— Aspen Art Museum Stands by Lance Armstrong: Nike, Anheuser-Busch, Trek, and other major corporate sponsors may have dropped disgraced bike-rider/doping mastermind Lance Armstrong, but one institution is standing by him: the Aspen Art Museum. The museum's director, Heidi Zuckerman Jacobson, confirmed that the embattled cyclist would remain on its board of directors. "Lance Armstrong is an active member of the Aspen Art Museum board of trustees since 2011," she said. "He is, and will continue to be an excellent board member and citizen in our community." [Aspen Times]

— Pompidou President Bemoans Zidane Statue Outcry: Following the publication of an open letter signed by the presidents of more than 30 soccer clubs throughout France encouraging French soccer star Zinedine Zidane to demand the removal of a statue by Adel Abdessemed portraying his infamous headbutting of Italian player Marco Materazzi during the World Cup final from the plaza outside the Centre Pompidou, the instutition's president cried foul. "I am shocked by this demand," Alain Seban said. "It is nothing more or less than a call for censorship. I cannot believe that they would want to prevent artists from creating." [AFP]

— Detroit Gets $20-Million Arts Boost: Miami's John S. and James L. Knight Foundation is planning a series of major donations to Motor City arts institutions totaling $20 million, about half of which will be split between the city's heavyweight organizations — the Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Michigan Opera Theatre, and the Sphinx Organization will all receive at least $1 million — while the rest will go to smaller, community-based projects. "I think Detroit is potentially the most interesting city in America when it comes to the arts," Knight Foundation VP of arts Dennis Scholl said. "It's like Berlin — a city where artists go because studio space is inexpensive. But Detroit also has significant cultural assets like a symphony, opera and major museum, and you have people creating organic grassroots organizations that are young and lively and that draw the creative class." [Detroit Free Press]

— Rotterdam Loot's Value Disputed: In the wake of last week's theft of seven paintings by modern masters including Picasso, Monet, and Freud from Kunsthal Rotterdam, estimates of the works' value have varied wildly, from between $64-128 million, according to the Art Loss Register, $400 million according to the Independent. However, in light of newly released information about the works' size and media, $20-25.6 may be a more accurate estimation. [Telegraph]

— Chinese Dealer Detained in Spain: Chinese-born, Madrid-based art dealer Gao Ping has been jailed in Spain on suspicion of being one of the leaders of a money-laundering scheme involving more than 80 operatives using Chinese businesses in Spain to launder vast sums of money and even pieces of art. A vast police investigation, dubbed "Operation Emperor," netted 82 suspects, €10 million ($13 million) in cash, and more than 200 cars, jewels, and artworks. [AFP]

— Slapstick Comes to the Museum: An exhibition due to open next year at the Kunstmuseum Wolfsburg in northern Germany pairs the work of celebrated visual artists such as Bruce Nauman, John Bock, and Francis Alÿs with silent movie sequences from world-famous comedians like Charlie Chaplan, Buster Keaton, and Laurel & Hardy. "Artists have long been on the heels of the great comic masters and taken advantage of the cultural codes of slapstick," a rep from the museum explained. [TAN]

— Asia Week Appoints French Director: Noémie Bonnet has been appointed executive director of Asia Week New York, a collaboration of nearly 40 Asian art specialist galleries, auction houses, museums, and cultural institutions held every March. Formerly a consultant for the French-American Foundation, TED, YouTube, and Moleskine, among others, the 27-year-old Paris-born Bonnet will oversee branding, communications, and developments for the annual event. [Press Release]

— "I Engineer Experience," Says Anthony Gormley: Ahead of his exhibition at the new Sean Kelly gallery in New York, sculptor Anthony Gormley reflects on a recent installation in Helsinki where he installed a 100-ton mass of clay in the middle of a well-lit, humid space and required visitors to remain there for four-hour stretches. "There was a bunch of crazy French people who took all their clothes off and started behaving in a slightly destructive way," he recalled. "But, actually, everybody thought they were quite funny and when they weren't funny any more, they were made to feel it. We had to have two psychiatrists to make sure no one went nuts." [New Scientist]

— Bearden's Legacy Gets a Boost: Romare Bearden's closest friend, Russel L. Goings, has one of the largest collections of the artist's work, much of which has never been shown in public. Now, he's preparing to disperse it, beginning with an exhibition of dozens of watercolors and mixed-media works at the 92nd Street Y in New York. "I’ve got to go meet Bearden," Goings said of his motivation to sell the collection. "You know what he’ll say to me: 'What did you do with my stuff?' I’ve got to be able to face him." [NYT]