Art news round-up

A very happy new year to everyone! Despite the excitement of the festivities, there were some interesting stories from the last few days of the old year as well as the beginning of the new, and a collection of the some of them can be found below:

News stories from the art world:

Germany firmly refuses to return their star Nefertiti bust to Egypt http://bit.ly/4GSnpP

Another clue to the mystery of Van Gogh’s missing ear http://bit.ly/4LaIbt

Top 10 biggest art auction sales of 2009 http://bit.ly/5V6kHc

UK government announces fund to boost creative young people in the arts http://bit.ly/7mqKVQ

Once bestselling Hirst and Koons see their work plummet at auction http://bit.ly/5cuR9q

Popular stories from the week:

“Art adds” to the NY experience as taxis take contemporary art for a spin round the city http://bit.ly/7mIn4U

Landscape artist buys cliff-side house to film it falling into the sea http://bit.ly/4X8eDj

Sand dunes turn out to be strikingly beautiful when seen from above http://bit.ly/7Mc4Ox

Picasso’s ‘Little Guitar’ is unearthed – in an old shoebox http://bit.ly/5pjctl

Come into my parlor, said the spider to the fly – and tempted it in with attractive decorations http://bit.ly/5oHAoi

Time-traveling images; photos that merge past and present http://bit.ly/8qqYWY