Art News: February Edition
- Zarina Isakhodjaeva
- Feb 19
- 6 min read
Updated: Mar 30
From groundbreaking exhibitions to scandalous lawsuits, the art world always has something for us. We are only 2 months into 2025, but the art world has managed to meet our expectations in full.
Whether it’s a bold new installation, a record-breaking auction, or a rising talent making waves, Art News brings you the latest stories shaping the global art scene.
First-ever auction devoted to AI art is at risk after thousands of artists called it a “mass theft”
Is Art created with the help of AI still art? Despite what we might think, artists from all over the globe are not enthusiastic about the upcoming auction at Christie’s.
From 20 February to 5 March, all visitors can glimpse or even purchase the art pieces created by Augmented Intelligence at Christie’s Rockefeller Center galleries in New York.
Unique in its kind, its purpose is to explore the love-hate relationships between humans and AI, to praise the depth and quality of collaboration, and to highlight the influence of Augmented Intelligence on art. The auction features remarkable works from early AI pioneers of the 1960s, such as Harold Cohen, to contemporary artists like Refik Anadol, Pindar Van Arman, Claire Silver, and more.
However, the open letter from people demanding to cancel the auction might either jeopardise the initiative or spoil the relationships between auction houses and artists.
AI has been a sensitive topic in the art community for quite some time now, and actions that do not praise human effort barely help the cause. The reason behind this discontent from artists is not the fact of AI itself but the possible violation of copyright laws associated with AI usage. In their letter, artists claim that AI is not creating art out of nowhere but is being trained using copyrighted material without any license. Therefore, whatever art it may produce, it exploits human artist, using their work.
Pablo Picasso’s Blue Period keeps revealing new mysteries even after a century of study.
An unknown painting of a woman was found beneath Picasso’s famous Portrait of Mateu Fernández de Soto (1901).
Although the Blue Period is the most studied era in Picassos’ career, new revelations never cease to amaze us. It was a changing point in his career when a 20-year-old artist declared himself to the world by using a moody blue-green palette in his artworks.
The Courtauld, in collaboration with the Oskar Reinhart Collection, ‘Am Römerholz’, Switzerland, discovered a painting of a woman after conducting an X-ray analysis of the painting.
X-ray images revealed a portrait of a young woman painted just a few months before the original Portrait of Mateu Fernández de Soto. Her hair is twisted into the chignon so popular in Paris at that time, giving her a resemblance to the sitters of several portraits Picasso painted that year, including Absinthe Drinker (Hermitage, St Petersburg) and Woman with Folded Arms (Kunstmuseum Basel).
At that time, it was not unusual for the artists to reuse their canvas due to the lack of money. However, Picasso also preferred to start a new painting on top of a previous one, resisting whitewashing old images.
The discovery of a portrait is more important than it may seem because it shows us the transition from lively colourful Impressionism to his signature melancholic artistic style. Most likely, it was a turning point for Picasso,, and now we have the evidence of a crucial stage in his career.
Emma Kathleen Hepburn Ferrer makes her debut as a painter in her first solo exhibition at Sapar Contemporary.
Emma Ferrer was born in 1994 and never met her grandmother, but she has always been inspired by Audrey’s desire to change the world for the better.
She studied at the Florence Academy of Art and then moved to New York to pursue her passion and lived the normal life of every artist lost in the big city in their twenties. When COVID hit, Emma moved back to Italy, and being away from the hustle and bustle helped the artistconcentrate on her work. Now, Emma paints every day, and she would not have it any other way.
This January, Emma Ferrer opened her exhibition "Scapegoat" at the New York gallery Sapar Contemporary.
Her paintings and sculptures raise questions:
Why do people often feel guilty under social pressure? How do external circumstances shape our identity?
The title "Scapegoat" reflects the idea that people often become victims of societal stereotypes and judgment.
In her paintings, Emma conveys a sense of loneliness and the wild beauty of Italian nature, weaving echoes of the region's rich artistic heritage into them
Emma acknowledges that the interest in her work has most likely been aroused thanks to her connection to Hepburn, but she does not let this fact undermine the excitement of her success. The artist says that there is no way around “nepotism” allegations except for continuing her hard work and doing what she does best.
