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An Eccentric Cast of Hybrid Creatures Mirrors the Diversity and Humor of Human Experience

Right: “Eagle Pose” (Yoga Parakeet) (2016), stoneware and mixed media, 12 x 6 x 13 inches. All images of Alessandro Gallo, shared with permission

From a dowdy California quail to an incendiary horned lizard, Alessandro Gallo’s peculiar menagerie of animal-human hybrids is teeming with personality. The colorful characters reflect the breadth of interactions occurring every day throughout public spaces as folks encounter others unlike themselves, like a parakeet contorted into a yoga pose or a suit-wearing hooded merganser.

Based in Helena, Montana, the Italian artist likens the animalistic features to a mask or caricature. “I combine it with the silent language of our body and the cultural codes of what we wear in order to portray not only a specific individual, but also the larger groups and subcultures they belong to and, ultimately, the common habitat we all share,” he says.

Generally spanning one to two feet tall, the … Read the rest

Right: “Eagle Pose” (Yoga Parakeet) (2016), stoneware and mixed media, 12 x 6 x 13 inches. All images of Alessandro Gallo, shared with permission

Generally spanning one to two feet tall, the … Read the rest

Seller of Alleged Frans Hals Forgery Must Still Pay Sotheby’s, British Court Rules

The seller of an allegedly forged Frans Hals portrait will have to reimburse Sotheby’s $5.37 million after a London appeal court decided to uphold a ruling issued less than two weeks ago, the Art Newspaper reports.

The investment company Fairlight Art Ventures, owned by American hedge fund manager and art collector David Kowitz, and London’s Mark Weiss Gallery bought what they believed was an authentic Hals from French art dealer and collector Giuliano Ruffini for €3 million in 2010. The team sold the painting at Sotheby’s for $10.75 million to Seattle collector Richard Hedreen in a 2011 private sale; Sotheby’s reportedly took a 5 percent commission.

Five years after the painting was bought, the work was deemed a forgery. In 2016 the auction house refunded Hedreen in full, and contacted Fairlight and Weiss with a request for them to repay their share. The two initially argued that they … Read the rest

Flavour announces new album, 'Flavour of Africa' | Pre-order!

Award-winning high life king Flavor Na’bania celebrates his birthday today as he officially announced his latest album FLAVOUR OF AFRICA. It will be his eighth full-length album.

The album is set to be released online on December 4th. However, there is a pre-order of FLAVOUR OF AFRICA available starting today at 5 pm. Pre-order!

Flavour

Born in Enugu, hailing from Anambra State, Chinedu Okoli popularly known as Flavour N’abania or more recently, the ‘Flavour of Africa’ is recognized as Africa’s Highlife King.

Flavour’s brand of music is a fusion of African Rhythm, Highlife and contemporary Jazz, in one phrase: “Afro Hip-Life”. His music has grown to be immensely popular and enjoyed by music enthusiasts all around the world.

In 2008, Flavour released his 8-track-album titled “Nabania”, which received sales of over 10 million copies nationwide. In 2010 his sophomore album, “Uplifted” with hit singles “Nwa Baby”, “Oyi” and “Adanma” … Read the rest

Steampunk Busts Sculpted from Resin and Repurposed Objects Evoke Futuristic Relics

“Hippy Betsoebe,” resin, recycled objects, and paint. All images © Tomàs Barceló, shared with permission

Spotted with corroded patches, Tomàs Barceló’s sculptures fuse classical antiquity and retro-futurism. The Cala Millor, Mallorca-based artist casts steampunk-style figures from resin and recycled objects that resemble ancient art while evoking otherworldly relics of an alternate reality.

Barceló sculpts the polychromatic artworks with a narrative and identity in mind, considering the way each will interact with others. He expands on the idea in a recent interview:

I believe that sculpture is the art of presence… Sculpture shares space and time with the viewer, and that is what makes it so powerful. That’s why I don’t try so much to tell stories as I try to create powerful presences, each in its own way. The fact that a small robot girl looks at you more intensely than you look at her, is fascinating to

… Read the rest

ARTnews in Brief: Met Appoints First Chief Diversity Officer—and More from November 23, 2020

Monday, November 23

Met Appoints First Chief Diversity Officer
The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York has appointed Lavita McMath Turner has been named the institution’s first chief diversity officer. McMath Turner joins the Met from Stella & Charles Guttman Community College in New York, where she served as assistant dean for equity, inclusion, and experiential learning. In her new role, she will oversee the implementation of the Met’s anti-racism and diversity plan, which includes new approaches to hiring and curatorial programming. She will begin at the Met in January. Daniel Weiss, CEO and president of the Met, said in a statement, “Turner has an exceptional record of success promoting equity throughout her career in cultural and higher education institutions, and she will be a key partner in helping The Met evolve into a more inclusive place to work, visit, and learn.”

