April 27, 2026
Your morning brew of art world media
Welcome to Art Spell, a daily, comprehensive roundup of art news and reviews for the visual arts community. Today’s Editor’s Pick is How Art Firms Are—or Should Be—Using A.I. Right Now by Jo Lawson-Tancred for Artnet. The art market is tentatively adopting A.I., with firms like Bonhams exploring its potential while waiting to see real impact.
Airmail
J.S. Marcus, Off the Wall
Art in America
Lilyanna D’Amato, An Art Historian’s Riotous Novel Melds Medieval Art with Monica Lewinsky
Emily Watlington, How an Artist and Museum Conspired to Give a Delivery Worker What the Apps Won’t: PTO
The Art Newspaper
Gareth Harris, Titian’s ‘Bacchus and Ariadne’ to get a refresh with bank conservation grant
Georgina Adam, Final book in trilogy asks: What is the future of the art world?
Benjamin Sutton, Towering homage to Bamiyan Buddhas rises over Manhattan’s High Line
Artforum
Paul Chan, Paul Chan on ICE Whistles and the Politics of Sound
Veronika Molnár, Language as Demolition Tool: Selma Selman’s Letters to Omer
From the Editors, Refik Anadol’s AI “Art” Museum to Open in Los Angeles
From the Editors, Leaky Berlin Modern Museum’s Opening Delayed Until 2030
From the Editors, How Much Is That Chagall in the Window: Metropolitan Opera Faces Funding Crisis After Saudi Deal Collapse
From the Editors, Julia Stoschek Foundation to Close in Berlin
Artnet
Katya Kazakina, The Multibillion-Dollar Maneuvers Behind the Met’s Raphael Show
Richard Whiddington, Matt Dillon’s New Paintings Trace a Journey Across West Africa
Min Chen, Harmony Korine Makes Sense of His Shape-Shifting Art: ‘It’s Really One Whole Work’
EDITOR’S PICK - Jo Lawson-Tancred, How Art Firms Are—or Should Be—Using A.I. Right Now: With tailored tools emerging, galleries and auction houses are beginning to make A.I. work for them.
Vittoria Benzine, Inside Gagosian’s Quiet Power Move to Street Level on Madison Avenue
Katie White, Colleen Barry Wants You to Believe in Pictures Again
Jo Lawson-Tancred, Venice Biennale’s Prize Ban on Israel and Russia Falls Short for Critics
Richard Whiddington, The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool Is Being Overhauled by Trump’s Pool Contractor
Vittoria Benzine, Tourist Damages Florence’s Neptune Fountain in Pre-Wedding Stunt
Tom Sanford, The Tabloids Are Fouling Mayor Mamdani Over His Knicks Art. Here’s the Story
Margaret Carrigan, Art Basel Curbs Pre-Fair Sales—and More Art Industry News
Richard Whiddington, Long-Hidden Keith Haring Artworks Come to Auction
Sonia Manalili and Margaret Carrigan, The Art Trade Is Taking Calculated Risks With A.I.
Min Chen, Thom Yorke and Stanley Donwood Plot a Mysterious Art Show in Venice
ARTnews
Howard Halle, “Primary Structures,” Turns 60
Alex Greenberger, Israel Addresses Venice Biennale Jury’s ‘Boycott’ of Pavilion: ‘A Contamination of the Art World’
Alex Greenberger, Artists Sell More Than $1 M. in Art at Sotheby’s in Support of a Debt-Free Yale MFA Program
Magnus Resch, Is A Random Unknown Artist More Valuable Than Picasso? AI Thinks So.
