Marina Abramović’s Balkan Erotic Epic will make its U.S. debut at the Park Ave. Armory.
The Park Avenue Armory will host the U.S. debut of Marina Abramović’s Balkan Erotic Epic in 2026, giving the artist room to expand the work into a large-scale performance. Abramović plans to mix song, movement, and folkloric themes with a cast of dozens, turning the Drill Hall into an environment that unfolds around the audience. The piece revisits Balkan traditions, platforms erotic expression, and anchors a broader season at the Armory that leans into ambitious, multidisciplinary projects.
The late Leonard Lauder’s Klimt paintings outperformed Sotheby’s pre-auction estimates by $148.5 million.
Sotheby’s sale of Leonard Lauder’s Klimt collection exceeded expectations, bringing in nearly $400 million, $148.5 million above the pre-auction low estimate. The highlight was Gustav Klimt’s portrait of Elisabeth Lederer, which sold for $236.4 million, the second-highest price ever at auction. The sale demonstrated strong demand for top-tier works despite a sluggish art market in recent years. Every lot in Lauder’s portion sold, underscoring both the depth of collector interest and the competitive bidding environment.
Art Basel Hong Kong has named the 240 exhibiting galleries confirmed for its 2026 edition.
Art Basel Hong Kong has confirmed 240 galleries for its 2026 edition, drawing participants from 41 countries and a strong contingent from the Asia-Pacific region, including 29 based in Hong Kong. 32 galleries will join the fair for the first time, expanding its geographic reach across Australia, East Asia, Europe, and the United States. The fair will again organize work across its core sectors—Galleries, Discoveries, Insights, Encounters—and will introduce Echoes, a new platform for tightly focused presentations by up to three artists. Public programming will include talks curated by Venus Lau, a film program led by Ellen Pau, the launch of Zero 10 for digital art, and a new façade commission for M+ by Shahzia Sikander.
TikTok will soon give users more control over the amount of A.I. content on their feeds.
TikTok will allow users to control how much A.I.-generated content appears in their feeds, starting with a test phase before a global rollout. Users can adjust this setting through the “manage topic” menu, similar to existing filters for topics like fashion or current affairs. The platform will label A.I.-created videos with a watermark and remove unlabelled realistic A.I. content that violates its policies. TikTok is also funding initiatives to promote responsible A.I. use and continues to combine human and automated moderation to manage harmful material.
Meta has defeated the FTC’s antitrust case over its WhatsApp and Instagram acquisitions.
A federal judge ruled that Meta did not violate antitrust laws by acquiring Instagram and WhatsApp, handing the company a major legal victory. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission had sought to force Meta to divest the apps to restore competition, arguing the acquisitions stifled rival social media networks. Meta countered that acquiring companies with innovative features is a legitimate business strategy and highlighted competitive pressure from TikTok, YouTube, and Apple’s messaging services. The decision marks a setback for the FTC amid its broader antitrust efforts targeting Big Tech.
Today’s attractive distractions:
Want in on this weekend’s F1 action? Uno has just the thing for you.
Two previously unknown Bach compositions have been played for the first time in 300 years.
One writer waxes poetic about the pants of Jonathan Anderson’s Loewe.
After Leonard Lauder and Agnes Gund, who are the art world’s next great patrons?
