When happy news makes you go nuts… New clews point to why Vincent Van Gogh sliced off his ear in on a winter night, late in December. One of Van Gogh’s paintings, “Still Life: Drawing Board with Onions,” was painted just a few days after Vincent returned to the his home on January 7th, 1889. An envelope depicted in a the painting provides a clue (previously ignored) that could help. The envelope in the painting is addressed to Van Gogh from his brother Theo. Until recently, no one has considered whether the artist was illustrating a specific letter. For art historians, this is a very important milestone!

Reading of his brother’s love affair could well have been the trigger for the Van Gogh’s self-mutilation, although there was probably no one simple explanation for the incident (and Van Gogh had some serious tensions with Gauguin, a fellow painter). Vincent may have feared (wrongly) that he would lose the support of his brother Theo. For years, Theo had providedthe support of money and friendship for the artist. The letter in the painting most likely arrived in Arles on December 23, 1888: the very day Vincent mutilated his ear. The letter almost certainly read that Theo had fallen in love with Johanna (Jo) Bonger.

More, from TheArtNewspaper.com…

In the still-life, the handwriting on the envelope is clearly Theo’s, and the letter is addressed to Vincent in Arles. Although the postmarks lack a legible date, one contains the number “67”, enclosed in a circle. This was used by the post office in Place des Abbesses, close to Theo’s Montmartre apartment.

The postmark directly over the two postage stamps reads “Jour de l’An” (New Year’s Day). This was spotted by Dutch specialists working on the new edition of Van Gogh’s letters, which was published in October. They concluded that the letter had been posted during “the busy period around New Year” and it had possibly arrived on 23 December, the date Vincent received his 100 francs financial allowance from Theo by post. The letter was probably posted the day before from Paris.

The established view is that Vincent did not learn of Theo’s engagement until after he mutilated his ear, but our research suggests that news of the love affair reached him on 23 December. Theo and Jo had met (for a second time, after a long break) in Paris in mid-December and decided to marry just a few days later. On 21 December Theo wrote to his mother, asking for permission. His brother must surely have been among the next to know.

It seems Vincent already knew of the impending engagement when Theo visited him in hospital on Christmas Day. In a recently published letter, Theo wrote to his fiancée about the brief hospital visit: “When I mentioned you to him he evidently knew who and what I meant and when I asked whether he approved of our plans, he said yes, but that marriage ought not to be regarded as the main object in life.”

On Christmas Day Vincent was suffering from a life-threatening wound and was in considerable mental distress, so it seems unlikely that Theo would have broken the news about his engagement. Although it was briefly discussed, this was presumably because Vincent had already known.

Vincent’s feelings must have been complex, and by January 1889 he may well have become reconciled to the engagement, following reassurances from his brother. The very fact that he included the envelope in the still-life suggests a message of hope.

Although it is speculation, the postmark on the envelope might represent a coded message that the strong links between the two brothers would survive. The Musée de La Poste in Paris told us that although “Jour de l’An” postmarks were widely used in the run-up to Christmas and New Year in the 1880s, most are fairly small marks, rather than the more prominent words inscribed by Van Gogh. This suggests that the personalised postmark may have been Vincent’s way of stressing to Theo that the letter depicted was a very particular one—and that he wished his brother well for the new year.

The painting, on loan from the Kröller-Müller Museum in Otterlo, will form the centrepiece of “The Real Van Gogh: the Artist and his Letters”, opening at London’s Royal Academy on 23 January.

Artworks by Van Gogh, Picasso, Cezanne and other elite artists were seized this week in a crackdown on assets hidden by the founder of the now-collapsed dairy company Parmalat. There are an estimated 19 masterpieces hidden away in attics and basements, with a value totaling nearly $150 million. It seems Calisto Tanzi hid the masterpieces in attics and basements in an attempt to conceal them from his bankruptcy. Among the found works is a ballerina portrait by Degas, two Van Goghs, a Cezanne, and a Picasso.

Bankruptcy fraud aside, what a shame to hide away these artworks! The loot was discovered through a wire-tapping operation. Officials believe that at least one the paintings was about to be sold. The negotiation of that sale overheard, and a subsequent raid of three apartments uncovered the tip of this art-cache iceberg.

