US politics

Massachusetts museum accused of hoarding Indigenous artefacts and human remains for decades

The Barre Museum is said to hold the largest collection of Lakota objects and human remains from the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre

Joe Biden taps major supporters of the Guggenheim, Menil Collection and Dia Art Foundation for advisory committee on the arts

The committee, established in 1958, advises the president on pressing issues in the arts and how federal policies can help shape them

Neon art installation begins tour of US states where abortion rights are threatened

The month-long tour of Alicia Eggert’s neon text work ‘OURs’ was organised by Planned Parenthood to pressure lawmakers and raise awareness of efforts to restrict abortion rights

‘Communities are affected when someone is imprisoned’: Arizona exhibition explores the social impact of mass incarceration

The show, at the Arizona State University Art Museum, comes as museums nationwide grapple with the fine line between ‘fetishising’ prisoners and broadening dialogue around incarceration

Controversial statue of Theodore Roosevelt removed from American Museum of Natural History

The equestrian statue, which depicts Roosevelt on horseback flanked by a Native American man and a man of African descent, had been the focus of years-long campaigns from activists calling for its removal

'It’s time for museums to take critical race theory seriously'

There’s a campaign against discussions of race in the American education system—and museums have a part to play in fighting that

Smithsonian continues Capitol insurrection archival project

The museum initiated the project last year in the aftermath of the violent far-right riot on 6 January, and has added artefacts originating not only with the rioters but also those who acted against the mob

Controversial Roosevelt statue will be relocated to planned North Dakota presidential library

The statue, which has long stood outside New York City’s American Museum of Natural History, has been the focus of years-long campaigns by activists calling for its removal

US President Joseph R. Biden will be remembered as the father of the great artist Hunter Biden, his art dealer says

Criticism of the high-profile Hunter Biden exhibition, which has caused controversy for the Biden administration, is also rooted in stigma around addiction, Georges Bergès says

‘Build back beautifully’: new bill aims to support arts jobs with $300m federal grants and commissions programme

The bipartisan Creative Economy Revitalization Act is inspired by the New Deal-era Works Progress Association and the 1970s Comprehensive Employment and Training Act

Percent for art programme to expand into Los Angeles county’s unincorporated areas

A civic ordinance in effect from October sets aside 1% of building projects for arts and culture programmes

Timothée Chalamet kicks off the Met Gala with a flag-inspired collaboration with street artist JR

The actor debuted a new performance and installation in the Breuer building, before protestors crashed the party at the Costume Institute’s annual celebrity fundraiser

US Copyright Office suggests Congress pass new laws to protect artists from state infringement

A string of court cases have allowed states to claim sovereign immunity when they have used images without permission, giving copyright holders cause for concern and few options for remedy

Under the Biden administration, can US cultural policy better reflect American values?

Building relationships with all stakeholders—from dealers and collectors to museums and archaeologists—is vital

Brooklyn’s long history of resistance is celebrated on Juneteenth

A series of installations and programmes draw on the Center for Brooklyn History's extensive archive

Calls for reparations lead the commemoration of Tulsa Massacre

US President Biden acknowledged during visit that "some injustices are so heinous… they cannot be buried"

Trump protest work recovered by FBI four years after being stolen by white supremacists

He Will Not Divide Us was subjected to multiple attacks from far-right extremists before being snatched in a raid in Tennessee in 2017

Economic reports reveal drastic loss of arts jobs in the US

In New York, two-thirds of posts in the creative sector are gone, while nearly a quarter of the workforce in Los Angeles has been cut

Dolly Parton turns down memorial statue in Tennessee, saying she doesn’t want to be ‘put on a pedestal’

Lawmakers introduced a bill last month to honour the country singer’s contributions to the state

Florida arts professor says she was targeted for work denouncing white supremacy in annual staff exhibition

The work has received pushback from Republican student groups who denounce the artist's decision to place the US flag on the floor

Cubanews

With the country labelled a ‘terror sponsor’ and the government claiming activists are CIA agents, Cuba's artists are stuck in the crossfire

Concerns for the cultural sector follow Trump’s parting shot at the country, and the Castro regime's growing efforts to discredit dissidents

In unanimous decision, Kinderhook zoning board recognises Nick Cave’s Truth Be Told is art not a sign

The village zoning board agreed with public and art world opinion that the vinyl text installation is “a political message in art”

Slowing the news: artists commissioned to document a US election year through the act of drawing

The final part of an exhibition, delayed by the unprecedented events of 2020, opens at the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum

Arts researchers can help America overcome its toughest challenges

As the Biden-Harris administration begins to fill its leadership roles, it is vital that our federal government includes creative thinkers

Biden's repeal of US travel ban ‘changes the game’ for artists coming from Muslim-majority countries

Artistic Freedom Initiative group says the new executive order, overturning Trump's controversial rule, also allows artists to visit home “for the first time in years”

Can Biden's inauguration galvanise the US art world into finally taking action against climate change?

As new US president plans to tackle global warming on "an epic scale", green initiatives such as Galleries Commit are gaining steam

Podcastspodcast

What will Biden-Harris do for the visual arts?

Plus, QAnon's origins in Italian conceptual art and Alphonse Mucha's Slav Epic

The art in Biden’s Oval Office reflects hope for a less divided America

The office includes an ode to Roosevelt and a sculpture by the Indigenous artist Allan Houser