tld-art 001: the inaugural newsletter
Last week I read 799 art articles and curated the top 30 most worth-reading exhibition reviews, artist interviews, and Met Gala and Frieze Week perspectives.
Hello (not yet existent) readers,
Welcome to tld-art (too long, do art), where I comb through hundreds of art news sites, magazines, blogs, and social feeds weekly so you don't have to. This newsletter is part news roundup, part editorial rabbit hole: a mix of need-to-know headlines and deeper dives—pieces with solid research, unique framing, and most importantly, actual art and artists at the core.
For the inaugural issue, I chose to dive headfirst into one of the busiest art weeks of the year. With a bigger-than-usual news load, I used this newsletter as a test run to get a feel for the tone, structure, design, themes, etc. I’d love your feedback—so please, think critically and critique on!
Art Headline Roundup
Last week, my feeds were dominated by listicles ranking the dandiest Met Gala looks (and afterparties), curated plans to maximize your NYC Frieze Week, and anxiety over AI, tariffs, and NEA cuts. Mixed in were celebrations of the new Pope’s election, 25 years of the Tate Modern, and the London National Gallery revamp.
Here are the stories behind the headlines that caught my attention:
Art Fair Fan-Fare
I opted to skip Frieze this year, but had an absolutely incredible time at Esther II, Independent, and NADA. Most of the fair roundups felt arbitrary and thin (with the delightful exception of Annie Armstrong’s gossip-y Artnet recap), but I really appreciated these deeper dives. The history, meaning, and process behind the work are what really connect us:
Exhibition Perspectives
From mainstream institutions to under-the-radar shows, these reviews went below the surface, balancing history and context with strong opinions and new perspectives:
A Common Thread: Textiles in Art
I’ll admit, textile art isn’t usually my thing, but my interest was piqued when I noticed at least half a dozen pieces last week highlighting how it’s weaving its way into NYC galleries and at MoMA. These two articles offer great context on what the medium means for the artists:
Power and Perseverance in Photo
So many standout photography pieces this week explored grief, masculinity, and quiet power—it was hard to narrow them down. These stood out for the stories behind the images:
Revisits, Reveals, and Restorations
Not everything this week was about the now. Some of my favorite reads this week were about re-contextualizing the past—from fresh takes on longtime favorites like Klee, Turner, and Rembrandt, to discoveries with unexpected depth like Consuelo Kanaga and Flannery O’Connor.
One Last Must-Read
The piece I found myself talking about and thinking about most last week wasn’t centered on artists, but on the system around them. As I get more acquainted with the gallery-to-museum pipeline, Damien Davis gave me a really interesting cross-medium, macro take on how recent solo shows for four major Black artists—Sherald, Johnson, Whitten, and Simpson—have been negatively framed in the media. Their moment, dubbed “Hauser Spring,” is framed less as long-overdue recognition and more as market optics. As Davis asks: who controls the frame?
We made it through issue 001! Thanks for reading, skimming, or scrolling!
‘til next time,
tld-art
P.S. The above curations are just a portion of last week’s saves, which you can view on my Are.na. I plan on sharing my list of sources soon so you can contribute to them!
Sorry to my dark mode peeps. Fixing the images shortly!