– Hollywood Hotshot's Dad Implicated in Picasso Scheme: Jack Kavanaugh, father of Relativity Media chief executive Ryan Kavanaugh (producer of "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" and "Little Fockers," and well-known lover of private helicopter rides), has been ordered to pay $250,000 in punitive damages because of his role in the sale of a fraudulent version of Picasso's “La Femme au Chapeau Bleu” (1902). The jury believed Kavanaugh acted fraudulently when he advised his friend Victor Sands to buy the forged drawing, receiving a $800,000 kickback from L.A.'s Chateau Allegre gallery. In court, the elder Kavanaugh and his wife testified about the desperate state of their finances, saying that cash support from their son had dried up last summer. [NYT]
– Hammer Biennial Opens Wallet for Artists: Many art-world biennials feature ambitious new work. But the first-annual Hammer Biennial — an exhibition devoted to under-recognized L.A. artists opening June 2 — also helped fund it. Each of the 60 participating artists received $1,000, as well as an additional grants of up to $7,500, for specific proposals. All told, organizers spent about one-third of their $775,000 budget helping realize ambitious new work. [LAT]
– Zuma Supporters March Against Controversial Painting: Today supporters of South African president Jacob Zuma and the ruling African National Congress party were expected to march in Johannesburg in protest of artist Brett Murray's portrait of the politician with his genitals exposed — which was defaced last week as it hung at Goodman Gallery. Up to 15,000 people were expected to join the march to the gallery, which has temporarily closed due to safety concerns. [CNN]
– Philanthropist Duo Donate Modern Art to Tate: Collector couple Mercedes and Ian Stoutzker are donating nine artworks to the Tate, including pieces by David Hockney, Lucian Freud, Rachel Whiteread, and Peter Doig. "They don't receive any tax benefit from this gift," noted Tate director Nicholas Serota in response to recently rescinded tax relief for philanthropic donations. "But...they wanted to encourage others to give works to the national collection." [Guardian, ARTINFO UK]
– Spanish Artist Faces Jail Time for 1978 Christ-Cooking Film: The Spanish video artist Javier Krahe could spend up to a year in prison following the broadcast of a 54-second film as the backdrop to a 2004 interview with him on national television. His 1978 short, a mock-cooking show during which viewers learn how to cook a Jesus Christ figure removed from a crucifix, has spurred two previous (unsuccessful) attempts by Catholic groups to prosecute him for "offending religious feelings." [Guardian]
– Buenos Aires Fires Up Art Factory: An old brick power plant that opened in 1916 in the south of the Argentine city but sat abandoned for decades has been turned into the Tate Modern-sized art center Usina del Arte ("Art Factory"). The 120 million peso ($26.9 million) project debuted on Friday night with a light installation by Japanese artist Ryoji Ikeda and a monumental projection by local artist Leandro Erlich. [AFP]
– Bacon Self-Portrait Actually a Freud Portrait: Experts from Christie's discovered that Francis Bacon's "Study for Self-Portrait" (1964) — which the auction house aims to sell next month in London — is in fact a portrait of Lucian Freud from the neck down. "It is a rare painting from the height of Bacon and Freud's relationship," said Francis Outred of Christie's, "paying tribute to the creative and emotional proximity both felt for a time." [ARTINFO UK]
– Two Regional Museums Face Closure: The Contemporary Museum in Baltimore, Maryland and the Charlotte Museum of History in North Carolina have suspended operations due to budget woes. The museums, which are 23 and 35 years old respectively, hope to resume operations in new, less expensive locations at some point in the future. [Baltimore Sun, LAT]
– Hey Art, Get off My Lawn!: They say good fences make good neighbors, but what if your neighbor owns a six-foot-tall Antony Gormley sculpture? Art dealer Ivor Braka, of London, has found himself in a tussle with his neighbors after installing sculptures by Gormley and Tracey Emin in a local communal garden. [Evening Standard]
– Charline von Heyl Wins Wex Artist Residency: The German painter will take up residence at the Wexner Center of Columbus, Ohio at Ohio State University, earning financial, technical, and staff support for the next year. [Artforum]
VIDEO OF THE DAY
Watch Javier Krahe's 1978 short, "How To Cook a Christ," which could land him in jail for up to a year:
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