France

French state rejects painting with controversial Caravaggio attribution that was found in an attic

Now the export ban has been lifted, the work may go on the market after restoration

'Too conservative' to direct France's arts academy? Jean de Loisy hits back at critics

A petition protesting his appointment at École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts has been signed by 60 arts professionals

Museums and auction houses close as 'yellow vest' protests rage in Paris

Jeu de Paume photography gallery and Arc de Triomphe caught up in violent demonstrations

Booksreview

Philippe Costamagna’s combination of autobiography, anecdote and single discovery told in his own words

The memoirs of the Pontormo expert and director of the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Ajaccio

'Give Africa its art back', Macron's report says

A new report on the status of African objects in French museums will urge the president to return works taken “without consent” in the colonial period

Isenheim Altarpiece restoration finally back on track after public outcry

More than 30 conservators will treat paintings and sculptures, seven years after French culture ministry halted reckless cleaning of two panels

Major coup for Paris’s Institut du Monde Arabe as it receives one of its biggest ever donations of works

Gallerist Claude Lemand and his wife France also set up a fund to support the museum

Emmanuel Macron woos French art world with call for new cultural policy that fights extremism

France's president also plans to install Modern and contemporary works at the Élysée Palace

Gareth Harris. and PHILIPPE RÉGNIER

A bigger splash: France's expanded La Piscine museum reopens after makeover

Former Art Deco swimming pool in Roubaix dives into Modern French sculpture

Franck Riester appointed as France’s new culture minister

Françoise Nyssen—who introduced a youth culture pass and lobbied for copyright reform—is out in cabinet reshuffle

Lawnews

Paris court orders US collector to turn over Pissarro painting

The work, seized by the pro-Nazi Vichy government, had been lent to an exhibition at the Musée Marmottan

French court releases Russian protest artist Pyotr Pavlensky from pre-trial detention

Femen activists showed their support outside the courthouse by sewing their lips shut in a recreation of his first performance

Emmanuel Macron orders radical review of France’s art residencies

The French President has commissioned a report identifying the strengths and weaknesses of the current programmes

Guy Wildenstein cleared of tax evasion for a second time in Paris

Franco-American scion of art dealing dynasty was accused of hiding art and other property worth hundreds of millions of euros from French authorities

Trespassing allowed at Laure Prouvost's secret Parisian garden of delights

The french artist tells The Art Newspaper about her new Palais de Tokyo show, her Venice Biennale plans and why play is important

Unbridled enthusiasm for the art of horse racing on show in France

Exhibition at Domaine de Chantilly is the first on the development of the painting tradition

Ai Weiwei retraces his father's steps to Marseille in 1929 for new show

Chinese artists unveils new commissions alongside 50 works at the Musée des civilisations de l’Europe et de la Méditerranée

Masterpieces from London's Courtauld Gallery head to Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris

Works by Manet, Van Gogh and Cézanne will return to France for the first time in more than 60 years

Dinosaur skeleton previously unknown to science auctioned in the Eiffel Tower

Aguttes sold the fossil to an anonymous buyer, who may name the new species, despite protests from paleontologists

'A privileged space, remote from it all': Fondation Carmignac opens on island off the southern coast of France

New home for the Paris-based corporate collection, established by billionaire financier, is inaugurated after years of delays

Letter to the Editor: Saudi Arabia will collaborate with the world, not only France, to make its cultural heritage accessible

Al-Ula, the most important cultural heritage site in the north-west of the kingdom, will benefit from international standards in heritage preservation and planning

Can a brand new museum boost ancient Nîmes’s Unesco bid?

Musée de la Romanité, dedicated to the city's Roman history, cost almost €60m to build

Othoniel makes a splash in his hometown of Saint-Etienne

For its 30th anniversary, the Musée d’art moderne et contemporain invited the artist to show his monumental sculpture The Big Wave as part of a major retrospective

Why the French can sell arms and culture to Saudi Arabia, but the US and UK only arms

France's latest deal with the Kingdom reveals the close connection between culture and foreign affairs

The blueprint for Saudi Arabia's multi-billion-euro project with France

We exclusively reveal the details of the plans for a “historic” collaboration

Damning report says France must catch up, fast, in return of Nazi-era loot

Heritage expert calls for new government taskforce to guide provenance research and even rule on restitution cases

Paris mayor wants to turn city into ‘refuge’ for works in conflict zones

Anne Hidalgo’s plan, which has drawn fire, involves storing items threatened by conflict in buildings owned by the city authority

Leaderscomment

Retain or return? It’s complicated

The complex issues behind returning cultural goods to their place of origin