Contemporary art

Prizesnews

Lithium mining and a Donald Judd horror film: nominees for Prix Marcel Duchamp—France's most prestigious contemporary art award—announced

The four artists will have their work exhibited at the Centre Pompidou in Paris for the prize, worth €35,000

Brexitnews

Will new EU lighting rules pull the plug on neon art?

Artists producing neon works may fall foul of stricter EU lighting regulations that come into force this year

Storming of US Capitol: art world condemns police hypocrisy in pro-Trump riot

Artists Dread Scott and Glenn Ligon among cultural figures pointing out stark contrast in how law enforcement handled the mob compared with Black Lives Matter protestors

Bourse de Commerce: opening of Pinault's long-awaited Paris museum is—pandemic permitting—finally around the corner

Two decades since the billionaire started planning a home for his collection in the French capital, the spectacular space is due to open on 23 January

Our guide to the top biennials and triennials coming up in 2021

Previews of the 34th Bienal de São Paulo, Prospect.5 and the 11th Liverpool Biennial—plus, lots of dates for your diary

Auckland Art Gallery’s biggest ever exhibition recounts 70 years of Maori art

Mega survey of more than 300 works forms “part of a bigger revisiting of Indigenous knowledge”

The bucolic plague? Artist traces origins of 14th-century pandemic to remote vineyard in southern Russia

New artist residency on the Sea of Azov hosts exhibition on the history of pandemics

Barbara Kruger’s 'Your Body is a Battleground' poster appears in Poland as protests flare up over abortion ban

Graphic work was last shown in the country nearly 30 years ago when women’s rights were also under attack

Censored work showing faces of 4,000 French police officers goes on show in Berlin

Work was pulled after the intervention of France's interior minister amid protests against a new bill that would have criminalised the publication of images of law enforcement

Chinanews

Consulates provide new safe haven for political art in China

Artists tackling contentious issues have found an unlikely home in the form of foreign diplomatic services such as the Goethe-Institut and consular residences

The Big Review: Howardena Pindell at The Shed in New York

This survey of the 77-year-old artist's work lulls the viewer with colourful abstraction before tackling its real subject: racial violence

Booksreview

Lucian Freud the anti-hero: book relaying artist's philandering and impetuous behaviour is heavy on incident, light on insight

Second and last instalment of this two-part biography on the painter’s life fails to satisfy—but it does supply valuable first-hand records

A breath of fresh air: The Clark opens its first outdoor exhibition

Known for its esteemed collection of European and American paintings and art historical research library, the institution's 140-acre meadow now features contemporary sculptures set against the bucolic landscape of the Berkshire Highlands in Massachusetts

Artistsfeature

Holiday gift guide 2020: artworks for every budget

From a £14.95 Fuck You 2020 bauble by Jeremy Deller to a £125,000 woodcut by Edvard Munch, we've assembled some our favourite arty stocking fillers

Artistscomment

Portrait of Tracey: how Emin's cancer diagnosis hasn't stopped her from being an artistic dynamo

With exhibitions at the Royal Academy and Xavier Hufkens, as well as her return to Margate, the artist is doing more in convalescence than most people manage in full health

Artist demands Baku art centre pulls his exhibition for using it as a 'propaganda tool' in Azerbaijan-Armenia conflict

Turkish-born Ahmet Ogut says the Yarat Contemporary Art Space refused to take down the exhibition banner with his name appearing next to the Azerbaijani flag

Ai Weiwei, Anish Kapoor and John Akomfrah among artists condemning Thai state violence against democracy protestors

Almost half of the artists participating in the Bangkok Art Biennale opening this week have expressed "support for the struggle for democracy"

Phillips London sets new records for Emily Mae Smith and Portia Zvavahera in £26.3m contemporary evening sale

While the top lot of the night—a fiery self-portrait by George Baselitz—struggled to meet its low estimate, a bidding war broke out over Dana Schutz's painting of a bright orange Trump

Exhibitionsinterview

Cecily Brown: ‘I’m trying to understand what England means to me’

With her delayed show now open at Blenheim Palace, the British-born painter explains that she is as likely to be inspired by childhood comics as historic battle scenes

Deutsche Bank to auction Kandinsky and Schiele works from collection

Three works are to be sold at Christie’s in Paris this month; further sales to follow

Under the influence: three artists on how Bruce Nauman continues to be an inspiration

As a retrospective opens at Tate Modern, we speak to Rashid Johnson, Jacolby Satterwhite and Adham Faramawy about the enduring appeal of the 78-year-old artist's work

Protestanalysis

Student flash mobs in Thailand target ‘art scene run by elite old men’

Recent demonstrations break a long-held taboo–criticism of the Thai monarchy, an institution which protesters believe is the main obstruction to democracy

Artist transforms Gilded Age pool house into an atmospheric soundscape

To evoke a watershed moment in society, Jorge Otero-Pailos has filled an abandoned natatorium with sounds recorded from bodies of water in New York State

Erich Marx, Berlin collector and patron, dies age 99

His collection of works by Warhol, Twombly, Beuys and Kiefer is on long-term loan to the Berlin museums

Podcastspodcast

Berlin: still a magnet for artists?

Plus, Jadé Fadojutimi on Laura Owens. Sponsored by Christie's

Hosted by Ben Luke. Produced by Julia Michalska, David. Clack and Aimee Dawson

Belarusian opposition leader and arts promoter Maria Kolesnikova charged with organising a coup d'état

Aleksandr Lukashenko regime continues to crackdown on Belarus’s contemporary arts community

Magnum photographer Alec Soth defends similarities with work by Chicago artist Tonika Johnson

On commission for the New York Times, Soth says he had "no knowledge" of the long-term project by the Chicago resident and documentary photographer