> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://hyperallergic.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Magritte, Constable, Trump's Smithsonian Wrath - URL: https://hyperallergic.com/magritte-constable-trumps-smithsonian-wrath/ - Published: 2026-07-11T10:00:22.000Z - Updated: 2026-07-11T10:00:23.000Z - Description: Decoding the Surrealist motifs of a World Cup jersey, inhabiting the world of Gertrude Abercrombie, and Hyperallergic wins a Society of Professional Journalists award! - Author: Hyperallergic - Tags: Weekly Newsletter, Newsletter If you're wondering what we did this week at *Hyperallergic*, here's an abridged run-down. Critic Michael Glover reviewed a show on Elizabeth I that spoke truth to royal power; Staff Writer Rhea Nayyar decoded the Surrealist references of a World Cup soccer jersey; and Staff Writer Isa Farfan reported on Trump's unhinged new memo against the Smithsonian, calling it what it is: "draconian.” Sofia Thiệu D’Amico profiled painter Akira Ikezoe, whose work seems to be everywhere these days; Nayyar interviewed Justin Gignac, the artist who successfully sold the trash outside Taylor Swift’s wedding. Also this week, one of our beloved contributors, Noah Fischer, received a coveted award from the [Society of Professional Journalists](https://www.spj.org/sdx25/?ref=hyperallergic.com) for [his comic about housing and displacement](https://hyperallergic.com/a-prospect-heights-ghost-story/), co-published with the Economic Hardship Reporting Project. If this mix of the serious and the curious speaks to you, if you also feel seen by our commitment to a brighter, lighter, more ethical art world, I want to gently nudge you in the direction of a Hyperallergic Membership. Just $5.33/month, with our [summer promo](https://hyperallergic.com/p/8b65609b-a1a4-4304-be01-02b54e30fb52/?member%5Fstatus=free), will help sustain the work we do at a time when journalism is under attack and independent art media platforms are increasingly rare. *—Valentina Di Liscia, senior editor* --- [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/07/elizabeth-1-1.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/the-ruthless-portraits-of-elizabeth-is-reign/) [ The Ruthless Portraits of Elizabeth I’s Reign ](https://hyperallergic.com/the-ruthless-portraits-of-elizabeth-is-reign/) The primary concern of *Elizabeth I: Queen & Court* is the careful crafting of a royal’s image, and how influential the dissemination of that image can be. It takes us from representation on the warts-and-all end of the spectrum to a kind of self-presentation which speaks of elevation, authority, power, wealth, and the right to be regarded as a god in all but name. This was Elizabeth’s journey, and it begins with a sighting of her, newly elevated to the throne, in “The Clopton Portrait” (circa 1558) by an unrecorded artist. | Michael Glover [Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/the-ruthless-portraits-of-elizabeth-is-reign/) ## News [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/07/Cover-Image-FIFA-Margrite.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/belgiums-magritte-inspired-soccer-jersey-mirrors-a-surreal-world-cup/) - The pink-and-blue away jerseys of the Belgian men’s national soccer team [feature one of Magritte’s lesser-known motifs](https://hyperallergic.com/belgiums-magritte-inspired-soccer-jersey-mirrors-a-surreal-world-cup/), along with the phrase “This is not a jersey” in an homage to the artist. - More than a year after President Trump ordered his administration to investigate so-called “race-centered ideology” at the Smithsonian Institution, [the White House has published a new report](https://hyperallergic.com/trump-accuses-smithsonian-of-anti-white-activism-in-draconian-new-report/) accusing museum leadership of promoting “extreme political activism.” - [A jewel heist took place](https://hyperallergic.com/thieves-steal-over-4-5m-in-jewelry-from-french-museum/) early on July 5 at a museum in France. The band of thieves smashed several display cases on the gallery floors and made off with 27 pieces of fine jewelry worth approximately €4 million (**\~**$4.5 million). - Officials in Austin [destroyed a prominent street artwork](https://hyperallergic.com/texas-covers-up-beloved-black-artists-matter-mural-in-austin/) displaying the message “Black Artists Matter” last week following an order from Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott. - Messages condemning Israel’s violence in Gaza [appeared over the advertising screens](https://hyperallergic.com/whitney-museum-screens-taken-over-with-gaza-protest-messages/) outside the Whitney Museum of American Art last week in an action by New York City-based artist Jonathan Allen. - Cultural workers affiliated with the Art Not Genocide Alliance (ANGA) [plan to protest](https://hyperallergic.com/venice-arts-workers-to-protest-during-us-ambassadors-visit/) during United States Ambassador to Italy Tilman Fertitta’s scheduled visit to Venice on Friday, July 17\. - Following Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s wedding at Madison Square Garden last week, artist Justin Gignac [collected street trash](https://hyperallergic.com/artist-sells-25-trash-souvenirs-found-outside-taylor-swifts-wedding/) found outside the venue and is selling them in pocket-sized vitrine boxes as souvenirs. - Eight years after Aljira abruptly closed, the Newark Museum of Art will present [a group exhibition](https://hyperallergic.com/p/9b42657d-84ab-4850-a6bd-8457312e0e69/)tracing the artist-led space’s 35-year history of showcasing works by underrepresented artists and nurturing the careers of major, globally recognized figures. - [Art Movements](https://hyperallergic.com/warhol-foundation-awards-5-1m-to-78-arts-organizations/): The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts awards $5.1 million to 78 arts organizations, Raphael breaks records at The Met, the Honolulu Museum of Art gets a new director, and more. - After a 10-month search, the New Museum in Manhattan announced today that its artistic director of 12 years, Massimiliano Gioni, [has been appointed as its next director](https://hyperallergic.com/massimiliano-gioni-named-director-of-new-museum/). - A Chicago-based photographer is [suing artist Mickalene Thomas](https://hyperallergic.com/chicago-photographer-accuses-mickalene-thomas-of-copyright-infringement/) for alleged copyright infringement, claiming that Thomas “appropriated more than a dozen” of her images without her consent or proper attribution. --- ## From Our Critics [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/07/4.