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Good Morning!
- Lisa Havilah, CEO of Sydney’s Powerhouse Parramatta, has stepped down ten weeks before its opening.
- A €4 million ($4.7 million) diamond necklace has been stolen from the Museum of Applied Arts in Vienna.
- A £71 million ($96.4 million) Rembrandt portrait has been placed under an export bar in the United Kingdom.
The Headlines
TROUBLE DOWN UNDER. The Art Newspaper reported that Lisa Havilah, the chief executive overseeing Sydney’s much-anticipated Powerhouse Parramatta museum, has stepped aside just ten weeks before its scheduled opening on November 7. Havilah, who has led the institution since 2018, will stand aside while the New South Wales government investigates governance and procurement matters. NSW government architect Abbie Galvin will serve as interim CEO, with former Sydney Opera House chief executive Louise Herron acting as strategic adviser. The $915 million museum, described as one of Australia’s most significant cultural projects in decades, is expected to open as planned. The upheaval comes amid wider scrutiny of the project’s costs and management, with NSW Treasury also taking a greater role in oversight.
ART HEISTS IN VOGUE. A €4 million ($4.7 million) diamond necklace has been stolen from the Museum of Applied Arts (MAK) in Vienna, highlighting growing concerns over security at cultural institutions, Bloomberg wrote. The theft comes as Europol warned that museum heists are becoming increasingly aggressive, with criminals targeting high-value cultural objects and using more violent tactics. Its recent report says organized crime groups are increasingly involved in cultural-property theft, with offenders using tools like explosives and firearms. The Vienna theft adds to a string of recent museum robberies internationally, raising fresh questions over whether institutions are adequately protecting valuable collections from increasingly sophisticated criminal networks.
The Digest
Stockholm’s Bonniers Konsthall has opened an exhibition exploring art as antifascist resistance ahead of Sweden’s election. [The Art Newspaper]
A £71 million ($96.4 million) Rembrandt portrait has been placed under an export bar, giving UK museums and galleries until December 26 to raise the funds needed to keep it in the country. [Gov.uk]
A long-unseen Mondrian is heading to Christie’s with a $40.8 million high estimate, as the artist’s market grinds back into gear after the summer vacations. [Artnet News]
A Kent-born artist who murdered his father is the subject of a new Royal Academy exhibition, which seeks to look beyond the crime and reassess his extraordinary artistic legacy. [Kent Online]
The Kicker
LIVE LONG AND PROSPER. London’s Science Museum is preparing a world-record attempt to mark the 60th anniversary of Star Trek, Get Your Comic On reported. During its free Star Trek Lates event on September 8, visitors will attempt to set the Guinness World Records title for the most people performing a Vulcan salute simultaneously. The event will form part of global celebrations marking six decades since the franchise first appeared on US television. Visitors can also take part in talks, performances, and science-themed activities, while exploring the museum’s Star Trek Warp Trail. The exhibition features screen-used costumes and props, including uniforms worn by Patrick Stewart, Simon Pegg, and Sonequa Martin-Green.
