LOUVRE TO RETURN 258 MISTAKENLY OBTAINED WORKS TO FONDATION DES ARTISTES
The Louvre is set to return 258 objects that were mistakenly placed in its collection between 1923 and 2000. The items were discovered during a joint inventory between the museum and the Fondation des Artistes in 2019 and belong to Adèle de Rothschild. There are a number of Islamic art pieces within the cabinet of objects, as well as a number of objets d’art. The Louvre and the Fondation des Artistes have come to an agreement that 30 of the objects will be displayed for a period of 5 years at the museum. The Fondation des Artistes will also absorb 200 of the Rothschild items back into the cabinet, which will be open to the public in September. It has also been announced that Adèle de Rothschild has bequeathed her private residence and its contents to the French state in order to establish a foundation to support living artists. Works were distributed to major institutions such as the Musée de Cluny, the Bibliothèque Nationale de France, The Louvre, and the Musée des Arts Décoratifs.
LONDON GALLERY WEEKEND 2025: OUR CRITICS PICK THEIR TOP SHOWS
London Gallery Weekend’s (LGW) fifth edition is running from 6-8th June, 2025. 126 galleries will be taking part, including 15 new participants, of which 11 are newly established. From tastemaker galleries in Mayfair to smaller spaces across the city, a diverse range of art will be on presented. Alongside a number of exhibitions, there will also be a live programme of performances, talks, tours, and workshops. Institutional influence can be noted through the £20,000 exhibition commissioning fund that will be available for public institutions in partnership with the Henry Moore Foundation and the Tia Collection. The Art Newspaper have selected their highlights for the weekend, starting with Tau Lewis: The ways of the underworld are perfect at Sadie Coles HQ. The exhibition reflects developments in Lewis’ own practice which draws inspiration from historical African American and Caribbean traditions. Following this is Base Materialism, a group exhibition at Albion Jeune that is based on theoretical texts by Georges Bataille and Julia Kristeva. With an upcoming survey at Tate Modern, Emily Kam Kngwarray opens an exhibition at Pace Gallery, showcasing works including batik pieces by the artists she has influenced. A number of shows are opening further East, such as Choreography of the Imagination at Cecilia Brunson Projects in Bermondsey. In this exhibition, artist Claudia Alarcón works with Silät, a collective of women weavers from the Wichí communities of Salta, Argentina. The expansive list includes more exhibitions, from Mayfair to Camberwell.
Tau Lewis, Venus in Pisces (2025)
VAN GOGH MUSEUM OPENS ITS FIRST EXHIBITION BY AN AFRICAN ARTIST
John Madu, a Nigerian artist, has become the first African artist to exhibit at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. Ten new paintings by Madu have been curated in dialogue with seven of Van Gogh’s works, chosen by Madu himself. Titled Van Gogh x John Madu: Paint Your Path, Madu’s practice explores the relationship between Western visual culture and a globalized world through the blending Western art history with references of daily life in West Africa. Madu has spoken about his practice, noting, “I use this combination to emphasize universal human experiences, while also revealing the unique cultural narratives that co-exist in our globalized world.” He describes his paintings as a bridge between local narratives and a global audience, spurred on by a personal connection that he feels with Van Gogh. Madu’s scenes often directly reference settings and subjects of Van Gogh’s, recontextualising them with his own lived experience. Madu has been exhibited internationally in Paris, London, Stockholm, and Luxembourg. Van Gogh x John Madu will be running until September 7th.
John Madu, No Food for Lazy Man II, 2025
BUKHARA’S FIRST BIENNIAL TO HEAL BROKEN HEARTS THROUGH FOOD AND ART
The inaugural edition of the Bukhara Biennial will open on 5 September 2025, featuring over 70 site-specific contemporary projects across Bukhara, Uzbekistan. Titled Recipes for Broken Hearts, the biennial is organised by the Uzbekistan Art and Culture Development Foundation and curated by Diana Campbell. Integrated into the array of visual art and performances will be culinary experiences, honouring the traditions of the city. In the wake of the restoration of a number of historical landmarks, the biennial will be held in the city’s new UNESCO-protected cultural district. On the theme, Campbell shared, “time is an essential ingredient in healing a broken heart, and also in cooking Uzbek food and in making many of the crafts for which Bukhara is known, most famously carpets. Time is difficult to visualise, but it is something you can clearly taste—whether it’s properly cooked palov, a fermented drink like wine, or a pickle.’ There is hope that the biennial will aid in the step towards re-establishing Uzbekistan as a crossroads of creativity and intellectual exchanges along the Silk Roads.
Bukhara Biennial artist Nomin Zezegmaa at the façade of Khoja Kalon
ANNOUNCING WORLDWIDE REPRESENTATION OF CRISTINA IGLESIAS
Hauser & Wirth have announced their worldwide representation of Spanish artist Cristina Iglesias. Born in Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain in 1956, the artist currently lives and works in Madrid. Across four decades, Iglesias has defined a unique sculptural vocabulary, blending architecture, literature, and psychology. Celebrated for her immersive installation works, Iglesias creates spaces that are accessible both psychologically and physically. Her works have been exhibited across the world at the 1986 and 1993 Venice Biennales, the 1990 and 2012 editions of the Biennale of Sydney, and the 2003 Taipei Biennale. Iglesias was also the recipient of the Royal Academy of Art’s Architecture Prize, which was accompanied by an exhibition at the institution in 2022. Later this year in October, the artist also be opening a solo show at the Fundació Catalunya La Pedrera in Barcelona. Marc Payot, president at Hauser & Wirth, shared, “over the course of her career, Cristina Iglesias has forged an extraordinary visual language that feels simultaneously unexpected and inevitable… Cristina’s art reflects on the natural forces we too often ignore or relegate to the background and awakens us to their transformative power in ways that invite us to be more human. We are honoured to welcome Cristina to Hauser & Wirth.”
Cristina Iglesias, Growth I, 2018
30 ARTISTS DEFINING QUEER ART NOW
Artsy have curated a list of 30 LGBTQ+ artists who are playing pivotal roles in contemporary art, in honour of Pride Month. The artists have been nominated by leading figures across the art world, from curator and author Legacy Russell to photographer Catherine Opie and art advisor Racquel Chevremont. The list includes painters, photographers, performers, and sculptors who capture the breadth of the queer experience. Chevremont nominated Alex Anderson (b. 1990), who’s sculptural and relief works blend together Eastern ceramic techniques with Western production practices. Anderson integrates references to camp and queerness, investigating themes of sexuality, self, illusion, and representation. One of the artists nominated by Legacy Russell is Dominique White (b. 1993) who uses the motif of the ocean as a site of ancestral loss. White’s most recent works have placed a particular focus on shipwrecks, her iron sculptures emulating the iron ballast that was often part of ships that carried enslaved Africans along the Middle Passage. Lauren J. Joseph nominated Alex Margo Arden (b. 1994), who employs video, installation, and performance throughout her practice. Arden reflects on both the contemporary and the historical, such as in Scene 6 (6 November 2023 National Gallery London) where the artist recreated Diego Velasquez’s The Toilet of Venus (1651) down to the damage done by climate protestors in 2023. Joseph has described Arden’s interventions as “both action and archive.”
Dominique White, ineligible for death, 2024
Jordan Tan holds an MA in History of Art from the prestigious Courtauld Institute of Art. With a passion for fine art and the art market, Jordan plays a key role at Art Works by researching and interpreting trends across the primary and secondary markets, delivering valuable insights and business intelligence for the fine art department.
