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ALPHA OMEGA ARTS Grünewald, Matthias German, c. 1475/1480 - 1528 The Small Crucifixion c. 1511/1520 oil on panel overall: 61.3 x 46 cm (24 1/8 x 18 1/8 in.) framed: 74.4 x 59 x 2.5 cm (29 5/16 x 23 1/4 x 1 in.) Samuel H. Kress Collection1961.9.19 On View WASHINGTON, DC---Today, only 20 paintings by  Matthias Grünewald are extant, and  The Small Crucifixion  at the National Gallery of Art is the only one in the United States. Grünewald's The Small Crucifixion is a masterful example of the artist's ability to translate his deep spiritual faith into pictorial form. Each individual, according to Grünewald, must reexperience within himself not only the boundless joy of Christ's triumphs but also the searing pains of his crucifixion. In order to communicate this mystical belief, Grünewald resorted to a mixture of ghastly realism and coloristic expressiveness. Silhouetted against a greenish–blue sky and illuminated by an undefined light source, Christ's emaciate...

ALPHA OMEGA ARTS Follower of Robert Campin Anonymous Artist Campin, Robert Netherlandish, c. 1375 - 1444 Madonna and Child with Saints in the Enclosed Garden c. 1440/1460 oil on panel painted surface: 119.8 x 148.5 cm (47 3/16 x 58 7/16 in.) overall (panel): 122.2 x 151.2 cm (48 1/8 x 59 1/2 in.) WASHINGTON, DC---This large panel painting by a follower of Robert Campin combines the new interest in nature of the fifteenth-century Netherlandish artists with a long tradition of symbolic religious painting. John the Baptist holds a lamb, recalling his recognition of Christ as the "Lamb of God." Seated on the left is Catherine of Alexandria with her sword and wheel, the instruments of her martyrdom. Saint Barbara offers Jesus an apple or a quince, an age-old symbol of love. To early Christian and medieval theologians, Mary became associated with this bride, and the enclosed garden symbolized her virginity and also the lost Eden which is regained through Christ's birth. E...

ALPHA OMEGA ARTS [ AOPrize Finalist: Vote Here ] "Sheep Is the New Black" (2006) by Scott Brooks. Mixed media on paper 10" x 13". A&O Collection   In Christian symbolism, the sheep represents Jesus as "the lamb of God." This idea runs throughout Christian and Jewish history. It can be traced all the way back to Genesis 22, when God called Abraham to go to Mount Moriah to offer his son Isaac as a sacrifice. It is the story sacrifice, and in the  Agnus Dei  symbol, the lamb was used to symbolize innocence. "Sheep Is the New Black" is a remarkable painting by Washington, DC artist Scott G. Brooks . The illustration is on one level simple, but with a profound message for contemporary Christians. The two figures: the lamb and the black figure as Christ stare directly at the viewer with the backdrop of a dramatic play. Both are being led to slaughter it is peaceful and accepting of the situation, as Christ was (note the theatrical sunburst).

THE STRANGER.COM By Jen Graves Lu Yang'd 3-D avatar is born, ready to be enlightened/tortured/killed/reborn as a triple-headed Hindu deity spinning in space. WASHINGTON--- Delusional Mandala is by the Shanghai artist Lu Yang , whose first Seattle show is up at the Interstitial gallery in Georgetown. We see icons from pre-Renaissance Christian art, from Hinduism (the studded golden halo is like Kali the Destroyer's headdress), from Shingon and Tibetan Buddhism, and also from science fiction, medieval torture, pop culture, Iroquois legend, and medical labs—cutting-edge technology that's minimally invasive but aspires to see all, map all, and manipulate consciousness, not just crude body mechanics. [ link ]

ALPHA OMEGA ARTS South German 15th Century (Swabian or Franconian) South German 15th Century Swabian 15th Century Franconian 15th Century The Holy Kinship c. 1480/1490 polychromed wood overall: 128 x 112.5 x 27 cm (50 3/8 x 44 5/16 x 10 5/8 in.) Patrons' Permanent Fund2002.13.1 On View WASHINGTON, DC---The Gospels refer to Christ's "brothers," but the extended family presented in this altarpiece emerged from medieval legends. The subject—usually called the Holy Kinship—appears often from the late fifteenth century, especially in northern Europe. This group, designed to rest on an altar, may be one of the very earliest interpretations of this subject in sculpture. Mary and her mother are in the center with the infant Jesus. Their brilliant colors are remarkably well preserved; probably because this original paint was protected by overpaint applied in later times. Today, the grouping rests on a pedestal, instead of an altar at the National Gallery of Art. [ link ]...

