Killer Canvases: Sir Anthony Hopkins Art Exhibit Opens

The first British exhibition of artwork by award-winning actor Sir Anthony Hopkins opens in London this week. [Credit: Times Online]>

LONDON — The actor best known for his role as Hannibal Lecter, Oscar-winner Sir Anthony Hopkins will show off his killer painting skills in a new exhibit opening this week at London's Gallery 27. The collection will feature 38 paper canvases, 7 acrylic pieces, and 5 limited addition prints for sale - all of which will be on view through February 20.

"This exhibition gives people the chance to see a different side of Sir Anthony in terms of his artistry and also his unique personality," said exhibition organizer Jonathan Poole. "His technique is to use a palette knife to make thick, swooping strokes with gobs of paint. His work is painterly, wild and vibrant and is generous with its motion and use of color," Poole explained.

Hopkins began painting in 2002 at the encouragement of his wife, Stella, who happened upon a collection of his old scripts with his unique drawings on them. Since then, Hopkins has produced a variety of artwork, including ink drawings and acrylic paintings. The actor has said that he paints every day out of his studio in Malibu.

"When I paint, I just paint freely without anxiety regarding outside opinions as criticisms," said Hopkins. "I do it for sheer pleasure. It's done wonders for my subconscious - I dream now in colors."

[Source: Telegraph]
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Killer Canvases: Sir Anthony Hopkins Art Exhibit Opens

Mr. Tambourine Man Gets an Art Show

"Sunflowers", an acrylic painting on canvas by legendary singer/songwriter Bob Dylan.

LONDON — A dozen original canvas paintings by the legendary musician Bob Dylan will go on public display Saturday. The exhibit is called Bob Dylan on Canvas and will be on view at London's Halcyon Gallery from February 13 through April 10.

"I just draw what's interesting to me, and then I paint it. Rows of houses, orchard acres, lines of tree trunks, could be anything. I can take a bowl of fruit and turn it into a life and death drama," said 68-year-old Dylan. "I'm not trying to make social comment or fulfill somebody's vision and I can find subject matter anywhere. I guess in some way that comes out of the folk world that I came up in."

The twelve paintings are the grand finale of The Drawn Blank Series and are based on drawings made while the singer/songwriter was on the road touring between 1989 and 1992. The works will be available for purchase at prices ranging from $137,000 to $727,000.

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Mr. Tambourine Man Gets an Art Show

Oops! Museum Visitor's Fall Damages Rare Picasso

Pablo Picasso's Rose period painting "The Actor" (1904-1905) was accidentally damaged by a visitor to the Met on Friday, Jan. 22. [Credit: Metropolitan Museum of Art]

NEW YORK — It probably could've happened to any of us, so just be thankful it wasn't you! A visitor attending a class at the Metropolitan Museum Art on Friday afternoon lost her balance and fell directly onto a Pablo Picasso painting. And yes, the rare artwork was damaged in the process.

In a statement released Jan. 24, the Met said, "The accident resulted in an irregular vertical tear of about six inches in length in the lower right-hand corner. The painting was taken immediately to the Museum's paintings conservation studio for assessment and treatment. Fortunately, the damage did not occur in a focal point of the composition, and the curatorial and conservation staffs fully expect that the repair — which will take place in the coming weeks — will be unobtrusive."

The painting entitled The Actor was created in the winter of 1904-1905, during Picasso's famous Rose period, a time when the artist's palette consisted of cheerful orange and pink hues as opposed to the cool, somber tones of his previous Blue Period. The image of the costumed acrobat was painted on a nearly 6x4-foot canvas which Picasso had already used for another painting.

Museum officials expect to have The Actor restored in time to include the painting in their forthcoming exhibition Picasso in The Metropolitan Museum of Art, slated to open April 27.
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Oops! Museum Visitor's Fall Damages Rare Picasso

Have You Heard the New One About Van Gogh's Ear?

Vincent van Gogh's "Self-portrait with Bandaged Ear" (1889).

