Pakistan: The National Art Gallery has opened in Islamabad after 25 years in development. The gallery, which cost $9m (£4.4m) to build, displays mostly works from the Pakistan National Council of Arts Collection.
At the opening, president Pervez Musharraf appealed to artists to help "project a soft, peaceful and tolerant image of Pakistan, to counter negative propaganda". The Ministry of Culture has pledged not to censure any work.
Germany: The Old Masters Picture Gallery in Dresden has opened a virtual version of itself in Second Life. The first clone of a real-world museum replicates the full 37,700 sq ft of gallery space and the grounds outside. The project, which is run by Dresden University of Technology, can be tested on www.dresdengallery.com
Russia: The Hermitage is introducing a $6m (£2.9m) biometric security system for new storage buildings, which scans employees' eyes and skulls before granting access. The initiative is in response to the theft of 226 objects from stores in the Winter Palace over the past decade.
France/China: Plans to open an outpost of the Pompidou Centre in Shanghai by 2010 have stalled due to diverging views between the French and Chinese about funding and governance. While the
Pompidou is seeking a profitable venture, the Chinese authorities are said to expect the capital costs to be borne by the French.
A way out of the impasse would be to find a private Chinese partner to operate the outpost as a franchise. Meanwhile, the Pompidou is said to be considering alternative proposals in Hong Kong and Singapore.
US: A Centre for Curatorial Leadership has been established in partnership with Columbia University Business School to train curators in management and the other skills needed to become museum directors. The centre will offer an all-expenses-paid, six-month programme of study to the first 10 fellows.
Russia: Oligarch Alisher Usmanov stepped in at the 11th hour to buy the entire collection of late musician Mstislav Rostropovich, which was due to be auctioned in London. He paid a sum that is believed to have exceeded £25m. The works are expected to enter a museum collection in Russia.
US: A retrospective of the Japanese artist Takashi Murakami at the Museum of Contemporary Art Los Angeles includes a Louis Vuitton boutique offering limited-edition handbags - priced from $575 to $665 (£280 to £325) - and leather goods featuring designs of the artist.
The shop has been described as "in keeping with the artist's commitment to breaking down boundaries between high and low art". The museum will not receive a rental fee nor a commission from boutique sales.
Compiled by Magnus von Wistinghausen
Seen in: artsjournal.com; the Art Newspaper; BBC Online; New York Times; and Wired
At the opening, president Pervez Musharraf appealed to artists to help "project a soft, peaceful and tolerant image of Pakistan, to counter negative propaganda". The Ministry of Culture has pledged not to censure any work.
Germany: The Old Masters Picture Gallery in Dresden has opened a virtual version of itself in Second Life. The first clone of a real-world museum replicates the full 37,700 sq ft of gallery space and the grounds outside. The project, which is run by Dresden University of Technology, can be tested on www.dresdengallery.com
Russia: The Hermitage is introducing a $6m (£2.9m) biometric security system for new storage buildings, which scans employees' eyes and skulls before granting access. The initiative is in response to the theft of 226 objects from stores in the Winter Palace over the past decade.
France/China: Plans to open an outpost of the Pompidou Centre in Shanghai by 2010 have stalled due to diverging views between the French and Chinese about funding and governance. While the
Pompidou is seeking a profitable venture, the Chinese authorities are said to expect the capital costs to be borne by the French.
A way out of the impasse would be to find a private Chinese partner to operate the outpost as a franchise. Meanwhile, the Pompidou is said to be considering alternative proposals in Hong Kong and Singapore.
US: A Centre for Curatorial Leadership has been established in partnership with Columbia University Business School to train curators in management and the other skills needed to become museum directors. The centre will offer an all-expenses-paid, six-month programme of study to the first 10 fellows.
Russia: Oligarch Alisher Usmanov stepped in at the 11th hour to buy the entire collection of late musician Mstislav Rostropovich, which was due to be auctioned in London. He paid a sum that is believed to have exceeded £25m. The works are expected to enter a museum collection in Russia.
US: A retrospective of the Japanese artist Takashi Murakami at the Museum of Contemporary Art Los Angeles includes a Louis Vuitton boutique offering limited-edition handbags - priced from $575 to $665 (£280 to £325) - and leather goods featuring designs of the artist.
The shop has been described as "in keeping with the artist's commitment to breaking down boundaries between high and low art". The museum will not receive a rental fee nor a commission from boutique sales.
Compiled by Magnus von Wistinghausen
Seen in: artsjournal.com; the Art Newspaper; BBC Online; New York Times; and Wired