METRO WEEKLY By Doug Rule " Supreme Ruling" (July 2, 2015) - Illustration by Scott G. Brooks WASHINGTON, DC---“What makes a good cover? It has to engage the viewer. It has to make them want to pick up the magazine,” says Todd Franson . “It’s also about balance. The image has to be strong enough to grab attention, but also hold up visually with text and a logo on it.” For six weeks, the Anacostia Arts Center will showcase a dozen of Franson’s favorite Metro Weekly cover photos, sans logo and text, in “Uncovered.” The exhibit also features ten richly detailed works by Scott G. Brooks , a world-class artist who has been illustrating covers for the magazine since 2011. [ link ]

THE GUARDIAN By Stephen Smith Is this Bacon’s best pope? … Study after Velázquez, 1950. Photograph: © The Estate of Francis Bacon UNITED KINGDOM---An unsparing observer of the human condition, Francis Bacon was as unsentimental about death as he was about life. Bacon had little use for the arts establishment. Despite the lack of an art college education, or perhaps because of it, he emerged self-made. Bacon was obsessed with Velázquez’s famous study of Pope Innocent X and made variations of it until 1965. He told the critic David Sylvester that he regretted destroying what he regarded as his finest attempt after Velázquez. But perhaps he didn’t destroy it, and perhaps Harrison has found it: a figure in papal purple, legs crossed in a chair or throne, pinioned within a thicket of orange bars and roaring his head off. [ link ]

THE NEW YORK TIMES By Aatish Taseer Detail of Imran Qureshi’s installation at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, in 2013. Credit Chang W. Lee/The New York Times PAKISTAN---A drain, clogged with pink plastic bags and filled with black water, separates Bahar Colony, a Christian neighborhood, from the rest of this city. This is the landscape of Julius John Alam’ s reality — and his imagination. Mr. Alam, the 26-year-old son of a tailor, is part of Pakistan’s Christian community, some two million in a country of more than 180 million. But he is also part of something bigger: He represents the tremendous artistic energy that has come to Pakistan, even as — and perhaps because — its traumas have multiplied. “The themes I deal with are influenced by my lived experiences as a Christian,” he told me. On the day of my visit, I ran into one of the National College of Art’s most famous alumni. Imran Qureshi’s paintings have been shown at the greatest museums of the world, including ...

ALPHA OMEGA ARTS Aaron Douglas, The Last Judgment, 1939, National Gallery of Art, Washington,Patrons' Permanent Fund, The Avalon Fund, 2014.135.1 WASHINGTON, DC---When the National Gallery of Art opened to the public in 1941 , the nucleus of its collection consisted of 126 paintings and 26 sculptures given by Andrew Mellon—from Jan van Eyck’s Annunciation to  Raphael’s Alba Madonna . One of the museum's most recent acquisitions ( May 2015 ) is The Judgement Day by Aaron Douglas (1899 – 1979), an African American artist who lived in Harlem during the mid- 1920s. The Judgment Day , is the final painting in the series of eight, and is the first work by Douglas to enter the collection. At the center of the composition a powerful black Gabriel stands astride earth and sea. With trumpet call, the archangel summons the nations of the earth to judgment. Recasting both the biblical narrative and the visual vocabulary of art deco and synthetic cubism, Douglas created an image a...

ALPHA OMEGA ARTS By Ernest &  Gregory Disney-Britton Keith Haring, "The Last Rainforest" (1989) Before his death at 31 years old, Keith Haring created The Last Rainforest . On June 28, Sotheby's London auctioned the rare work on canvas for $5,555,295.   The Last Rainforest was painted during the last few months of Haring's life, before he died of AIDS in February 1990. "I just fell in love with the painting. I thought it was prophetic," explained artist/collector David LaChapelle . "At first glance, the picture has this very hellish feel: it's very Hieronymous Bosch , Garden of Earthly Delights . You have these various layers, which give it depth." The Last Rainforest is one of the three final paintings produced by Haring, and death is written large across this canvas.