Detail from Vincent Van Gogh's "Still Life with a Plate of Onions" (1889) showing a letter dated December 1888, written by the artist's brother Theo; a new theory speculates it was the impetus for Vincent's self-dismemberment.

LONDON — For decades, art scholars have speculated as to why tortured genius Vincent van Gogh sliced off his own earlobe. Some experts attribute the incident to the Impressionist artist's having been poisoned by the lead in his paints, others have blamed it on a dispute with fellow artist Paul Gauguin over a prostitute, and still others believe he was just plain insane. The latest theory is that the artist's brother Theo pushed him over the edge, causing the already mentally disturbed individual to lop off his own ear.

The new explanation, proposed by author and curator Martin Bailey, was formulated after his methodical examination of Vincent van Gogh's painting Still Life with a Plate of Onions (1889). Bailey believes that a detail in the artwork, specifically a letter dated December 1888, is a clue deliberately included by the artist because of its significance in relation to the incident.

The still life painting was completed just a month after the ear injury. The letter was sent from Vincent's brother and art dealer Theo to announce his engagement to his girlfriend Johanna Bonger. Vincent depended upon Theo for emotional and financial support. The upcoming nuptials would have so disturbed the artist, says Bailey, that his brother's news could have easily led to an act of self-mutilation.

In another letter, Theo wrote to his fiancée: “When I mentioned you to [Vincent] he evidently knew who and what I meant and, when I asked whether he approved of our plans, he said marriage ought not to be regarded as the main object in life.” 

An exhibition at London's Royal Academy next month will feature the still life and center around Van Gogh's remarkable correspondence.

The Real Van Gogh: The Artist and His Letters January 23, 2010 - April 18, 2010 at the Royal Academy (London)

Have You Heard the New One About Van Gogh's Ear?

Adopt a Dot from Seurat's 'Grande Jatte'

CHICAGO — Can't decide on a holiday gift for the art lover in your life? The Art Institute of Chicago has a creative idea for you - Adopt a Dot! That's right, this year you can "own" a dot from one of the museum's most beloved paintings, Georges Seurat's A Sunday on La Grande Jatte (1884).

Seurat's famous masterpiece is 125 years old this year and the Art Institute is celebrating by allowing museum members to adopt one of the thousands of dots in the painting. Adopt a Dot is reminiscent of the "International Star Registry" program, but nonetheless it's a brilliant marketing plan to increase AIC memberships and raise funds for the museum.

When you adopt a dot, you'll receive a commemorative button pin in one of six colors (light blue, red, green, pink, dark blue, black) chosen from the painting, as well as a card describing the location of your dot. The adoption fees are $10 for one dot, $25 for three dots, and $50 for all six colors. Proceeds will support the museum's conservation and curatorial departments.

Download the Adopt a Dot Order Form Here >

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[Image: A Sunday on La Grande Jatte (1884) by Georges Seurat turns 125 years old in 2009.]

Adopt a Dot from Seurat's 'Grande Jatte'

USPS Stamp Designs for the Winter Holidays

 

This year, the United States Postal Service is getting into the spirit of the holiday season by issuing a series of 2009 Holiday Stamps, commemorating Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa and Eid.

The 2009 Hanukkah stamp design features a photograph of a menorah with nine lit candles; it  is the third U.S. issuance to commemorate the holiday. The menorah was designed by Lisa Regan of the Garden Deva Sculpture Company in Oklahoma, and photographed by Ira Wexler of Maryland. Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights, begins Friday evening at sundown.

Since 1978, the theme of each “traditional” Christmas stamp has been the Madonna and Child. The 2009 Christmas stamp features Madonna and Sleeping Child, a painting by Italian artist Giovanni Battista Salvi, (1609–1685), more commonly known as Sassoferrato. The painting depicted on the stamp shows a blonde Madonna clothed in red and cradling the sleeping Christ Child in purple cloth. From each of the two top corners, the childlike face of a cherub looks down from the clouds. The painting is currently in the collection of Hearst Castle in California.

