Catherine Pégard Named French Culture Minister
To receive Morning Links in your inbox every weekday, sign up for our Breakfast with ARTnews newsletter. The Headlines MACRON PICKS PÉGARD. Catherine Pégard, former president of the Chateau de Versailles and a close ally of French president Emmanuel Macron, will become the new French culture minister, reports Le Monde. Unconfirmed guestimates that she would replace the outgoing Rachida Dati were making the rounds for weeks. Pégard, 71, will have her work cut out. She will need to sort out the Louvre‘s predicament in the wake of the October theft of France’s crown jewels, while attempting to save Macron’s controversial $1 billion plan to overhaul the museum. It’s part of his cultural legacy, a prized tradition among French leaders that still holds sway. FRIEZE FRENZY. The first day of sales is in for Frieze Los Angeles, which runs through March 1, and ARTnews’ Brian Boucher has all the stats from the VIP Day that saw plenty of schmoozing from New Yorkers swapping the snow for California’s sun. LA dealer Charlie James, standing amid works by Kristopher Raos and Manuel López, summed up the enthusiastic mood …
