Welcome to Art Spell, a daily, comprehensive roundup of art news and reviews for the visual arts community. Today’s Editor’s Pick is The art world’s billionaire problem is getting worse, research suggests by Anny Shaw for The Art Newspaper. Rising wealth inequality is pushing the art market around ultra-wealthy buyers and trophy works, creating a more fragile ecosystem.
The Art Newspaper
Martin Bailey, A Churchill painting that mysteriously fell into the hands of a Nazi collaborator is on show in London
Angella d’Avignon, Institute of Contemporary Art, San Diego faces financial and leadership crisis
Gareth Harris, Four artists explore AI’s effect on culture as part of Serpentine’s new art and technology fellowship
EDITOR’S PICK - Anny Shaw, The art world’s billionaire problem is getting worse, research suggests: A new paper links widening wealth inequality to the market’s growing reliance on ultra-rich collectors
Artforum
From the Editors, Supreme Court Green-Lights White House Ballroom Despite Lack of Congressional Approval
From the Editors, Repatriated Kandinsky Masterwork Will Go Up for Auction at Christie’s London
From the Editors, U.K. Prime Minister Retracts Support for Return of Parthenon Marbles to Greece
From the Editors, Mark Feary to Curate 2028 Adelaide Biennial
Artnet
Jo Lawson-Tancred, The Story Behind One of David Hockney’s Most Beguiling Paintings
Vittoria Benzine, Newly Restituted Kandinsky Poised for $30M Sale
Jo Lawson-Tancred, Serpentine Taps Four Artists For New Tech-Focused Fellowship
Min Chen, Iconic ‘Mondrian Dress’ Heads to Auction—and Other Art World Matters
Vittoria Benzine, Decades-Old Feud Reignites Over Painting Hidden Beneath Chagall’s Paris Opera Ceiling
Min Chen, Julien’s Auctions Sets Sights on Abu Dhabi With Blockbuster Memorabilia Sale
ARTnews
Hikmat Mohammed, Serpentine’s Inaugural Fellowship Bridges the Gap Between Art and AI
Brian Boucher, Untitled Art, Miami Beach Names 166 Exhibitors for 2026 Edition
Maximilíano Durón, UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham Reverses Call for British Museum to Return Parthenon Marbles
Anne Doran, In the Face of European Colonization, Aboriginal Artists Created Images of Powerful Beings, Study Finds
Alex Greenberger, Art Gallery of Ontario Director Stephan Jost to Depart After a Decade
Andy Battaglia, ICE Unit Says It Seized 22,000 Ancient Artifacts in Florida
Brian Boucher, Christie’s London Offers a Restituted Kandinsky, Long Displayed in a German Museum, for $30 M.
Leigh Anne Miller, Camille Henrot Will Show 12 Dog Sculptures in Central Park This Fall
Devorah Lauter, French Court Faults Deauville City for Removing AP Photograph of Gaza from Exhibition
The Brooklyn Rail
Phong H. Bui, Dear Friends and Readers
Richard Shiff, CHRISTOPHER WOOL
Alex Bacon, LEE UFAN
Amanda Gluibizzi, MALCOLM PEACOCK
Andrew Paul Woolbright, TALA MADANI
Jennifer Stockman & Joachim Pissarro, EMILY RAUH PULITZER
Financial Times
Louis Wise, Beryl Cook takes Bicester – and beyond
Lee Sharrock, Poet Arch Hades: ‘I don’t have to share a space with another human being’
The Guardian
Aaron Mok, Freelancers are getting buried with ‘soulless’ AI slop cleanup: ‘It’s a shame we need to do it’
Eddy Frankel, HRH Helch: the graffiti artist who left an indelible mark on high-rise Britain
Alice Fisher, Meet the magical creatures inspired by shamanism, folklore … and an old Ikea bag
From the Editors, ‘She inspired my proposal’: Readers on Yayoi Kusama
Hyperallergic
Matt Stromberg, 15 Art Shows to See in Los Angeles This Fall
Taliesin Thomas, The Artists Paddling 350 Miles Up the Erie Canal
Anna Lee, Minnesota State Fair Removes Anti-Trump Crop Art After Artist Was Harassed
Shahrzad Rasekh, Inside the 3,000-Zine Library in a Texas Living Room
From the Editors, Opportunities in September 2026
Bilphena Decontee Yahwon, How Fannuh Baskets Connect Liberia to the US Lowcountry
The Los Angeles Times
Todd Martens, Meow Wolf L.A. announces the local artists who’ll bring the immersive world to life
The New York Times
Emily LaBarge, The Genius of Yayoi Kusama in Three Works
Graham Bowley, Can a Museum Accept Artifacts With Slim Records? Toledo Has a Plan.
Alex Marshall, Charles to View the Bayeux Tapestry, This Time as King
Elizabeth Williamson and Julia Jacobs, Kennedy Center Begins Removing Outdoor ‘Blue’ Sculpture
Observer
Elisa Carollo, Arthur de Villepin On Bridging Cultures with Villa Haw Par and a New Curatorial Project in Milan
Dan Duray, Tone Hansen Takes the Helm at Stockholm’s Moderna Museet With a Newly Expanded Mandate
Elisa Carollo, The Chaebol Fortunes That Built South Korea’s Art World
Elisa Carollo, The Exhibitions Not to Miss During Seoul Art Week
Elisa Carollo, Seoul’s Paradise City Is an Unexpected Art Destination
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