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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · 8h

Since it seems to be coming up a lot, I went back to dig up some details from the 1937 "Degenerate Art Show" to see what the lessons are
news.artnet.com/art-world/de...

The Disturbing Lessons of the 1937 ‘Degenerate Art’ Show | Artnet News

7 points to keep in mind when the specter of the 1937 "Entartete Kunst," or "Degenerate Art" show, is invoked today.

news.artnet.com

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · 12d

My take on 'Sixties Surreal' at the Whitney: camels, sex, and social revolution
news.artnet.com/art-world/si...

‘Sixties Surreal’ at the Whitney Explores a Forgotten Side of the 1960s

'Sixties Surreal' at the Whitney surfaces a lot of art from an important time. It's more vibes than anything else—but what vibes!

news.artnet.com

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · 16d

What was the “Mouvement Flou”? Some thoughts on a very fun Man Ray show at the Met news.artnet.com/art-world/ma...

Man Ray at the Met: A One-Man Art Movement | Artnet News

Discover the Man Ray Met Museum exhibition “When Objects Dream,” showcasing iconic Rayographs, surreal objects, and innovative experiments.

news.artnet.com

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · 21d

I picked through several thousand art shows at several thousand museums, and here are the artist names that turn up the most this month at U.S. museums
news.artnet.com/art-world/mo...

These 15 Artists Are the Biggest at U.S. Museums Right Now | Artnet News

From hundreds of museum exhibitions, these artists are having the best September 2025, from Jeffrey Gibson to Teresa Baker.

news.artnet.com

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Reposted by Ben Davis

Serife (Sherry) Wong @serife.bsky.social · Sep 2

Art Critic @benadavis.bsky.social watched about 3.5 hours of AI generated video of founding fathers, part of White House & Prager U right wing propaganda collab. news.artnet.com/art-world/wh...

The White House Proposes Weird A.I. Paintings as the Future of Patriotic Education | Artnet News

The Founders Museum is a project of PragerU, now installed in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. Here's what it looks like.

news.artnet.com

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · Sep 2

I put together all the links to things I wrote, podcast appearances, etc., for my personal newsletter. If you want to read it, or get it in the future, here it is:
benstoppable.substack.com/p/essays-and...

Essays and Podcasts of August 2025

My "content slurry" theory, PragerU's talking paintings, Agnieszka Kurant’s science-art, Cara Romero's big year, a big "state of art now" interview, more.

benstoppable.substack.com

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Reposted by Ben Davis

Randall Stoltzfus @sloweye.bsky.social · Sep 1

Excellent tips for looking at art by @benadavis.bsky.social for artnet - advice for pacing and the value of taking your time one piece, keys to real seeing news.artnet.com/art-world/ho...

Here's My Personal Method for Seeing an Art Show, If You Want to Get the Most Out of It | Artnet News

How to get the most out of a day at the museum? Consider these three steps: Make a Map, Find the Story, and Focus In.

news.artnet.com

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · Aug 29

I watched through all the White House's "Founders Museum" A.I.-animated paintings teaching U.S. Revolutionary history, installed in D.C in partnership right-wing YouTube content farm #PragerU. news.artnet.com/art-world/wh...

The White House Proposes Weird A.I. Paintings as the Future of Patriotic Education | Artnet News

The Founders Museum is a project of PragerU, now installed in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. Here's what it looks like.

news.artnet.com

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · Aug 26

Something on the spiral towards multimedia-izing everything
news.artnet.com/art-world/sl...

The Great Enslurrification of Culture | Artnet News

Everything is being forced into multimedia form, and that's resulting in a new kind of bad online content. Let's call it slurry.

news.artnet.com

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · Aug 19

Cool show of art-science-y art by Agnieszka Kurant

news.artnet.com/art-world/ag...

Why Is This Artist Growing Metal in a Box? | Artnet News

Agnieszka Kurant's "Collective Intelligence" at Marian Goodman shows her left-brain art for right-brain people (and vice versa).

news.artnet.com

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · Aug 7

On that hanging bride sculpture from those NYT Epstein house photos
news.artnet.com/art-world/je...

Jeffrey Epstein’s Taste in Art Was Just as Twisted as You’d Think

The art collection of Jeffrey Epstein remains a symbolically important enigma within the much larger morass of unresolved mysteries around him

news.artnet.com

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · Aug 5

Here is my July 2025 personal newsletter, with links to all the things I wrote and podcasts I did last month
substack.com/home/post/p-...

