First, the top 3 art news stories that mattered this week — kept short and clear. Skip these if you’d rather jump straight to inspiration and recommendations: a much-needed approach to time by a Korean-German philosopher (inspired by Heidegger, Nietzsche, and Buddhism), two beautiful new documentaries, and a career opportunity for artists of all kinds.
TOP 3 ART STORIES THIS WEEK
1. Hollywood Agent Buys Frieze
Right before New York Art Week, Hollywood power player Ari Emanuel (the guy behind UFC and WWE deals) is buying Frieze, a big name in the art world, for $200 million.
What’s Frieze?
It started as an art magazine and now runs fancy art fairs in cities like London, New York, LA, and Seoul. They also have an exhibition space in London.
What’s happening now?
Emanuel is taking Frieze out of his old company (Endeavor) and putting it into a new company that builds cool, global cultural events. It’s backed by big investors like Apollo and RedBird.
Why it matters?
The art market isn’t doing great: sales dropped 12% in 2024. But Emanuel clearly sees Frieze as more than just art fairs. He’s betting that art + entertainment = the future, and he wants Frieze to be at the center of that.
2. Trump Wants to Tax Foreign Films 100% 🎬
Donald Trump just announced that he wants to put a 100% tax on all movies made outside the U.S. He says it’s to protect Hollywood, which he claims is “being devastated.”
What does that mean?
If this goes through, every non-American movie (French dramas, Korean thrillers, Japanese anime) would become twice as expensive to bring into the U.S. This could make movie theaters stop showing them, or studios stop trying to sell them in America at all.
Why it matters?
This could change how and where films are shared around the world. If fewer international films reach U.S. audiences, smaller film creators lose money and viewers miss out on different cultures and stories. European countries are already warning that they might fight back with their own movie taxes.
One more thing:
Cultural groups in Europe say this move hurts artistic freedom and could damage the flow of ideas and creativity across borders.
3. Artists Feed People and Save the Oceans 🐠
This week, two powerful art fundraisers are showing how creativity can do more than decorate walls: it can feed families and protect the oceans.
In London, the “Be Nice” exhibition brings together over 20 artists to raise money for Bow Foodbank. As food insecurity rises, every artwork sold helps local families get the support they need. The show is a reminder that kindness is a radical act, and art can be a tool for real-life change.
Meanwhile, on a global scale, the “Art for Your Oceans” auction at Christie’s features big names like Ai Weiwei and Anish Kapoor. All proceeds go to the WWF, funding efforts to clean plastic from the seas, save coral reefs, and protect marine life.
It proves that no matter the politics, artists are the ones who have their heart in the right place. As many times before in the history, art is stepping up as a force for compassion, action, and hope.
One Thought for Your Week
Why do we always leave lingering for “someday,” in the future, “when there’s time”? We don’t have time to just be, to sit, to do nothing. Yet we know: that’s what nourishes the spirit. Even working out (caring for the body) ranks higher on the list of priorities than simply being. Its benefits are instant and tangible, while non-doing’s may not be.
To trees, animals, nature – just being is living in time. No negative judgement here, it simply is what they have.
May this week’s thought come from Korean-German philosopher Byung-Chul Han. Here’s what he says:
We have ceased seeing time as something that lasts – as a narrative, a meaningful and continuous flowing, where things unfold organically.
Instead, we now experience time as a series of isolated fleeting moments. We live in a hyperactive, multitasking culture, where we constantly switch between tasks and stimuli, without never truly lingering.
Time used to be narrative and coherent: we experienced life as a story. Now it is pointillist – a scattering of isolated points (tweets, notifications, updates, things on to-do-lists) with no connective tissue. In traditional cultures, time used to have a ritual, repetition, rhythm. It had a meaning. But today time is empty and indifferent.
We are obsessed with productivity: every moment must be filled, used, maximized. Every second is a chance for self-improvement. Although we constantly try to do more, time is slipping away.
Boredom has become a defect to eliminate. We no longer know how to linger or dwell in moments. It is replaced by action and reaction; scrolling and swiping.
Han proposes: We need to relearn how to experience time meaningfully, to linger, to contemplate, and to restore lost rhythms. (Similar to how you might savor a scent – slowly, thoughtfully.)
This week, let yourself linger. Resist the urge to fill every moment. Instead, do one thing slowly, with full attention, and treat time not as something to conquer, but as something to befriend.
Because:
Pause may be the last place we have left where we can still think, remember, and imagine — free from the ever-growing demands of efficiency.
Two New Documentaries You Need to See
Ocean: With David Attenborough (2025)
Released on his 99th birthday, this might be the British nature filmmaker Sir David Attenborough’s final on-screen message. He reflects on life, death, and Earth’s most vital ecosystem.
The documentary takes us beneath the surface of the water, because once you’ve seen the world below, you never look at Earth the same way again. Attenborough calls the ocean “the last wilderness we are only just beginning to discover.”
The documentary shows that the oceans are incredibly resilient: safeguarding even a third of them can lead to powerful recovery. Thus, this movie
stands as a powerful expression of hope.
Wisdom and Happiness (2024)
Produced by Richard Gere, this is a new documentary about the Dalai Lama. He states that the 8 billion inhabitants of the Earth are all equal and that we all want to be happy and not suffer. At nearly 90 years old, he still gets up at 3:30 in the morning to do his meditations and work with the mind and heart. He is someone who, even in his dreams, thinks about helping people.
Richard Gere comments:
“The most important thing is basic kindness. Everything responds to compassion and kindness. You can feel it when you walk into a room. If I were to speak to you in a harsh way, it would completely change the atmosphere. So just one smile is enough to make everything work better.”
“But it’s strange, because in today’s world people don’t meditate on love and compassion, but on power, control, and darkness. And sadly, we choose leaders who reinforce that kind of meditation.”
(More here, in Spanish)
Opportunity Alert for Artists
The 2025 CIRCA Prize is now open for global submissions. Artists, poets, performers, architects, game designers, and filmmakers worldwide are invited to submit a 2.5-minute film responding to the theme “REFUGIA” — a call to imagine cultural and ecological sanctuaries in a changing world.
The winner will receive £30,000, a trophy designed by Ai Weiwei, and a public art commission at London’s Piccadilly Circus premiering in 2027.
🗓 Deadline: 50 days from May 1.
🖥 Shortlisted works will be screened in London and Berlin this September.
Maybe that’s something for you? More on Artsy here.
Artwork Inspiration
“Man Carrying His Own Sun on a String”
Artist: Robert Filliou, date: 1973.
+ Last But Not Least:
Ever wanted to go to Japan but never had a clear reason? 🏯
Art Week Tokyo is officially returning in 5.-9. November 2025. With top galleries, museum collabs, and curated bus routes across the city, it’s one of Asia’s most exciting art events, and the perfect excuse to plan that Tokyo getaway.
That’s it for this time.
Subscribe, if you yet haven’t, and have a peaceful, kindness-filled and inspiring time meanwhile. See you again next week!
xx, Helen
