Gareth Harris

Gareth Harris is the Chief Contributing Editor of The Art Newspaper

Latest Fourth Plinth sculpture—a giant swirl of whipped cream topped with a drone and fly—delayed by coronavirus

Heather Phillipson’s subversive work was to replace Michael Rakowitz’s recreation of a protective deity destroyed by Islamic State

New guidelines for UK museums will kickstart nation's long-overdue restitution debate

Arts Council England will release a document that addresses the ethical and practical issues around restituting cultural objects, planned for autumn 2020

Ex-presidential press director who led billionaire François Pinault’s art empire quits after six months

Sylvain Fort steps down ahead of Paris gallery launch at the historic Bourse de Commerce, which has been delayed due to coronavirus

Online auction house Paddle8 files for bankruptcy

But firm says move allows it "to protect the company and its assets... we are not shuttering the business"

Eight emerging Arab artists are chosen to show 'ambitious' works across the world

The commissioning project Consortium Commissions provides artists with up to $20,000 to realise their projects

Notre Dame reconstruction halted because of stringent coronavirus measures

Plans to remove the scaffolding around the fire-damaged cathedral have been put on hold

Tate to close all four locations until 1 May due to coronavirus

Tate Modern, Tate Britain, Tate St Ives and Tate Liverpool will shut their doors from 18 March

Use £120m Brexit festival money to help UK institutions in coronavirus crisis, Museums Association demands

Advocacy group has warned UK government that museums risk permanent closure due to the pandemic's effect on funding streams

Arts Council England announces coronavirus crisis plan to compensate out-of-pocket artists and institutions

The national arts-funding body will refocus some grant programmes to help individual artists and freelancers withstand lost earnings

Three paintings—including valuable Van Dyck portrait—stolen from Oxford University gallery

London-based Old Masters dealer says that the works are “an unusual group to steal—neither priceless nor small fry”

Coronavirus in Spain: Madrid museums including Prado shut but Guggenheim Bilbao remains open

There are currently more than 2,770 coronavirus cases reported in Spain with 64 deaths

Paris fairs scramble dates in light of coronavirus outbreak

Salon du dessin contemporain has rescheduled its dates while Salon du Dessin organisers are in discussion about whether to still open later this month

Fossil-fuel giant Shell ends its support of London's Southbank Centre

Decision comes amidst pressure from activist groups for UK museums to end their oil sponsorship deals

Rare Andy Warhol drag queen portraits go on show in Tate Modern exhibition

Near-forgotten series of striking portraits are part of a 100-strong show of works opening at the London museum this week

Brexitnews

Hundreds of art organisations outraged as UK withdraws from €1.46bn Creative Europe fund

More than 680 cultural figures and institutions sign open letter over decision they believe "threatens an impoverished future for British creativity"

Coronavirus in Italy: Ai Weiwei criticised for 'insensitive' pasta meme and Raphael blockbuster closes

An emergency decree means that all museums in the country are on lock down until 3 April

Three exhibitions to see in London this weekend

From the Hayward Gallery's expansive group show about trees to the erotic underbelly of the Victorian era at Tate Britain

Anonymous €20m donation kickstarts Musée d’Orsay transformation

Radical revelopment of former train station building will make way for more Impressionist works and visitors

Relatives of victims who died in the Grenfell Tower fire look for input into Steve McQueen's film of tragedy

Support group, comprising family members of 33 people who died in the 2017 London blaze, say they feel “totally disenfranchised” by the artist's latest project

Coronavirus travel restrictions force Venice Architecture Biennale to postpone opening until August

The biennial's 17th edition will now only run for three months rather than six

Louvre reopens after closing because of coronavirus

The Paris museum held talks with union officials yesterday

Kurdish artist Fatos Irwen released from Turkish jail after more than three years

Irwen was sentenced in 2016 on charges that included resisting the police at a protest she attended in 2013

Top five museum acquisitions of the month

Our pick of the latest gifts and purchases to enter international museum collections—from a pot by an African-American slave to the earliest depiction of Highland dress

Madridnews

Collector Francesca Thyssen-Bornemisza invests in Madrid after leaving Vienna

Austrian patron donates work to Reina Sofia and commissions new piece by Ragnar Kjartansson to be shown at Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza

Coronavirus: Louvre closes while Italian museums reopen following government green light

Italian officials say cultural institutions can open to the public so long as they ensure “visitors respect a distance of at least a metre between each other”

Collector Patrizia Sandretto Re Rebaudengo drops plans for new Madrid space in former slaughterhouse

Italian patron is looking for an alternative site in the Spanish capital after encountering "structural problems" with Matadero's Nave 9 building

Leading French auctioneer François Tajan dies, aged 57

The deputy chairman of the Paris-based auction house Artcurial was suffering from food poisoning