– Mystery Companion for "Origin of the World": An amateur art buff claims he's found a previously unknown companion to Gustave Courbet's most notorious work, "The Origin of the World." The new painting of a woman's head tipped back in ecstasy has allegedly been authenticated by Jean-Jacques Fernier, the world's leading Courbet expert, and will be included in the next edition of his catalogue raisonné. The owner purchased the painting from a small antiques dealer in 2010 for £1,200; it is now estimated to be worth £35 million. Rumor has it Courbet originally split up the pieces to protect his model and to appeal to his buyer, who only wanted the risqué portion. The Telegraph also claims that "two other parts of the painting may still be at large, including one in which the model's hand holds a fluttering parakeet, symbol of eroticism." Is this tall tale too good to be true? [Telegraph] 

– 303 Gallery Moving, Representing Kassay: The developer who bought 303 Gallery's West 21st Street building in December plans to level it and the former studio spaces next door to build a 19-story condo tower in their place. While that's under construction, gallery owner Lisa Spellman will move her operation to a space beneath the High Line on West 24th Street; she'll move back into the two bottom floors of the high-rise when it is completed in 2015. With the change of location comes a changer in roster: 303 has just signed white hot art market star Jacob Kassay, who was formerly represented by Eleven Rivington and is currently enjoying a major solo show two blocks south at the Kitchen. [Bloomberg]

– Dylan's Big Easy Paintings Show in Milan: Musician-turned-appropriation artist Bob Dylan recently attended the opening of an exhibition of his paintings in Milan's Palazzo Reale, the former city hall, which was organized by the mayor's office and features 23 paintings of New Orleans he created — from photographs — between 2008 and 2011. "Each work is a fragment of a larger story," the the mayor's office explained, "and each image is halfway between a dream and memory." [AFP]

– Meet MoMA's Poet Laureate: The Awl sits down with Kenneth Goldsmith, the Museum of Modern Art's first-ever poet laureate. Goldsmith discusses his appropriationist style — his poems include transcriptions of radio and newspaper reports — as well as what it was like to meet the Obamas. "When I was invited to read at the White House, I wondered aloud to a colleague whether if, asked by the G.W. Bush administration to read, would I have accepted? To which my colleague responded, 'Kenny, you never would've been asked to read at the G.W. Bush White House.'" [The Awl]

– Menil Mechanics Uncover Chamberlain Bumper Sticker: Conservationists at the Menil Collection working on a set of 12 John Chamberlain sculptures made of twisted car carcasses not only rediscovered the junked autos' original, vibrant colors, but also came across unexpected details tucked into the metal folds. One was a New York Giants bumper sticker from the 1960s. "These are juicy, rich pieces... bright colours and chrome, side by side," said project leader Brad Epley. "It was great to reacquaint ourselves with the surfaces that Chamberlain must have seen originally." [TAN]

– Turner Winner Takes Over London Tube: Mark Wallinger, the winner of the Turner Prize in 2007, has created 270 artworks portraying labyrinths, one of which will be installed on an enamel panel in each of the London Underground's stations for the tube's sesquicentennial. The first 10 maze panels, each of which depicts a different path tailored to its particular station, were unveiled today. "The Underground has been part of my life since childhood," Wallinger said. "It’s surely every artist's dream to create a permanent work that will be encountered by so many of people and this opportunity is especially close to my heart." [Telegraph]

– Walker and ArtPrize Join Forces: The Walker Art Center is teaming up with ArtPrize organizers to find a deserving Minnesota-based artist to sponsor for the annual "American Idol"-style art competition. At an upcoming "ArtPrize Pitch Night," local artists will get five minutes each to pitch their work to a panel of five jurors, who will select their favorite. The winner gets $5,000 toward the cost of materials, travel, and entry into the Grand Rapids, Michigan contest. [Michigan Live]

– What Did Mozart Look Like?: Researchers in Salzburg, Austria are working hard to determine exactly what Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart actually looked like. The International Mazarteum Foundation has assembled 12 of the 14 extant images of the composer created during his lifetime. As it turns out, some portraits thought for decades to be of the classical musician were in fact of someone entirely different. "It’s an emotional question," said Gabriele Ramsauer, director of the foundation. "Mozart is such a universal genius. Everybody knows him. Everybody takes part of his life." [NYT]

– A Level-Headed MOCA Account: Bob Colacello takes to the pages of Vanity Fair to assess the state of things at the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art. What do we learn? The rumored merger with USC is still in the preliminary stages, but some board members what to reconsider a partnership with LACMA. And longtime chief curator Paul Schimmel's departure is still a bruise for many involved with the institution: "I’ve always liked [director] Jeffrey [Deitch], but I resented them letting Paul Schimmel go, because he was like a flashlight in the dark," said artist and former board member Ed Ruscha. [Vanity Fair]

– Sotheby's Canada Quits Live Auctions: Toronto-based Sotheby's Canada will stop holding live auctions after 45 years to focus on private sales, leaving the long-dominant Vancouver-based auction house Heffel Fine Art and Toronto's Joyner Waddington as the only two major live auctioneers of Canadian art. "[Private sales] is the growth area of this business; it’s not the auction part that’s profitable," Sotheby’s Canada president David Silcox said. "We actually want to operate only at the high level … with our highest transacting clients … and we’ll be more profitable because of it." [Globe and Mail]

VIDEO OF THE DAY

Recreating Courbet's "The Origin of the World"

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