Kwanzaa, a nonreligious holiday, takes place over seven days from December 26 to January 1. Kwanzaa draws on African traditions and takes its name from the phrase for “first fruits” in Swahili, a widely spoken African language. The Kwanzaa stamp is marked by a family grouping in bright green, red, gold and black. Stamp artist Lloyd McNeill of New York created the festive, highly symbolic design to celebrate the holiday.

The Eid stamp commemorates the two most important festivals — or eids – in the Islamic calendar: Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, and features the Arabic phrase "Eid mubarak" in gold calligraphy on a blue background. Eid mubarak translates literally as "blessed festival," and can be paraphrased "May your religious holiday be blessed." The stamp was designed by calligrapher Mohamed Zakariya, working under the direction of Phil Jordan, both from Virginia.

The USPS has also released a series of secular 2009 Winter Holiday stamps, featuring a reindeer, snowman, gingerbread man and toy soldier.

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[Image: 2009 Holiday Stamps released by the USPS, commemorating Hanukkah (left) and Christmas (right).]

USPS Stamp Designs for the Winter Holidays

Celebrity Paintings Translate to T-Shirts for a Cause

LOS ANGELES — With paintbrushes in hand, High School Musical star Corbin Bleu, socialite family The Hiltons (sisters Paris and Nicky with mom Kathy), singer Colbie Caillat, Disney actress Demi Lovato and The Hills reality star Audrina Patridge, all applied their creativity to canvas for a good cause. Each celebrity created a painting which has been incorporated into a unique line of t-shirts and tank tops. The fashions will be sold by Forever 21 for $12.80, with proceeds benefiting the Starlight Children's Foundation. Starting December 21, each star's original painting will also be up for sale at Starlight's eBay store.

“I was honored and excited to participate with the Forever 21/Starlight project with my daughters Paris and Nicky," said Kathy Hilton. "It was fun to do together, while at the same time doing something to help others. It's a very good cause, so I hope everyone will enjoy the t-shirts."

The Starlight Children's Foundation helps seriously ill children and their families cope with their pain, fear and isolation through entertainment, education and family activities.

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[Image: Paris, Nicky and Kathy Hilton's original artwork for a line of t-shirts to be sold by Forever 21, with proceeds benefitting the Starlight Children's Foundation.]

Celebrity Paintings Translate to T-Shirts for a Cause

Two Old Masters Set Auction Records in London

LONDON — An auction Tuesday night in London earned the largest recorded total at a sale of its kind. Artists Raphael and Rembrandt were the stars of the Christie's Old Masters and 19th Century Sale, which fetched an impressive $112.4 million.

Raphael's drawing Head of a Muse sold for double its pre-sale estimate, earning a winning bid of $47.5 million. That figure established a record, making the work the most valuable drawing ever sold at auction and the second highest price ever paid for an Old Master painting or drawing. The 16th century work was done as a study for one of the artist's frescoes in the Vatican.

Rembrandt's painting Portrait of a Man, Half-Length, with his Arms Akimbo also fetched a record price for the artist and was the fifth highest price paid at auction for an Old Master painting or drawing, selling for $33.2 million. The 17th century piece was previously part of a private collection, and until Tuesday, had not been seen in public for forty years.

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[Images: Left - Raphael, "Head of a Muse" (1508-11). | Right - Rembrandt, "Portrait of a Man with Arms Akimbo" (1658).]

Two Old Masters Set Auction Records in London

Google Goggles Visual Search: Identify Art in a Snap!

MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA — Sometimes you just don't have the time or energy to type keywords into an internet search engine, so the folks at Google have devised a creative alternative - Google Goggles. Unveiled Monday at a Search Event, the new Google Goggles application will allow users to use images to search the web.

"It is our goal to be able to identify any image," said Google's vice president of engineering Vic Gundotra. "It represents our earliest efforts in the field of computer vision. You can take a picture of an item, use that picture of whatever you take as the query." 

How does it work? "A picture is worth a thousand words."