Calisto Tanzi was convicted by a Milan court, last year, of rigging the market and is now on trial for alleged fraudulent bankruptcy. For years, it has been rumored that he has a stashed treasure trove of fine artworks, a rumor that Tanzi repeatedly denied.

From the AP: “Parmalat, the dairy conglomerate known for its long shelf-life milk grew from a small dairy distributor in Parma, into a diversified, multinational food company by 1990, but collapsed in 2003 under euro14 billion in debt — eight times what it had previously acknowledged — in what remains Europe’s largest corporate bankruptcy. Many small investors who lost their life savings were among some 40,000 defrauded bondholders.”

Kieron Williamson‘s artworks are filled with light, perspective and dimension. The palette is pleasing and the composition is well designed.  Watercolors are never easy to master, and yet this artist has defined his own look at a tender (and almost unbelievable) age: six. I don’t know about you, but at age six I was freely experimenting with finger paints and glitter, not mastering watercolor.

These paintings of harbor scenes, rural vistas, animal portraits and landmarks, have shadow and reflections that demonstrate an ability well beyond his young age. This summer, he is preparing for hist first exhibition near his home in Norfolk, England. I’m sure he’ll have to look for a larger gallery, with all of the fuss and publicity that he is receiving.

His mother, Michelle, said, ‘Until last year he didn’t draw anything and in fact we had to draw dinosaurs for him to color in. The turning point was when we took our first family holiday to Devon and Cornwall last May and he liked the boats and scenery. He asked for some plain paper and started drawing his own stuff. At the time, they were like the drawings of most five-year-olds, but he really took off after going to some art classes. We often think about why Kieron has chosen art in this way and I think it’s because we live in a top-floor flat and we have no garden or outside space, so perhaps he’s had to create his own scenery.”

The young artist agrees with his “Mum,” saying, “‘I like painting because it’s fun and inspiring. It makes me think of places I can’t see. I’m going to send one of my pictures to Prince Charles. I’ve already sent one to the Queen but I haven’t had a reply yet. ”

It’s unusual for such a young artist to have such a great deal of definition. His ability to paint in a stylistic way is remarkable, as most children his age would be less precise and patient, splashing paint all over the paper.  His talent was recognized by a family friend, artist Carol Ann Pennington, who offered to give him lessons at age five and from there his talent has grown.

Another favorite (and controversial) young artist is Marla Olmstead, of Bridgehampton, New York. Her paintings are gaining huge popularity amongst the public and are currently on display in several museums. She’s had many sell-out shows in the New York area. But she’s only a child! Olmstead quickly rose to fame at the age of 4.  Soon after her first art show was hung, a “60 Minutes” episode showed the public that the authenticity of her work was under doubt.  Some of that controversy has since disappeared since, and she is back in demand with art collectors, selling original paintings for tens of thousands of dollars. This young girl is sweet and innocent, and painfully shy, and is said to be the quietest one in class. And she’s clearly adorable.

But here’s the controversy: Marla paints alone, and sometimes under the supervision of her Dad; and, her painting process has only been documented a few times. The 2007 documentary “My Kid Could Paint that” highlights this discussion: did Marla complete the paintings by herself or did she do so with her parents’ assistance and/or direction? And what does this say about the nature of contemporary art and abstract expressionism? What about the value of works by accomplished artists, as opposed to art world newbies?How do we decipher between the two if they truly look alike?

I think that there will always be more value in works by artists who have truly studied and lived their art. What can a child have to “say” about their world, their experiences, their desires? Not much, yet. Child artists like Marla are fabulous for PR and marketing schemes, but will the value of a $300,000 work of art by a four year old last? Is it only as valuable as any of the other “ploys” in painting such as painting with wine, applying crystals and diamonds to art to make the surface “sparkle,” or even those “paintings of light” by a certain mass-marketing-genius?  Everyone has to have a place from which to start, and Marla certainly has a giant leap ahead of most!

It looks like we now have a “Madoff” of the art world. It was discovered this year that tennis champion John McEnroe was duped, along with Bank of America, investment firms, art owners and collectors in a complex $93 million art investment scam in New York. McEnroe reportedly lost $2 million after investing a half-share in two paintings: Arshile Gorky’s “Pirate I” and “Pirate II.”

