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The Headlines
MOCA STAYS SHUTTERED AMID PROTESTS. The Museum of Contemporary Art Los Angeles (MOCA) said it will keep its Geffen Contemporary space closed to the public through the weekend as the National Guard continues to confront anti-ECE protestors nearby, reports Alex Greenberger for the ARTnews. On June 8, MOCA shut the space, and yesterday the museum said the closure would remain in place “to prioritize the safety and well-being of our staff and visitors,” it stated on Instagram. The area surrounding the museum is also under an 8 p.m. curfew. Additionally, Pussy Riot member Nadya Tolokonnikova’s performance, POLICE STATE, in which she has turned part of the Geffen Contemporary into a space resembling a prison cell, will be halted, said the museum. The artist had continued her durational performance after the June 8 closing, even as people were arrested outside the museum. Tolokonnikova has been joining the anti-ICE protests in the city, and commented on MOCA’s Instagram post about the extended closing, writing, “see you on the streets this Saturday,” and “migrants make America great.”
Related Articles
CRIMINAL SIT-UATION. Two Frenchmen who sold chairs they claimed once graced the rooms of Queen Marie Antoinette and other homes of 18th-century nobility, have been found guilty by a court north of Paris, reports Le Figaro. Once leading specialists in their domains, expert Bill Pallot, 61, and his partner in crime, carpenter Bruno Desnous, were handed four- and three-year suspended prison sentences, respectively, for selling the fake 18th-century furniture for millions of euros, even duping the Chateau de Versailles. The scandal is one of the largest of its kind seen in France, and involves a Qatari prince, as well as the prestigious Chateau de Versalles, who, between 2008 and 2015, were all conned into paying thousands for what they believed were historic objects. Pallot was also fined €200,000 ($232,000) and he’s banned from practicing his trade for five years. Desnous, who ironically worked for the Cheateau de Versailles previously, was also fined €100,000 ($116,000). Dealer Laurent Kraemer, whose gallery sold four of the fake chairs, was acquitted of charges of negligence. The Chateau de Versailles was reprimanded in 2017 by a government inspector due to “serious failures” for not having spotted the fake furniture, and on Wednesday, the court recognized the museum’s “partial” responsibility in neglecting to spot the fakes. Their lawyer said they were disappointed with the ruling. Meanwhile, Sotheby’s was cleared of any responsibility in having sold the forged furniture.
The Digest
President Donald Trump’s attendance on Wednesday night at the Kennedy Center performance of Les Misérables in Washington D.C. was met by the audience with boos, some cheers, and five protesting drag performers. [The Washington Post]
Art Deco painter Tamara de Lempicka’s acclaimed La Belle Rafaëla (1927) will be auctioned by Sotheby’s London on June 24 for an estimated £6 to £9 million ($8 -$12 million). [The Guardian]
The UK government has given £12 million ($16.29 million) in funding to Tate Liverpool’s redevelopment project, which is initially estimated to cost £29.7 million ($40.32 million). Tate Liverpool was due to reopen this year, but difficulty in raising funds for the overhaul has postponed the opening until 2027. [The Art Newspaper]
Caroline Lang, chairman at Sotheby’s Switzerland and deputy chairman of Sotheby’s Europe, will step down from her roles at the auction house, where she has worked for nearly 40 years. She is one of the first women to hold court from an international podium and is lauded for securing key consignments of major collections. [Press release]
The Kicker
NOW WASH YOUR HANDS. Since 1977, Mierle Laderman Ukeles has held the title as the first and only official, unsalaried artist-in-residence at the New York City Department of Sanitation — a role she created for herself. In one of her residency projects, Touch Sanitation, she thanked and shook hands with all 8,500 sanitation workers in the city. Probably better known for her feminist opus, Maintenance for Manifesto Art written in 1969, a new documentary about her, titled “Maintenance Artist,” by Toby Perl Freilich will shine a light on her fascinating life and practice, reports Cultured Magazine. Ahead of the film’s premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival, Freilich and Ukeles talked to the magazine about the state of feminism today, the process of social change, Ukeles’s practice, and the film’s development. “I would hope that people will come away from the film thinking that you can do big things that aren’t just general, but actually face each individual person who’s involved,” said Ukeles. “You can listen to them, but you can also do something. We can change. We can build an orchestra. We can always build.”