THE CANBERRA TIMES By Sasha Grishin Tim Johnson, Panchen Lama with Karma Phuntsok, 2016. Photo: Supplied AUSTRALIA--- Tim Johnson is the great "synthesiser" in Australian art. In Johnson's art, his synthesising goes beyond mere eclecticism, which involves sampling or the absorption of disparate elements: rather it is the integration of different religious iconographies, periods of time and visual codes. In the large glowing canvas Yamantaka , 2016, painted collaboratively with Bogunovic, a floating Chinese temple shares the picture space with traditional Christian iconography from scenes of the Nativity, Annunciation and the Resurrection, Buddhist iconography and the floating UFO. [ link ]

ARTDAILY The rock-cut tomb is enclosed in the Edicule, a small structure in the Rotunda of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, currently supported by heavy shoring installed in 1947 and in need of restoration. Photo: World Monuments Fund. ISRAEL---World Monuments Fund announced today that it will launch the campaign to restore the Edicule in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem with a major lead gift from Ioana Maria (Mica) Ertegun. The support of $1.3 million will ensure that conservation work begins immediately on a project that has been stalled for more than 50 years. The site has been accepted since the time of Constantine as the burial place of Christ. His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem said, “The Holy Sepulchre is the most sacred monument of Christianity. [ link ] An exterior view of the Rotunda of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Photo: World Monuments Fund.

FAST COMPANY DESIGN By Diane Budds For Furnishing Utopia , a group of designers organized by Studio Gorm collaborated with Hancock Shaker Village and Mount Lebanon Shaker Museum to develop a new line of pieces inspired by the philosophy of the religious group, but through the lens of products that are needed and desirable for contemporary consumers. NEW YORK---The principles of honesty, utility, and simplicity read like a modernist's credo, but those were the core design values of the Shakers, a radically conservative religious sect from England that settled in America in the late 1700s. Though there are few practicing Shakers today, their ethos continues to inspire contemporary designers—as shown in Furnishing Utopia , a New York Design Week exhibition taking place at Sight Unseen Offsite . Because ornamentation on furniture symbolized excess and pride, Shakers instead focused on overall form, proportions, and craftsmanship. [ link ]

ARTNET NEWS By Sarah Cascone Keith Haring,  The Last Rainforest  (1989) Before his death at 31 years old, Keith Haring created The Last Rainforest . This month, Sotheby's London is offering the rare work on canvas from the collection of photographer David LaChapelle in its Contemporary Art Evening Auction on June 28th. It's estimated to sell for £2,000,000–3,000,000 ($2,900,000–4,340,000).   The Last Rainforest was painted during the last few months of Haring's life, before he died of AIDS in February 1990. "I just fell in love with the painting. I thought it was prophetic," he explained. "At first glance, the picture has this very hellish feel: it's very Hieronymous Bosch , Garden of Earthly Delights . You have these various layers, which give it depth," said LaChapelle. "This is one of the most complex paintings he ever painted." [ link ]

CHRISTIAN POST By Christine Thomasos (Photo: Lecrae / Twitter/ Screengrab) Lecrae doesn't have all of the answers to solve the problems in the world, but he does believe some key factors are needed to improve some social injustices within the country. The Christian-rapper-turned-New-York-Times-bestselling author who is promoting his first book Unashamed , hasn't shied away from speaking up about racial injustice in the past. Still, he insists that his fight extends beyond his African-American heritage. "I'm not focused on race, exactly," he told The Post. "If blacks in America are treated equally, I'll move on to the next group." As a Christian, the rapper said he believes that the Church has not done enough to improve racial issues in the country. [ link ]

DAILY SABAH By Damla Kayayerli A kiswah (a cloth covering the Kabaa) TURKEY--- The Turkish and Islamic Art Museum in Istanbul's Sultanahmet Square has religious objects from the early period of Islamic art to the 20th century, featuring old manuscripts, early copies of the Quran and beautiful tiles. The building dates back centuries, although its exact construction date and architect are unknown. Built on the remains of the Roman hippodrome in Atmeydanı (Horse Square), the historic building was restored by order of Süleyman the Magnificent as a gift to his grand vizier, Pargalı İbrahim Pasha. Named after its owner, the İbrahim Pasha Palace hosts the Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum in its second courtyard. [ link ]

ARTNET NEWS By Brian Boucher A Beluga paints a picture at the Hakkeijima Sea Paradise aquarium in suburban Tokyo. Photo Yoshikazu Tsuno/AFP/Getty Images. Overwork got you down? Anxious about your financial situation? A new study indicates that art-making can help, even if you've got no skills at all, says a new study, reports Science Daily. A paper from the College of Nursing and Health Professions at Philadelphia's Drexel University, published in Art Therapy, the journal of the American Art Therapy Association, suggests that just 45 minutes at the easel may reduce levels of cortisol, a hormone released in response to stress. Some 75 percent of the participants in the study had lower cortisol levels after their brief stint as artists. [ link ]