Simply snap a picture with your cellphone and Google will identify it for you. Google Goggles can be used to gather information about landmarks, books, artwork, places, contact information, wine bottles and logos. Now you can point your mobile phone at a particular painting or sculpture and instantly learn the artist, title and any other pertinent data about the piece.

The Google Goggles feature is currently only supported on Android - for the time being.

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[Image: Illustration showing how Google Goggles search for artwork can be used. Courtesy Google Goggles Labs.]

Google Goggles Visual Search: Identify Art in a Snap!

Police Seize Stash of Masterpieces Hidden by Disgraced Parma Dairy Owner

ROME —  The Italian police have recovered 19 masterpieces hidden in attics and basements of three apartments in the city of Parma. Valued at more than $149 million, the art stash belonged to Calisto Tanzi, the disgraced founder of the recently-collapsed dairy company, Parmalat Finanziaria SpA.

With the help of Tanzi’s relatives, the former billionaire was able to hide away an impressive trove of paintings by some of the world's most famous artists. On Saturday, police seized a pencil on paper portrait of a ballerina by Degas, two van Goghs, including a depiction of a trunk of a willow tree and a still life, a watercolor by Cezanne and a pencil-work by Modigliani. There was also a self-portrait by Italian rock star Ligabue and other masterpieces by Picasso, Monet and Manet.

Tanzi, who is currently on trial for fraud linked to Italy’s biggest bankruptcy, had previously lied to authorities by telling them he had no other assets. Police said that Tanzi was preparing to sell at least one painting. “We had some suspicions about a few individuals,” said Gerardo Laguardia, the Parma chief prosecutor. “We were able to tap their phones. We were lucky. We realized that there were negotiations to sell one of the paintings, the Monet.”

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Read More - Italy Police Seize Secret Stash of Masterpieces | AP

[Photo: Italian tax police officers hold a Giuseppe De Nittis painting, one of 19 masterpieces seized in Parma on Dec. 5, 2009. Courtesy AP Photo/Marco Vasini ]

Police Seize Stash of Masterpieces Hidden by Disgraced Parma Dairy Owner

The Ten Most Popular Oil Paintings of 2009

WICHITA, KS — Quick! Think of an artist, any artist. Who did you think of? Pablo Picasso? Vincent van Gogh? Claude Monet? Many of you probably did. So it's not too surprising, then, that those three artists, along with Gustav Klimt, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Georgia O'Keefe and Wassily Kandinsky, were all listed in Overstock Art's Top 10 Oil Paintings rankings for 2009.

Each year, the online art gallery Overstock Art releases their Top 10 Oil Paintings list due to popular demand. “A lot of people want to know what’s selling best because it helps them stay up to speed with the latest trends and allows them to know which paintings are the hippest and most desirable on the market,” said overstockART.com CEO David Sasson. “In the business world especially, where image is everything, many companies strive to keep up with the latest interior décor trends to maintain a modern appeal that will impress customers and clients."

So which painting was most in demand this year? Of the 45,000 oil paintings (reproductions) sold by overstockArt.com in 2009, the most popular was...drumroll please...Vincent van Gogh's Starry Night. The popular painting reclaimed its title a year after Gustav Klimt's The Kiss snatched the title away. "Van Gogh consistently remains the most popular artist in the world, his total sales numbers have left everyone well behind," said Sasson.

The Top 10 Oil Paintings of 2009 according to Overstock Art are:

1) Vincent van Gogh "Starry Night"

2) Vincent van Gogh "Café Terrace at Night"

3) Gustav Klimt "The Kiss"

4) Claude Monet "Poppy Field at Argenteuil"

5) Pierre Auguste Renoir "Luncheon of the Boating Party"

6) Claude Monet "Garden Path at Giverny"

7) Pablo Picasso "The Rest"

8) Georgia O’Keeffe "Red Cannas"

9) Wassily Kandinsky "Farbstudie Quadrate (Color Study of Squares)"


10) Pablo Picasso "The Dream"

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The Ten Most Popular Oil Paintings of 2009

Medieval Times and Renaissance at a London Museum

LONDON — A major unveiling took place in London on Wednesday as the Victoria and Albert Museum opened its doors to a new $53 million wing of remarkable treasures. Ten new galleries at the V&A feature more than 1,800 objects spanning the Middle Ages to the Renaissance eras. One of the collection highlights is five of Leonardo da Vinci's small notebooks (1487-1505) on permanent display for the first time.

