Who, exactly, is the Antinous to our art-world Odysseus? A fair question. As Paddy Johnson argues in Art Problems today, the toxicity that can run through circles of artists, dealers, and collectors is far less straightforward than the betrayal at the center of Homer’s epic, no matter what Matt Damon may suggest. Her latest column offers guidance for moving through an industry that “continuously hands us chances to trade meaning for advantage.”
Elsewhere, Julia Curl looks at an exhibition centered on German-Jewish philosopher Walter Benjamin, whose landmark essay on art and mass replication has gained new urgency in the era of AI. In the same historical period, French-Jewish artists Claude Cahun and Marcel Moore were challenging the norms of their time, from gender expectations to political indifference. Eileen G’Sell examines a show exploring the pair’s radical collage and photography, including the “paper bullets” they used in a campaign of information warfare against the Nazi party.
Also included are more reviews and news, among them reporting on the 17th-century Japanese castle damaged in yesterday’s devastating earthquake and the financial turmoil that has pushed art publisher Steidl toward bankruptcy.
— Lakshmi Rivera Amin, associate editor