She used to work at Sapar Contemporary when living in New York, so coming there after 10 years with a solo exhibition has been a nice full-circle moment for Emma.
The creator of “Sunflowers Seeds” was denied entry to Switzerland.
An unpleasant incident happened to Ai Weiwei, a legendary Chinese artist, on February 10 when he had to spend in Zurich airport after Swiss authorities refused to let him in the country due to the lack of a visa. On his Instagram account, Weiwei posted a series of photos and videos depicting a situation.
“This is Switzerland, not Portugal,” they told me. I am sleeping on a bench with a blanket tonight, waiting to be deported next morning at 6:50 AM.
Ai Weiwei has been living in Portugal since 2013 and was travelling from London to Zurich. Although the artist was not arrested and could freely move around in the airport transit area, he was clearly distressed after this encounter.
A year later, justice for the late art dealer Brent Sikkema prevailed when his ex-husband was found guilty of his murder.
The famous gallerist was found stabbed dead in January 2024 in Brazil, and the mysterious circumstances of his death have instantly captured the attention of the media.
The main suspect was Brent’s former bodyguard, Alejandro Triana Prevez, who confessed his crimes, although his lawyer claims it was nothing but “murder-to-hire. Allegedly, Daniel Sikkema offered $ 200,000 to the hitman, made a prepayment of $5000 and promised to transfer the remaining sum after the murder.
Although the details and motives remain unknown, the couple was in the middle of a problematic divorce and could not compromise over visitation rights for their son. Brazilian police also reported that Daniel Sikkema was trying to seek millions of dollars from his estranged husband.
If found guilty, Daniel Sikkema will face a life sentence in prison, but for now, according to his attorney Richard Levitt, he maintains his innocence and looks forward to his complete vindication at trial.
Stay Tuned!
References
Branigin, A. (2025). Ex-husband of slain art dealer charged with murder-for-hire. The Washington Post. Available from https://www.washingtonpost.com/style/2025/02/11/daniel-brent-sikkema-murder-charges/ [Accessed 11 February 2025].
Court, A. (2025). Audrey Hepburn’s ‘introverted’ granddaughter is no nepo baby, she says: ‘I never want to hide it. MSN. Available from https://www.msn.com/en-us/family-and-relationships/parenting/audrey-hepburn-s-introverted-granddaughter-is-no-nepo-baby-she-says-i-am-not-a-party-person/ar-AA1yxUl4?ocid=BingNewsSerp&apiversion=v2&noservercache=1&domshim=1&renderwebcomponents=1&wcseo=1&batchservertelemetry=1&noservertelemetry=1 [Accessed 11 February 2025].
Greenberger, A. (2025). Brent Sikkema’s Husband Charged with Hiring His Killer. Art News. Available from https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/brent-sikkema-husband-daniel-charged-hiring-killer-1234732264/ [Accessed 11 February 2025].
Katz, L. (2025). First Christie’s Auction Devoted Exclusively To AI Art Sparks Backlash. Forbes. Available from https://www.forbes.com/sites/lesliekatz/2025/02/09/christies-to-hold-first-auction-devoted-solely-to-ai-art-amid-pushback/ [Accessed 11 February 2025].
K. Ho, K. (2025). Artist Ai Weiwei Denied Entry to Switzerland Due to Lack of Visa. Art News. Available from https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/ai-weiwei-denied-entry-switzerland-visa-1234732242/ [Accessed 11 February 2025].
Solomon, T. (2025). Unknown Painting Discovered Beneath Portrait from Picasso’s Famed Blue Period. Art News. Available from https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/picasso-blue-period-painting-revealed-courtauld-1234732166/ [Accessed 11 February 2025].
The Courtauld (2025). Hidden Picasso portrait discovered beneath important painting from his Blue Period. The Courtauld. Available from https://courtauld.ac.uk/news-blogs/2025/hidden-picasso-portrait-discovered-beneath-important-painting-from-his-blue-period/ [Accessed 11 February 2025].
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