How A Theft Made The Mona Lisa The World's Most Famous Painting It's easy to assume that the case was big because the Mona Lisa was already "the world's most famous painting". It wasn't. Its status was dramatically enhanced by the affair. BBC 12/09/13

How Art Basel Transformed Miami's Art Scene "Art Basel may not have instantly made Miami into a global art hub, as some predicted when it first landed on Florida's shores in 2002, but the fair has been steadily driving year-round museum attendance and arts patronage." The Art Newspaper 12/08/13

Detroit To Arts Foundations: Bail Us Out Or We'll Sell The Art! "The Detroit Institute of Arts has joined behind-the-scenes federally mediated talks to shield the museum from creditors in Detroit's bankruptcy and bolster at-risk municipal pensions." Detroit Free Press 12/08/13

For Some Reason, This Is The First Time Anyone Has Mounted A Show About Turner And The Sea "His grander salon paintings are embarrassing in their attempt to emulate his idol Claude Lorrain, but they were always striving to portray in paint the emotions he felt in gazing at a storm-swept sea or a tumbling mountain waterfall or a Venetian lagoon at twilight." The Independent 12/08/13

Stonehenge Remodeled Just In Time For Winter Solstice "There has been a growth in Druid orders and in the number of people interested in pagan festivals." The Observer (UK) 12/07/13

It's Wrong And Flat-Out Stupid To Loot The DIA "The whole point of a bankruptcy is to solve deep and structural problems in the economic organization of a major city - not to strip-mine everything from the Bellinis at the museum to the baboons at the Detroit Zoo for however much one-time cash you can squeeze out of them." The Guardian (UK) 12/08/13

The Most Important Monuments Man Might've Been A Parisian Woman "During the Nazi occupation, she had worked in the Museum Jeu de Paume, an important depot for art plundered by the Nazis. There she tried to keep track of where the artworks ended up, registering every single work." Der Spiegel 12/05/13

Should Courts Legally Protect Graffiti As Street Art? "Some artists want their work to stay up forever. For me it's part of the game, you don't know if it will stay up or if you will be arrested." The Art Newspaper 12/07/13

Gallery Manager Pleads Guilty To Possessing Looted Antiquities For nearly two decades, Aaron Freedman helped run the Manhattan gallery of Indian art and antiquities dealer Subhash Kapoor, who Federal agents say "is by far the biggest smuggler, in terms of numbers of antiquities stolen and their market value, that we have seen." The New York Times 12.04.13

Swiss Government Opens Inquiry Into Art Stash Given To UNICEF "The authorities here are investigating the transfer to UNICEF in Germany of one of Europe's largest and finest private art collections, a vast trove amassed by Dr. Gustav Rau, an eccentric collector and philanthropist who died in 2002." The New York Times 12.05.13

Director For The 2015 Venice Biennale Named In a statement, the biennial's president, Paolo Baratta, referred to Okwui Enwezor's knowledge of the "complex phenomenon of globalisation". The curator of Documenta 11 in Kassel, Enwezor has organised biennials from Seville to South Korea and the major travelling survey of post-war African art "The Short Century" (2001-02).

America's Historic Houses - Does Anyone Care Enough To Save Them? "The investment in physical infrastructure may not correlate with income potential. Just because they are historic structures that should be saved doesn't mean they should all be historic house museums." The Art Newspaper 12/05/13

Is It Or Isn't It A Leonardo? "The drawing of Isabella in the Louvre, on which the painting is clearly based, was done some time between late 1499 and March of 1500, when Leonardo was a guest at her court in Mantua. According to the newspaper, carbon dating of the painting conducted at the University of Arizona confirms that it was executed sometime between 1460 and 1650, placing it in a corresponding timeframe." ARTnews 12/05/13

Baltimore Museum: Judge - That Renoir Is Ours! "In effect, the motion asks federal Judge Leonie M. Brinkema to determine that the 1879 oil painting "Paysage Bords de Seine" belongs to the Baltimore museum and not to the 51-year-old Virginia woman who says she bought it at a flea market in 2009 for $7 as part of a box of odds and ends." Baltimore Sun 12/04/13