The V&A museum hopes its seven-year overhaul project will change the public perception of the Medieval period, a timeframe so often associated with plague, war and turmoil. "We want our visitors to take away with them a feeling of the luxury, the color and the sophistication of this period," said the museum's director, Mark Jones. "This was not a dark period in history."

From textiles, paintings and sculpture, to glass, metalwork, prints and manuscripts, to furniture, ceramics and jewelery, the V&A's new wing houses all sorts of objects of European art and design. The ten new gallery rooms cover the years 300 to 1600 and are organized by theme as follows:

• Faiths and Empires, 300-1250: Explores how Christian art forms developed within the later Roman Empire. Early medieval rulers, such as Charlemagne, looked back to the forms and values of Roman art. It also shows how from about the year 1000, the increasingly powerful Christian church found a visual expression in the magnificent stone churches and abbeys that dominated the landscape.
• Devotion and Display, 300-1500: Looking at how religion affected Europeans' daily lives, this gallery shows religious artworks commissioned by town councils, corporations and wealthy individuals as 'good works'. The displays explore the world of public worship as well as the more private world of personal religious devotion. Onyx window screens act as filters for light and as a background on which to display the objects dramatically.
• The Rise of the Gothic, 1200-1350: The development of the Gothic style is set in a wider social and cultural context in this gallery. Although it developed in France, the Gothic style was rapidly adopted in most of Europe. The concepts of chivalry and heraldry developed during this period. Displays of stained glass, ivory and luxurious church embroideries are presented in this intimate space.
• Noble Living, 1350-1500: Devoted to luxury goods found in the households of rich nobles and wealty merchants, occasionally contrasting them with more humble goods. The gallery focuses on moments of ostentatious display, such as hunting, dining and courtship. A number of objects reflect life at the court of Burgundy, one of the most luxurious of the 15th century.
• The Renaissance City, 1350-1600: Large-scale works, once part of impressive Renaissance buildings, are displayed in the context of the cityscape. At its heart is the courtyard and the garden, with dramatic sculptures, trees and water. The church interior display, evoked by major altarpieces and stained glass, includes the Renaissance chapel from Santa Chiara, Florence. The choir screen from the Cathedral of St John at Hertogenbosch, one of the largest objects on show, dominates the gallery.
• Donatello and the Making of Art, 1400-1500: The V&A's exceptional collection of sculptures by Donatello, the most important and influential sculptor of 15th-century Italy, are presented in this gallery. It also shows works that explore the wider context of Italian artistic production.
• Renaissance Art and Ideas, 1400-1550: Renaissance ideas and beliefs, particularly the interest in antiquity and classical precedents, are explored here, together with the creative process of the artist. New technologies, notably printing, disseminated ideas and designs, and objects expressed identity and family ambition. Central to the gallery is a display evocative of a scholar's study decorated with Luca della Robbia's ceiling roundels from Piero de'Medici's study.
• A World of Goods, 1450-1600: Examines how design ideas were exchanged within and outside Europe. Objects, sometimes specifically designed for the Western market, were imported into Europe, and Islamic and Chinese techniques were imitated by European craftsmen. Exploration, conflict and diplomacy all played a part, with traditional trade relationships with the Islamic world complemented by new markets in the Far East and the New World.
• Splendour and Society, 1500-1600: The rich decoration and furnishings of the domestic interior form the setting of this gallery. Displays explore various aspects of life and social ritual. On show are luxury goods such as jewelery and furniture, armor and an impressive display on dining. Niches contain a selection of treasures and curiosities that a Renaissance collector might have assembled, and objects relating to health and beauty.
• Living with the Past: This new day-lit gallery examines the medieval and Renaissance past by bringing together large-scale objects, including the façade of Sir Paul Pindar's house from the city of London, with 19th-century plaster casts and photographs. The display highlights how fragments of the past remain in the towns, cities and rural landscapes of Europe.

