Miguel Falomir put forward as new Prado director

Our daily round-up of news from the art world

Committee selects Miguel Falomir as new Prado director | The Museo Nacional del Prado in Madrid has proposed current deputy director and Italian Renaissance specialist Miguel Falomir to replace outgoing director Miguel Zugaza, who leaves the post after 15 years. According to the Art Newspaper, the Prado’s selection committee yesterday voted unanimously to appoint Falomir, who has served the museum for two decades and was apparently Zugaza’s favourite shortlisted candidate. The museum’s board of trustees must now approve the decision before it is formalised by Spain’s Council of Ministers.

Münster Sculpture Projects artists announced | The line-up of artists participating in Münster’s acclaimed sculpture festival, which takes place once a decade, has been released. Thirty-five artists and artist groups representing 19 different countries will be taking part in the fifth edition of Münster Sculpture Projects, which runs for 100 days from June to October 2017. According to a statement released by the project’s organisers, its ‘realisation at generous ten-year intervals makes the exhibition not only a special event, but also a “long-term study” between the poles of art and the public sphere.’ From the UK, artists Jeremy Deller, Michael Dean and Cerith Wyn Evans are included in the list, available in full here.

$12 million gift for Denver Art Museum | The Denver Art Museum has received a gift of $12 million from Colorado philanthropists Anna and John J. Sie, to go towards an ambitious $150 million ‘revitalization’ project to renovate its North Building. The project was announced in December 2016 following a landmark $25 million donation – the biggest financial gift in the museum’s history. The latest donation will be used to build a welcome centre, which is to be named after the Sies.

LA nonprofit closes due to targeting by anti-gentrification activists | PSSST gallery, a nonprofit in LA’s Boyle Heights, has announced that it will close following ‘persistent targeting, which was often highly personal in nature’ by anti-gentrification activists. According to the LA Times, the Boyle Heights neighbourhood in downtown LA has become a ‘battleground over gentrification’ due to the work of activist groups such as the Boyle Heights Alliance Against Artwashing and Displacement (BHAAAD) and Defend Boyle Heights, who have released a joint statement proclaiming PSSST’s closure a ‘victory’ for their cause.