How-To Geek: How to Create Synthetic AI Art With Midjourney. “AI-based image generators like DALL-E 2 have boomed in popularity. People love to enter bizarre prompts and see what gets spit out. Midjourney is one of the more advanced tools for this, and you can try it now.”
New York Times: Rescuing Art in Ukraine with Foam, Crates and Cries for Help. “Many cultural institutions were not prepared to protect their collections and buildings before the Russian invasion, so ad hoc groups of arts workers and leaders stepped in to fill the breach.”
BBC: Horniman Museum to return 72 artefacts to Nigeria. “A London museum says it has agreed to return to Nigeria artefacts looted in the 19th Century from the Kingdom of Benin. The Horniman Museum said ownership of 72 objects would be transferred to the Nigerian government. Items include 12 brass plaques, known as Benin Bronzes, a brass cockerel and a key to the king’s palace.”
The Islander: Art Museum of Kangaroo Island takes on historical art project. “Some of the first European art of Kangaroo Island is on its way back home – in digital form – thanks to an Art Museum of Kangaroo Island project. The project is called ‘Kangaroo Island Art: Explorers and Settlers’.”
South China Morning Post: A stunning 16th-century Chinese ‘magic mirror’ was found in a US art museum after being tucked away in storage. “Buddhist magic mirrors, also called ‘transparent’ and ‘light-penetrating’ mirrors, were first made in China during the Han dynasty (202 BCE–220 CE) and were also a notable artefact from Japan’s Edo period (1603–1867)….When the mirror is held to light from the correct angle, the bronze reflects the light to reveal the secret image, a buddha in the case of the Cincinnati Art Museum’s relic.”
Brunel University: National Gallery creates immersive experience for families on Roblox. “A magical augmented reality family trail at the National Gallery has been adapted into a free at-home experience for Roblox, the global online platform connecting millions of people through shared experiences. The Keeper Council is a family-friendly experience launching this summer where aspiring museum ‘keepers’ from all over the world learn about the Gallery’s paintings and curate their own art collections.”
International Council of Museums: ICOM is Preparing an Emergency ICOM Red List of Cultural Heritage at Risk for Ukraine. “ICOM, in close cooperation with its National Committee in Ukraine, is preparing an Emergency Red List of Cultural Objects at Risk for Ukraine to combat illicit traffic following the invasion.”
WIRED: AI Art Is Challenging the Boundaries of Curation. “The coming-of-age of AI art raises a number of interesting questions, some of which—such as whether AI art is really art, and if so, to what extent it is really made by AI—are not particularly original.”
New York Times: In Rome, a New Museum for Recovered Treasures Before They Return Home. “Last month, Italian officials inaugurated a new museum here whose title sets a lofty agenda: the Museo dell’Arte Salvata, or the Museum of Rescued Art. Rescued art is a broad term, it turns out, and the museum will showcase the myriad ways in which artworks can be salvaged — from thieves, from the rubble of earthquakes and other national disasters, from ancient shipwrecks in the Mediterranean or from the ravages of time by Italy’s expert restorers.”
BBC: Vincent Van Gogh: Hidden self-portrait discovered by X-ray. “A previously unknown self-portrait by Vincent Van Gogh has been discovered hidden on the back of another painting. Experts at the National Galleries of Scotland made the find when the canvas was X-rayed before an exhibition.”
University of Vienna: Online art viewing can improve well-being. “Viewing art while visiting galleries and museums can have powerful effects on an individual’s mood, stress and well-being. But does the same hold true for viewing art in digital space? A new study by psychologists led by MacKenzie Trupp, and Matthew Pelowski investigated whether engaging with art online also has this effect. Their conclusion: a short three-minute visit to an online art or cultural exhibition also shows significant positive effects on subjective well-being.”
Syracuse University: The Art of Science: Students Participate in University’s First-Ever Bio-Art Class. “Bio-art first came to the University in 2018, when Rossa and Hehnly established the Bio-Art Mixer in collaboration with the Canary Lab in VPA’s Department of Film and Media Arts. The open forum includes faculty, graduate students and members of the general public from different scientific and artistic backgrounds who share innovative research, foster ideas for new art and research projects, and view new science-inspired artworks from leading bio-artists from around the world.”
New York Times: The Robot Guerrilla Campaign to Recreate the Elgin Marbles. “Few cultural disputes inflame British passions more than the disposition of the Parthenon Marbles. Public debate about the statuary has raged since the early 1800s, when the sculptures and bas-reliefs, which date from 447 B.C. to 432 B.C., were stripped from the Parthenon and other Classical Greek temples on the Acropolis of Athens by agents of Thomas Bruce, a Scottish statesman and seventh earl of Elgin…. Roger Michel, executive director of the Institute of Digital Archaeology, believes the long-running dust-up can be resolved with the help of 3-D machining.”
The Verge: Google celebrates Army’s anniversary with BTS street view tour. “July 9th marks the ninth birthday of the BTS Army (specifically, the official announcement of its name). As Twitter celebrates the anniversary, Google has released a new street view experiment through its Arts & Culture platform in collaboration with the band. The BTS x Street Galleries exhibition brings viewers on a virtual tour of the group’s favorite artworks.”
BBC: ArtUK: Six strange statues from new photographic database. “The charity ArtUK has created a photographic database of 13,500 works of public art. Queen Victoria is the most honoured person with 175 works dedicated to her. The data also shows 77% of people depicted are male, 17% female and the rest a mixture of the sexes.”
