Tate gives back their Bacon
Plus: Oslo's major new museum finally opens
Hello.
We said goodbye to one of the greats this week, as Dame Paula Rego died aged 87. Such was her legacy and influence, the Guardian published not one, not two, but three tributes from their art critics. “Her art stands up with the best” said Adrian Searle. Alongside a photo album of her life, a video feature and an obituary, a total of seven pieces were published by the newspaper to mark her death. Few artists would get similar treatment. RIP.
Tracey Emin might be one of the few though. And her death is very much at the heart of her current exhibition at the Carl Freedman Gallery in Margate, which I went to see last week. Titled A Journey to Death, it explores the trauma of surgery for the cancer that almost claimed her life. It really is fantastic - and you should go and see it. But let’s hope Emin’s journey has many many more miles to go.
Till next time.
Maxwell
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This week’s news
Tate are returning over ONE THOUSAND Francis Bacon items because it thinks they’re fakes. The archive of documents and sketches purportedly from Bacon’s studio were donated to Tate in 2004 by Barry Joule with much hoo-ha. It was a gift estimated at the time to be worth about £20 million. But the gallery now says there are “credible doubts about the nature and quality of the material.” This long running saga really is an incredible cock-up. The Times
The discovery of a shipwrecked warship that sank while carrying the future King James II has been hailed the most important maritime find since the Mary Rose. The find, which was discovered by divers in 2007, has only just been revealed due to security reasons. Experts have said the discovery “promises to fundamentally change understanding of 17th Century social, maritime and political history.” What a find. BBC News
The BBC has been forced to apologise to sculptor Sir Antony Gormley for reporting that he was giving up his British nationality because of Brexit - because it wasn’t true. Gormley is simply applying for German passport as he holds dual nationality. Oops. Mail Online
US artist Theaster Gates has unveiled this year’s Serpentine Pavilion. Titled Black Chapel, it’s designed to be a peaceful space within London’s Kensington Gardens. dezeen
They’ve been partners for over twenty years, but the V&A and the Royal Institute of British Architects have decided to call it quits. The move was revealed as both institutions say the “strategic priorities…have shifted.” RIBA is focussed on establishing a cultural hub at its central London home. Museums and Heritage Advisor
Oslo will open its second major new museum in a year tomorrow, as the $650 million National Museum finally welcomes visitors after eight years of construction. It brings together the collections of five Norwegian art and design museums under one roof, and will be a permanent home for one of the painted versions of Edvard Munch’s The Scream. It’s the largest museum in the Nordics - and I can’t wait to visit. Reuters
A new art exhibition has opened at the Met in New York, and the museum’s employees are the artists. 450 of the 1700 staff and contributed artworks for the biannual exhibition, except this year the public can see it too. It has the most simplistically brilliant title I’ve ever seen. Time Out New York
And finally
The strangest thing you will read today is this blow-by-blow account of Mick Jagger’s one-hour visit to Madrid’s Reina Sofía by the museum’s chair, for the El País newspaper. The former minister for culture goes full on fan-girl writing about looking at “his skin, his blond eyelashes, his lips” and Jagger’s “rough butler” telling staff to effectively sod off in their own museum. It’s a hoot.
Heritage Open Days directory is now live! England’s biggest festival of history and culture returns this September. Take an early peek at the programme as it develops, with more than 800 FREE events already planned this year, and more to come throughout June, July and August. See the programme here. It’s not too late to join the festival as an organiser, a perfect chance to reach new audiences and boost secondary spend – you can find out more about registering (free!) and planning your event here. *SPONSORED*
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