Comic Book Art Sold at Skyrocket Prices

Last week the original art comic book page that introduced the Wolverine, was sold for an impressive $657, 250. This page was found in issue number 180 of  "The Incredible Hulk," from 1974. In 1983, Herb Trimpe, the original artist of the Wolverine page gave the comic to young fan. The anonymous owner had visited Trimpe's home several times, hoping to receive a cornucopia of signed comic books from the artist. At the end of one of the visits, the fan was given the page of the Wolverine. A portion of the money will be given to a  specific charity which is set out to help young comic book artists thrive in our society. In the past, other art covers have been sold for extremely high prices. Spiderman and Batman have been the more notable Marvel Comic superheroes sold over the past few years. 

http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/05/19/first-wolverine-comic-art-is-sold-for-nearly-660000/

Art Car Parade

On May 10th hundreds of thousands of people turned out for the record-setting Art Car Parade in Houston. As many as 260 colorful vehicles drove into the signature art city. In her first appearance as the grand marshal Houston's mayor, Annise Parker, said "I love the Art Car Parade. It is an explosion of creativity and fun. It brings Houstonians of all types out. It's just a great day." In this year's parade there were over 100 new entries, including a tribute to Johnson Space Center's Mars Rover Curiosity. Some other unique looking vehicles included a truck with a giant spider on top of it and a toaster van. Since 1988, this vibrant and entertaining parade has offered the public a signature art extravaganza which they will never forget.

http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Hundreds-of-thousands-turn-out-for-record-setting-5468513.php

The Derby Man Named Art

On May 3rd, a new stat was entered into the record books when 77 year old, Art Sherman, became the oldest trainer to ever win the Kentucky Derby. This was all due to California Chrome's cruising victory, which was nearly won by two-lengths. 59 years ago Art was an exercise rider for the horse named, Swaps, who won the 1955 derby. Last week Sherman visited Swaps' grave site, where he prayed that he could hopefully experience another triumphant win at the legendary race setting. During the post-race interview Art stated, "I'm just the same old Art Sherman, you know-- except, I won the Kentucky Derby." When asked about the possibility of winning the triple crown Sherman said, "The Triple Crown is probably the roughest races you'll ever have to face." On May 17th, Art and California Chrome will be faced with their next challenge in their quest for the Triple Crown, the Preakness.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/horseracing/2014/05/03/trainer-art-sherman-becomes-oldest-derby-winner/8676797/

Art is Everywhere

During this summer, over 50,000 pictures of art will be displayed on electronic billboards to bus shelters across the country. This project will be called Project Everywhere, where museum directors are hoping that their different museums scattered around the country will draw more visitors. The Outdoor Advertising Association of America will be devoting about $500,000 to the cause, in an effort to make the art billboards more fashionable and attracting to the public. Mr. Druick of the Art Institute of Chicago states, "hoping that familiarity breeds desire, that people will see an artwork, be struck by it and want to see it in the flesh." This project is set to be one of the largest outdoor art exhibitions in U.S. history.

  http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/07/arts/design/look-up-all-signs-point-to-art.html?_r=0

New Twist to Hall of Presidents

Walt Disney World's attraction known as the "Hall of Presidents" has received approval by Disney management to change certain aspects of the multimedia presentation. Instead of using 43 audio-animatronic figures of all 43 U.S. presidents, every former president who is currently living will replace the computer-generated roles. For the presidents who have passed on, their bodies will be dug up from their current grave sites and be brought to the Magic Kingdom in Florida. The bodies will be put into chairs and set upright for the audience. Disney has also made the decision to have all the former presidents, alive or dead, wear Mickey Mouse ears during each performance to try to lighten any heavy atmosphere created by the strong, possibly unsettling presence of death. Since President Obama will now be occupied between the hours of 9:00 A.M. and 11:00 P.M. at the Magic Kingdom, Vice President Joe Biden will be called on to be more authoritative in leading the country. The narrator, Morgan Freeman, will also be present for every show during the day.

Art Investigation Revived

After nearly 40 years, the FBI and Amherst College have decided to reopen the investigation from a local campus art museum. In the February of 1975, three historic and genuine paintings were stolen from the college's Mead Art Museum. Each painting was reportedly valued at more than $400,000. In 1989 two of the three masterpieces were recovered, but the third piece entitled "Interior with Figures Smoking and Drinking", was never found. Mead's head of security, Heath Cummings, has been researching this case for years and has now turned over his analysis to the FBI. They aim to publicize this case and hopefully rediscover the artwork.

http://www.telegram.com/article/20140224/NEWS/302249897/1052

NBC's Unusual Sochi Experiences

During the course of this year's Winter Olympics in Sochi, a lot can be said about the unique moments that have come from it. NBC's decision to broadcast the most hours out of any Winter Olympics ever, has resulted in several moments of awkwardness and confusion. An instance of this came last week when longtime Olympic anchor Bob Costas, who was suffering from pink eye, was forced to relieve his position and receive medical treatment from Russian doctors. To take over his place on the big stage Matt Lauer and Meredith Vieira agreed to temporarily anchor the broadcast. Other examples of awkward moments have been when Vieira asked skeleton sliver medalist Noelle Pikus-Pace about her miscarriage, trackside reporter Lewis Johnson crying after asking Katie Uhlaender about her late father, and Bode Miller getting emotional after a side reporter intrusively kept asking questions about his dead brother. NBC has also had to adjust to American Olympians not winning as much as they hoped. This has left commentators showing their remorse on camera and their disappointment. These weird situations have given the Sochi Games an interesting outlook on the event as a whole.

