— Michael Jackson's Chimp Shows Paintings in Miami: Two abstract expressionist paintings by Bubbles, the chimpanzee who belonged to late pop star Michael Jackson and now lives at the Center for Great Apes north of Miami, are on sale for $1,500 during Art Basel Miami Beach as part of "Endangered," an exhibition at the Miami Club Rum Distillery benefiting the ape sanctuary, for which each of its 44 pensioners' upkeep costs $20,000 per year. "He’s had a really tough time," said the center's communications coordinator Casey Taylor. "He didn’t know how to be a chimp. There’s a serious social structure with these animals — you have to know the chimp rules. He mentally shut down." [Bloomberg]

— Thieves Jailed Over Henry Moore Theft: Liam Hughes, 22, and Jason Parker, 19, have been sentenced to a year of jail each for stealing a Henry Moore sundial worth £500,000 ($805,000) from Much Hadham's Henry Moore Foundation in July, and selling it for £46 ($74) to a scrap metal dealer. "This exercise required a little bit of thought, even if the planning was not especially sophisticated," said Judge Marie Catterson during the duo's sentencing. "In my judgment, these actions were utterly selfish thefts. You were selling these items for a pittance, for scrap, regardless of any damage or impact your actions might have on others. You did it because you considered it easy pickings." [Independent]

— Damon Joins Clooney's Nazi Art Heist Blockbuster: Matt Damon is the latest addition to the star-studded cast of "The Monuments Men," a forthcoming period drama directed by George Clooney in which he and Damon will appear alongside Daniel Craig, Bill Murray, Cate Blanchett, and more, as a team of art historians and curators sent to Europe to recover priceless artworks stolen by the Nazis during the final day of Hitler's reign. The Sony Pictures and 20th Century Fox co-production is due to begin filming in Europe in January. [Deadline]

— USC and MoCA Mull Partnership: Los Angeles's embattled Museum of Contemporary Art and the University of Southern California are in the midst of preliminary talks to forge an alliance that USC provost Elizabeth Garrett said "would enhance the missions of both institutions." The partnership's exact nature remains a mystery, but it could certainly help remedy MoCA's funding problems: USC is in the midst of what it says is the biggest university fundraising effort ever, to generate $6 billion by 2018. [LATimes]

— 2012 Turner Prize Winner Pleads for Schools, Heads to Space: This year's Turner Prize winner Elizabeth Price has been outspoken in her criticism of the U.K.'s English Baccalaureate program, which would de-emphasize arts subjects, and of the widespread cuts to arts funding in the country, and now she's taking her message to the final frontier. She has just begun a year-long residency at the UK Space Agency, Britain's space exploration organization, during which she will be "focusing on the sun" for a video incorporating new and historical footage. [Guardian, TAN]

— Venice Biennale's Iraqi Pavilion Gets a Curator: Iraq's Ruya Foundation for Contemporary Culture, which is commissioning the country's pavilion at next year's Venice Biennale, has selected Ikon Gallery director Jonathan Watkins to curate its presentation at the Palazzo Dandolo, a group show of Iraqi artists. "As much as possible the Iraq Pavilion will embody the nature of everyday life as it is lived now in Iraq — both within and beyond the art world there, such as it is," Watkins said. "We envisage a celebration of creativity in all forms, at every level of society." [Press Release]

— John Lennon's Son Selling Photos in Miami: Julian Lennon, the oldest son of late Beatle John Lennon, is in Miami for this week's art fairs, where he's selling his melancholic photo series "Alone" — its pieces priced between $3,500-$5,500 — with proceeds benefiting his humanitarian and conservation charity, the White Feather Foundation. "Whatever work I do, I've always put at least ten percent aside (for) my foundation," Lennon said. "What we're trying to do here, and that's why I'm so happy to be part of this, is we're trying to make everybody else see that. Because there is a lot of money, obviously. And the idea is to put it back in schools." [Telegraph]

— Jaume Plensa Wins Spain's National Art Prize: The Spanish Ministry of Culture has named Barcelona-based conceptual sculptor Jaume Plensa the winner of this year's National Plastic Arts Award of Spain, just in time for the debut of his latest public artworks at Art Basel Miami Beach and the major survey of his work currently on view at Helsinki's Espoo Museum of Modern Art. The award's committee recognized Plensa for his "use of language as a means of reflection and his concern for the humanization of urban space." [Press Release]

— Myanmar Bans Street Art: A sweeping new ban on graffiti in Yangon, the largest city in Myanmar, went into effect on Monday, and prohibits anyone from drawing on a public building, road, bridge, or in a park or school, though the exact punishment violators would face remains unspecified. "I cannot complain about the ban because many countries have such regulations," said street artist Arker Kyaw. "But the prohibition doesn't stop graffiti artists. The psychology of young people is the urge to do something more when it is prohibited ... Authorities should allow graffiti artists to paint in appropriate public spaces." [AP]