Contemporary Front page
Christie’s Paris Canonne Collection
A painting of a child receiving a writing lesson from a woman in a red blouse.

Christie’s Paris Canonne Collection

Immediately before their 20th/21st Century evening sale on Wednesday, April 9th, Christie’s Paris hosted a short auction featuring the personal collection of Henri Canonne. Canonne was a pharmaceutical entrepreneur who, starting in the 1920s, assembled one of the most impressive … More…

Caravaggio Restoration Reveals Hidden Figures
A painting of a man with a bow shooting a woman with an arrow.

Caravaggio Restoration Reveals Hidden Figures

As part of the highly anticipated Caravaggio 2025 exhibition, the Palazzo Barberini has revealed hidden segments of a painting now unveiled through meticulous restoration. Caravaggio’s Martyrdom of St. Ursula is the last painting the artist created before his death in … More…

Smithsonian Director Rebukes Partisanship
A red stone building

Smithsonian Director Rebukes Partisanship

The Smithsonian Institution’s director has taken a stand against the recent reforms and cuts pushed by the Trump administration. While founded by the federal government, the Smithsonian has operated with little governmental interference since its foundation in 1846. This is … More…

Canadian Gallery Sues Norval Morrisseau Estate
A painting in an indigenous Canadian style of several blue and red creatures on a yellow background.

Canadian Gallery Sues Norval Morrisseau Estate

A gallery in Calgary is now suing the estate of indigenous Canadian artist Norval Morrisseau for defamation. EA Studios has filed a complaint with the Superior Trial Court in Alberta over remarks made by Morrisseau estate officials, mainly its director … More…

Fake Caravaggio Uncovered In Spain
A 17th century portrait of Jesus wearing the crown of thorns.

Fake Caravaggio Uncovered In Spain

According to experts at Spain’s Prado Museum, an art dealer intentionally misattributed an allegedly rediscovered masterpiece by Caravaggio to scam a group of buyers. In 2023, the Spanish art dealer Herennia Trillo sold a painting she claimed was a lost Caravaggio … More…

$12 Renoir?
could it be a renoir

$12 Renoir?

When people send me recent stories of some amazing find at a thrift store or a garage sale, my first reaction is to be incredibly skeptical. This is the same advice I gave when writing about the alleged Van Gogh … More…

Bonhams 19th-Century & British Impressionist Art
A painting of a Turkish harem, showing a group of women in Middle Eastern robes.

Bonhams 19th-Century & British Impressionist Art

On Wednesday, March 26th, Bonhams’ sale room at New Bond Street, London, hosted their 19th-Century and British Impressionist art sale, featuring works by Heywood Hardy, Rudolf Ernst, Sir Alfred Munnings, and Dame Laura Knight. However, the works of the orientalist … More…

Trump’s Colorado Painting & Other Presidential Portrait Stories
A painting of Theodore Roosevelt posing at the base of a stair, placing his hand on the balustrade.

Trump’s Colorado Painting & Other Presidential Portrait Stories

A portrait of Donald Trump hanging at the Colorado State Capitol building has been removed after many people online decided the president’s depiction was amusing and unflattering. Apart from when they are first unveiled, presidential portraits don’t often receive much … More…

Cheeto Or Charizard?? No…It’s A Cheetozard!
a display case with a flamin hot cheeto that looks like Charizard from Pokemon

Cheeto Or Charizard?? No…It’s A Cheetozard!

In 2019, an unknown snack lover stumbled upon an unusual Flamin’ Hot Cheeto while enjoying their afternoon snack. Thinking that the little spicy puff resembled Charizard, the dragon-like Pokémon beloved by fans worldwide, they decided not to pop it into … More…

Christie’s London Modern British & Irish Evening Sale
An abstract painting of thick white lines on a gray background, vaguely in the shape of a person laying down.

Christie’s London Modern British & Irish Evening Sale

On Wednesday, March 19th, Christie’s London hosted one of its evening sales dedicated to modern British and Irish art. These sales often do fairly well, but that is not always a foregone conclusion. This one, I believe, was a great … More…

Disgraced Art Advisor Lisa Schiff Sentenced To Prison
A large courthouse in New York City

Disgraced Art Advisor Lisa Schiff Sentenced To Prison

Lisa Schiff, the Manhattan art advisor who admitted to stealing money from her clients, has just been sentenced to time in prison. Schiff was a veteran of the art world. She worked in galleries and auction houses in both North … More…

FBI Gallery Raid Confirmed As A Stunt
A painting of a boat on a stormy sea.

FBI Gallery Raid Confirmed As A Stunt

Videos spread all over social media last week allegedly showing FBI agents seizing a painting right off the walls of a Manhattan gallery. However, it all turned out to be a stunt. Last week, I received messages from people asking … More…

Collector Refuses To Give Up Stolen Madonna
A 16th century Renaissance Madonna and Child painting

Collector Refuses To Give Up Stolen Madonna

A Renaissance-era Madonna & Child painting stolen from an Italian museum fifty years ago has recently been rediscovered in Britain. But the owner will not let it go. Antonio Solario was a sixteenth-century northern Italian painter. While moderately successful in … More…

Supreme Court Rules On Nazi-Looted Pissarro
An impressionist street scene of the Rue Saint Honoré in Paris

Supreme Court Rules On Nazi-Looted Pissarro

The Supreme Court has, in just a few sentences, ruled in favor of a Holocaust survivor’s descendants in their efforts to regain their stolen Pissarro painting. Over a year ago, I wrote about how a court in California ruled against … More…

Bonhams Skinner American Art
A pencil drawing of an island from a bird's-eye view.

Bonhams Skinner American Art

On Wednesday, March 12th, Bonham’s Skinner hosted one of their American art sales, primarily featuring paintings and sculptures from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Among the lots available were works by Thomas Hart Benton and Milton Avery. However, the auction … More…

Christie’s London Impressionist & Modern Art
A landscape painting by Alfred Sisley showing a riverside town in France.

Christie’s London Impressionist & Modern Art

I thought the Art of the Surreal sale would be the big triumph at Christie’s last week. However, it seems like they ended up with a better week than anticipated, given the success of their Impressionist and Modern Art Day … More…