ARTNET NEWS By Brian Boucher Purvis Young, Untitled , ca. 1988. Photo courtesy Newark Museum NEW JERSEY---An exhibition opening [June 17] at the Newark Museum highlights the institution's holdings of African-American artists, with a spotlight on self-taught practitioners, who make up half the show's roster. A Purvis Young painting, showing a central figure holding aloft what appears to be a body, might be a deposition or lamentation scene.... [Emma] Amos's seven-foot-wide painting The Heavens Rain (1990) presents an apocalyptic scenario, with people, books, and even a horse plummeting down from a black sky in what Bloom calls a “startling" work. [ link ]

ALPHA OMEGA ARTS By Ernest &  Gregory Disney-Britton Kehinde Wiley's portraits often feature gay black men as Christian saints If you’ve been searching for some way to deal with the massacre in Orlando , we have too. The need to mourn and the desire for action can be a complicated process, but that's when we look to art of the religious imagination. This week, we turn to a newly opened art museum retrospective on the master artist, Kehinde Wiley . Recognized for his portrayal of black men, and especially gay black men like himself, Wiley reinterprets the conventions of high church portraiture. So what are you waiting for? Kehinde Wiley's portraits are now on view at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts .

ARTNET NEWS By Kenny Schachter Courtesy of Kenny Schachter Hajj is the annual pilgrimage to Mecca, a religious duty for Muslims to fulfill at least once in their lifetimes, as long as physically and financially fit and capable of supporting their families in their absence. Basel is the art equivalent, other than the prerequisite of being physically and financially able of undertaking the journey, or for that matter supporting others in their absence. Illiquidity never got in the way of an avid collector where deals are cemented by nothing more than the exchange of a few words with payment terms always at hand. What keeps the art world afloat is the religious buying of art. Amen. [ link ]

RELIGION NEWS SERVICE By Elizabeth Weise, USATODAY The Anonymous hacker collective has launched a campaign to add rainbow flags and gay pride slogans to Islamic State Twitter accounts in response to the Orlando gay dance club attack that left 49 dead. The hackers take over Twitter accounts of those espousing support for the Islamic State, then add rainbow flags, signs proclaiming “I’m Gay and I’m Proud” and other gay-positive imagery. One of the hackers behind the effort says he’s been getting both death threats and kudos since the campaign began on Sunday. [ link ]

HYPERALLERGIC By Mairav Zonszein Dani Karavan’s “Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem” (1965–66) in the Knesset assembly hall ( photo by @sabriatelman/Instagram ) ISREAL---Israeli artist Dani Karavan , known for his site-specific sculptures in Israel and Europe, requested on Wednesday that the relief on the wall of the Knesset Plenum Hall that he completed in 1966 be taken down in light of the Israeli government’s conduct. Karavan, who is an Israel Prize recipient and who just last week received a Catalan award (Pablo Picasso was also a recipient) for his work “Passages — Homage to Walter Benjamin” (1990–94) — which memorializes Walter Benjamin in the location where he committed suicide — was referring to decisions by Israel’s Culture Minister, Miri Regev, to penalize artists who refuse to perform in the occupied West Bank. [ lin k]

RELIGION NEWS SERVICE By David Van Biema The first version of “Triduum II,” a painting by Alfonse Borysewicz. Photo courtesy of Alfonse Borysewicz NEW YORK---Whenever Alfonse Borysewicz addresses a fresh canvas, a daunting set of issues stares back at him. First, there is the fact that Borysewicz is painting from faith, when, for the most part, it doesn’t pay. Few galleries and museums are interested in explicit, non-ironic religious art. It can be hard to find a place to show, let alone to sell. Then there is his Roman Catholicism. No other Western religion has produced such a rich legacy of artistic inspiration and ideas; but none exerts the same kind of anxiety of influence, described by one journalist as “the insane, neutron-star gravitational power of Catholic artistic tradition.” ( In October, Borysewicz’s will show at the Dadian Gallery at Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, D.C. ) [ link ]

ARTNET NEWS By Henri Neuendorf Liu Yiqian poses with his latest acquisition. Photo: Liu Yiqian via WeChat. SWITZERLAND---Chinese art collector Liu Yiqian has added a massive Gerhard Richter painting to his collection. The billionaire posted a photo of himself posing in front of the German artist's 36-foot-wide 930-7 Strip on the popular Chinese social media platform WeChat. A friend of the collector, who did not wish to be identified, confirmed the purchase to artnet News. For him to buy an artwork, it has to be by a brand-name artist, and it has to be expensive. [ link ]

