Auction Fever, Museums in the Crossfire

Show notes for today's episode of The Daily Art Download — your ten minute crash course in today's art world news. Who Won New York’s $2.1 Billion Auction Week? https://news.artnet.com/market/who-won-new-yorks-2-1-billion-auction-week-2775706 Bill to build Smithsonian women’s museum fails in US congress amid disputes over Trump and trans rights https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2026/05/22/smithsonian-american-womens-history-museum-vote-fails-congress Museums in England largely oppose proposal to charge admission for foreign tourists https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2026/05/22/museums-in-england-largely-oppose-proposal-to-charge-admission-for-foreign-tourists Giant glacier painting disappears from Argentina’s presidential palace after new law passes loosening protections for these icy regions https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2026/05/22/giant-glacier-painting-disappears-from-argentinas-presidential-palace-folllowing-new-law-on-mining-in-glacial-region Fifty years after Franco, Spain begins to give back art seized during the Civil War https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2026/05/22/fifty-years-after-franco-spain-begins-to-give-back-art-seized-during-the-civil-war Workers Push to Rename Wexner Center for the Arts Over Epstein Ties https://hyperallergic.com/workers-push-to-rename-wexner-center-for-the-arts-over-epstein-ties/ Jury Convicts Daniel Sikkema in Killing of New York Dealer Brent Sikkema https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/daniel-sikkema-guilty-brent-sikkema-murder-for-hire-trial-1234787084/ Commission of Fine Arts Approves Trump’s Controversial Triumphal Arch Celebrating ‘Greatness, Freedom, and Posterity’ https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/commission-of-fine-arts-approves-trump-controversial-triumphal-arch-1234786934/ How JR Transformed Paris’s Oldest Bridge Into a Massive Grotto https://news.artnet.com/art-world/jr-pont-neuf-bridge-paris-2775908 New York auctions, James McNeill Whistler at Tate Britain, Edvard Munch—podcast https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2026/05/22/new-york-auctions-james-mcneill-whistler-at-tate-britain-edvard-munchpodcast