Sekhemka Export Licence Deferred

Our daily round-up of news from the art world

UK Defers Sekhemka Statue Export Licence | The UK Culture Minstry has deferred a decision on whether to grant an export licence for an ancient Egyptian statue sold at Christie’s last year to 2016 in an effort to keep the artefact on British soil. The statue, which was sold to an overseas private collector by Northampton Borough Council, has been the cause of much controversy – not least for the fact that the sale saw the Northampton Museums Service stripped of its Arts Council Accreditation and barred from the Museums Association for breaching its code of ethics. Read more of our coverage here.

Tuymans Settles in Copyright Infringement Case | Earlier this year Luc Tuymans vowed that he would never surrender, but the artist has now reached an out-of court settlement in his copyright infringement case. The problems began when Tuymans used a news photograph by Katrijn Van Giel as the basis for his 2011 painting A Belgian Politician, and the photographer took issue with the unauthorised use of her work. The case poses major questions about the nature of appropriated imagery.

Poly Auction Withdraws Work After Authenticity Dispute | In one of the week’s stranger stories, The Art Newspaper reports that China’s Poly Auction has been forced to withdraw a painting from its Autumn sale after Geng Jianyi, the artist to whom it was attributed, denied authorship. It seems China’s murky art-market records can make such unfortunate misattributions all too possible.

RA Names Maurice Davies as Head of Collections | London’s Royal Academy has appointed Maurice Davies – formerly a partner at the Museum Consultancy – as its new head of collections, following the retirement of Nick Savage. Davies will be tasked with developing new spaces to display the 46,000 objects held in the Academy’s library, archive and historic collection, and will start in the new role on Monday.

New Contemporary Art Museum for Beirut | In a rare piece of positive news from Lebanon, The Association for the Promotion and Exhibition of the Arts has announced an architectural competition to design a new modern and contemporary arts museum in Beirut. The winning design will be chosen by a jury chaired by Peter Palumbo, and will be announced in the Autumn of 2016.

Dia Appoints New Chief Curator | The Dia Art Foundation has named James Meyer, currently Associate Curator at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, as its new Deputy Director and Chief Curator. Meyer’s appointment is not the first time the Dia has been in the news this week. On Tuesday, Director Jessica Morgan confirmed that Dia had abandoned plans to open a new space in order to focus on improving its existing facilities.