Exhibition of the week
Georg Baselitz
The brutal physical facts of ageing are among the themes of this exhibition by one of the masters of contemporary art. Baselitz reworks images of himself and his wife when they were younger and reinterprets the harsh realism of the German modernist Otto Dix. Yet more proof of Germany’s artistic preeminence.
• White Cube Bermondsey, London, 27 April-3 July.
Also showing
Alberto Giacometti/Yves Klein
Two of the titans of postwar European art battle it out: neo-Etruscan sculpture versus martial arts mayhem. Will Giacometti’s profundity make the monochrome-painting black-belt Klein look lightweight? It may be a knockout.
• Gagosian Grosvenor Hill, London, 27 April-11 June.
Keith Coventry
The utopian dreams of modern art are ironised in Coventry’s new paintings, which reveal Russian constructivist patterns apparently hidden in the McDonalds arches.
• Pace, London, 27 April–28 May.
Wright of Derby and the Lure of Italy
Two newly restored Wright paintings go on view this week in an exhibition that explores the impact of Italy’s light and landscapes on his vision of the sublime.
• Derby Museum and Art Gallery, until 12 June.
John Piper
The modernist fabric designs of an artist better known for his neo-Romantic paintings of war and ruins.
• Pallant House Gallery, Chichester, until 12 June.
Masterpiece of the week
In this brilliant little picture, Dürer portrays not only Jerome but also his lion with characterful authority. Yet it is the glowing sky that is captivating in its menacing beauty – and when you look on the reverse of this wooden panel it becomes even more portentous, for here Dürer has painted a comet hurtling through the night sky: a sign, surely, of the apocalypse.
• National Gallery, London
Image of the week
What we learned
Salvador Dalí’s diary has gone up for auction along with other surrealist trinkets
Damien Hirst’s formaldehyde vitrines has allegedly been leaking noxious gases
... but since when did going to an art gallery not involve an element of danger?
Elizabeth Fullerton asks: did Britart really change the world?
Roger Hiorns on track to bury his Boeing 737 under Birmingham
A Palmyra Arch replica was erected in London – and this is how it was made
Tate Modern’s Frances Morris has rainy days to thank for her art career
Mona Hatoum, meanwhile, puts hers all down to luck
Another Freud self-portrait has been left to nation in lieu of inheritance tax
A generation of artists were wiped out by Aids – why don’t we talk about it any more?
Paul Seawright picks his favourite shot: a whitewashed Union Jack in Belfast
Alicia Canter went behind the scenes of Glastonbury’s NYC Downlow cabaret auditions
Australian art institutions are uniting for a new biennial of Australian art
Russian billionaire Len Blavatnik is boosting the V&A’s capital development
... but the V&A is putting up “No sketching” signs in its temporary shows
The Tate’s 2017 programme includes a major show of Queer British Art
Swiss architecture’s star double act teach us the meaning of Dinghaftigkeit
Pompeii is spending €105m on its restoration: is this the best they can do?
More tributes pored in for Malick Sidibe – and his extraordinary photography
The British Museum’s Sicily show is a tale of gods, monsters and multiculturalism
Manon Wertenbroek roped in her brother to create these weird human sculptures
And finally ... the Guggenheim has installed a working solid-gold loo
Get involved
A-Z of readers’ art – share your art on the theme of hegemony
Don’t forget
To follow us on Twitter @GdnArtandDesign