Essays and Podcasts of July 2025

Andrea Fraser's 5 art worlds, Dan Colen's biennial, Johnny Depp's Modigliani movie, Homeland Security's painting posts, a fun chat about delightmares, more.

substack.com

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · Aug 4

The Art Angle monthly round-up with Kate and Naomi: Johnny Depp's self-mythologizing Modigliani film, Andres Serrano's pitch for Venice, the Labubu-art synthesis
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

The Round-Up: Johnny Depp Does Modigliani, Labubu Mania, and a Weird Idea for the Venice Biennale

Podcast Episode · The Art Angle · 07/31/2025 · 46m

podcasts.apple.com

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Reposted by Ben Davis

Art Spell @artspell.bsky.social · Aug 1

Today’s Editor’s Pick is 'How to Think About Homeland Security’s Unhinged Art Posts' by @benadavis.bsky.social for Artnet. A critic’s take on the meaning behind recent social media posts of classic artworks from Homeland Security.

How to Think About Homeland Security’s Unhinged Art Posts | Artnet News

A random collection of art is being swept into the DHS's social feed, alongside Star Wars memes and mugshots. What does it mean?

news.artnet.com

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · Aug 1

I wrote about the shitposting mess that is the DHS official social media feed... As I say, I don't think that gibbering cruelty is actually a popular strategy, though as I think about it, maybe it suggests a post-democratic mindset, and the intent is to underline that news.artnet.com/art-world/dh...

How to Think About Homeland Security’s Unhinged Art Posts | Artnet News

A random collection of art is being swept into the DHS's social feed, alongside Star Wars memes and mugshots. What does it mean?

news.artnet.com

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · Jul 29

Thanks! I was very glad to discover the essay by Fraser, and it is really worth the read www.e-flux.com/notes/634540...

The Field of Contemporary Art: A Diagram - Notes - e-flux

Andrea Fraser lays out the five subfields of contemporary art and their complex interrelations.

www.e-flux.com

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · Jul 28

Talking with the great Andrea Fraser about the evolving world(s) of art. Promo below, link here podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · Jul 11

I talked to Maya Man about how digital art is evolving post-pandemic. One thing I got out of this is how, as digital stuff becomes more and more embedded in life, the character of digital art becomes more and more like performance, less and less like an object open.spotify.com/episode/69wr...

How the Post-Pandemic Generation Is Changing Digital Art

The Art Angle · Episode

open.spotify.com

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · Jul 2

The more I think about this A.I. film's idea of "total pixel space," the stranger it gets
news.artnet.com/art-world/to...
with reference to @taylorlorenz.bsky.social on A.I. worship and tywenkelly.com on the "New Acheiropoieta"

The Subtly Unsettling Logic of This Prize-Winning A.I. Film | Artnet News

Does A.I. film unlock the deepest secrets of reality? Yes, argues Jacob Adler's 'Total Pixel Space,' which won gold at the A.I. Film Festival.

news.artnet.com

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Reposted by Ben Davis

Art Spell @artspell.bsky.social · Jun 30

Today’s Editor’s Pick is 'Which Artists Are Big at U.S. Museums This Month? I Scoured Hundreds of Shows to Find Out' by @benadavis.bsky.social for Artnet.

Which Artists Are Big at U.S. Museums This Month? I Scoured Hundreds of Shows to Find Out | Artnet News

Read about the artists who have the most shows going on in museums around the United States this month.

news.artnet.com

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · Jun 28

Always a very demanding but rewarding project--combing hundreds of museum websites to find out which artists are getting the most attention from curators right now
news.artnet.com/art-world/mu...

Which Artists Are Big at U.S. Museums This Month? I Scoured Hundreds of Shows to Find Out | Artnet News

Read about the artists who have the most shows going on in museums around the United States this month.

news.artnet.com

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · Jun 24

Here's something about Curtis Yarvin's very, very thirsty ad for himself to take over the Venice Biennale
news.artnet.com/art-world/cu...

I Have Seen the 'Dark Enlightenment Art World' and It Is Extremely Dorky | Artnet News

Silicon Valley monarchist Curtis Yarvin really, really wants to trigger you over his Venice Biennale idea.

news.artnet.com

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · Jun 13

We got a reply to this from the team behind the A.I.-generated text that'll go up over the weekend news.artnet.com/art-world/a-...

The Odd Experiment of A.I. Art Summaries in Venice | Artnet News

At Carlo Ratti's Biennale, “Intelligens. Natural. Artificial. Collective.,” an A.I. Summary wrestles with human text.

news.artnet.com

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Ben Davis @benadavis.bsky.social · Jun 6

Did a podcast with artist Miriam Simun, who teaches people how to think like an octopus. I mean that literally. embodiment, sensory inversion, speculative cognition, all in a workshop, which I did
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

#miriamsimun #recessart #transhumanism #octopuscore

The Art World's Octopus Teacher

Podcast Episode · The Art Angle · 06/05/2025 · 37m

podcasts.apple.com

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Reposted by Ben Davis

Colby Chamberlain @colbychamberlain.bsky.social · Jun 2

Open letter from the alumni and faculty of the Whitney Independent Study Program. Ispalumni.org

ISP Alumni & Faculty

Friends, Faculty, and Alumni of the Whitney Independent Study Program

Ispalumni.org

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