Devorah Lauter, A Smaller Art Brussels Represents a Shift in the Fair Ecosystem Toward a ‘Quality-First’ Approach
Maximilíano Durón, LA’s The Box Gallery to Close After 19 Years
Anne Doran, Archaeologists Discover Secret Chambers in one of Egypt’s Pyramids of Giza
Daniel Cassady, Gagosian Opens a New Ground-Floor Flagship at 980 Madison Avenue with Duchamp-Rauschenberg Double Header
Brian Boucher, Collector Julia Stoschek Closes Down Berlin Exhibition Venue After 10 Years In Favor of International Projects
Maximilíano Durón, Judd Foundation Taps Cooper Hewitt Curator as New Director of Design
Tessa Solomon, Jimmy Tsutomu Mirikitani, a New Sort of Street Artist, Rises from Art History’s Margins
Leigh Anne Miller, Refik Anadol’s AI Art Museum DATALAND Will Open in Los Angeles in June
Tessa Solomon, Gold Trove Linked to Famed Aegina Treasure Discovered on Greek Isle
Jaden Thompson, Michael Jackson’s Signature Loafers Return to Auction as Biopic Hits Theaters
Sandra Salibian, Max Mara Will Stage Its Resort 2027 Show at Shanghai’s Long Museum West Bund
Andy Battaglia, Amid Epstein Blowback, Bard President Leon Botstein Talks About Succession Plan But With No Timeline: Report
ArtReview
Jenny Wu, Appropriation Culture: Richard Prince and Arthur Jafa
From the Editors, Sharjah Biennial announces theme and artists
From the Editors, Liu Ding and Carol Yinghua Lu to curate 2027 Istanbul Biennial
From the Editors, Julia Stoschek Foundation to close Berlin location
Financial Times
Charlotte Burns, A new generation of ‘post-medium’ artists rises at the Venice Biennale
Frieze
From the Editors, What’s on at No.9 Cork Street this May
From the Editors, Arch Hades opens major solo exhibition on the Grand Canal in Venice
The Guardian
Chloë Ashby, There will be mud! Could my child (and buggy) survive a day at a sculpture park?
Christine Baranski and Sharon Maher, Arts funding gap in the north must be closed
Elke Bachler, When archaeology was dominated by men
Lanre Bakare, Tate at a turning point: new director must confront unwieldy ‘beast’ of an art institution
Hyperallergic
Rhea Nayyar, Nude Performance at MFA Boston Confronts One of Art’s Oldest Tropes
Rhea Nayyar, A Buddha Is Reborn on the High Line
Tulsa Kinney, Remembering James Hayward, LA’s Adored Cowboy Painter
Isa Farfan, A Refreshing Turn to Craft at AIPAD’s Photography Show
Melissa Holbrook Pierson, Jan Staller Photographs the Nuts and Bolts of Manhattan’s Urban Symphony
Lori Waxman, Alice Tippit’s Mischievous Erotics
John Yau, Mark Milroy Sees, Remembers, and Imagines at Once
Lakshmi Rivera Amin, A View From the Easel
The New York Times
Robin Pogrebin, $450 Million Worth of Newhouse Trophies Come to Christie’s
Graham Bowley, $100 Million Award Made in Suit Over Unlicensed Robert Indiana Art
Jennifer Schuessler, Student Contest Based on Trump’s Garden of Heroes Downplays Darker History
Penelope Green, The World According to Aldwyth
Penelope Green, Aldwyth, Ascetic Whose Artwork Reordered the World, Dies at 90
The New Yorker
Hilton Als, The Many Forms of Marcel Duchamp
Observer
Christa Terry, Valerie Mercer and the Long Work of Putting African American Art Where It Belongs
Elisa Carollo, In Dancehall and Reggaetón’s Evolution, MCA Chicago Charts a Global Awakening
T Magazine
Monica Khemsurov, 11 Standout Moments From Salone del Mobile
Urgent Matter
Adam Schrader, Lace installation rooted in Ljubelj concentration camp performance lands in New York
Adam Schrader, A museum that doesn’t exist opens in Tribeca
Adam Schrader, New College says no records exist on art removals as official calls reports ‘not news’
Adam Schrader, Documents: New College of Florida Public Records Response on Campus Art
Vanity Fair
Nate Freeman, Larry Gagosian Talks Duchamp, Sushi—and Gives a First Look at the Top Secret New Gagosian Gallery in New York
The Wall Street Journal
Carol Ryan, Warhol Is Out, Gulfstreams Are In: The Superrich Are Souring on Art
From the Editors, Arts Calendar: Happenings for the Week of April 26
William Meyers, ‘Made in America: The Industrial Photography of Christopher Payne’ Review: Pictures of Production
The Washington Post
From the Editors, Museum and gallery exhibits in the D.C. area this week
Art Spell is a subscription-based daily roundup of art news and reviews to help you stay current with what’s being reported on in the visual arts community. The profits from Art Spell are donated to organizations supporting art journalists and writers.