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INBOX UNOPENED. As Microsoft’s global outage stretches into its second day on Friday, the art world, like everyone else, is feeling the pain. In fact, there’s no telling when many of you will receive this message, typically sent via e-mail around 9 a.m. ET. ARTnews’s own e-mail system relies on Microsoft Outlook, so if you’re trying to write us there, let this be a warning: We have no way to read it. Meanwhile, not everyone is peeved; the British Museum has taken the opportunity to have a little fun with a host of playful memes drawn from its historic collection, which you can enjoy here. The French, at Musée d’Orsay, say that if Outlook is down, “it’s time to relax.” On Friday, Microsoft said its services were improving, according to the New York Times, and by 6 a.m. ET traffic was restoring in the Asia Pacific region. Businesses, airlines, and government agencies, such as police and intelligence services, have all been disrupted. And for now, Microsoft said it has “no evidence of malicious activity associated with this incident.” Nor have they received any e-mails about it. Related Articles Theft at Art Cologne, Five Suspects to Stand Trial for Looted Gold Bars From an 18th-Century Shipwreck, and More: Morning Links for November 12, 2026 Art Basel Offers 20 Percent Reduction on Exhibitor Booth Fees Due to Early Closure of Paris Fair, Tracey Emin's New Arts and Community Space in Margate Greenlit, and More: Morning Links for November 11, 2026
A FOR ART. F FOR FAKE. An undercover BBC investigation has found that companies have been helping migrants create fake art portfolios, complete with fake published art criticism and art news, to help them apply for UK visas under the government’s Global Talent program. The program launched in 2020 and was designed to attract creative workers, including scientists and artists. But wealthy migrants are also being courted by companies to pay thousands in exchange for help with cheating the system. According to the BBC, visas for two Nigerian men have been revoked because the Home Office believes they were not the fine art photographers they claimed to be. “There is a real problem whereupon fake articles are being implanted onto newspaper websites using bylines of reputable culture journalists,” said Molara Wood.
The Kennedy Center has delayed issuing tickets for its annual December Honors gala because of negotiations, begun under its former president, Richard Grennel, to switch ticketing platforms to Ticketmaster, whose parent company, Live Nation, is also tied to Grennel, raising concerns about a conflict of interest. [NPR]
Jenny Holzer has a solo installation of quotes about queer love and loss coming to Times Square in time for World AIDS Day on December 1. [Artnet News]
After a Nazi-looted painting by German Impressionist Max Slevogt was restituted to Eduard Fuchs’s family in July, it will head to auction next month at Ketterer Kunst’s December Day Sale, with an estimate of €40,000 to €60,000 ($44,250 to $66,370). [The Art Newspaper]
Los Angeles’s famous, graffiti-art-covered towers, or Oceanwide Plaza, were just washed clean, prepping the stalled real-estate development for acquisition. [Los Angeles Times]
Next year, 450 years will have passed since the birth of Flemish painter Peter Paul Rubens, and his native Antwerp is planning a host of exhibitions. [The Brussels Times]
FRIEZE FORGES AHEAD. Ahead of Frieze’s debut in Abu Dhabi November 19 to 22, exhibitors discuss jitters about traveling to the region amid uncertainty about the ongoing US war in Iran and recent attacks by Houthi militants in Saudi Arabia, reports the Financial Times. “Anyone saying that they are not concerned in some way is either lying to themselves or to each other,” said Frieze exhibitor Niamh Coghlan, director of Richard Saltoun gallery in London. Nevertheless, “there are some incredible collectors and institutions in Abu Dhabi, and it is important to be seen to support them, as they support us,” Coghlan added. Around the same time as Frieze, the Public Art Abu Dhabi Biennial opens, along with the design and art fair Nomad. Or, as Katia Nounou Boueiz, chair of Sotheby’s Middle East, put it, for now, “We are checking the news and obviously attuned to what could happen. We are all in the same boat … and we’ve decided to carry on.”