ArtPourri

Artworks on Loan – The Metropolitan Museum of Art will present the marble sculpture Young Archer, attributed to Michelangelo Buonarroti, in its Velez Blanco patio beginning Nov. 3.  The work will be on view for 10 years as a special loan from the French Republic, Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs.  And Through Jan. 31 at The Art Institute of Chicago you have the rare opportunity to view Caravaggio’s The Supper at Emmaus, on loan from the National Gallery of London.

Artist Honored – Kiki Smith, one of the most influential conceptual and figurative artists of her generation, will be honored at the Brooklyn Museum’s seventh annual Women in the Arts luncheon on Nov. 19.  Smith’s career spans more than three decades and, although she has worked in a wide range of media, she is best known as a sculptor.

Prizes and Awards – Recipients of The Japan Art Association’s 21st Praemium Imperiale include Sugimoto Hiroshi (Japan) for painting and Richard Long (United Kingdom) for sculpture. Recognized for their achievements, for the impact they have had internationally on the arts and for their role in enriching the global community, each recipient received $158,000, a medal and diploma.

– And the winner of the ArtPrize ($250,000) is Ran Ortner of Brooklyn, NY, for his 19-ft.-long oil painting “Open Water No. 24.”  More than 1,200 entries were placed in venues around the city of Grand Rapids, MI, with the winner chosen by public vote.

Holiday Stamps Issued – Available now are the new Winter Holidays, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa stamps from the U.S. Postal Service.  The Winter Holidays stamps feature a reindeer, snowman, gingerbread man and toy soldier by artist Joseph Cudd, who first sketched the designs by hand and then finished them on the computer using a graphics tablet.  The new Hanukkah design features a photo of a menorah with nine lit candles, designed by Lisa Regan of Tulsa, OK; and Lloyd McNeill of New York City created the new festive and highly symbolic stamp design that celebrates Kwanzaa, a non-religious holiday that draws on African traditions.

Milestone – Irving Penn, photographer renowned for his innovative contributions to portrait, still life and fashion photography, has died in Manhattan at age 92.  An exhibition at The Getty Center, Los Angeles, CA, Irving Penn:  Small Trades, includes over 200 full-length portraits representing skilled tradespeople dressed in work clothes and carrying the tools of their trade—presented with dignity and pride.  Through Jan. 10.

Copyright ARTtalk Vol. 20 No. 1 — November 2009