THE DAILY MAIL By Becky Pemberton Buddhist monks gather at a candlelight procession held for the annual mass inauguration of new monks at the Wat Phra Dhammakaya, a temple north of Bangkok, Thailand. The holy site is the centre of the Dhammakaya Movement, a Buddhist sect founded in the 1970s and led by a monk called Phra Dhammachayok Photographer Jeremy Horner embarked on a pilgrimage to 16 countries where Buddhism is practiced, capturing the vibrant worship of the faith. Horner's breath-taking collection, which will be showcased in a photography book published by Goff Books , San Francisco on October 15 this year, captures aspects of each country on his exploration. 'Sharing experiences with the pilgrims, nuns, monks and novices across 16 Asian countries where Buddhism is embraced, has nurtured a reverence and belief in the calm and reassuring strength of this faith,' Horner wrote on Maptia. [ More ]

THE NEW YORK TIMES By Elisabetta Povoledoju "Fiat 500" (2016" by Sam Havadtoy ITALY---The common element to the eclectic group of works that Sam Havadtoy created for his exhibit “Only Remember the Future” at the Mudima Foundation here is not immediately noticeable to the eye. Mr. Havadtoy primes his canvases with handwritten personal stories that are then buried under layers of paint and lace so that they cannot be read. He described the process as a “confession that no one hears. So the lace is a ritual, the final act of that story, moving on from that story,” he said.  It is a nod to the deeply rooted — if rarely followed — religious tradition of his newly adopted home, Italy, as well as a rumination on “the trials we go through in life.”[ link ]

ARTNET NEWS Clockwise from top left: Theo Danjuma, Nita Ambani, Leonardo di Caprio, Maja Hoffman, Alan Lau, Elisabeth Karpidas. Here it is, artnet News's roundup of the world's top 100 Collectors. Once again, we've pulled together an encyclopedic museum's worth of art trade resources to arrive at what we believe to be the world's most essential inventory of major art collectors. How is this year's review of the world's top collectors different from other lists? For one, our 2016 grouping is more compact, extensive, and better researched than previous rosters. Additionally, the list is also remarkably detailed and up to date, incorporating some of the latest movements major collectors have made around the globe—as told to artnet News—over the intervening 12 months. [ link ]

ARTDAILY An Illuminated Minature from The Book of Hours of Francesco Borromeo, Manuscript on Vellum, Italy, c.1474. Photo: Courtesy of Dr. Jörn Günther Antiquarian. SWITZERLAND--- Dr. Jörn Günther Antiquariat announces the opening of an exhibition next week to coincide with Art Basel 2016. The contemporary art fair is an exciting occasion for the city of Basel and as an internationally acclaimed art dealer, Dr. Jörn Günther is keen to take this opportunity to present a selection of artworks that underline the enduring legacy of the illustrated word. On view will be an impressive collection of museum-quality illuminated manuscripts, miniatures and early printed books. The highlights include an exquisite Book of Hours written by Francesco Borromeo. This is an incredibly delicate object and displays the masterful artistic hand of Ambrogio de Predis , a friend and collaborator of Leonardo da Vinci . [ link ]

ALPHA OMEGA ARTS Alison Saar, Snake Man, 1994. Woodcut and lithograph on paper, 33 1/2 x 42 1/2 in. National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington D.C., Gift of Steven Scott, Baltimore, in honor of the artist WASHINGTON—The National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA) presents Alison Saar In Print , on view June 10–Oct. 2, 2016. Inspired by her sculptural practice, Alison Saar (b. 1956, Los Angeles) uses dynamic printmaking techniques characterized by bold forms and striking colors to explore themes of feminine, racial, and cultural identity. NMWA’s collection includes an array of Saar’s prints from throughout her career. This focus exhibition of 16 works samples the museum’s Saar holdings and also features related sculptures and prints from private collections.

HYPERALLERGIC By Claire Voon The interior of Mexico City’s Sistine Chapel replica (photo via @gaviriasantos/Instagram) MEXICO---Visitors flock to the Sistine Chapel to view Michelangelo’s frescoes, but the fingers of God and Adam are now also meeting in Mexico City in a recently revealed, full-size replica of the entire building. Rising on the Plaza de la República near the landmark Monument to the Revolution, the massive structure marks the first time the Vatican has given permission to reproduce the chapel on this scale, according to Antonio Berumen, a local who initiated the project. [ link ]

