Isis Publishes New Images of Palmyra Destruction

Our daily round-up of news from the art world

Isis Releases Images of Temple Destruction in Palmyra | Isis has published a series of low-quality photographs that purport to show the extent of damage to the Temple of Bel in the ancient city of Palmyra. The images, which were released by the terror group’s propaganda organ Dabiq, show militants lowering what appear to be explosives into place around the structure, as well as grim scenes of the aftermath of their detonation. The publication of the images follows lesser-reported suggestions that Isis has destroyed further tombs in the World Heritage Site.

Anish Kapoor Sued Over Racist Graffiti Left on Sculpture | Anish Kapoor has announced that a politician in Versailles, where his sculpture Dirty Corner was vandalised at the weekend, is taking him to court for allowing anti-semitic messages to be left unscrubbed on his work as a ‘memory’ of the ‘painful history’ of racism in France. The plaintiff, Fabien Bouglé, has launched his objection on the grounds that the graffiti is an incitement to racial hatred.

Iranian Cultural ‘Embassy’ to Open in Jerusalem | A group of Israeli artists and curators known as the Hamabul Collective are to open a space in Jerusalem dedicated to Iranian art and culture, describing it as a makeshift embassy, reports the Art Newspaper. Israel and Iran broke off diplomatic relations following the latter nation’s 1979 revolution. Whether this well-intentioned effort will have any real effect on this status quo remains to be seen.

Tate Modern Adopts Plans for Solar Energy | London’s Tate Modern gallery is to install solar panels on its roof in a bid to make the museum more sustainable in its energy use. The panels are to be set up over the next few weeks, and it is hoped that they will begin generating electricity before the end of the month.

Opposition to Paris ‘Tour Triangle’ Gathers Pace | The preservation collective Paris SOS has launched an equitable remedy to challenge the city council’s approval of plans for a new skyscraper designed by architects Herzog & De Meuron. The 180m tower, dubbed the ‘Tour Triangle’ due to its shape, would be the first such structure to be built in central Paris since the 1970s. Unsurprisingly, the plans have proved far from popular with conservation groups.

Japan Announces Winners of the 2015 Praemium Imperiale | The Japan Art Association has today announced the recipients of this year’s Praemium Imperiale Awards. The prize for painting went to Tadanori Yokoo, while the sculpture award was won by Wolfgang Laib.

Thomas Bompard Returns to Sotheby’s | Modern art specialist Thomas Bompard has left Gradiva, the gallery he founded last year on Paris’s Quai Voltaire, to return to Sotheby’s. Prior to opening Gradiva, Bompard was director of Impressionist and Modern Art at Sotheby’s France. Read our interview with him here.