June 22, 2015: Public Artwork Trashed & U.K. Finally Ratifies Treaty to Protect Cultural Heritage

opening

In New York …

“Gloria Thurn und Taxis: Men of God” opens at The National Exemplar Gallery.

In London …

“Lina Hermsdorf: The Best Answer You Can Give Is Symmetry” opens at Rowing.

today's notable news

New Museum has announced that Lauren Cornell has been promoted to the position of Curator and Associate Director, Technology Initiatives beginning in July. In her past work with the New Museum and Rhizome, she has been investigating the influence of technology on art and culture —research she will now bring to the museum’s curatorial program as well as its digital platforms and content. (via ArtForum)

Norwegian printmaker, painter, and sculptor Carl Nesjar has died. Nesjar worked for around two decades as Picasso’s fabricator, completing more than 30 sculptures together before Picasso’s death in 1973. (via the New York Times)

The United Kingdom has finally ratified the 1954 Hague Convention, a treaty that protects cultural heritage during times of conflict. The decision was influenced by the unprecedented amount of cultural destruction by Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria. The U.K. will join more than 115 countries that have become signatories since the treaty was created after the Second World War. (via BBC)

A maintenance worker mistakenly took apart and trashed a public sculpture that was on view in Madison, Connecticut, for their 15th annual Sculpture Mile art show. The wood, tile, and Astroturf Corbu Bench was created by New York City-based Jim Osman. The worker is said to have been informed of complaints about the bench by his property management company and subsequently told to dissemble the piece and throw it away—the sponsor of the show, William Bendig of the Hollycraft Foundation, is now insisting that the worker salvage the pieces and help with the restoration of the $10,000 artwork. (via ARTnews)

The curatorial team for the United States Pavilion at the 2016 Venice Architecture Biennale has been announced as the Taubman College of Architecture at the University of Michigan. Current dean Monica Ponce de Leon and editor of architectural journal Log Cynthia Davidson will lead the team. The pavilion, entitled “The Architectural Imagination,” will use Detroit as a case study for new architectural ideas that could be applied around the world. (via Artforum)

Fourteen watercolor paintings and drawings, all presumed to be done by a young Adolf Hitler sold at auction in Nuremberg for a total of $440,000. The works are signed A. Hitler, and date from 1904 to 1922. (via the New York Times)

Best of Instagram

Via @tmagazine: “The new Serpentine Gallery Pavilions in Kensington Gardens is a psychedelic maze of plastic tunnels. Photo by @adrian_lourie.”

Via @shantell_martin: “@amfAR have teamed up with @Artsy to auction off this very unique one-of-a-kind chair that I created specially for #amfARgenCURE #amfARxShantell #AREYOUYOU Go bid 😎”

Via @massmoca: “The "Big Top Grand Stand" has landed. Yet to come are additional stories of carnival-inspired structures, decked out with flashing lights, vibrant flags, and reflective surfaces. #solidsound2015 #suttonberesculler”