Vladimir Velickovic (1935-2019)

Humanity painted by Vladimir Velickovic is always running, as if to escape its destiny.

The Serbian-born painter vaulted every hurdle and garnered a world record, alongside two highly original 20th century figures, Dado and Antonio Segui.

Like master, like dog... unless it's the other way around. These sensitive paintings pay tribute to our faithful friend.

Putin’s declaration of martial law in four occupied regions of Ukraine reportedly included language which “legalizes” looting in the name of “preservation.” The law pertains to the annexed regions of Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Luhansk. Artifacts have already been seized from Ukrainian museums. (ArtNews)

The wealthy oligarch previously made 2 donations totaling $1.4M to the Centre Pompidou, the 1st of which funded acquisitions of Russian and Soviet works. A 3rd donation of $619,000 has been suspended. Potanin’s philanthropy has funded a number of Western institutions; he was even on the Guggenheim NY’s board. (Artnet)

In office from 2012 to 2020, the conservative minister did not have a good reputation in the art world, in particular, he was known for his bias including a nationalist and homophobic approach to culture. Chosen for his "professional qualities and extensive expertise," he now represents Moscow in talks with Kyiv.

On Friday, Vladimir Putin revealed plans to formally annex four occupied regions of Ukraine – Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia. The four regions house millions of Ukrainians and thousands of artworks and artifacts. So far, the conflict has already destroyed the Kuindzhi Art Museum. (ArtNews)

Though tensions continue to rise between Russia and the West, Vladimir Putin is still, surprisingly, the patron of an art exhibition that celebrates European unity and identity. Having visited Berlin, the exhibition is now on show in Moscow, with commentators describing it as a “diplomatic coup” for Putin. (NYT)

The replacement of Vladimir Medinsky with Olga Lyubimova has been criticised after unearthed LiveJournal blog posts published in 2008 indicated her disinterest in cultural activities; in the posts she claimed she "can’t stand going to exhibitions, museums, opera", and called visiting certain museums a waste of time.