Sung Tieu Sells Work to Fund KW Institute’s New Board Member

Vietnamese German artist Sung Tieu has sold her work, Declaration of Donation (2025), for EUR 25,000 (USD 29,100) to fund a five-year board membership for academic and curator Mi You at the KW Institute of Contemporary Art in Berlin. The piece in question was part of Tieu’s solo exhibition “1992, 2025” at the KW Institute earlier this year, comprising a quartet of mirrors engraved with a four-page contract, which outlines that the proceeds from the sale will sponsor a new board member nominated by the artist. Declaration of Donation also condemns the KW Institute for requiring an annual fee of EUR 5,000 (USD 5,800) from each board member, which allegedly contributes to the institutional budget. However, as Tieu points out in the work, this charge upholds financial hurdles that limit diverse involvement, particularly “in an era where the legacies of exclusion and economic gatekeeping persist within cultural institutions and beyond.” Following the sale, You has joined the executive board, which also oversees the Berlin Biennale, and will work alongside collectors Julia Stoschek and Karen Boros, as well as curator Klaus Biesenbach and artist Olafur Eliasson.

Amanda de la Garza Mata Named President of CIMAM

The International Committee for Museums and Collections of Modern Art (CIMAM) has appointed Amanda de la Garza Mata, the artistic deputy director of the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía in Madrid, as its new president. The announcement was made on November 30, during the general assembly of the CIMAM Annual Conference. Together with a renewed board comprising 14 museum experts from more than 91 countries, Mata will helm the organization’s strategic initiatives and programs over the next three years. Founded in 1962, CIMAM is a global network of modern and contemporary art museum professionals dedicated to fostering cooperation, ethical standards, and scientific research in the field. In a press release, Mata emphasized her commitment to “preserv[ing] and enhanc[ing] the core values of CIMAM: diversity, solidarity, collective, and critical thinking.” Alongside her appointment, the organization also announced the recipients of its 2025 CIMAM Outstanding Museum Practice Awards—the Museo Barda del Desierto in Argentina; the Bergen Kjøtt Foundation in Norway; and the Palestinian Museum in Birzeit, Palestine—each of whom were praised for upholding thoughtful practices that align with CIMAM’s mission of nurturing creative engagement between institutions, artists, and the public.

2025 Hyundai Blue Prize+ Announces Awardees

The 2025 Hyundai Blue Prize+ has named two curatorial duos—Hyejin Park & Yoonyoung Park and Yifeng Wei & Penny Dan Xu—as its awardees. Initiated in 2017 by Hyundai Motor Company and newly expanded for 2025, the open-call prize supports emerging curators in addressing contemporary issues through interdisciplinary and transcultural approaches. Seoul-based Park and Park reflect on AI’s dependence on natural resources, labor, and emotional capital through a Capitalocene framework, while Wei and Xu, based in Dublin and London respectively, envision technology as an alchemical medium from which new cosmologies might arise. According to the jury, both proposals “offer fresh perspectives on contemporary technologies, distinguished by cultural urgency and a thoughtful translation of their ideas into the gallery space.” The two teams will realize their projects at Hyundai Motorstudio Beijing in 2026 and 2027, following mentorships, a research trip, and production support of up to RMB 800,000 (USD 110,000) per exhibition.

Kochi-Muziris Biennale Reveals New Venues

The sixth edition of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale is set to open on December 12, featuring its largest footprint to date with 12 new venues alongside nine existing and seven collateral sites. Expanding from its base in the colonial structures of Fort Kochi to historic sites and warehouses in the docks of Mattancherry and Willingdon Island, the main exhibition, curated by Nikhil Chopra and Goa-based HH Art Spaces, will showcase works by 66 artists and collectives. Parallel events include the “Invitations Programme,” which showcases independent, artist-run initiatives; “Edam,” an exhibition featuring 36 artists and collectives rooted in Kerala; and the “Students’ Biennale,” curated by student artists from seven different regions of India. The festival runs until March 31, 2026, with all venues connected by the Water Metro.

Joni Zhu Appointed as Director of Cheruby

Shanghai-based arts and cultural organisation Cheruby has appointed curator Joni Zhu as its director. Previously the head of programs and initiatives at the Rockbund Art Museum, Zhu will oversee the organization’s curatorial vision and programming. Founded in 2024 by Cherry Xu, Cheruby explores the intersection of art and fashion, supporting creative projects through exhibitions, residencies, commissions, and public programs. In a press release, Zhu said: “Cheruby represents a rare and vital space where art and fashion are not just exhibited but interrogated, contextualized, and reimagined. I’m excited to build upon this vision by fostering new forms of collaboration and critical dialogue both within Shanghai’s dynamic cultural landscape and across international networks. As director, I hope to continue expanding how we think about creative production, making Cheruby House a site for experimentation, artistic support, learning, and exchange.”

Trellis Art Fund Announces 2025 Stepping Stone Recipients

The Trellis Art Fund, a New York-based nonprofit, has announced its 2025 Stepping Stone Grant recipients, including Kamrooz Aram, Kang Seung Lee, and Aki Sasamoto. Launched in 2024, the annual initiative awards 20 artists with unrestricted USD 40,000 each, distributed over two years. Aram, an Iranian-born, Brooklyn-based artist, works across painting, photography, sculpture, and collage, examining the boundaries between fine art and design while challenging art history’s unequal treatment of Western and Eastern artistic traditions. Born in South Korea, Los Angeles-based artist Kang Seung Lee explores minority experience and personal histories through a multidisciplinary practice that challenges dominant historical narratives, while Japanese-born, Brooklyn-based Samamoto creates performance and installation through site-responsive, collaborative practice, using everyday objects and physical constraint to explore themes of food, health, and orderliness.