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The Headlines
THE ULTIMATE VALENTINE’S GIFT. The British Museum has managed to raise £3.5 million ($4.8 million) to acquire the “Tudor Heart,” reports ARTnews. The engraved, heart-shaped, 24-carat-gold pendant and chain was found by a metal detectorist in Warwickshire, and is the only known piece of jewelry to have survived the period of Henry VIII’s first marriage to Katherine of Aragon, the 1533 annulment of which led to England’s schism with the Catholic Church. But before that most historic of break-ups, researchers surmise the pendant was made to celebrate the betrothal of the royal couple’s daughter, Princess Mary, to the French heir-apparent. The gold heart is engraved with the Tudor rose entangled with a pomegranate bush, which was Katherine’s personal emblem, and below is the inscription in Old French for “toujours” or “always.” The pendant will now always be kept on view at the British Museum, thanks to a combination of donors, including over 45,000 members of the public who contributed a total of £380,000 ($519,000), plus £500,000 from the Julia Rausing Trust, and £400,000 from the Art Fund and £300,000 from the American Friends of the British Museum. The National Heritage Memorial Fund capped off the remaining £1.75 million needed before the April 2026 deadline.
RUSSIAN ROULETTE. A long-running battle over a collection of about 1,800 paintings attributed to Russian modernist masters has just escalated after a litigation funder said it may have been misled about the works’ authenticity, reports ARTnews. The case centers on the late Palestinian collector Uthman Khatib, his son Castro Ben Leon Lawrence Jayyusi, and their litigation funder, LitFin. Backed by LitFin, the Khatibs have accused Israeli Russian businessman Mozes Frisch of stealing the 1,800 paintings, including some attributed to El Lissitzky, Natalia Goncharova, and Kasimir Malevich. But the painting’s checkered history and suspicions they are forgeries, has added a new layer to the complex case, which has also seen the relationship between the Khatib’s and LitFin sour.
The Digest
MoMA PS1 has revealed the 53 artists who will participate in Greater New York, the Queens museum’s quinquennial devoted to New York City’s art scene. [ARTnews]
A legal dispute over a Picasso painting has exposed the alleged offshore finances of businessman Sasan Ghandehari, who paid for right-wing British politician Nigel Farage’s £50,000, two-day trip to the last Davos summit. [The Guardian]
As French prosecutors launch a preliminary inquiry into former French culture minister Jack Lang for alleged aggravated tax fraud and money laundering, local media have revealed that the Socialist Party’s historic, leading figure has kept a lavish lifestyle sustained on other people’s dime. This included flights on Jeffrey Epstein‘s jet. [Le Monde]
The fourth edition of the Lahore Biennale, opening in 2027 will be curated by Nav Haz, currently the associate director at M HKA – Museum of Contemporary Art Antwerp. [ArtAsiaPacific]
Maison Margiela is kicking off a multi-city, exhibition-filled “brand moment” in China, centered around its April 1 runway show there. [Women’s Wear Daily]
The Kicker
MARRAKESH MOMENT. While the art world flitted between big events in Qatar, India, and Mexico earlier this month, another, smaller art fair in Marrakesh was drawing its own crowds to its city-wide event, the 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair. The Observer’s Naima Morelli was there to report on the event that offered an alternative to the general tide of travelers headed to Art Basel’s inaugural edition in Doha. Why go to Marrakech, “when so much of the art world is elsewhere?” asked Morelli. While the 22 participating galleries kept the fair small, the city comes to life for the unique gathering. In dialogue with some 25 exhibitions and events, the fair keeps “visitors constantly engaged—if not by the energy of Marrakech itself, then by a program that extends far beyond the walls of La Mamounia,” the hotel hosting the fair, including institutions such as MACAAL, the Yves Saint Laurent Museum, artist spaces and more, writes Morelli. “We can’t now distinguish the fair from the program in the city,” added the fair’s founding director, Touria El Glaoui. “It’s a mixture of commercial and not-for-profit, or profit and institution.”
