Field Notes
Maria Balshaw to Step Down as Tate Director After Nine-Year Reshape
Tate signals a controlled handover. Maria Balshaw will step down in 2026 with funding secured, projects underway, and leadership transition already shaped.
Field Notes
Close observation from art cities, institutions, and scenes, capturing how exhibitions, practices, and cultural dynamics unfold in real time.
Field Notes
ADAA Cuts Loose Its Old Fair And Stakes Out A New Future At The Armory
The Art Dealers Association of America will debut the ADAA Fair in November 2026 at the Park Avenue Armory, replacing The Art Show and redirecting its mission toward nationwide museum and arts support through the ADAA Foundation.
Field Notes
Lucas Museum’s Narrative Cracks: Chief Curator Exit Exposes a Leadership Void
As the $1 billion Lucas Museum races toward its 2026 opening, the sudden loss of chief curator Pilar Tompkins Rivas throws control, community promises, and curatorial power into sharp focus.
Field Notes
Louvre Leak Sparks Staff Strike as Infrastructure Faults Pile Up
A water leak damaging hundreds of research volumes in the Louvre’s Egyptian department has triggered a staff strike and renewed scrutiny of the museum’s fragile infrastructure.
Field Notes
A Residency in Houston Is Throwing Open Its Doors — And It Wants Working Hands, Loud Minds, and Craft That Can Hold a Room
Houston Center for Contemporary Craft opens applications for its 2026–27 artist residency, offering stipends, 24/7 studio access, and deep public engagement. Deadline: February 1, 2026.
Field Notes
Serpentine & FLAG: A Million-Pound Prize Crashes Into Emerging Art
A new transatlantic art prize launches as Serpentine in London and the FLAG Art Foundation in New York commit £1 million to emerging artists — a major boost in the 2025 contemporary art landscape.
Field Notes
Rijksmuseum Backs New Study Linking Art to Better Health
Dutch researchers move into the Rijksmuseum to test whether viewing or making art can ease Parkinson’s symptoms and lift daily life.
Field Notes
Louvre’s New Ticket Wall Hits Foreign Visitors Hard
Paris pushes culture into a corner as the Louvre adds a steep surcharge for non-European visitors, sparking backlash and exposing deeper cracks inside the museum.
Field Notes
US Museums Turn to Billboards and Blockchain as Survival Mode Becomes Policy
Across the US, museums are diving into side hustles — digital billboards, NFTs, tech patents, consultancy deals — to keep their doors open. The urgency is real, and the art risks being swallowed by the glow.
Field Notes
Museums Are Racing to Survive a Global Shake-Up
Public funding collapses, donors pull back, and political heat smolders. Museums worldwide scramble for new models as the old system cracks beneath them.
Latest Art News
UK Creatives Push Back as AI Scrapes Culture: A Sector on Edge and a Government Scrambling
Britain’s artists are sounding the alarm as AI companies mine copyrighted work without consent. Protests, lawsuits and rising distrust force the UK government to rethink its entire approach to AI training data and creators’ rights.
Latest Art News
American Pope Shakes Up Culture: Why Leo XIV Is Becoming an Unlikely Champion of Real Art
Pope Leo XIV is emerging as a surprising defender of beauty and creative work, pushing back against algorithmic culture and urging artists toward depth and meaning.