Anti-war icon leaves United Nations halls

A SUMMARY OF THE MOST EXCITING ART NEWS FROM AROUND THE GLOBE

While we focus on Indian art, we can’t obviously function in a vacuum. It’s a small world and everything is connected, especially on the web. So, let’s train our spotlight across the world map to see what’s going on — from art trends to socio-political issues to everything that affects the great aesthetic global consciousness. Or, let’s just travel the world and have some fun!

‘Guernica’ leaves UN halls

The iconic, 25-foot long canvas tapestry replica of Pablo Picasso’s famed painting, ‘Guernica’, had hung outside the United Nations Security Council chamber since 1985, on loan from the Rockefeller family. Now, it has been repossessed by owner Nelson A. Rockefeller Jr., whose family had commissioned the tapestry in the 1950s. Picasso’s original painting, done in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War depicted the bombing of Guernica, Spain, by Nazi German aircraft that nearly obliterated the city and killed or wounded a third of its population. Its haunting black-and-gray images of screaming humans and animals turned it into an enduring symbol of war’s monstrosities, reports The New York Times.

Cézanne: Centrestage at MoMA

Drawing was a daily habit for famed Post-Impressionist French painter Paul Cézanne, resulting in more than 2,100 works on paper over his 50-year-career. Now, the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York will have more than 200 examples on view, drawn from its own collection as well as loans from public and private collections in the US and internationally. The museum returns to its artistic roots with this spring show, as its first public exhibition ever in November 1929 also, interestingly, focused on just four artists: Cézanne, Gauguin, Seurat and Van Gogh. The Art Newspaper shares the details.

Can design change your life?

Stanford Life Design Lab co-founders Bill Burnet and Dave Evans teach a class called ‘Designing Your Life’ — its lessons also distilled into a book and online workshops — wherein they explore helpful advice gleaned from the world and practice of design to help improve one’s existence. These include tips on reframing personal dysfunctional beliefs about passion and goals and optimization, while following a basic practical trajectory from design — connecting the dots, exploring gravity problems, brainstorming and more. Ideas.Ted.Com takes a look.