Art Industry News: Damien Hirst Gives NFT “100% Support” With Plans To Burn Even More Of His Art + More Stories

Art Industry News is a daily summary of the most important developments in the art world and the art market. Here’s what you need to know this Friday, August 5th.

NEED TO READ

Catherine Opie and Jack Pierson will organize an exhibition of the John Waters collection – Artists Catherine Opie and Jack Pierson have selected 90 works from the collection that filmmaker John Waters donated to the Baltimore Museum of Art in 2020. The exhibition, “Coming Attractions: The John Waters Collection, includes works by Diane Arbus, Cindy Sherman, Cy Twombly, and Andy Warhol, and will open at the museum on November 20. (CBS News)

Maya Lin commissioned to create sculpture for Obama’s presidential center – Lin, one of former US President Barack Obama’s favorite artists, will create a sculpture titled see through the universe, which will be installed in the water garden of the Obama Presidential Center. The garden will be named after Obama’s mother, Ann Dunham, to commemorate her influence on Obama and his sister, the former president said. (Press release)

Even Damien Hirst wasn’t sure he wanted his own NFTs – The famous British artist confessed on Twitter that he was “trying to figure out what I should do” about the results of his highly publicized NFT project “The Currency”. The artist made 10,000 NFTs, then asked each buyer to choose between keeping the digital token or a matching physical painting (most chose the latter). Hirst, who plans to burn all remaining physical works, also revealed that he was saving 1,000 NFTs for himself and now has to make the same decision. He initially thought he would trade all his NFTs for IRL jobs, but now he has decided to keep the tokens. “I decided I had to show my 100% support and faith in the NFT world,” Hirst wrote. (Artnet News)

The Uffizi Gallery will undertake a $51 million garden restoration – By 2030, Florence’s Uffizi Galleries will look very different, thanks to an impressive masterplan to restore the nearby Boboli Gardens to “Medici-era glory”. The so-called “Boboli 2030” initiative includes 40 projects aimed at improving energy efficiency, combating climate change, restoring statues and building a warehouse for tapestries and carpets. The garden was originally designed by the Medici family and served as a model of the popular Italian style, with its sprawling 81-acre grounds that featured grottoes, fountains and some 300 classical and baroque statues. In a statement, director Eike Schmidt said the aim was not just to “bring Boboli back to the glory of the Medici era and the Lorena dynasties, but to go further, making it the best museum open to the world”. (TANNING)

MOVERS AND SHAKERS

Stephen Hawking’s VW Caravelle up for auction The turquoise Volkswagen Caravelle that carried physicist Stephen Hawking for a decade goes under the hammer in September. The scientist bought the car in 1988 and it drove Hawking and his wife, Elaine Mason, to their wedding, and was in continuous use until 1999, when Hawking’s health declined and he needed a wheelchair accessible vehicle. The car is consigned by Hawking’s nephew with no reserve price at Silverstone auction in the UK. (evening standard)

The National Gallery of Ireland names the first female director in over a century – Caroline Campbell will take over as director of the National Gallery of Ireland and become the first female director in the gallery’s 158-year history. The Belfast-born curator has worked at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, the Courtauld Gallery and the National Gallery in London, where she has been Director of Collections and Research since 2018. “In art,” said Campbell in a statement, “It is therefore an immense pleasure to return now to a place that means so much to me personally.” She will take up her new role in November.Press release)

M+ joins forces with HSBC – HSBC, one of the world’s largest banks, will become the first major partner of the M+ museum in Hong Kong from November 1. This important partnership will include primary sponsorship of the museum’s special exhibits, tours for non-governmental organizations and family-focused initiatives. The bank’s extensive archive of historical documents, drawings and photographs will also play a role in its future collaboration projects with M+. (Press release)

FOR THE ARTS

Gee’s Bend Quilt Reproductions Now Available at Macy’s – Macy’s now sells reproduction quilts made by historic Gee’s Bend Alabama quilters. This decision is the result of a partnership between Macy’s and the Souls Grown Deep Foundation and Community Partnership. A portion of proceeds from online sales will go to support artists Lucy Mingo, Loretta Pettway, Louella Pettway, Lucy T. Pettway, and Stella Mae Pettway, as well as the Souls Grown Deep Foundation. The colorful abstract fabric pieces produced within the Gee’s Bend community have long been considered major contributions to American art history. (ART news)

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