As we all know, the art world is alive and thriving. However, aside from occasional peripheral blurbs in the news about a Picasso painting being auctioned for millions of dollars at Sotheby’s or a new exhibition opening in a museum that’s not even close to where you live, how does one keep up with what’s happening in the art world? It’s not like it stops just because nothing is ever “big enough” to make Yahoo News.
Luckily for us, there are several ways to keep up with the current art world. Since this is the digital age, you can do the basic stuff and keep up with your favorite museums and galleries on social media sites such as Instagram and Facebook. But if you’re itching for some awesome art periodicals, the three main publications I’d recommend are ArtForum, Art in America, and The Art Newspaper, as all are also available in print (!)
1. ArtForum. ArtForum is the contemporary art magazine. Since its installment in 1962, ArtForum has garnered critical acclaim and has established itself as the world’s go-to for answering the question, What’s going on in the art world today? Though a flip-through of several recent issues proves that at least a third of the print edition is made up of advertisements, at least the ads direct you toward a feel for what’s happening. And the advertisements are aesthetically pleasing and intellectual, mainly for gallery shows in New York. Their website has more content than the print edition by far, and even has a sub-site called BookForum. You can guess what that’s for and why we’re excited about it.
2. Art in America(/ARTNEWS). The title pretty much sums it up. Focusing on contemporary art and shows across America, Art in America tends to be more inclusive than ArtForum when dealing with American artists. Typically, Art in America has more articles as well. The magazine creates a nice balance of advertisements for shows and actual content. And according to their website, Art in America has just teamed up with ARTNEWS, the oldest and “most widely-circulated art magazine in the world” to create “the world’s largest art media platform.” So we’ve included both here, as the partnership was just announced today. The team-up of these two legends should make for some amazing art journalism. Stay tuned for more!
3. The Art Newspaper. My personal favorite, The Art Newspaper focuses on historical art as well as contemporary art. Based in London, the publication has a more global focus than ArtForum or Art in America, with editions published in several different languages. Oh, and it comes in the physical form of a newspaper–which, aside from looking cool, cuts down on the number of advertisements as well. If you want a general look at what’s going on in all sectors of the art world, The Art Newspaper is exactly what you’re looking for.