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/showtracker/la-et-st-olympic-tv-moments-20140217,0,4379384.story#axzz2talqF5ko

Art Makes People Feel Like Bugs

An exhibit called Illusions of a Small World, will feature an overhead projector presentation where spectators will experience first hand what it feels like to be a bug. The showcase will involve 20 different houses where the visitors will experience what it feels like to be small and big at the same time. Projectors will display horrific habitats and oversized shadows on the different walls. The idea of this presentation was inspired by Kafka's Metamorphosis. At the end of the show, viewers will know how it feels to be transformed into an insect and understand the larger features of life.

http://www.wired.com/design/2014/02/boutique-roach-motel/#slide-id-418961

Stray Dogs Exterminated in Sochi

Days before the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Olympic officials have ordered that all stray dogs wandering near the Olympic event be killed. This action came after the dogs started causing problems throughout the village. A specific problem that caused a stir, were the dogs biting small children which caused a great deal of concern for the safety of the people attending the games. Sochi took this precaution ensuring that no spectators or athletes would be hurt. It also rules out the scenario that if there was a sudden attack, it would be a disgrace for the whole country. Throughout the years killing stray dogs has been a typical practice in Russia, but animal activists are looking for ways to resolve the conflict.

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2014/02/03/sochi-officials-order-stray-dogs-killed-ahead-olympics/

Green Bay in the Super Bowl?

While it is true that the Seattle Seahawks will be playing the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII, another  NFL team's hometown will be making a short appearance in the biggest American Football event of the year. In 60 seconds, Coca Cola will be showing a commercial called "Going All the Way." Being filmed near Ashwaubenon High School, the commercial will be about a football player named Adrian who accidentally gets a ball thrown to him and runs for a touchdown. Instead of stopping and celebrating in the endzone, Adrian decides to keep running through the streets of Green Bay until he reaches the legendary home of the Packers, Lambeau Field. Once he enters the historic stadium, Adrian is rewarded with a special surprise from one of the Packers' official faculty members.

http://www.businessinsider.com/coca-colas-green-bay-super-bowl-2014-ad-2014-1

Disabled Boy Intrigued by Art

Obi Christenson, is an eight year old boy from Onalaska, Wisconsin. One year ago, Obi started feeling pain coming from his left hip area. After visiting the doctor, x-rays showed nothing to be wrong with Obi and plans of going on a family trip earlier were kept. Months later while on the trip, Obi's family noticed that their son was not taking part in regular activities, but instead sitting on a lawn chair. When they decided to bring him back to the hospital for x-rays doctors noticed a "visceral tumor" located behind his heart, wrapped around his spinal cord, and down his left kidney. After going through extensive amounts of  chemotherapy and more appointments set for next month, Obi is unable to participate in the typical childhood activities he once enjoyed doing. Instead, he has found a new hobby that has brought him just as much enjoyment as before. And that is drawing pictures of of the food, superheroes, and pet cat in his life. These exquisite drawings have landed Obi on the short list to design art for tissue boxes in a nation-wide contest.

http://www.crookstontimes.com/article/20140120/NEWS/140129973/1001/NEWS/?tag=1

Stealing and Selling From the Blind

Gilbert Jackson, a 67 year old blind man who resides in Florida, is the owner of a few exquisite and valuable art pieces. One of those works is an art piece by Op artist Victor Vasarely, which is reportedly worth somewhere in the vicinity of $30,000- $35,000 alone. Jackson's caretaker, Maureen Stuteville, is accused of stealing that particular art piece, along with others and then selling them off to local antique galleries. As soon as Jackson noticed the piece had been put out of place, his friends found receipts from a local antique gallery tracing to Stuteville's name. The owner of the gallery stated that the woman came in regularly, trying to receive as much money from the paintings as she could. She told the owner that the money was to pay off for her mouth cancer treatments and to put her father in a retirement home.

http://blogs.artinfo.com/artintheair/2014/01/10/blind-collectors-caregiver-sold-his-art/

A High School's Passion for Art

Over the past few months the Housatonic Valley Regional High School has been strongly determined to reach a specific goal. That particular goal is to raise enough funds to pay for a student art gallery. Over the past several years, the high school has developed an array of classes that has helped the students engage in art topics. The art gallery development is being designed to expand the involvement of art through the student body even more. In order to accomplish this task, the school is looking for $10,000 to meet the financial expenses. If the plan follows through, students will be given the opportunity to create their own artworks and masterpieces. The pieces would be placed on display for the public to see, but they will not be open for sale.  
http://www.countytimes.com/articles/2014/01/01/news/doc52c459a06979d662588199.txt?viewmode=default