ARTDAILY "St. Gregory Palamas" Collection of Edward Tyler Nahem, New York / "Houdon Paul-Louis" Brooklyn Museum / "Saint Remi" Galerie Daniel Templon, Paris VIRGINIA---An exhibition featuring portraits by one of the country’s leading contemporary artists is on view June 11 through September 5 at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts . Composed of more than 50 monumental paintings and sculptures, Kehinde Wiley: A New Republic raises intriguing questions about race, identity, and the politics of representation. Recognized for his portrayal of contemporary African American men using conventions of traditional European portraiture, Wiley has expanded his vision to include women and cultures from around the globe. In addition to lesser-known early works, this exhibition also explores new developments, which include bronze busts, “paintings” in stained glass, and works from his World Stage series. [ link ]

POST-CRESENT By Jim Collar WISCONSIN---Churches are places of renewal, but sometimes they need a little renewal of their own. Bruce Nufe r , a member of Menasha’s St. Mary Catholic Parish, took notice whether it was the chipping paint on statues or the haze over paintings developed over a century in the midst of incense smoke. So, the former Neenah High School art teacher rolled up his sleeves, and is restoring the religious art, knowing he’s also reviving spiritual inspiration. [ link ]

FAMTALK-100.5 FLORIDA---A massacre at an Orlando gay nightclub early Sunday morning has been described as a “domestic terror incident” with 50 dead and 53 injured, hospitalized individuals, officials said, making it the worst mass shooting in U.S. history and the deadliest terror attack on U.S. soil since the events of Sept. 11, 2001. The shooter has been identified by officials as Omar Mateen of St. Lucie County, Florida, an American-born citizen with Afghani parents. [ link ]

THE TELEGRAPH By Alastair Sooke The Marriage at Cana, 1923 CREDIT: THE ESTATE OF WINIFRED KNIGHTS UNITED KINGDOM---If the British artist Winifred Knights (1899-1947) is remembered at all today, it is for a single picture: "The Deluge" (1920), in the Tate. This striking scene, with its dynamic sideways rhythm, in which 21 figures clamber away from a waterfall towards a mountain, won a prestigious award, and made her name.Knights was declared a “genius” for fusing Italian Quattrocento painting with angular Vorticist modernity, transforming a Biblical subject into a lament for the First World War. Bravo, Dulwich Picture Gallery , for rescuing Knights from the deluge of obscurity. [ link ]

ALPHA OMEGA ARTS By Ernest &  Gregory Disney-Britton Muhammad Ali, Mosque II, (1979). Courtesy of RoGallery. This week, as fans honored Muhammad Ali in Louisville, Kentucky as a boxing legend, human rights activist, and as a religious figure, a few others were preparing to honor him in New York City as a visual artist. Ali was the son of a painter from Louisville, Kentucky, and that creative spirit lived on in a series of works created by the boxer. The simplicity of Ali's artwork reflects his personality and his faith, in visual form. It invites us to embrace religious tolerance --- in his unique and simplistic way. Just in time for Father's Day, limited edition prints of Muhammad Ali's work will be included in the RoGallery's June 15 auction in New York City!

BLOUIN ARTINFO By Archana Khare-Ghose A 'colored drawing' by A. Ramachandran that was part of his latest show at Vadehra Art Gallery, titled "Earthen Pot - Image Poems 2016" (Vadehra Art Gallery) INDIA---Last month, when Vadehra Art Gallery hosted the new works of veteran, reverred artist A. Ramachandran , his admirers were in for a sweet surprise. Instead of the signature bold colors that typify a classic Indian palette, his works came in muted, soft and washed colors, almost as an antidote for the sweltering summer outside. Titled “Earthen Pot — Image Poems 2016,” the 21 drawings were, incidentally, made on a trip to North America, and one conjectured that, perhaps, the continent’s specific weather pattern may have something to do with it. What, however, didn’t change despite the subdued hues is the strong story-telling that accompanies his oeuvre. [ link ]

BLOUIN ARTINFO By Samuel Spencer "Martyrdom of Nagasaki," 1622 (© Patrimonio del Fondo Edifici di Culto, Rome) SINGAPORE---“ Christianity in Asia: Sacred Art and Visual Splendour ,” at Singapore's Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM) until September 11, is the first exhibition to explore the complex history of Christian Art in Asia. Click on the accompanying slideshow to view all the items mentioned below, as well as more highlights from the exhibition. "Jesuit martyrs of Japan," Probably China, Macau, mid-17th century; color on paper . This painting shows the Jesuits who had been executed in Japan in the 17th century. "Plaque: Tree of Jesse" - Sri Lanka, around 1600 ; ivory. This represents the family tree of Jesus Christ, beginning with Jesse of Bethlehem, father of King David. [ link ]