MOCA Toronto Receives $1 M. Gift for … Read the rest

It's Davido's Birthday! Here are 5 Times He Was A Man of the People

It’s the birthday of Nigerian music star, David Adeleke professionally known as Davido.

The singer turns a year older today, the 21st of November and is now 28 years old. This also marks his 9th year in the music industry since he broke out at the age of 19.

To celebrate Davido’s birthday, here are 5 times he proved he cares about his fans and the people around him in different ways:

1. Davido and His One Milli Giveaway:

The ‘Omo Baba Olowo’ as he rightly introduced himself to us on ‘Dami Duro,’ Davido has never minced words when it comes to his wealth and spends heavily to put his money where his mouth is. In similar manner, he doesn’t mince his wealth when showing fans love.

There’s Jide Sanyaolu who he gave a million naira back in 2015 to support his education. Then the ‘I Call Lati’ … Read the rest

Prized Hockney Portrait Will Stay at London’s Royal Opera House Following Sale: Report

Last month, a prized David Hockney portrait from the holdings of the financially strapped London Royal Opera House brought in £12.8 million ($16.9 million) when it sold at Christie’s. Some mourned the fact that the work would now disappear from public view, but it now seems those concerns were misplaced.

A new Art Newspaper report reveals that the buyer of Hockney’s Portrait of Sir David Webster (1971) is David Ross, the cofounder of Carphone Warehouse—and the chair of the Royal Opera House’s board of trustees. According to the report, he will return the work to the opera house once the purchase is finalized. He also has plans to loan it to the reopening exhibition of London’s National Portrait Gallery, where Ross is a trustee, in 2023.

At the Christie’s London contemporary auction, which generated $65 million total, there were only two bidders competing for the work: its third-party guarantor, … Read the rest

"Help Me Beg My Wife" – 9ice Pleads After Cheating Scandal

Nigerian indigenous singer, Abolore Adegbola Akande, popularly referred to as 9ice is pleading with the public to assist him in begging his wife after a cheating scandal.

9ice and wife Olasunkanmi Akande

The “Alajomeji” crooner released a video on Saturday, the 21st of November via social media, informing the public that he has done something terrible to his wife that threatens his marriage and with his reputation with marriages over the years, he does not want this one to end like others.

In case you’re wondering, this cheating scandal is coming after the award-winning singer was spotted in a video fondling the breast of a woman who was obviously not his wife.

9ice, in this video, is thereby pleading with the public to apologize to his wife on his behalf.

He said;

My name is Abolore Adegbola Akande, I’ve done something so shameful and something terrible and it’s costing me

… Read the rest

Collector Kevin Poon on the Intersection of Art and Culture, Launching His Streetwear Brand, and More

Kevin Poon is a Hong Kong–based art collector and entrepreneur who cofounded the streetwear brand CLOT in 2003 alongside his childhood best friend, Edison Chen. The duo felt the need to fill a cultural void that was ongoing in their hometown. “There was not much going on in Hong Kong in respects of music and culture,” Poon told Brooke Jaffe for “ARTnews Live,” our ongoing IGTV series of interviews with a range of creatives. “We wanted to create something we felt was part of our DNA.” What started as a streetwear brand producing T-shirts is now a multi-label store selling coveted items from clothing and accessories to even furniture. The brand also boasts a multitude of collaboration with other conglomerates, such as Polaroid and more famously Nike.

A true cultural jack-of-all-trades, Poon believes it is important to note that all aspects of our culture, in particular fashion and art, … Read the rest

‘The Oppressor Will Always Oppress’- Seun Kuti Reacts to the Shutdown of Shrine

Grammy-nominated afrobeat singer, Seun Kuti has reacted to the shutdown of the Afrika Shrine by order of the Lagos state police commissioner, Hakeem Dosunmu on Arise TV.

Seun Kuti who appeared on Arise TV’s Morning Show shed light on all that transpired following his public invitation to a meeting tagged ‘#EndSARS Movement: Lessons and Task.’

According to him, despite respecting the family’s decision not to have the meeting at the Shrine, policemen were still posted there on Wednesday although people were let in.

Speaking on the continued presence of the police at the Afrika Shrine, Seun said;

“No matter how you react to an oppressor whether you submit to the oppressor whether you resist the oppressor, the oppressor will always oppress, he will not change that part of himself.”

When asked about his … Read the rest