• The Living Coasts zoo and aquarium in Torquay, England, is home to an educational exhibition called “Tamed," which includes work by Damien Hirst. The artist’s Mother and Child Divided – a formaldehyde-preserved, bisected cow and calf – is on display until August 30. From The Art Newspaper. • It has been reported that the security offices at Shanghai’s World Expo have employed the services of “art spies” to seek out and report controversial artwork and exhibits. There have already been minor conflicts at over-crowded pavilions, and the Chinese government maintains that censorship aids in the successful presentation of the Expo. Read more about this story here. • Sydney’s 17th Biennale closed on Sunday, and attendance figures showed that over half a million people attended the two and a half month art fair and exposition. Chief Executive Officer Marah Braye called the Biennale “the most successful exhibition ever presented by the organization and has received an overwhelmingly positive critical response – both nationally and internationally.” Check out the full article at Art Knowledge News. • New York art dealer Lawrence Salander was sentenced yesterday to 6-18 years in federal prison for grand larceny and fraud. Salander-O’Reilly Galleries on the Upper East Side filed for bankruptcy three years ago, and Salander pleaded guilty earlier this year to stealing $120 million from clients and investors. From ArtForum. • British artist Jess Flood-Paddock has created a “sculptural scenario” for her first solo exhibition at a major institution (London’s Southbank Centre). The show, entitled Gangsta’s Paradise, is said to explore “historical and cultural specificity of moral behavior, populist self-help texts, the links between anthropology and infotainment, and the comedy and tragedy of scale - specifically gigantism.” More about the show can be found at e-flux.

Tags: Contemporary Art, Damien Hirst, Jess Flood-Paddock, Lawrence Salander, Shanghai World Expo, Sydney Biennale