Art dealer Lawrence Salander, 59, was arrested at his New York home, and he and his gallery were charged with more than 100 counts, including grand larceny and securities fraud, Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau told a news conference. He was initially arrested in March, but new charges were brought against him this July.

Salander in better times, 2007 [photo by Hans Gissiner]

Salander-O’Reilly Gallery had been one of New York City’s largest private galleries and was housed in an ornate, historic mansion on East 71st Street. Salander was forced to shutter it in 2007 amid a rash of lawsuits from consigners who said they had never been paid. He filed for bankruptcy a month later. The gallery’s director, Leigh Morse, has also been charged with numerous counts. Since Salander-O’Reilly’s closure she has opened up her own gallery and Salander himself was working at another gallery upstate. Morse is accused of grand larceny and scheming to defraud investors and artists, including the estate of Robert De Niro Sr., an Abstract Expressionist painter and the actor’s father.

The New York Times says that Robert M. Morgenthau, the Manhattan district attorney, has portrayed Mr. Salander as a charlatan in the art world, closing on fictitious sales — sometimes of works he did not own — and then using the money to pay off his sizable debt. So far, authorities have identified 26 victims of Salander’s scheme. It lasted from 1994 to 2007, and included luring investors who paid cash in exchange for shares of ownership of works of art. “He sold artwork not owned by him and kept the money and lured investment money in fraudulent investment opportunities,” Morgenthau said.  Salander used the money to fund “an extravagant lifestyle” of lavish parties and private jets, he said. At times, Morgenthau said, Salander inflated the value of paintings to score greater investments that were not returned to investors.

McEnroe was alerted to the scheme when he learned an art collector owned the same painting he had, authorities said. And the scam reaches far beyond the tennis court amd to a reported 28 victims. Other estates Salander looked after included paintings of the late father of actor Robert De Niro. Robert De Niro has organized exhibitions of his father’s works around the world and has said he keeps many of his works at home. Renaissance Art Investors, a company focused on investment in old master paintings, lost $45 million in the scheme, authorities said. Earl Davis, the son of American abstract painter Stuart Davis, lost $6.7 million, authorities said, while Bank of America lost $2 million after Salander lied about paintings he owned to secure a loan. Hester Diamond, the widow of late renowned New York art dealer Harold Diamond and mother of Beastie Boys’ “Mike D”, lost $6 million.

Salander under arrest, 2009 [courtesy New York Magazine]

For more information about the rise and fall of Salander, this is a great article: New York Magazine.

Lance Armstrong has often partnered with Trek Bikes. Since 2002, Armstrong has more or less ridden their “Project One” painted bikes. And as soon as he announced that he was returning to professional cycling, Trek’s creative group started working on custom bikes for the celebrated racer.  As always, it was important for Armstrong’s  LIVESTRONG Global Cancer Campaign to be linked to his bikes. And what about a way to raise funds for cancer research at the same time? The result is contemporary artists working with Trek in an effort to raise awareness and generate funds to benefit LIVESTRONG. Creativity and sport unite!

Trek provided each selected artist with consultation to describe fabrication possibilities based on Trek’s custom-formulated coatings. These are top artists who very rarely take instruction or advice about their work. The artists were briefed on bike paint and airbrush techniques as well as masking and decal options in order to pick the methods they would use for their design. Each Bicycle was uniquely handled per the artist’s instruction. Some frames were decorated with paint alone, while others required extensive decal work.  Lance Armstrong may make at least $4 million for charity by selling the bikes he competed with at the Tour de France.

The Hirst racing bicycle may fetch more than $1 million alone when it is sold with five others at Sotheby’s New York this October. All six of the “art” bikes made by Trek Bicycle Corp. will be auctioned by Sotheby’s at the Park Avenue Armory, New York, on Oct. 2nd, the anniversary of Armstrong’s cancer diagnosis. All the proceeds of the sale will benefit LIVESTRONG.

Mixed media stencil collage on canvas (newsprint, paper, spray paint, and acrylic paint), 112cm x 112cm.

© Shepard Fairey, Courtesy Deitch Projects, NYC.

