Volume 16, Number 3, Sept 1994, p.30

AYMHM: Articles You May Have Missed

"Good-bye, Taki 183" in _Scientific American_, Vol. 270, No., pp.100-101.

Dow Chemical has come up with a new fluorocarbon formulation that has abhesive (as opposed to adhesive) properties which "may be better than Teflon". The material can be applied as a coating (mostly water based) which "prevents a surface from being wetted or covered by common solvents used in paint, dyes or inks".

"Precious Metal Objects of the Middle Sican" by Izumi Shimada and Jo Ann Griffin in _Scientific American_, April 1994, Vol. 270, No.4, pp.82-89.

Same article as in _National Geographic_, April 1994 (WAAC, May 1994, Vol.16, No.2, p.24).

"The Ministry and the Met: You Done It" in _Nation_ , March 1994, Vol. 93, No. 3, pp. 38,40.

A major loan exhibition entitled " The Art of Medieval Spain, 500-1200 A.D." which was scheduled to open at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in November has now been postponed until at least 1995. Blame is being passed back and forth between the Met and Spain's Ministry of Culture regarding who is responsible for the fact that loan objects had still not arrived two weeks before the scheduled opening date.

"Helms Amendment Killed" _Los Angeles Times_, July 26, 1994

A controversial amendment by Sen. Jesse Helms was effectively killed Monday when the Senate voted 49-42 to table a Helms' amendment that would have forbidden NEA funds for any project or artwork depicting human body mutilation, invasive body procedures or bloodletting. The vote, which Helms proposed in response to a controversial performance by artist Ron Athey at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, took place after Sen. Christopher J. Dodd argued that the amendment would effectively forbid portrayals of the Crucifixition of Christ. ct

"Paint by Numbers: the hype and hypocrisy of the art market" by Michael Lewis, in _The New Republic_, April 24, 1994.

A comparative review of three books about the evolution and current state of the art market written by a senior editor of TNR who once worked for a year as a stockboy for Wildenstein & Co. Among the many interesting bits: "the enormously high prices that works of art now bring...bear absolutely no relation to the quality of the object, but then prices rarely do" and "get this into your head, no one really knows anything about it. There's only one indication for telling the value of paintings, and that is the sale room." Quotes by Hilton Kramer and Auguste Renoir, respectively. ct

"The Resurrection of 'Madonna and, Child"' by William Wilson in the _Los Angeles Times_, June 10, 1994, p.F18.

The Huntington Gallery's "Madonna and Child", by Rogier van der Weyden has undergone conservation treatment while on loan to the J. Paul Getty Museum. Conservator Mark Leonard undertook the project as part of a Getty program to "assist other museums in the restoration of important paintings". The conservation work revealed interesting information regarding the artist's working methods.

"Real and Unreal - The Strange Life of de Chirico's Art" by Judd Tully, in _ARTnews_, Summer 1994, Vol. 93, No.6, pp.l54-l59.

"Throughout his career, Giorgio de Chirico made replicas of his own paintings, put false dates on others and was the victim of forgeries - some of which have entered prominent museums and private collections". The article gives some background information on the duplication and backdating of some paintings as well as a discussion on forgeries and the authentication of the artist' s work by the de Chirico Foundation.

"Those Fabulous Fakes: A Look at Forgery in the Field of Fine Art" by Frederick W. Waterman, in _Hemispheres_ (American Airlines in flight mag), July 1994, pages 74-80.

The author discusses some of the famous forgeries of paintings, and detection through scientific analysis. He also provides a list of suggestions indicating how to forge and sell an Old Master painting. mph

"Campaign to Save Historic Museum" by Peter Tira in _San Francisco Independent_, July 26, 1994, Vol.39, No.89, pp.l,13.

A campaign has begun to try to raise funds to keep the Treasure Island Museum open. The collection, which includes historic objects which relate to the San Francisco Area is due to be shipped to the East Coast upon closure of the museum in October.