Monday’s Art Notes

From ‘Les cochons tatoues’, or ‘The tattooed pigs’, an exhibition by Belgian artist Wim Delvoye at the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art of Nice (Mamac), French Riviera. The exhibition features seven stuffed and tattooed pigs, which caused the indignation of animal welfare defenders who planned to protest during the exhibit’s opening. Photo by Valery Hache/ AFP/ Getty Images

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There were two high-profile premieres with conspicuously absent directors at the Berlin Film Festival. Roman Polanski, under house arrest in Switzerland (awaiting to hear whether or not he will be extradited to the U.S.), submitted his new film to audiences there. “The Ghost Writer” will open in theaters stateside on Feb. 19.

Instead of introducing his film about French artist Mister Brainwash to the press in person at the festival, street artist Banksy talked to them via video, wearing a hood and distorting his voice to guard his true identity.

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In August, new security guidelines will go into effect for items being shipped as airplane cargo, including art, which is causing concern that valuable work could be damaged from additional inspection. Some major museums have begun working on special arrangements, but it’s going to be a big headache for smaller galleries and dealers.

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Preliminary surveys find that public library patronage was up in 2009, while funding for libraries was down in most states.