The High Demand For Christmas Trees

O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree, why are you becoming more and more expensive? In today's world, this is a common phrase that many consumers are repeating. For many people buying a Christmas tree is a way to brighten up their homes with the festive Christmas Spirit. However, in recent years the demand for fairly inexpensive and reasonable priced trees has become nearly nonexistent. A report from last year showed that 24.5 million trees were bought, compared to 30.8 million trees in 2011. The average cost a consumer spent last year on a tree was $40.30. As a way to compete with the incredibly high demands, department stores are increasing the prices of trees to staggering costs. For a 7-8 foot Frasier fur located at Sears, Target, and Home Depot the average cost is a whopping $135. To make the prices seem a little less Scrooge-like, Target and Sears are knocking 25% off the original tree costs.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/101269778

A Cheap Art Thief

A Columbia County Board Representative, Susan Raimer, announced earlier this past week that three art pieces were stolen from the walls of the courthouse in Columbia, Wisconsin. The specific area inside the courthouse where the incident took place was in a Branch 2 jury room. This is typically an area used for private conferences between attorneys and their clients, deliberating jurors, and for employees to finish up paperwork or eating their lunch. Three 3-D photos were added to this area to "brighten up the space", making it look more friendly and colorful. The pictures showed very realistic imagery and the images changed, based on where you viewed them in the room. The price value of each of the three pieces was supposedly only $5. The pictures have thus been replaced by similar-looking and more motivational pictures. 

http://blogs.artinfo.com/artintheair/2013/12/09/art-thief-strikes-courthouse-jury-room/

Art Repays Wealth

Jorge Perez, a billionaire real estate developer, was recently given the honor of having a Miami art museum named after him. The worth value of the museum's structure is about $220 million. In 2011, Perez donated $40 million to the same art museum. Half of the trove was some of his own personal art collections and the other half was roughly $20 million. In showing their appreciation, the art museum agreed to have Jorge Perez be named after the facility. The museum will open to the public this month during the Art Basel Miami Beach Festival. Seeing the portraits that were once held on his home walls, but now encountering them in the newly refurbished art museum will be a surreal experience for Perez.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/morganbrennan/2013/11/26/inside-the-new-220-million-art-museum-named-after-billionaire-jorge-perez/

For the Love of Art

The infamous German art collector who had kept priceless art treasures hidden in his household for nearly half a century, recently spoke up as to why he committed the crime. The collector told the public that he had a strong liking towards these artifacts and that he "loved" them. He possessed these artifacts from his late father, who was an art collector hired by the Nazis. The collector had told a source that the loss of his forbidden artworks, were more painful than the passing of his parents and sister. Authorities have so far been able to find and obtain 1,406 pieces of the lost artwork.

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/11/18/german-collector-says-hid-art-trove-out-love-wants-collection-back/

Lady Gaga's ARTPOP Store

A store in downtown New York City is getting attention for selling Lady Gaga merchandise and accessories to the public. This is all due to the releasing of Gaga's newest album ARTPOP. Some artifacts that will be on sale are clothing of her famous meat dress, albums for $15, and t-shirts for $30. The public will also have the opportunity, and are encouraged to make their own art on a blank wall inside the building. The purpose of the album and store is simply to engage people, so that they will become more enthused and creative about art in the future. The pop-up store will only be open till Wednesday of this week and then close permanently.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2013/11/11/lady-gagas-artpop-pop-up-store-art-or-commerce/

Art Treasures Kept A Mystery

Earlier this week, new details started to spread about the Nazis' stolen art treasures that were last reported in 2011. A Berlin native named Max Beckmann, recently found out that the piece of work he was sold to two years ago was one of hundreds of priceless artifacts that were confiscated under the Nazis during World War II. Some of those paintings were reported to be works of Picasso and Matisse. Investigators say that the art was sold for very cheap prices by owners who were anxiously wanting to flee the dictatorship of Adolf Hitler. German authorities believe that about 1,500 works of art were stolen, which in total is estimated to be worth around $1.4 billion. Collective efforts are being done around Berlin and Germany, hoping that investigators will find the lost works and transport them to galleries and other art buildings where they belong.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/05/arts/design/trove-of-apparently-nazi-looted-art-found-in-munich-apartment.html?pagewanted=1

China's Art Market

China's art world has been showing promising signs of being a profitable area of growth for the future. Melanie Ouyang Lum, a Chinese art consultant states, "A majority of Chinese people do not trust the Chinese Stock Market. And that, "A lot of people are looking to art for investment." Currently, there are more than 350 Chinese auction houses that deal fine art and the two largest ones are billion dollar enterprises.These art masterpieces range from thousands to millions of dollars--which are most commonly sold to traders that work for wealthy businessmen. However, because of these expensive demands, cases of fraud and forgery have appeared regularly. Chinese authorities claim that these occurrences will continue to be a problem for interested buyers, but both sides are hoping that these incidences dwindle down soon. 

http://www.cnbc.com/id/101148462