NEW YORK, USA — Ambassador William J. vanden Heuvel, founder of Four Freedoms Park Conservancy, announced today the completion of a three-year strategic plan for the organization.

TORONTO, CANADA — Supporters from business, the arts and government for a Toronto bid to host Expo in 2025 brought a new privately-funded report to hard sell the idea at City Hall on Friday, Oct. 14.

TORONTO, CANADA — At last week's CityAge conference, a diverse panel of experts and decision-makers had some critical words for Toronto's city planning department during a lively discussion focusing on recent large-scale land developments in the downtown area.

DECATUR, USA — Plans to paint a mural  on the MARTA overpass at West Trinity and Atlanta Avenue will cost $30,000, but only 25 percent of that money will go to the artists painting it. Another 25 percent, or $7,500, will go to a community engagement consultant hired by the city.

NEW YORK, USA — New York City’s Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is hosting an exhibition on refugee shelters to kickstart dialogue on the design challenges caused by humanitarian crises. Entitled “Insecurities: Tracing Displacement and Shelter”, the show looks at emergency housing in contemporary crisis zones. 

PARIS, FRANCE — A Russian art collection replete with modernist masterpieces by Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso opened Saturday in Paris, heralded in every major French newspaper and television station. 

LONDON — The project, funded by Arts Council England, saw off competition from New Zealand and Europe in the awards’ Soft Power Destinations Cultural Activation category.

BEIJING, CHINA — A second Palace Museum is to be built 25km away from the existing premises in Beijing so more treasures from the former Chinese imperial palace can go on display, China News Service reported.

BEIRUT, LEBANON — The National Museum of Beirut was once one of the most dangerous places on Earth. Closed for over two decades as a result of the bloody Lebanese Civil War, it finally reopened its basement level this month after more than 40 years.

WASHINGTON, D.C., — In the heart of what was once known as Chocolate City a new museum has found its place on the National Mall.

FRANCE — France’s Minister of Culture and Communication, Audrey Azoulay, has pledged to “substantially” increase funding for French museums next year.

NEW YORK, USA — When the Statue of Liberty was completed in 1886, it welcomed millions of immigrants to America. Now the 305-foot-tall bronze sculpture will welcome a new $70 million museum dedicated to Lady Liberty herself.

LISBON, PORTUGAL — As a sparkling new building is unveiled for the Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology in Lisbon, Artistic Director Pedro Gadanho introduces a sharply conceived exhibition program.

LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM — The Natural History Museum in London has won planning permission for a major upgrade of its entrance areas, designed by Niall McLaughlin Architects and landscape firm Kim Wilkie.

NEW YORK, USA — They are used millions of times a day by people across the world and now emojis will make the leap from the screen to the art gallery wall.

USA — Smithsonian has launched a new podcast called Sidedoor that takes listeners behind the scenes at the museums. The first episode, called Tech Yourself, looks at technology. 

PHILADELPHIA, USA — A new virtual reality initiative from the Franklin Institute – including a permanent exhibit and a mobile app – will bring the latest in technology to thousands of museum visitors and countless others around the world, while creating a spark within the industry to drive innovation forward.

UNITED KINGDOM — Brexit has “exposed severe social divides”, according to a new report by the UK’s Creative Industries Federation. The report provides the most detailed published assessment of the impact on culture of leaving the European Union (EU).

CANADA — The first time Steve Martin encountered the work of Lawren Harris, the pioneering Group of Seven artist, it wasn’t in a gallery or museum. Browsing through an art book, Martin was immediately drawn to Harris’s bold interpretations of Canadian landscapes.

AMATRICE, ITALY — For the ‘Blue Helmet’ squad of police and art experts, recovering cultural heritage is part of rebuilding after August’s earthquake.

HAMBURG, GERMANY — After a delay of six years and about a tenfold increase in costs, a new classical music performance space here is preparing to open its doors. The Elbphilharmonie, a glass-paneled building mounted atop a former warehouse, includes not just two concert halls but a four-star hotel, a restaurant and residential apartments.

QUITO, ECUADOR — Culture has the power to make cities more prosperous, safer, and sustainable, according to UNESCO’s Global Report, Culture: Urban Future to be launched in Quito (Ecuador) on 18 October.

INTERNATIONAL — The author of The Rise of the Creative Class and Who's Your City? defines the 'creative class' as STEM educated workers in the science, technology and engineering fields coupled with people with backgrounds in the arts and design.