Detroit Leaders Scramble To Save Art Before Politicians Plunder It "Some of the city's most powerful leaders are working furiously to fashion a grand bargain in which nonprofit foundations would put up $500 million to spin off the Detroit Institute of Arts from the city, and that money would be used to reduce pension cuts and help rebuild city services." Detroit Free Press 12/05/13

Egyptian Museum's Antiquities And Staff Alike Suffer From Country's Instability "The century-old home of Egypt's mummies and King Tutankhamun's treasures is trying to make the best out of the worst times of political turmoil. But the Egyptian Museum is taking a hammering on multiple levels, from riots on its doorstep to funding so meager it can't keep up paper clip supplies for its staff." Yahoo! (AP) 12/03/13

Price For Norman Rockwell Smashes Record By far, the star of the bunch was the 1951 masterpiece Saying Grace, which sold for $46 million -- a record for Rockwell's art... The AP says the artist's previous record of $15 million had been set by "Breaking Home Ties" at a 2006 Sotheby's auction. NPR 12/04/13

How Do We Make Sure Detroit's Art Sale Doesn't Happen Again "The real goal, in a larger perspective, is how to de-monetize art. It's too late for Detroit to think about such things--any attempt to keep its art out of the market would be vigorously protested by the city's creditors--but the Detroit crisis has people thinking about how to avert such things in the future." Washington Post 12/04/13

A Global Conversation - Miami's New Museum Opens "The diversity of display styles suits a young institution that lacks deep holdings of major figures. Instead the museum layout convenes a conversation among local artists and global ones. That's just perfect for Miami, the restless nexus of the Americas and Europe." Bloomberg 12/03/13

Value Set For Detroit's DIA Art Inflames Debate "A figure less than $2 billion is likely to inflame the passions of bondholders, unions and other creditors who see DIA masterpieces as a prime source for recovering the billions they are owed by the city. It also increases the chances that a court battle over the fate of the DIA will become even more contentious as Kevyn Orr prepares his plan of adjustment to restructure city finances." Detroit Free Press 12/04/13

Federal Judge Gives First Hint Of Detroit Art Collection's Status In City's Bankruptcy "'A one-time infusion of cash by selling an asset,' he [wrote], would have only delayed the city's 'inevitable financial failure' unless it could have also come up with a sustainable way to enhance income and reduce expenses. Judge Rhodes added that in considering selling assets, a city 'must take extreme care that the asset is truly unnecessary in carrying out its mission'." The New York Times 12/04/13

Barnes Foundation Director Stepping Down "Derek Gillman, the British-born executive director and president of the Barnes Foundation who guided it through the latter stages of a controversial move from its longtime home in suburban Merion to a grand new gallery on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, announced his resignation Tuesday." The Philadelphia Inquirer 12/04/13

How Smartphones Are Ruining The Museum Experience "Flash photography has long been banned owing to the damage its blasts of high-intensity light can inflict on paintings. Smartphones and tablets pose a less visible but potentially graver threat. They disconnect the visitor from the art on display and imperil the museum in other, very real, ways." New Criterion 12/13

The Problem With Involving The "Public" In Public Art "Consultation doesn't work. If I am going to be kicked for a piece of art work, and I fully expect to be, than I want to be kicked for a piece that I have chosen, that I can stand by." Public art, though, executed in our name, requires the vision of an artist who can shape and lead public taste without patronising people." The Scotsman 12/02/13

Laure Prevost Wins Turner Prize 2013 "Laure Prouvost was the rank outsider from a particularly strong 2013 shortlist that included the higher-profile artists Tino Seghal and David Shrigley. She was awarded the £25,000 prize by the actor Saoirse Ronan at a ceremony in Derry, Northern Ireland." The Guardian (UK) 12/02/13