Auction Fever, Museum Fallout, and Artworld Threats

Show notes for today's episode of The Daily Art Download — your ten minute crash course in today's art world news. Sotheby’s Posts $4.4 Billion in First-Half Sales, a New Record https://news.artnet.com/market/sothebys-h1-sales-2787726 Sotheby’s $50.1 M. T. Rex Sale Sets New Record as Scientists Scowl https://www.artnews.com/art-news/market/sothebys-gus-t-rex-record-50-million-dinosaur-auction-1234792060/ Robert Rauschenberg foundation donates three sculptures to shared Tate and National Galleries of Scotland collection https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2026/07/14/robert-rauschenberg-foundation-donates-three-sculptures-to-joint-tate-and-national-galleries-of-scotland-collection Roberta Smith Made Kenny Schachter Cry. Twice. And He Still Sings Her Praises https://news.artnet.com/art-world/roberta-smith-house-of-criticism-review-2787686 For Michael Asher, the Museum Was the Medium https://hyperallergic.com/for-michael-asher-the-museum-was-the-medium/ Why The Met Returned a Roman Bust https://hyperallergic.com/why-the-met-returned-a-roman-bust/ Man Charged in Theft of More Than 600 Artifacts from UK’s Bristol Museum https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/bristol-museum-heist-man-charged-1234792076/ Superblue Teams Up With Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre to Bring Immersive Art to Mumbai https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/superblue-nita-mukesh-ambani-cultural-centre-second-nature-1234792119/ Meet the Doyennes of Ecosexuality https://hyperallergic.com/meet-the-doyennes-of-ecosexuality/ Dealer Dominique Lévy Says She Received Death Threats After Denouncing Post–October 7 Letter in Artforum https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/dominique-levy-october-7-death-threats-artforum-letter-1234792057/