As suddenly as it disappeared, the Guernica is back at the UN

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!

A year after its disappearance, a historic tapestry returns

One year after its disconcerting disappearance from a wall at the United Nations, a vast tapestry representing Pablo Picasso\’s iconic \”Guernica\” has been returned by owners the Rockefeller family to its prominent place at the global body. The rehanging of the immense weaving was underway last Saturday morning, a UN source said, as diplomats expressed relief about the return of the 25-foot-wide (7.5-meter) work which hung outside the Security Council chambers, where presidents, prime ministers and ambassadors would regularly pass. The tapestry was commissioned by Nelson A. Rockefeller in 1955 and woven in a French studio in consultation with Picasso, who did his original \”Guernica\” painting during the Spanish Civil War. NDTV has more details about the prodigal return.

Why did this solid gold cube appear in the middle of New York?

Last week, joggers in New York’s Central Park came across a cube composed of 400 pounds (186 kilograms) of pure 24-karat gold, conceived by the German artist Niclas Castello — who has billed it as a conceptual “socle du monde” (base of the world) sculpture for our time. Although the work is not for sale, according to the artist’s team, based on the current price of gold at $1,788 per ounce, its material worth is around $11.7 million. Flanked by a heavy security detail, the 410-pound work was all set to be displayed in the park for a day. An accompanying cryptocurrency is being launched alongside the physical artwork. The Castello Coin, traded as $CAST, is available for purchase online at an initial price of €0.39 ($0.44) each, with an accompanying NFT auction scheduled for 21 February. Artnet News tells you everything you need to know about the development.

US Treasury targets NFTs for potential high-value art money laundering

The U.S. Department of the Treasury has released a study on the high-value art market, highlighting the potential in the nonfungible tokens (NFTs) space to conduct illicit money laundering or terror financing operations. The Treasury’s “Study of the facilitation of money laundering and terror finance through the trade in works of art” suggested that the increasing use of art as an investment or financial asset could make the high-value art trades vulnerable to money laundering. “The NFT market in 2020 alone was valued at more than $20 billion. The U.S. Treasury suggested a possibility where criminals can purchase NFTs with illicit funds and resold to an unwary collector “who would compensate the criminal with clean funds not tied to a prior crime,” it said. Coin Telegraph explains further.