Good morning!
- Paris-founded Templon Gallery is closing its Chelsea location and hopes to open a smaller space in New York City.
- Japan’s Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum sparked criticism for its plans to replace the word “massacre” with the word “incident,” in reference to the Nanjing Massacre.
- A Dutch court has sentenced three men to nearly four years in prison for the theft of golden Romanian treasures from the Drents Museum.
The Headlines
TEMPLON TONES DOWN. The Paris-founded Templon Gallery has shuttered its New York space and plans to relocate to a smaller location in Manhattan, reports Artnet News. Established in 1966 by dealer Daniel Templon, the gallery opened its 6,500-square-foot Chelsea space in 2022. But after their landlord asked for a major rent increase from their previous $55,000 monthly rate, the gallery decided to abandon the location, according to the founder’s son, Mathieu Templon, who ran the New York gallery. “It was way too, too much,” he told Artnet. The news follows last week’s announcement that Pace gallery is cutting about 50 artists and 50 jobs, while London-based galleries Stephen Friedmanand Timothy Taylor also closed their New York outposts. Mathieu Templon added that he is looking for a smaller, new gallery space in Tribeca or the Upper East Side. “I feel like it’s important for the gallery to have a space in New York,” he added, “but not at any cost.”
OLD WOUNDS. The Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum in Japan is facing scrutiny over plans to replace references to the Nanjing Massacre with the term “Nanjing Incident” in new exhibition displays, reports the South China Morning Post. The Nanjing massacre occurred over six weeks, beginning in December 1937, after the Japanese army invaded the city, killing hundreds of thousands of Chinese people. The proposed changes were announced as part of a September renovation project and have sparked criticism from Chinese authorities. “We urge the Japanese side to deeply reflect on its war crimes and make a clean break with militarism,” stated Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning last week.
The Digest
A Dutch court sentenced three men to three years and 11 months in prison each for stealing ancient Romanian gold treasures from the Drents Museum in Assen over a year ago, despite the recovery of the bulk of the bounty. [NL Times]
Italian arts workers have called for a national strike to take place on Friday, June 12, in protest of low wages and precarious working conditions, as well as institutional partnerships with the arms industry, allowing them to “look away from genocide” of Palestinians. [Hyperallergic]
A painting bought for less than $100 at a US thrift shop was later identified as a work by the Scottish Colorist Francis Campbell Boileau Cadell and sold at auction in Edinburgh for £189,200. [BBC]
The Swedish Ministry of Culture has appointed Tone Hansen to lead the modern and contemporary art Moderna Museet in Stockholm and Malmö. [ArtReview]
The Pinault Collection has named Brice Mathieu as its general administrator, following the departure of former president Guillaume Cerutti. [The Art Newspaper, France]
Headed to Zurich Art Weekend June 12-14, ahead of Art Basel in Basel? Here is a list of must-see exhibitions. [Monopol Magazine]
The Kicker
FOR ART’S SAKE. Dave Eggers’ new book, Contrapposto, is about the lives of two artist friends navigating the pressures of the art world and the strange business of making art for a living, the Los Angeles Times reports. With his new novel, “Eggers has written a big-hearted, deeply moving story about the choices artists make, or don’t make, to square up their own notions of success and happiness,” writes Marc Weingarten. “We are left pondering the significance of the artistic endeavor in a world that commodifies everything, including our bodies and brains… is it even worth the trouble?” He asks.