In addition, Lance Armstrong and Nike took the collaboration one step further, with the launch of STAGES, a global art exhibition which will raise funds to fight cancer. With STAGES, over twenty world-renowned artists have donated their time and creativity. Their mission was to express the LIVESTRONG message through their artworks. This show will unite the art world, philanthropy, and sport. The participating artists are Cai Guo-Qiang, Rosson Crow, Jules De Balincourt, Dzine, Shepard Fairey, Andreas Gursky, KAWS, Geoff McFetridge, Yoshitomo Nara, Catherine Opie, José Parlá, Raymond Pettibon, Lari Pittman, Richard Prince, Ed Ruscha, Tom Sachs, Kenny Scharf, Eric White, Christopher Wool, and Aaron Young. The exhibition opened at the Emmanuel Perrotin gallery in Paris last week and will be on view through August 8th. Here are some photos of the show.

On recent trip to Seattle, Washington, I came across a new, fantastic art business venture. Empty spaces and needy artists unite in “Art in Great Spaces” in downtown Everett, Washington. From now until September 30th, “Art in Great Spaces” will feature working artists in five vacant storefronts around this downtown suburb. Six different artists will be featured during each six-week session. From painting and encaustics, to sculpture, the public is invited to observe, interact and learn. I walked in on a print-maker, who eagerly showed me her new works, and let me help operate her press.

In St. Louis, the Regional Arts Commission has teamed up with a local mall to help fill vacant retail space with art studios, galleries, performance groups, classes, and more. The project, called “Art Space,” has brought an increase in visitors to the flailing mall, and has helped merchants stay in business, according to Jill McGuire, executive director of the Regional Arts Commission. A dance studio is now in the place of what was once a Gap clothing store. The performers use the dressing rooms to change into costumes, and the wooden floors are now used for tap and Irish dancing. More than 60 arts groups have signed contracts for the empty retail space so far. The rent is nominal, averaging $100 per month, plus utilities.

The US is not the only country to get in on this great idea. The United Kingdom is exploring new exhibition space ideas as well: where commercial enterprise has stalled and shops shut out, artists and galleries are now taking the initiative and moving in. This is a development the UK government announced its support for in April, unveiling a £3m grant scheme to allow people to breathe new life into vacant spaces in downtown areas.

Artists are coping and finding new ways to surmount the dismal economy. For a little inspiration, here is a slide show of working artists and their new perspectives on art in difficult financial times.

Gallery MAR just gave a loan to a Kiva entrepreneur! Anyone can participate, starting with just $25, and 100% of every dollar you have loaned will be used by your entrepreneur to build their business.

Kiva’s mission is to connect people through lending for the sake of alleviating poverty.

Kiva is the world’s first person-to-person micro-lending website, empowering individuals to lend directly to unique entrepreneurs around the globe.

Yaa Kaya is 50 years old. She is married and has given birth to six children, four sons and two daughters. All are currently in the senior high and the junior high schools. She lives with her husband and children in a rented apartment in a commercial town in the Western region called Dwenase, a suburb of Sefwi-Wiawso. She is a hardworking woman. Her husband is a farmer. Yaa own a ceramics factory. She produces items such as earthenware, pots, etc. from clay. She has hired hands. Yaa supplies her wares to retailers and treks to other towns to sell on their market days. She has been in business for over 25 years now and wants a loan to buy clay and other working materials to expand her business. She is hoping to improve upon her standard of living and give her children a good education.

What are you doing to give back to artists all over the world?

An Atlanta-based “guerrilla artist” is facing charges for creating a hitch-hiking “monster” out of orange traffic barrels, which are presumed to be stolen. Want to give this guy a ride?

The soft-spoken and goatee’d artist, Joe Carnevale, has fans. Thousands of them. And they are putting pressure on a district attorney in Raleigh, N.C. to drop larceny charges. More than 3,000 people from as far away as Korea and Brazil have joined a Facebook group calling for his charges to be thrown out. His supporters are sympathetic, and together help form a type of cultural resistance to authority.

“It’s easy to see why it would be very hard to come down emotionally on the side of police on this one,” says Robert Thompson, a pop culture expert at Syracuse University, in New York. “This wasn’t a ‘get us out of Iraq monster,’ it’s a hitchhiking monster, and it played on the irritation that most people feel when they see traffic barrels, which usually mean a traffic jam. One of the dangers of being a guerrilla artist is that you might get arrested. One of the dangers of being a prosecutor is that you occasionally have to prosecute people who are popular.”

