Shoe collector Tracey Hejalian-Amon, whose nearly-ex-husband moved their $25 million art collection to Monaco to avoid having to share it with her, lost in court today. The judge ruled the collection, which includes an Andy Warhol and a Basquiat, belongs solely to her husband, Swiss magnate Maurice Alain Amon. The moral of this story, ladies: don’t have joint assets in Monaco. The couple reportedly had no prenup. (New York Post)
Museums and other cultural institutions, which rely heavily on the importation of works and on welcoming guest artists and scholars from around the world, are understandably freaking out about President Trump’s executive order on immigration. “We are very concerned that a number of programs we have in place could be threatened, just at a time when the world needs more, not less, exchange and mutual understanding,” Thomas Campbell, director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, told the New York Times.
Animation ephemera has a swiftly growing market, say dealers and auction houses. (Marketwatch)
Avant-garde Soviet filmmaker Sergei Eisenstein did more than pioneer the use of montage—he also drew a stash of sexy illustrations. One shows “what appears to be an awkward but pleasurable sex act on an alligator.” A show featuring a number of them is up right now at Alexander Gray in Chelsea. (Artnews)
The Spider-Man art thief trial is now underway! A Modigliani, a Picasso and a Matisse were among the $107 million in art Vjeran Tomic stole during the impressive caper at the Modern Art Museum in Paris in 2010. Tomic also allegedly stole from private citizens, utilizing his impressive climbing skills, hence the nickname. (Artnet News)
