Trump Is Coming for the Architecture Biennale
Modigliani's "indecent" nude fetches $63.9M, the National Gallery of Art gets a major contemporary art gift, and more industry news.
Art Movements, published every Thursday afternoon, is a roundup of must-know news, appointments, awards, and other happenings in today’s chaotic art world.
Here We Go Again
The US Department of State this week issued calls for proposals for the 2027 Venice Biennale of Architecture, and — surprise, surprise — said it will look for designs that “exemplify America’s exceptionalism.” The submission guidelines, reviewed by Hyperallergic, also require applying entities to certify that they do not operate any programs “promoting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.” The language reeks of the Trump administration’s jingoistic rhetoric and echoes the application for this year’s Venice Biennale pavilion, which was ultimately handed to artist Alma Allen, bypassing the traditional process.
National Gallery of Art Gets Major Gift
The National Gallery of Art received nearly 50 works from the Berezdivin Collection, spanning painting, photography, and conceptual art by contemporary artists from the United States, the Caribbean, and Latin America. Some of these artists were not previously represented in the Washington, DC, museum's collection, including Allora & Calzadilla, Chemi Rosado-Seijo, Rafael Ferrer, and Priscilla Monge.
What Else Happened?
Visitors to MoMA PS1 in Queens will now be greeted by a dazzling mural courtesy of local artist Esteban Cabeza de Baca, on view through next spring. “Ancestral Dreams” (2026) entwines the history of labor organizing, including the United Farm Workers movement, with Aztec and Maya motifs, coalescing into a message of protection and care for migrant communities.
Appointments
- Carrie Rebora Barratt was appointed senior curator-at-large of American Art at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.
- Courtenay Finn was appointed chief curator at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. Ryan Owen was named chief development officer, and Shayne Hart was named chief communications and marketing officer.
Awards and Commissions
- The Brooklyn arts nonprofit Recess announced the artists and groups in its 2026–27 and 2027–28 Session programs. They are Khajistan, YATTA, Sonic Liberation Devices, Chaia, Zoë Pulley, Alex Strada, Ellery Neon, Pinko, Immanuel Oni, and Amina Ross.
- The Bobby Anspach Foundation announced the recipients of its inaugural grant program. Julianne Swartz and Bobby McElver received $50K grants, and Derrick Woods Morrow, Jimena Sarno, and Nikolas Soren Goodich received $10K grants.
- Jitish Kallat has been commissioned for the eighth installment of the Menil Drawing Institute's Wall Drawing Series, on view beginning September 10.
- The Brooklyn Backs Brooklyn campaign awarded $240,000 to 16 organizations in the borough, including BRIC Arts Media, the Brooklyn Children’s Museum, and the Brooklyn Arts and Culture Kollective. A complete list of grantees is here.
Modigliani's “Indecent” Nude Tops Estimates
Amedeo Modigliani's “Nu assis au collier” (1917–18) fetched £48.2 million (~$63.9 million) in London this week, leading Sotheby’s sale of the collection of British billionaire investor and football club owner Joe Lewis. The painting scandalized audiences when it was first shown at the Galerie Berthe Weill in Paris in 1917, in an exhibition that was swiftly canceled on grounds of “indecency.” That scandal seems like small potatoes compared to a more recent one: Lewis, the work’s former owner, pleaded guilty to insider trading two years ago and was recently pardoned by President Trump.