The president of Hamlett Associates, owner of the barrels, has urged the city not to prosecute. The cost of the barrels ($385) has been redeemed by the fact that Hamlett Associates may now be the only such company to be known around the world. The head of the company even wants to use the barrel sculpture for promotion, saying, “I love the barrel monster. Guerrilla sculpture is rather rare in street art and is generally stolen and hoarded as fast as it’s produced. Played right, the city could have a new souvenir that sells like hotcakes on the Internet, but I’m sure they won’t be that smart.”

Probably the most famous guerrilla artist, known at Banksy, is anonymous in this “age of celebrity.” He makes artwork with social commentary, looking for human interaction, while other artists happily cash in. Known for his graffiti work, artist Banksy has intrigued audiences with his art and identity since he began stenciling (and vandalizing) public property in the early ’90s. (No official image of the guy even exists, but there are a few theories as to his identity.) His work has been produced on walls in London, Brighton, Bristol and even on the West Bank barrier separating the Israelis and Palestinians. His works have sold for hundreds of thousands of dollars and he has dozens of celebrity collectors including Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie and Christina Aguilera.

Known for installing his own work surreptitiously in museums, Banksy recently helped mount a surprise exhibit in his hometown– Banksy vs. Bristol Museum. The exhibit is supposed to be Banksy’s way of thanking Bristol for giving his street art its first canvas.

Another favorite (and famous) guerrilla artist has seen more copyright infringement that almost any other artist! Shepard Fairey, a street artist famous for his red, white, and blue “Hope” posters of President Barack Obama, was arrested and accused of tagging property with graffiti this last January. He was arrested on his way to the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston for the opening of his first solo exhibition, “Supply and Demand.”

According to the museum, he had spent the previous two weeks in the city installing the exhibition and creating outdoor art. Those works included a 6 meter by 15 meter banner on the side of city hall. Fairey had been arrested numerous times for painting on buildings and other private property without permission. Such is the life of a graffitti artist.

His famed image of Obama has been sold on millions of stickers, T-shirts, and posters, and was unveiled at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington before Obama’s inauguration this last January. There are 373,000 Google hits for the words “Fairey Obama”.

According to the Associated Press, the image is the subject of a copyright dispute between them and Fairey. The artist argues that his use of the AP photo is protected by “fair use”, which allows exceptions to copyright laws based on (among other factors) how much of the original is used, what the new work is used for, and how the original is affected by the new work.

Pablo Picasso

Sad news comes from the Picasso Museum in central Paris. One of Pablo Picasso’s sketchbooks worth several million euros was stolen this week. The theft occurred overnight, but there was no sign that the museum had been broken into. The sketchbook was valued at 7 to 10 million Euros ($9.7 million-$13.9 million US).

This small book (approximately 6″ x 9″) contained 33 drawings by Picasso, mostly done in crayon and dating from 1917 to 1924. The stolen sketchbook is covered in shiny, red leather and bears the word “Album” in gold on the front, the Culture Ministry statement said.

It sounds like this type of piece would be quite difficult to sell, and so it’s surmised that this was a theft commissioned by an unscrupulous collector. Read more about the theft here.

This isn’t the only recent Picasso theft: two paintings by Picasso estimated to be worth a total of about $66 million were stolen from the Left Bank, Paris home of his granddaughter Diana Widmaier-Picasso in February 2007.

Creative flair and environmental ingenuity come together in the work of Joe Norman, Utah-based sculpture and furniture maker. His work is always unique and always refreshing. He recently shared with us his most recent completion.

The latest piece began its life as a collection of pallets and bomb fins. Norman has a talented eye– he sees artwork in the mundane and rejected “garbage” otherwise relegated to the dumpster. For this table, the only items that weren’t re-purposed were the paint and the bolts that hold the legs to the seat. Everything else was fully recycled!

Norman writes to the gallery, “I’m really enjoying combining found objects and modern aesthetics with a green sensibility — eventually I’d like to have all parts of the furniture recycled, including paints.” We look forward to seeing how Norman’s work will progress and what new ideas he will explore as he creates his beautiful eco-friendly pieces.

In addition, Norman is interetsed in commissison work. Have an idea or a piece of “scrap” that you would like to utilize in a new way? We’ll put you in touch and Norman can create the perfect piece for you and your eco-friendly lifestyle.