

While the players in the global art market descend on Miami to scoop up artistic baubles and all the prestige associated with it, some people have arrived at this international art orgy for less consumer driven motives. Enter Celso and his Art Burn event.

Why haven’t we been posting much recently? Well, the short answer is MIAMI! Yes, we’re off to the fairs and we’re bringing you along with us. Expect many musings from the front lines of the art world’s greatest clusterfuck.

… an art exhibit for the blind … do the recent art auctions point to a possible surprise at the Miami art fairs … North Carolina Museum of Art is gearing up for its new building … Toronto is hosting a King Tut blockbuster … the Taubman Museum of Art realizes that a splashy new building doesn’t ensure success … LACMA’s poorer than it was last year.

… a lull in Iraqi violence helps spur cultural activity … homeless artists in Austin, Texas, have an art show & benefit … art mogul Eli Broad is scouting for a museum location … artist Sam Bassett is arrested for trying to make New York’s Sotheby’s building into art.

While Main Street continues to hemorrhage jobs and Wall Street revives its ridiculous bonus system, the elite among us — most notably the trustees of the New Museum — will probably be very interested to know where they should stash their valuables during these sad times in case, well, in case … which brings me to one of my favorite topics: stolen art.

… Kiev awaits its own art destination-worthy art center … Banksy gets marked up before people have a chance to vote about keeping it or not … the Getty Trust & the Egyptian gov’t is working together to preserve King Tut … a San Francisco muralist gets stabbed on the job … the Obama’s send mixed messages on art … a report from BETA Spaces in Bushwick.