August 12, 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 Russia Has Damaged or Destroyed Over 4,500 Cultural Sites in Ukraine by Anna Lee for Hyperallergic. Russian attacks have damaged or destroyed thousands of Ukraine’s cultural heritage sites and institutions.
The Art Newspaper
Constanza Ontiveros Valdés, New museum in Argentina honours Lola Mora, a pioneering female sculptor
Garry Shaw, Newly discovered standing stones in France shed light on the ancient megalith builders
Nick Trend, Ten essential works to see in Normandy while the Bayeux Tapestry is on loan
Graciela Ibáñez, Earthquake damages Colombia’s tallest church
From the Editors, ‘An important moment for me’: artist Oliver Beer’s cave-themed project wins over a reluctant Rufus Wainwright
Ben Luke, A brush with… Katharina Grosse—podcast
Artforum
Aaron Fagan and Jack Scott, Jack Scott on Absurdity, Enormousness, and Nothingness
From the Editors, Former National Gallery Of Art Executive Accuses Museum Of “Soft Censorship”
From the Editors, French Culture Minister Asked British Counterpart to Get on His Knees for Bayeux Tapestry Loan
From the Editors, Sicily Exhibition of Wildfire Photographs Nearly Destroyed by Wildfire
From the Editors, London’s Sid Motion Gallery To Close Down This Fall
Artnet
Katya Kazakina, Sotheby’s Lands $450M Argentine Art Collection With Van Gogh, Cézanne, Degas
Katya Kazakina, Shoptalk: Dealer Mary Sabbatino on Championing Ana Mendieta, Mentoring Her ‘Art Daughters’
Margaret Carrigan, Zeitz MOCAA Taps Elvira Dyangani Ose as Artistic Director
Min Chen, The Lucas Museum Is Now Taking Reservations—and Other Art World Matters
Richard Whiddington, Uffizi’s $58 Million Revamp Aims to Ease Crowds, Cool Galleries
Margaret Carrigan, Two Veteran London Galleries Call It Quits
ARTnews
Maximilíano Durón, Zeitz MOCAA Names Elvira Dyangani Ose as Next Artistic Director
Brian Boucher, BBC Host Wants New Reality TV Show Featuring Aspiring Art Dealers To Be ‘The Apprentice for the Art World’
Anne Doran, Laser Technology Reveals Hidden Pre-Hispanic Roads at Machu Picchu
Brian Boucher, Both London’s Sid Motion and Beers Galleries Are Closing, Citing Economic Pressures
Daniel Cassady, One of the Greatest Private Hiroshige Collections Ever Assembled Is Heading to Christie’s
Brian Boucher, New York’s School of Visual Arts Reports One-Third Drop in Enrollment Since 2019, Faces Largest Budget Deficit Ever
Daniel Cassady, Could DNA on Ancient Cave Walls Help Solve Art History’s Oldest Provenance Mystery?
Harrison Jacobs, V&A Changes Paid Break Policy as East Storehouse Strike Looms
Andy Battaglia, Cultural Center of the Philippines Appoints New Chief Curator, Ahead of Reopening Next Year
Maximilíano Durón, ARTS Southeast Revives Residency Program on Georgia’s Remote Ossabaw Island
Brian Boucher, SF Camerawork To Close After Five Decades, Citing ‘Changing Philanthropic Landscape’
Devorah Lauter, Photography Exhibit on Wildfires Nearly Engulfed by Real Wildfire in Sicily
ArtReview
Louise Darblay, Annette Messager: A Rabbit Shoots the Hunter
From the Editors, Elvira Dyangani Ose named artistic director of Zeitz MOCAA
From the Editors, Michael J. Anderson appointed director of Portland Art Museum
Frieze
Logan Lockner, Tom of Finland Is Still Turning Heads
The Guardian
Hettie Judah, Copernicus! Tony Soprano! The inventor of the semicolon! The heroic obsessions of artist Isabel Nolan
Hyperallergic
Valentina Di Liscia, 15 Artists Named 2026 Joan Mitchell Fellows
From the Editors, 10 Photo Books to Read This Month
Anna Lee, San Diego Museum of Art Lays Off 11 Workers
EDITOR’S PICK - Anna Lee, Russia Has Damaged or Destroyed Over 4,500 Cultural Sites in Ukraine: The National Art Museum of Ukraine and the Odesa National Fine Arts Museum are among the 141 museums and galleries affected.
Chenoa Baker, Maori Karmael Holmes Looks Back on 15 Years of BlackStar
The New York Times
Aruna D’Souza, South Africa’s Zeitz MOCAA Names Director to Replace Koyo Kouoh
Laurel Graeber, A Puppet Festival That Asks, What if Judy Punched Back?
Observer
Christa Terry, Joshua Foulquier Built a Restaurant Around the Art His Mother Loved
Megan Fox Kelly, The Future of an Art Collection Is Decided Long Before It Changes Hands
Sarah Moroz, Judy Glickman Lauder’s Vast Trove of Photography Is a Portrait of Its Collector
Elisa Carollo, In the Midst of the Great Wealth Transfer, a New Generation Is Redefining the Art of Collecting
Jennifer Ashley Wright, The Inheritance Princess Margaret Never Got to Keep
Elisa Carollo, The Largest Cash Gifts to U.S. Art Institutions So Far in 2026
Urgent Matter
Adam Schrader, Beanie Babies billionaire lays out legal strategy in Santa Barbara museum suit appeal
Adam Schrader, Court Documents: Ty Warner’s opening brief in the Santa Barbara museum appeal
Adam Schrader, Art world socialite Libbie Mugrabi’s lawyer moves to quit two of her lawsuits
Adam Schrader, Court Documents: The lawsuits against Libbie Mugrabi and her lawyers’ exits
Adam Schrader, AMNH wins $508K judgment from sightseeing pass company that shut down
Adam Schrader, New play turns Lilith’s Eden into art at The Tank
The Washington Post
Philip Kennicott, How an enslaver’s statue became the center of Trump’s exhibit at Freedom Plaza
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