Sotheby’s declares ‘Frans Hals’ painting a fake

Our daily round up of news from the art world

Sotheby’s says ‘Frans Hals’ painting is a fake | A painting of An Unknown Man sold by Sotheby’s in 2011 as the work of Frans Hals for a reported £8.5 million has been noticed as a fake (£), says the auction house. After tests, Sotheby’s concluded that the painting could not have been the work of the Dutch master. It has, the auction house says ‘rescinded the sale and reimbursed the client in full’. For more on this case, see here.

Tisch Asia alumni sue New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts | Three former students of Tisch Asia, New York University’s outpost in Singapore have filed a lawsuit against the university, reports Artforum. The campus, which opened in 2007 and closed in 2015, offered masters degrees as well as non-degree-awarding programmes, but no undergraduate degrees. The suit describes Tisch Asia as ‘an educational scam’ and describes the faculty as ‘sub-par’. For more, see here.

Portland Art Museum announces Rothko partnership | The Portland Art Museum has unveiled plans to build a new extension, to be completed in 2020/21, which will knit together its two existing buidlings. The ‘Rothko Pavilion’, as it will be known, will also be accompanied by a 20-year cycle of loans of major paintings by Rothko from the private collection of the Rothko family. ‘Portland played a formative role in my father’s youth, and we are eager to share these works with the public and give Rothko a more active role in the vibrant cultural life of this city,’ says Christopher Rothko, Mark Rothko’s son. For more details, see here.

Caruso St John wins 2016 RIBA Stirling Prize | The architects Caruso St John have been awarded this year’s Stirling Prize for Damien Hirst’s Newport Street Gallery in Vauxhall. Adam Caruso and Peter St John have designed a string of acclaimed art gallery projects, including the New Art Gallery Walsall, Nottingham Contemporary, and the Tate Britain revamp. It is somewhat surprising that this is their first win.