Art Outlook: 18 September

What would Scottish independence mean for the arts?

Scottish residents voted today to decide the fate of the Union. We ask what would independence mean for the country’s galleries and museums? And Jonathan Jones wonders; are we on the brink of a cultural identity crisis?

Controversy over the Metropolitan Museum’s new plaza

Would you spend $65 million on some new paving? Last week the Met opened its revamped plaza to the public, some of whom promptly began to protest against David H Koch, the project’s controversial backer.

Wallace Collection reopens its Great Gallery

The Wallace Collection is full of great paintings, on all scales, but its most magnificent are reserved for the Great Gallery. It reopens tomorrow after a two-year renovation project which has transformed it into what Richard Dorment deems ‘the single most splendid gallery in London.’

Art Basel launches a crowd-funding initiative

Art Basel attracts some of the world’s wealthiest people to its fairs, and its website. Now it hopes to channel some of that money into a series of ‘outstanding non-commercial art projects’. It’s paired up with Kickstarter to promote specially selected projects on its website.

Soledad Lorenzo promises collection to Madrid’s Reina Sofía museum

One of Spain’s leading gallerists has bequeathed a collection of 385 artworks to the Reina Sofía museum. The museum will receive the works on long-term loan for the next five years.

Peter Bazalgette on cultural funding and selfie control

The chairman of the Arts Council has been vocal this week: Bazalgette called on businesses to fund British cultural projects in London’s free newspaper City A.M., and pondered the problem of photography in museums with James O’Brien on LBC radio: is it time to introduce a No-Selfie Hour in museums and galleries?

Lead image: used under Creative Commons licence (CC BY-SA 2.0; original image cropped)