Vancouver

VAG auction raises nearly $1 million  The Vancouver Art Gallery's annual art auction raised more than $950000 Saturday night. Nearly 300 patrons bid on more than 80 works of art, including works by Roy Arden, Edward Burtynsky, Robert Davidson, Rodney Graham, Ken Lum and Landon Mackenzie.  Vancouver Sun, February 20, 2012  

Art auction raises almost $1 million for VAG Famed local artists, including Roy Arden, Edward Burtynsky, Robert Davidson, Rodney Graham, Ken Lum, Landon Mackenzie, Gordon Smith, Ian Wallace and Jeff Wall, raised nearly a million dollars at the Vancouver Art Gallery's DESIRE: Art Auction 2012.  The Province, February 20, 2012

Jeff Wall's Richmond photo takes top bid  A panoramic image of a Steveston, Richmond landscape claimed highest bid at Vancouver Art Gallery's annual fundraising auction Saturday night, which saw 80 pieces of art sold to support school class tours and exhibitions at the Vancouver Art Gallery.  24 Hours, February 19, 2012  

Vancouver Art Gallery's Art Auction 2012  If you're the Vancouver Art Gallery, you hold an auction. Over 70 works will be up for grabs tonight as the Art Gallery looks to raise money for exhibits and school programs.  News1130, February 18, 2012

Close shave for barber's best friend  STILL GROWING: With Vancouver Art Gallery's modern-meets-traditional Beat Nation aboriginal exhibition a week away, Haida artist-political activist Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas released his eighth book, Old Growth, Thursday.  Vancouver Sun, February 18, 2012 (Malcolm Parry) 

Vancouver Art Gallery celebrates the sixties with Lights Out! Canadian ...
Opening at the Vancouver Art Gallery on February 18th, Lights Out! Canadian Painting from the 1960s celebrates the verve and energy of this decade as expressed on canvas.  Art Daily, February 17, 2012

Picks of the week  February 18 to April 29, the Vancouver Art Gallery's latest exhibit, Lights Out! Canadian Painting from the 1960s, celebrates the colourful canvas creations from that swinging decade, including Greg Curnoe's groovy Myself Walking North in the Tweed Coat.  Vancouver Courier, February 17, 2012

A plan to behead Vancouver’s urban serpent: The Georgia Viaduct  The Georgia Viaduct snakes through the city’s core, isolating districts and blocking access to the waterfront. Larry Beasley and Jim Green see the possibility of a revitalized community.  Globe and Mail, February 18, 2012  

Toronto

Artist Rebecca Belmore becomes part of the show at AGO  She has also spent several hours sitting crossed legged in front of the Vancouver Art Gallery with a sign that read, “I am worth more than one million dollars to my people.”   Toronto Star, February 18, 2012

Building blocks to the Venice Biennale in Architecture  A competition held in Toronto determines which projects will make it to the Canadian pavilion at the renowned Italian exhibition.  Globe and Mail, February 18, 2012

Menlo Park, California

Jet Martinez Is Facebook’s First Artist-in-Residence As Facebook’s first artist-in-residence, Jet Martinez has been busy creating a floral-inspired mural at the company’s Menlo Park, Calif., offices. New York Times, February 19, 2012

Los Angeles

Where Will The Getty Now Stand On Antiquities Repatriation? "Getty director James Cuno has denounced repatriation claims of looted antiquities as "nationalistic" and argued against placing limits on museum purchases of objects with an uncertain origin. Getty Museum director Timothy Potts, whose appointment Cuno announced this week, has echoed some of those views." Los Angeles Times, February 17, 2012

Denver

The Clyfford Still Museum Suddenly Has A Lot Of Money. Why Isn't Admission Free? "It's not about the bottom line, according to [director Dean] Sobel. It's about value, and charging gives a museum an intrinsic worth. Nearly all museums charge, even though ticket revenue tends to be a small percentage of income." Denver Post, February 19, 2012

Kansas

This Art Project Isn't For Chickens (Though It Does Involve Killing A Few)
"'The Story of Chickens: A Revolution' is set to begin with an unveiling of a mobile chicken coop. ... It ends with a public-invited slaughter and a potluck dinner with the chickens on the menu." Lawrence (Kansas) Journal-World, February 18, 2012  

Detroit

DIA frets its art may be at risk As Detroit city officials frantically try to stave off state intervention, the city’s dire financial situation raises once taboo speculation: Is the city’s timeless art collection immune from the economic downturn.  Detroit News, February 13, 2012 

New York

MoMA to Showcase Cindy Sherman’s New and Old Characters Cindy Sherman, whose 35-year career will be the subject of a major show at MoMA this month, is nothing like the characters she portrays as in her photos. New York Times, February 19, 2012

Whitney Museum’s Survey of Contemporary Art For the first time two major contemporary surveys — the New Museum’s second-ever Triennial and the Whitney Museum of American Art’s 76th Biennial — will be on view simultaneously.   New York Times, February 17, 2012

‘The Ungovernables: 2012 New Museum Triennial’ The 2012 New Museum Triennial, “The Ungovernables,” is a show of small, light formal gestures, unemphatic in tone and socially engaged. New York Times, February 17, 2012  

‘Print/Out’ and ‘Printin’ ’at the Museum of Modern Art  “Print/Out” and “Printin’,” two exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art, comment on, among other things, advertising, design and propaganda. New York Times, February 17, 2012

Hand-Made Art With Content? Yep. A Q&A With British Artist Grayson Perry Perry: "The number of wishy-washy semi-abstract paintings I saw was incredible. It was as though they wanted to make art, but didn't want to say anything. I hate the aimless, apparently transcendent thing in sub-Rothkos: 'Oh, this is all about spirituality.' Fuck off." The Art Newspaper, February 17, 2012

Bronze Boy (With A Bit Of Cheek) To Decorate Trafalgar Square "With his curls and wry smile, this golden boy in his little shorts and braces peers down from his bronze steed, one arm raised delicately. He looks almost classical. But look again. Those shorts could be leather. He might also be down the disco." The Guardian, February 19, 2012  

Berlin

Gerhard Richter Is Celebrated With German Art Shows The German artist Gerhard Richter, who turned 80 this month, is being celebrated as a hero in Germany with high-profile exhibitions that are drawing crowds.   New York Times, February 20, 2012

Athens

Greek minister submits resignation after Ancient Olympia museum robbed  Armed robbers seize dozens of items on display at the birthplace of the Olympics.  Globe and Mail, February 17, 2012