-John-Wilde---1-1.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/gertrude-abercrombies-band-of-midwest-magic-realists/) [ Gertrude Abercrombie’s Band of Midwest Magic Realists ](https://hyperallergic.com/gertrude-abercrombies-band-of-midwest-magic-realists/) A pair of exhibitions at the Milwaukee Art Museum underscores the support, comradeship, and spirit of rebellion shared by the Surrealist and her friends. | Debra Brehmer [Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/gertrude-abercrombies-band-of-midwest-magic-realists/) [ Charles Seliger Painted Nature’s Invisible Architecture ](https://hyperallergic.com/charles-seliger-painted-natures-invisible-architecture/) One of the youngest Abstract Expressionists, the artist charted an independent path guided by the beauty and intricacy of cellular structures. | John Yau [Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/charles-seliger-painted-natures-invisible-architecture/) [ John Constable’s Four Seasons ](https://hyperallergic.com/john-constables-four-seasons/) Art historian Susan Owens’s exquisitely illustrated new book narrates the painter’s story through his relationship to weather, place, and time. | Lauren Moya Ford [Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/john-constables-four-seasons/) --- ## Features [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/07/akira-newsletter-1.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/akira-ikezoes-frogs-and-bears-have-something-urgent-to-tell-us/) [ Akira Ikezoe’s Frogs and Bears Have Something Urgent to Tell Us ](https://hyperallergic.com/akira-ikezoes-frogs-and-bears-have-something-urgent-to-tell-us/) The cartoonish earnestness of both artist and artwork belies a sharp attentiveness to the catastrophes unfolding around us. | Sofia Thiệu D’Amico [Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/akira-ikezoes-frogs-and-bears-have-something-urgent-to-tell-us/) [ The Artist Sculpting World Cup History Out of Gum Wrappers ](https://hyperallergic.com/the-artist-sculpting-world-cup-history-out-of-gum-wrappers/) Lyndon Barrois’s “sportraits” depict political protest, the fight for equal rights, and soccer’s most iconic moments, some of which FIFA would rather forget. | Sigourney Schultz [Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/the-artist-sculpting-world-cup-history-out-of-gum-wrappers/) [ The Met Museum’s Staff Have Some Thoughts About the Art ](https://hyperallergic.com/the-met-museums-staff-have-some-thoughts-about-the-art/) A new book gathers essays by the museum’s curators, researchers, librarians, and conservators on everything from Renaissance portraiture to the work of Wendy Red Star. | Anna Lee [Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/the-met-museums-staff-have-some-thoughts-about-the-art/) [ The Tattoo Artist Inking Arabic Script on Skin ](https://hyperallergic.com/the-tattoo-artist-inking-arabic-script-on-skin/) New York-based artist Noore Yazigi’s designs reference everything from the Quran to the poetry of the late Palestinian writer Refaat Alareer. | Randa Jumean [Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/the-tattoo-artist-inking-arabic-script-on-skin/) --- ## Queer Elders [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/07/carmelita-tropicana-1.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/carmelita-tropicana-was-born-out-of-the-closet/) [ Carmelita Tropicana Was Born Out of the Closet ](https://hyperallergic.com/carmelita-tropicana-was-born-out-of-the-closet/) Hyperallergic spoke with artist Alina Troyano about lesbian performance in 1980s Lower East Side, satirizing stereotypes, and embodying her iconic alter ego. | Natalie Haddad [Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/carmelita-tropicana-was-born-out-of-the-closet/) --- ## Guides [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/07/250-art-books-newsletter-1.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/8-art-books-to-reframe-americas-250th/) [ 8 Art Books to Reframe America’s 250th ](https://hyperallergic.com/8-art-books-to-reframe-americas-250th/) The real story of the Declaration of Independence, the rise and fall of monuments, contemporary Indigenous artists, drag queens on Fire Island, and other titles for the year’s reading list. [Read More ](https://hyperallergic.com/8-art-books-to-reframe-americas-250th/) --- ## Community [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/2026/07/tehran-1.jpg)](https://hyperallergic.com/required-reading-792/) - [Required Reading](https://hyperallergic.com/required-reading-792/): Iranian artists remember the victims of the Minab airstrike, a trip through Alabama’s Barn Quilt Trail, Kansas City’s bygone lesbian haven, Erling Haaland memes, and more. - [A View From the Easel](https://hyperallergic.com/a-view-from-the-easel-344/): Arghavan Khosravi pulls from Persian miniature traditions to create surreal assemblages of paint, canvas, and wood. - [In Memoriam](https://hyperallergic.com/remembering-yervant-gianikian-valerie-brathwaite-and-jerry-moriarty/): Remembering Yervant Gianikian, giant of 20th-century cinema; Valerie Brathwaite, sculptor of the natural world; Jerry Moriarty, self-described “paintoonist," and more.