HYPERALLERGIC By Thomas Micchelli Charles Garabedian, “Stigmata” (2014), acrylic on paper, 72 x 45 3/4 inches NEW YORK---There is a small exhibition in memory of Charles Garabedian (1923 – 2016) currently at Sidecar, the adjoining annex space of Betty Cuningham Gallery on the Lower East Side. The three paintings, all acrylic on paper and fairly large — ranging from three to six feet in height — were made within the last 13 years of the artist’s life. “Stigmata” (2014) is the most recent and perhaps the oddest of the three: it is dominated by the figure of a woman, her back turned, her head thrown back, her fingers dug deeply into her hennaed locks as she stares skyward at the crucified Jesus hovering above her like a helicopter. [ link ]

THE WASHINGTON POST By Michelle Boorstein A detail of the stained-glass window honoring Confederate General Stonewall Jackson installed at the Washington National Cathedral. Photo courtesy of Washington National Cathedral WASHINGTON, DC--- Washington National Cathedral , one of the country’s most visible houses of worship, announced Wednesday that it would remove Confederate battle flags that are part of two large stained-glass windows honoring Confederate generals Stonewall Jackson and Robert E. Lee. Cathedral leaders said they would leave up the rest of the windows — for now — and use them as a centerpiece for a national conversation about racism in the white church. [ link ]

UPI By Ed Adamczyk A statue of the Hindu god Ganesh, believed to be 1,000 years old, is among the stolen artifacts the United States seized and will return to India. WASHINGTON,DC---More than 200 ancient artifacts stolen from religious sites in India were returned by the United States, coinciding with the U.S. visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Modi and U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch participated in a repatriation ceremony in Washington on Monday. The valuable religious and art objects were looted from some of India's most revered religious sites over several years and offered for sale in the United States. They include a 1,000-year-old bronze statue of Hindu mystic Saint Manikkavichavakar that was taken from a Chennai, India, monastery, and a bronze sculpture of the Hindu god Ganesh, also believed to be about 1,000 years old. The artifacts will be returned to India gradually, after legal formalities are completed. [ link ]

ARTNET NEWS By Sarah Cascone Muhammad Ali, Mosque II, (1979). Courtesy of RoGallery. "He was the most important political-cultural figure to survive the deadly tumult of the 1960s and flourish in the 1970s," Wesley Morris wrote about Muhammad Ali in the New York Times. As the world mourns the boxing legend, who died at 74 on June 3, his under-appreciated talent as a visual artist is being celebrated in an upcoming auction at New York's RoGallery . Ali is just one of celebrities whose artwork will be included in the gallery's June 15 sale of the estate of Baird Jones. [ link ]

RELIGION NEWS SERVICE By Farnaz Calafi, USA Today A burkini full coverage swimsuit sold by British retailer Marks and Spencer. Photo courtesy of Marks and Spencer. What do some major fashion companies have to celebrate in the Muslim holy month of Ramadan? Business opportunities and profits. Ramadan, which begins this week, involves daily fasts that start at sunrise and end at sunset with community dinners at home or on the town. A growing number of fashion lines have been catering to Muslim women — and the social gatherings on their calendars — by offering Ramadan collections. Dolce & Gabbana, H&M, Oscar de la Renta, DKNY and others are marketing apparel that ranges from “modest wear” to full-body veils. [ link ]

THE COURIER-JOURNAL By Elizabeth Kramer Julien Robson and Al Shands have announced plans to form the Great Meadows Foundation to provide grants to Kentucky artists. 5/14/16(Photo: Marty Pearl/Special to The C-J) KENTUCKY---Art collector and philanthropist Al Shands had a small epiphany several years ago when he attended a New York dinner party with architect Kulapat Yantrasast , the head of wHY architecture, which designed the remodeled Speed Art Museum. Now several years later, Shands is translating that idea of a singular, focused attention on the visual arts into opportunities for artists via his newly Great Meadows Foundation . This artists’ development grant will provide $500 to $5000 to artists for travel to help develop their art. What distinguishes Great Meadows Foundation is its founder is a collector and not an artist. [ link ]

DAILY HERALD By Susan Sarkauskas Mosaic tile mural in honor of Fox Valley Jewish Neighbor’s 10th Anniversary. Located at 121 S. Third St. Geneva, IL ILLINOIS--- Fox Valley Jewish Neighbors celebrated its 10th anniversary in Geneva Monday night by giving the town a gift. It dedicated a 20-some-foot-long tile mural on its building at 121 S. Third St., honoring the common values of the Tri-Cities community and the beauty of the area. The six-panel mural was designed by artist Danielle Dobies of Aurora. She based it on drawings done by children who attend the center's Jewish School, as well as talks with adult members of the group. [ link ]

