Riah Pryor

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Pandora Papers reveal 1,600 works of art 'secretly traded' in tax havens

The art reportedly includes "more than a dozen" works by Banksy bought by the London-based financier, Maurizio Fabris, via an offshore trust in New Zealand since 2009

The US and Nigeria sign cultural property agreement

The five-year memorandum of understanding comes at a moment when Nigeria is taking increasingly proactive measures to secure its patrimony and recover artefacts that were looted and stolen

The 'Wild West' of finance: governments want to regulate NFTs and cryptocurrencies, but first they have to catch up

This booming but unregulated market is under scrutiny in the US and UK, but legislation is lagging behind innovation

Art marketanalysis

A swindler’s playground: why is the art market so appealing to fraudsters?

Indian antiquities dealer Monson Mavunkal is currently in custody following a string of fraud allegations, including trying to sell a walking stick he said belonged to Moses. But he is not the first con artist to target the art world

'May the image rights be with you': Artists claim Art Wars sold NFTs linked to their designs for Stormtrooper helmets without their permission

The online project was launched earlier this year by the London-based artist and curator Ben Moore, with NFTs based on his previous project which saw major artists design Stormtrooper helmets

Antiquities think tank pushes UK to impose tougher regulations to fight trade in looted art

Antiquities Coalition has published a policy brief urging government to seize the "window of opportunity" in wake of repealed EU Cultural Goods Regulations

Northern Ireland's art market mired in post-Brexit confusion

Experts fear country could become "gateway to Europe for illicit cultural property", while new asset seizure powers—which include art—are being introduced to help criminal investigations into unexplained wealth

A return of the knockers? How criminals gain the trust of the elderly and vulnerable in order to steal their art and antiques

The conviction of the father-and-son duo, Des and Gary Pickersgill, for the thefts of around £1.7m from an elderly widow's home, brings renewed focus on the threat of antique “knockers”

Art collector sues NFT platform Nifty Gateway over Beeple auction

Amir Soleymani, who has had his Nifty account and assets frozen, has accused the platform of changing its terms of sale

Secrets and lies: the role of restorers in art crime

Regulation of the conservation profession may be a start, but can it quash the “ego” that often motivates restorers-turned-forgers?

Art world rushes to conform to UK's anti-money laundering laws

So far a total of 475 "art market participants" have been registered—but delays mean more are likely to comply in the coming months

V&A's groundbreaking British design exhibition 75 years on—what can a post-pandemic UK learn from this historic show?

A prioritisation of design and a harnessing of public spirit are vital in the face of challenges posed by Brexit and Covid-19

Safani Gallery's lawsuit against Italy over disputed antiquity dismissed in court

The New York-based gallery sued after US authorities seized a bust of Alexander the Great in 2018. The sculpture's ownership and future remains unresolved

Make politicians wear hats and Banksy carry the Olympic Torch: we look back at ten years of e-petitions to the UK government

Of the 169 online campaigns related to the arts since they were introduced, only three have been debated in the House of Commons

What the US government sanctions of prominent Bulgarian art collector Vassil Bojkov mean for the art market

Oligarch is blacklisted as countries ramp up regulation and authorities move yet another step closer to the art world

Museum curators battle rise in bug numbers during pandemic with new card game

Staff continue fight against vermin with innovative entertainment

Shoe designer's $18.9m 'Double Eagle' sets new world record for a coin at auction

The unique coin from 1933, part of a collection amassed by luxury shoe designer, Stuart Weitzman, sold at Sotheby's in New York yesterday

Slash and burn: does artistic sabotage always pay off?

A slashed Velázquez and a burnt Banksy achieved notoriety, but vandalism in the name of the NFT faces ethical hurdles

Uyghurnews

China's destruction of Uyghur cultural property evidence of 'genocidal intent', UK MPs declare

Members of Parliament send warning to China ahead of motion to acknowledge human rights abuses against minorities in Xinjiang region

The devil is in the paperwork—don't be caught out by provenance fraud

The rise of the online art market means due diligence on purchasing art is becoming increasingly complex

Artful codgers: why the art market is a hotbed of grey crime

The recent case of a 71-year-old dealer convicted of art fraud is far from unique—in fact, elderly offenders could be on the rise

Australia pledges millions towards repatriation of Aboriginal artefacts from overseas collections

Government extends pilot project to return objects to Indigenous peoples—including those held by private collectors

Art theftanalysis

Steal and repeat: why art gets stolen time and again

When works of art are taken multiple times, it is often more about criminal prestige or bargaining chips for reducing prison sentences

Houston politician's mysterious collection of African artefacts raises alarm bells

Hundreds of pieces of African art are being stored in a publicly funded warehouse by the Harris County commissioner Rodney Ellis with little explanation of their background

Extent of trade in looted antiquities is exaggerated, report claims

New research conducted by US non-profit RAND suggests illicit market is less extensive and organised than is commonly believed

Pests run amok as UK museums struggle with lockdown

Limited capacity and undisturbed venues create ‘playground’ for vermin

Video, virtual hearings and 'e-bundles': how remote justice is being served in art cases during the pandemic

A focus on long-term planning and contract law are among the chief lockdown concerns

Convicted art fraudster Ezra Chowaiki subject of yet more legal drama

New racketeering suit against the disgraced New York art dealer, brought by a Spanish collector regarding paintings by Picasso and Léger, gets off to a mixed start