Admission to the V&A Museum is free. For more information, please visit www.vam.ac.uk


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[Images: Top - Leonardo Da Vinci, "Volume II, Forster Codex" (ca. 1495) | Bottom, left to right - "The Becket Casket" (ca. 1180-1190). Donatello, "Virgin and Child" (ca. 1435-1440). "Arms of Balthasar II von Hohenlandenberg" (ca. 1500). Courtesy V&A Museum.]

Medieval Times and Renaissance at a London Museum

Top ART News: Week In Review | Nov. 22 - Nov. 29

■ Intrigued Art Collector Discovers Galileo's Relics | ROME (11/22/09) — Relics taken from the "Father of Modern Science," Galileo Galilei (1564-1642), have been rediscovered and will go on display sometime next spring.  Experts have examined the provenance of three items - two fingers and a tooth - found inside an 18th-century container and determined the specimens indeed belonged to Galileo... More >

 

■ Sex and the City's Kim Cattrall to Play Nude Diana in Titian Painting | EDINBURGH (11/23/09) — Actress Kim Cattrall, best known for her role as Samantha Jones on Sex and the City, announced that she will pose nude once again in the name of art. This is the second time the English-born Cattrall has volunteered her body to raise funds to keep classic Renaissance paintings on display in the U.K... More >

 

■ Study Shows Artists Remain Inspired Despite Recession Challenges | NEW YORK, NY (11/24/09) — The results of an art survey, released Tuesday, indicate that despite being hit hard by the economic recession, artists remain optimistic about their importance in society. In fact, 89% of those who participated in the Artists and Economic Recession Survey believe they play a special role in helping strengthen their communities during these tough times. 75% of those polled believe that overall this is an inspiring time to be in an artistic profession... More >

 

■ Giant Finger Painting Sets World Record | HONG KONG (11/27/09) — As American children were celebrating Thanksgiving on Thursday, around 3,300 students were setting a Guinness World Record in China. The children created a giant finger painting carrying the anti-drug slogan, "Not Now, Not Ever, Say No to Drugs"... More >

■ Surreal or Cubist? The Science of Objective Art Classification | KYOTO (11/28/09) — Have you ever wondered which characteristics of a painting classify it as a certain artistic genre? How do we know a Picasso piece conforms to the properties of Cubism, and what makes Dali art Surreal? Placing artwork into its proper genre is a pretty subjective task, but researchers in Japan are working to make the work of art historians a bit more scientific... More >

Top ART News: Week In Review | Nov. 22 - Nov. 29

Surreal or Cubist? The Science of Objective Art Classification

KYOTO — Have you ever wondered which characteristics of a painting classify it as a certain artistic genre? How do we know a Picasso piece conforms to the properties of Cubism, and what makes Dali art Surreal? Placing artwork into its proper genre is a pretty subjective task, but researchers in Japan are working to make the work of art historians a bit more scientific.

A study at Japan's ATR Computational Neuroscience Laboratories, led by Yukiyasu Kamitani, examined the patterns in brain activity of twelve students who were shown works of art by Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dali. Using an MRI, scientists identified certain brain patterns generated by the students that were unique to each artist. Students were then shown another set of paintings by the same artists.

Both sets of brain patterns were fed into a computer program to determine whether the first set of data could be used as a basis in identifying the genre of paintings viewed in the second set. The results: the program was correct 83% of the time among the six students who were art majors and 62% of the time among the others. The study indicates that the human brain has "abstract codes" for different artistic styles, codes which could soon be used to revolutionize art classification into a more objective process.

