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Abstracts

This might look like an auction house, but it is actually a "brand." [Courtesy Sotheby's]

Art World Abstracts: Why a Sports-Minded Harvard MBA Now Runs Sotheby’s, and More!

In what may be a very telling look into the future of one of the world's biggest auction houses, this article about Sotheby's mentions not a single artwork or artist. There are no references to collectors or sales that have taken place. Auctioneers seem to no longer be of import or interest. Instead, it focuses on the new CEO, a guy who worked at the stadium that's home to the worst team in professional basketball. He readily admits that he knows zilch about art, but that's just fine, because he's chasing not genius paintings but instead that quixotic unknowable entity—he's trying to find the Sotheby's brand. "During a March 16 conference call to introduce Smith to investors, executives used the word 'brand' 12 times in less than 12 minutes." Good luck with that, guys!
By Nate Freeman
Installation view of James Turrell at the National Gallery of Australia. (Courtesy the National Gallery of Australia)

Art World Abstracts: The Kids Are Getting Naked for a James Turrell Show, and More!

Things are often much more fun if everybody's naked. Like, take skinny dipping. That's a good thing! Normal swimming is boring. But that doesn't exactly mean that one must go to art shows topless and bottomless, in search of some greater truth without the burden of clothes or something. And, so, just because a museum in Australia is letting people go see a James Turrell show in the nude, that doesn't mean other museums need to follow suit. And it doesn't mean you need to be naked to, like, get Turrell or anything. I saw a ton of wonderful works by James Turrell in the span of a few days and it never occurred to me to take my pants off. [
By Nate Freeman
Masa Takayama and Larry Gagosian at Kappo Masa. (Photo courtesy Patrick McMullan)

Art World Abstracts: Larry Gagosian’s Kappo Masa Is a Hit Despite Itself, and More!

Vera Wang, Derek Blasberg, George Clooney, Robin Wright, Martha Stewart, Karlie Kloss, Naomi Campbell, Lauren Santo Domingo, Irina Shayk, Jason Schwartzman—they have all become regulars at Kappo Masa, the sushi joint Larry Gagosian installed in the basement of 980 Madison, the building that acts as the mothership to his international fleet of galleries. We've told you about the hilariously small $240 bite of raw fish and rice they serve there, but the rich and famous and gorgeous don't seem to care about wasting what could be donations to the needy on spicy tuna rolls. And it's not like the food is even good—there's been a spate of bad reviews. That should keep the masses away, right! Not quite. It's not like people go to restaurants for the food, anyway. And so, in a development that's actually entirely expected, Larry Gagosian is now a successful restauranteur with a hit under his belt. But there is most likely better sushi within walking distance of wherever you are reading this.
By Nate Freeman
David Geffen. (Courtesy Getty Images)

Art World Abstracts: The Tale Behind David Geffen’s Gift to Lincoln Center, and More!

By Nate Freeman
Lichtenstein, The Ring (Engagement). (Photo courtesy Sotheby's)

Art World Abstracts: A Lichtenstein to Go for $50 Million at Sotheby’s, and More!

By Nate Freeman
Drake. (Photo courtesy Getty Images)

Art World Abstracts: Drake to Soundtrack a Show at Sotheby’s, and More!

By Nate Freeman
Gabriele Finaldi. (Courtesy the Prado)

Art World Abstracts: London’s National Gallery Taps Director Amid Strikes, and More!

By Nate Freeman
Just when you think Kanye can't get any crazier...

Art World Abstracts: Art Institute of Chicago to Give Degree to Kanye West, and More!

By Nate Freeman
The selfie stick, now contraband. (Photo courtesy Shutterstock)

Art World Abstracts: The War on Selfie Sticks Reaches Europe’s Museums, and More!

By Nate Freeman
Ban this, Facebook! (Courtesy the Courbet Museum)

Art World Abstracts: Facebook’s Censorship Network Targets Nude Paintings, and More!

By Nate Freeman
BMW paid Jeff Koons a lot of money to design something it calls the BMW Art Car, because that's just the world we live in. (Photo courtesy BMW)

Art World Abstracts: Brands Have Basically Taken Over Everything, and More!

By Nate Freeman
Goodbye, Armory. (Photo by Billy Farrell.)

Art World Abstracts: Looking Back at Armory Week, Details About Venice, and More!

By Nate Freeman
Noah Horowitz at The Armory Show. (Photo by Billy Farrell)

Art World Abstracts: Armory Show Roundups, Facebook Bans Jerry Saltz, and More!

By Nate Freeman
Jeff Koons. (Courtesy the Whitney Museum of American Art)

Art World Abstracts: A Peek Inside Jeff Koons’ Stone-Cutting Facility, and More!

By Nate Freeman
Marina Abramovic. (Photo courtesy Patrick McMullan)

Art World Abstracts: We’re Finally Getting a Memoir From Marina Abramovic, and More!

By Nate Freeman
A rendering of the sculpture by Jeff Koons. (Courtesy the Sacramento Kings)

Art World Abstracts: West Coast NBA Stadium to Get a Jeff Koons Sculpture, and More!

By Nate Freeman
The Museo Jumex. (Photo from Observer archives)

Art World Abstracts: Museo Jumex Abruptly Cancels a Controversial Show, and More!

By Nate Freeman
Manhattan's Flower District.

Art World Abstracts: Galleries Flock to the Flower District, and More!

By Nate Freeman
Boy and Girl Gazing at the Moon (Puppy Love). (Courtesy Norman Rockwell Museum Collection.)

Art World Abstracts: An Adorable Rockwell Donation for Valentine’s Day, and More!

By Nate Freeman
The Freer Gallery of Art. (Courtesy the Smithsonian)

Art World Abstracts: The Smithsonian to Lose the Freer for a Year, and More!

By Nate Freeman
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington. (Courtesy the Louvre Abu Dhabi)

Art World Abstracts: The Louvre Abu Dhabi Nabs a George Washington Portrait, and More

By Nate Freeman
The National Gallery of Art. (Courtesy the Smithsonian)

Art World Abstracts: The National Gallery Starts to Absorb the Corcoran, and More!

By Nate Freeman
The National Gallery, London. (Courtesy The National Gallery)

Art World Abstracts: Mutiny at the National Gallery in London, and More!

By Nate Freeman
The Louis Vuitton Foundation in Paris. (Photo: Getty)

Art World Abstracts: A Blockbuster Show at the Louis Vuitton Foundation, and More!

By Nate Freeman
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