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- The Villa Domínguez Jewish Museum in Argentina is keeping its doors open amid clashes with the local government.
- An abstract Hilma af Klint painting, coming to auction for the first time in more than three decades, could potentially break a record for the Swedish artist.
- A final review of President Donald Trump’s proposed Triumphal Arch by the National Capital Planning Commission is scheduled for November 5.
The Headlines
STAYING OPEN. The Villa Domínguez Jewish Museum, in a rural Argentine town in the Entre Ríos Province located 225 miles north of Buenos Aires, has said it’s keeping its doors open despite water damage affecting walls, documents, and historical objects. “We are resolving the situation with an agreement in which the building belongs to the municipality, while the Jewish community is in charge of safeguarding the objects. The museum is still operating,” community head Marina Garber told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. As of late, the museum has garnered much media attention following the resignation of Osvaldo Quiroga in January 2025, the local historian who oversaw the museum for nearly four decades. Troubles at the museum erupted following the government’s lack of attention to the site, while other sources say that some government officials were jealous of Quiroga’s media attention. Despite Villa Domínguez’s nine remaining Jews, the museum remains an important part of the town, tracing the history of Argentinian Jewish ranchers, farmers and the cowboys known as gauchos. Pablo Soskin, the representative in Entre Ríos for the Argentine Jewish political umbrella organization DAIA, told JTA that they maintain a close relationship with the local government, which has “expressed its commitment to making the museum and the Jewish circuit part of the province’s tourist attractions for locals and foreigners.”
NEW RECORD FOR THE SWEDE? Stockholm auction house Bukowskis is auctioning off Hilma af Klint’s abstract painting Ser III No on November 19 with an estimate of $600,000 to $800,000, which could break an auction record for the artist, reported The Art Newspaper. The painting was acquired by a private collector in 1995 after the Hilma af Klint Foundation deaccessioned the artwork. In March, the artist’s Vid ankdammen sold for $54,000 at Christie’s and another work, The Power of the Spleen, sold for $165,825 at Stockholm’s Auktionsverk in 2019. Only two abstract paintings from the artist have been sold at auction in more than three decades, according to Louise Wrede, the head of Bukowskis art department. The artist’s foundation is tightly controlled by her nephew and heir, Erik af Klint.
The Digest
Frieze Abu Dhabi’s official fair partner Aldar, the real-estate development company, has announced its new “creative neighborhood” called Noma. [Artforum]
The Zayed National Museum’s first temporary exhibition, “Tracks Through Time: The Camel in Society, Trade and Art,” will open at the Abu Dhabi museum in December coinciding with the museum’s first anniversary. [The National]
The works of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol, and Keith Haring are being reunited in “Warhol, Basquiat and Haring. Une amitié artistique” at the Opera Gallery in Paris. [Ocula]
New research shows that China’s Terracotta Army was also built by women and children, not just men. [Archaeology News]
Hélia Paukner has been named director of the Lyon Biennale and the Museum of Contemporary Art, taking over from Isabelle Bertolotti. [Le Monde]
An Iranian documentary dives into art and archiving during political censorship. [Hyperallergic]
Restitution groups are urging Norway to intervene in the sale of fragments of a Torah looted during the Holocaust that is to be sold at a Norwegian auction. [Haaretz]
The British Museum has received an anonymous $40 million donation toward its redevelopment project. [The Art Newspaper]
The Kicker
TRUMP’S ETERNAL FLAME. A final commission meeting will take place on November 5 to present President Donald Trump’s proposed Triumphal Arch to the National Capital Planning Commission, reported ABC News. The Department of the Interior has submitted updated traffic and lighting plans for review, as well as other ideas such as a golden-winged statue that resembles the Statue of Liberty on top of the arch with an “eternal flame” in hand that will be prominent at night.