Benjamin Sutton

Benjamin Sutton is the Editor, Americas of The Art Newspaper.

Trump’s bill to cut taxes and social safety net programmes includes $40m for patriotic sculpture park

The president’s signature bill, approved by the US Senate on 1 July, is expected to add trillions of dollars to the national debt

Frankenthaler Foundation awards grants totalling $3.4m for new climate initiatives

In addition to revealing the 74 recipients of new Frankenthaler Climate Initiative grants, the foundation announced it will extend the initiative another five years

Lacma will plant towering, flowering Jeff Koons sculpture outside new building

The artist’s 37ft-tall “Split-Rocker” was donated to the museum by collectors Lynda and Stewart Resnick

Climate protester splashes pink paint on Picasso work at Montreal Museum of Fine Arts

The activist from Last Generation Canada said “more resources have been put in place to secure and protect this artwork than to protect living, breathing people”

Edward Burtynsky’s photographs convey the force of mankind’s reordering of the environment

A retrospective at the International Center of Photography in New York chronicles more than 40 years of the artist’s work

Trump administration violated the law by withholding museum and library funding, government watchdog finds

The non-partisan Government Accountability Office says the Trump administration illegally impounded federal funding that had been approved by Congress

Kim Sajet, director of US National Portrait Gallery whom Trump tried to fire, resigns

Sajet said it was “not an easy decision” but “the best way to serve the institution I hold so deeply in my heart”

More than 200 galleries are signed on for The Armory Show's next edition

The fair’s September 2025 edition will include a new design sector and have a focus on artists from the American South

US National Gallery of Art receives trove of Modern and contemporary drawings

The gift, from longtime benefactors Lenore and Bernard Greenberg, includes works on paper by Ed Ruscha, Franz Kline, Susan Rothenberg, Philip Guston and others

Smithsonian asserts authority to make ‘all personnel decisions’ following Trump attempts to fire gallery director

In response to the president’s targeting of National Portrait Gallery director Kim Sajet, the organisation has issued a strategically broad statement, touting its independence and governance by a board and secretary

Metropolitan Museum and watchmaker Vacheron Constantin launch artist residency

The 18-month residency includes time to explore the New York museum’s collection and meet with staff and scholars, plus opportunities to work with Vacheron Constantin’s experts in Geneva

Whitney Museum pauses Independent Study Program amid accusations of censorship

The cancellation of a performance addressing the ongoing war and humanitarian crisis in Gaza has also sparked an open letter by alumni of the programme

Trump claims he has fired director of US National Portrait Gallery

It is not clear the president has the authority to make staffing decisions for the gallery, which is part of the Smithsonian Institution

‘A major win for our field’: conservators rejoice at development of new ‘spaghetti-like’ adhesive for treating paintings

Developed by New York University and the University of Akron, with grant funding from Getty, the new adhesive addresses sustainability and safety issues, and can be easily shipped in multiple forms

Lee Ufan donates eight paintings to Dia Art Foundation

The Mono-ha master’s works will be featured in 2026 solo exhibition at Dia Beacon

The empire cuts back: Lucas Museum of Narrative Art lays off 14% of full-time staff

In addition to letting go of 15 full-time employees, the museum—now expected to open in 2026—has cut seven part-time roles

‘Halo effect’ of powerful art dealers’ collections boosts Sotheby’s sale

Works from the estate of Barbara Gladstone and the home of Daniella Luxembourg—plus a litter of Lichtensteins—energised 15 May marquee auction of post-war and contemporary art

Metropolitan Museum receives 6,500 works from photography collector Artur Walther

The promised gift from Walther and the Walther Family Foundation includes photographs, albums and time-based works by artists including Malick Sibidé, Ai Weiwei, Thomas Struth, Stephen Shore and others

Prizesnews

Artist Alison Saar wins High Museum’s 20th annual Driskell Prize

The renowned sculptor, whose distinctive public work was most recently featured in the Desert X biennial, will be formally honoured with the $50,000 prize at a gala in September

In pictures: following the thread at Frieze New York

Textile-based art is abundant at the fair this year, from pieces approximating the forms of paintings but made of found fabrics to hand-woven, intricately beaded works and even a wearable, many-layered cape

'I do believe in love at first sight': plastic surgeon Charles Boyd on why his heart rules his head in matters of art

The Michigan-based collector shares which local show he is most excited about, his latest acquisition and one work that got away

In pictures: Frieze week public art puts Manhattan in the pink

From Lily Kwong's installation in Madison Square Park to John Chamberlain's follies at the Rockefeller Center, works are catching the eye across the borough

Friezepreview

Ten top shows to see in New York during Frieze week

Our pick of exhibitions includes Rashid Johnson's biggest ever show, Amy Sherald at the Whitney and hypermasculinity in Nigerian culture

Pharrell Williams’s auction platform Joopiter teamed with Martha Stewart for first contemporary art sale

The collector and lifestyle mogul highlighted works from the sale by Amy Sherald, Alex Katz, Louise Bourgeois and others

Art Institute of Chicago’s director on leave amid investigation into airplane incident

James Rondeau, the museum’s president and director, is on voluntary leave after reportedly removing his clothes on a flight from Chicago to Munich

To make up for NEH grants cancelled by Trump, Mellon Foundation gives $15m to US humanities organisations

The emergency funds will go to humanities councils in all 50 states and six US territories

British artist Thomas J Price brings a contemplative colossus to Times Square

The monumental figurative sculpture "Grounded in the Stars" is on show in New York until 17 June

Activity and optimism at Expo Chicago attest to the city's 'fearless' community of collectors and patrons

The fair's 12th edition opened with high spirits and swift business in the five-figure price range

Getty Museum acquires painting by Spanish Renaissance master Luis de Morales following extensive conservation

The painting, “Christ Carrying the Cross”, from around 1565, had been enlarged in the 18th century, work the Getty’s conservators had to painstakingly undo

Prizesnews

Artists including Theaster Gates, Miranda July and Martine Gutierrez receive Guggenheim Fellowships

Around 50 artists working across disciplines including photography, video, sculpture, painting and installation received the coveted fellowships