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Read More - Brain Scanner Can Tell a Dali from a Picasso | New Scientist
[Image: Salvador Dali, "Portrait of Picasso" (1947)]

Surreal or Cubist? The Science of Objective Art Classification

Sex and the City's Kim Cattrall to Play Nude Diana in Titian Painting

EDINBURGH — Actress Kim Cattrall, best known for her role as Samantha Jones on Sex and the City, announced that she will pose nude once again in the name of art. This is the second time the English-born Cattrall has volunteered her body to raise funds to keep classic Renaissance paintings on display in the U.K.

In 2008, Cattrall played Diana (goddess of the hunt) for a recreation of the Titian painting Diana and Actaon. Although the work was on display at the National Gallery in London, the painting's owner, the Duke of Sutherland, threatened to sell the work on the open market. The successful campaign raised the $83 million necessary to keep the piece in Britain.

This time, Cattrall will pose naked for Titian's Diana and Callisto. The masterpiece portrays the moment in which Diana discovers that her maid Callisto has become pregnant by Jupiter. The painting is in the collection of the National Gallery in Edinburgh, but the Scottish government has refused to pay for the piece to stay there.

The man-eating character Samantha Jones is known for openly embracing her sexuality and the 53-year-old Cattrall is certainly not shy about it either. "Kim is committed to do whatever she can to keep the second Titian on public view," a representative for the actress said.

Note: Sex and the City 2 is scheduled to hit theaters in May 2010.

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[Photo: Kim Cattrall in a recreation of Titian's Diana and Actaon painted in 2008]

Sex and the City's Kim Cattrall to Play Nude Diana in Titian Painting

Tim Burton's Surreal Debut at the MoMA

NEW YORK, NY — Beetlejuice... Beetlejuice... Beetlejuice! A major retrospective opening to the public on Sunday will give fans of blockbuster movies like Pee-wee's Big Adventure, Beetlejuice, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Edward Scissorhands and The Nightmare Before Christmas a unique opportunity to step into the surreal world of Tim Burton. The Museum of Modern Art has compiled over 700 examples of sketchbooks, concept art, drawings, paintings, photographs, and a selection of amateur films for a new exhibit simply entitled, Tim Burton.

On Tuesday night, actress Helena Bonham Carter (Burton's wife), actor Johnny Depp (aka The Mad Hatter in Burton's upcoming film Alice in Wonderland), composer Danny Elfman and actor Danny DeVito were among the many stars at the MoMA for a gala-preview of the new exhibit. Guests walked through a giant monster's mouth with sharp teeth and a long red carpet tongue to enter the main galleries where the master of macabre's artwork is on display.
 

Although widely-recognized as a successful Hollywood director, many don't realize Tim Burton's talent as an artist, illustrator, photographer, and writer. "I wasn't a very verbal teenager and I communicated a lot to other people and myself with little drawings. It was always a form of communication and exploration for me,'' Burton said about his artwork.

In the following behind-the-scenes video, montages of artwork from the exhibit are displayed as Burton discusses his artistic career:

And here is a 30-second, really cute promo released by the MoMA to promote the Tim Burton exhibit:

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Tim Burton (November 22, 2009 - April 26, 2010)

Museum of Modern Art, New York | Website
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Tim Burton's Surreal Debut at the MoMA

Bidding War Over '200 One Dollar Bills' Ends at $43.76 Million

NEW YORK, NY — The art market may still be suffering, but a successful contemporary art auction on Wednesday night indicates a rebound is  on the horizon. A surprise bidding war between five potential buyers broke out when Sotheby's brought Andy Warhol's 200 One Dollar Bills (1962) up to the auction block.

The 7 1/2-foot wide silkscreen painting of 200 life-size dollar bills in black, white and gray tones, sold for $43.76 million - more than three times its $12 million estimate. The painting sold to an undisclosed phone bidder, who paid the second-highest price at auction for a work by the Pop artist.

"Bidding was very deep tonight," said Tobias Meyer, Sotheby's contemporary art director. "The desire to have great things will make [collectors] step up and pay more than $40 million."

