Utah Desert Monolith Mystery Deepens—and More Art News – ARTnews.com

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News
Seoul is buzzing with talk of the possible launch of a Frieze art fair in the city in fall of 2022. [ARTnews]
Brett Sokol reports on art scene happenings in Miami—from exhibitions to a dinner hosted by collector Libbie Mugrabi—despite the cancelation of Art Basel Miami Beach due to the pandemic. Sokol writes, “With epidemiologists expecting those numbers to rise, it’s worth asking: Is Miami’s art world paying attention?” [The New York Times]

The German parliament has approved the largest ever federal culture budget for 2021. Funds will go toward the preservation of museum buildings in Berlin, a renovation of the Bayreuth Festival Theatre, and other projects. [The Art Newspaper]
Artspace Sydney will get a $3.68 million renovation that will expand the size of its exhibition spaces and studios for artist residencies. [Art Asia Pacific]
The Market
Phillips has appointed Tobias Sirtl, who formerly worked as a post-war and contemporary art specialist at Christie’s, as a specialist in its 20th-century and contemporary art department in Munich. [Art Market Monitor]
Art & Artists
The mysterious metal monolith that appeared in the Utah desert last week continues to fascinate and confound the art world. The vertical slab, which some had claimed was created by the late sculptor John McCracken, has vanished from view. [The New York Times]
Derek Fordjour discussed a new painting titled Boom! Lockstep! March! with T Magazine, explaining that he sees the three figures in the work “as shaking up democracy and quite literally moving to the beat of their own drum.” [T: The New York Times Style Magazine]
ARTnews visited Fordjour’s studio this fall as the artist prepared for his current solo show at Petzel gallery in New York. [ARTnews]
The Royal Society in the United Kingdom has added a portrait of the astrophysicist Jocelyn Bell Burnell to its collection. The painting, which was created by artist Stephen Shankland, is one of only a few artworks celebrating scientific achievements of women in the organization’s holding of portraits. [The Guardian]
And more
“Museums have found themselves in a difficult position. They seek relevance to stave off the pandemic-induced economic decline, but relevance means tackling race, a topic they’ve been unprepared for and are therefore reluctant to face,” Shirley Li writes in a piece titled “American Museums Are Going Through an Identity Crisis.” [The Atlantic]

Here’s a look at the French women of history who were pioneers in the field of art collecting and made significant contributions to art institutions in their country. [Apollo]
Finally, view some of the opulent 18th-century depictions of citrus fruits featured in a new book from Taschen. [The Guardian]

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