Art Movements

The Best and the Absolute Worst of the TIME 100 List

Amy Sherald shines on the magazine’s uneven list, Artadia names a new director, Johnny Depp's awfulness, and more in Art Movements.

Valentina Di Liscia

September 17, 2026 — 3 min read

Amy Sherald photographed by Tyler Mitchell for TIME magazine (photo courtesy TIME)

Art Movements, published every Thursday afternoon, is a roundup of must-know news, appointments, awards, and other art-world happenings.

The Best and Worst of TIME 100 Art List

Artist Amy Sherald, who stood on the right side of history when she canceled her show at the Smithsonian Institution for fears that her painting of a trans woman would be censored, has been recognized on TIME magazine's list of 100 influential people shaping the arts. The list includes other laudable and deserving individuals, including Dayanita Singh and Tuan Andrew Nguyen. It also features people who range from irrelevant (Vanessa Horabuena, the Trump-adored Christian speed painter!?) to absolutely reprehensible, like billionaire hedge fund manager Ken Griffin, who derided Palestine protests on college campuses. The latter two make total sense when you remember who owns TIME magazine.

Pem Lham Wins Rubin Museum Himalayan Art Prize

Pem Lham in her art studio in Thimphu, Bhutan; photo by Yeshi Zangpo, courtesy of the Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art

Bhutanese artist Pem Lham has won the 2026 Rubin Museum Himalayan Art Prize, a $30,000 annual prize known as the largest of its kind for contemporary artists in the region. “As artists, there are moments when we wonder if our stories are reaching anyone, but this prize is a reminder that our voices matter and that there are always people connecting with the work we create,” Lham said in a statement.

What Else Happened?

Marina Adams (photo Grace Roselli, courtesy Peter Blum Gallery)

Painter Marina Adams is now represented by Peter Blum Gallery. As a longtime fan of her work who admires her inventiveness and commitment within a signature visual vocabulary, I’m excited to see where this goes.
Allison Derusha has been named executive director of Artadia, the nonprofit grantmaker dedicated to supporting contemporary artists across the US.
The Pulitzer Arts Foundation in St. Louis has appointed Jenny Harris as associate curator and Sarah Paulsen as Programs and Events manager.
The Museum of the Moving Image announced its upcoming MoMI LAB artists-in-residence: Toni Dove and Sougwen Chung x SCILICET.
Márcia Falcão is now represented by Alexander Gray Associates.
David Reed is now represented by Rodder gallery.
Pace Prints has acquired the printmaker and publisher Brand X Editions.

Acquisitions

Hendrick Avercamp, "Colf Players on the Ice" (c. 1625) (photo courtesy Rijksmuseum)

Just in time for the cooler weather, the Mauritshuis and the Rijksmuseum have jointly acquired Hendrick Avercamp’s c. 1625 painting “Colf Players on the Ice.” The $13 million purchase marks the return to the Netherlands of an iconic Dutch winter landscape, previously on a long-term loan at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston. But what is “colf,” you ask? Read all about the chilly early Dutch sport here.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art has acquired 38 paintings by the Chinese ink painter Chang Dai-chien (Zhang Daqian) from the collection of the artist’s daughter, Sing Sheng Chang.