ARTDAILY Michael Landy: Multi-Saint (2013) SWITZERLAND---In summer 2016, Museum Tinguely Basel presents the first museum survey of acclaimed British artist Michael Landy . The exhibition will span Landy’s entire career, bringing together works from Break Down 2001, through to Saints Alive 2010-13, among many others. Many of the works are intrinsically linked to the aesthetics and the socio-political conditions that have shaped the artist’s life in Britain. A graduate Goldsmiths College and a key member of the Young British Artists (YBAs) generation that emerged in London in the 1990s, Landy has garnered international recognition for his versatile practice, which explores notions of capitalism, creation and destruction. [ link ]

DELAWARE COUNTY NEWS NETWORK By Brian Bingaman Altar Head, 16th century Benin Kingdom, Nigeria Bronze, copper alloy Height: 8 1/8 inches University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Philadelphia: Purchased from W. O. Oldman.  Image courtesy of the Penn Museum, Image #250922 Photograph by Gary Ombler for Dorling Kindersley PENNSYLVANIA---“The human story begins in Africa,” remarked Julian Siggers, the Williams Director of the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. Speaking at a preview event for the five-part “Creative Africa” exhibition that’s taken over the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s Perelman Building, Siggers added that the Penn Museum’s oldest artifacts are from Africa. An intriguing selection from that museum’s collection can be found in “Creative Africa”’s centerpiece, “ Look Again: Contemporary Perspectives on African Art ,” which is in the Special Exhibitions Gallery through Dec. 4. [ link ]

CHINA.ORG.CN The Buddhism-themed ink painting by Zhang Daqian [Photo provided to China Daily] CHINA---A Buddhism-themed ink painting of master Zhang Daqian , which was among dozens of his copies of Dunhuang murals, fetched 63.8 million yuan ($9.7 million) at a Beijing auction on Saturday night. The painting portrays a Dakini goddess in Tibetan Buddhism which literally translates as "sky goer" in Tibetan, and features a heavy coloring scheme. It was hammered by Beijing Poly International Auction during its major spring sales. A devout Buddhist, Zhang lined the subject matters in this painting with expensive gold powders. [ link ]

STORYTELLER By Gregory Hinton, creator of Out West I created Out West with the mission of shining a light on the history of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) communities in the American West. Major LGBT scholars have expressed surprise that Out West has been welcomed by Western museums when urban art institutions have been slow to bring visibility to our community. The reason is simple. The American West has always beckoned those who are independent, who long for open space and privacy and who respect individual liberty. After all, the Code of the West is “Live and Let Live!” Western Museums like the Eiteljorg, the Autry National Center, and the Buffalo Bill Center of the West will be remembered for implementing LGBT programming during this seminal time. [ www.eiteljorg.org ]

NEWSWEEK By Alexander Nazaryan A page from Sandow Birk's illustrated American Qur'an. It is audacious for any artist to treat as his subject the sacred texts of a faith to which he does not subscribe. It is especially so if you’re an atheistic Southern California surfer who decided he would create an illustrated version of the Koran, despite the long-standing Islamic tradition of not depicting the human form. But that is precisely what Sandow Birk set out to do. And did. His American Qur’an , recently published, is an unbeliever’s tribute to the message of Muhammad. In The American Qur’an , Birk says, these modern adherents of Islam find affirmation and inspiration, a surprising and welcome guidepost for their faith. [ link ]

ALPHA OMEGA ARTS By Ernest &  Gregory Disney-Britton Hassan Hajjaj, Maalem Simo Lagnawi, 2010, Metallic lambda print on 3mm dibond, 53 1/2h x 39 5/8w in In today's post, we introduce you to an Islamic artist whose photographs are energized with religious imagination. In the context of the upcoming holy month of Ramadan ( June 5-July 5, 2016 ), his work is a perfect link between the past and present. Meet Hassan Hajjaj (b. 1961), a Moroccan-born contemporary artist. Entirely self-taught, his work is influenced by a mix of hip-hop, reggae, and his Islamic heritage. He is a photographer, filmmaker, and a designer. He is also widely known as “The Andy Warhol of Marrakech." This Ramadan , visit the recently re-opened Brooks Museum of Art in Memphis and experience the religious imagination of Hassan Hajjaj .