The late Warhol's artwork is certainly enjoying 15 minutes of fame this week. On Tuesday evening, another Warhol silkscreen, a portrait of Michael Jackson, also beat estimates; it sold for $812,500 at a Christie's auction.

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Read More - Warhol Fetches $43.7 Million at Auction | New York Times
[Photo: Andy Warhol. Two Hundred One Dollar Bills, 1962.]

Bidding War Over '200 One Dollar Bills' Ends at $43.76 Million

MoMA Designs a Bauhaus Retrospective

NEW YORK, NY — From architecture, industrial design, textiles and furniture, to graphics, painting and sculpture, the 20th century art movement known as the Bauhaus continues to influence our modern world (all one has to do browse the latest IKEA catalog for examples). In its first major exhibition dedicated to the Bauhaus since 1938, the Museum of Modern Art is celebrating the extraordinary artists, architects and designers of the avant-garde school.

The Bauhaus school was founded in 1919 and existed in three German cities: Weimar (1919-1925), Dessau (1925-1932) and Berlin (1932-1933), under three different architect-directors: Walter Gropius, Hannes Meyer, and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. The school was closed by the Nazi regime in 1933.

The Bauhaus aesthetic declared that there should be no distinction between form and function; art should meet the needs of society. The works are characterized by sleek simplicity, often incorporating industrial materials like wood and tubular steel, shaped by clean edges and geometric lines. The design isn't comfy, cozy per se, but it can certainly add sophisticated style to a room.

On Sunday, Workshops for Modernity: Bauhaus 1919-1933 opened at the MoMA; a retrospective exhibit featuring over 400 works by famed artists including Vasily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, László Moholy-Nagy, Oskar Schlemmer and Josef Albers.

“The content of the exhibit is as much student work as masters’ work…it is a portrait of a school," said Barry Bergdoll, co-curator and The Philip Johnson Chief Curator of Architecture and Design at MoMA. "[The Bauhaus school] believed that if you combined modern design and practicality and utility, the public would be converted,” Bergdoll said.

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Workshops for Modernity: Bauhaus 1919-1933 (Nov. 8, 2009 - Jan. 5, 2010)

Museum of Modern Art | Website

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Read More - How the Bauhaus School Is Still Influencing Modern Design | New York Magazine

[Photos: Top Left - Marcel Breuer. Nesting Tables (B9), 1924-26. | Top Right - Christian Dell. Wine pitcher, 1922. | Bottom - Vasily Kandinsky. Designs for wall-paintings for the Juryfreie Kunstschau (detail), 1922.]

MoMA Designs a Bauhaus Retrospective

Oxford's Ashmolean Museum Reopens After 10 Months and $100 Million

OXFORD, ENGLAND — After 10-months and an almost $100 million renovation, Oxford's Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology reopened to the public on Saturday. The world's first university museum, the Ashmolean has added 39 new galleries, including four temporary exhibition galleries, a new education center and state-of-the art conservation studios.

Rick Mather Architects was responsible for the redesign and realizing the museum's new display strategy called "Crossing Cultures Crossing Time"; it is based on the idea that the civilizations which shaped our modern societies developed as part of an interrelated world culture, rather than in isolation.

The Ashmolean collection includes rare Islamic, Indian, Chinese and Japanese objects, archaeological specimens and fine art. The museum has one of the best collections of Pre-Raphaelite paintings, majolica pottery and English silver. Other objects of note include T.E. Lawrence's Arab dress, an entire Japanese tea house, a lantern used by Guy Fawkes and and a hawking glove used by Henry VIII.

Nicholas Barber, Chairman of the Ashmolean, commented, “Renowned for our collections, the Ashmolean has always held a strong position on the cultural map. But now, with a magnificent new building and inspiring displays, the Museum has been transformed into one of the world’s great cultural jewels.”

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[Photo: A newly renovated exhibit gallery inside the Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology]

Oxford's Ashmolean Museum Reopens After 10 Months and $100 Million

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