spring 2025 nyc art fairs guide

Spring 2025 in New York City brings a dense calendar of art fairs, headlined by Frieze New York at The Shed (May 7–11) with over 65 galleries from 25 countries, and Independent at Spring Studios (May 8–11) which this year surpasses Frieze in size with 85 exhibitors. Other notable fairs include the 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair celebrating its 10th year with a focus on the Caribbean diaspora, the experimental SPRING/BREAK Art Show, and NADA New York featuring 120 galleries and a spotlight on Texas and Mexico. The guide also mentions newer showcases like Esther II and Conductor, offering a comprehensive overview for collectors and art enthusiasts navigating the city's art week.

Frida Kahlo: Making of an Icon

frida kahlo making of an icon

The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, has launched a major exhibition titled "Frida Kahlo: Making of an Icon," which explores the artist's transformation from a relatively unknown figure during her lifetime into a global cultural phenomenon. Curated by Mari Carmen Ramírez, the show features over 200 objects related to "Frida mania" alongside works by 80 contemporary artists who have been influenced by her legacy. The exhibition traces her life from her childhood in Mexico City and her tumultuous relationship with Diego Rivera to her emergence as a symbol for various social movements.

tishan hsu paintings ai bodies lisson gallery

Tishan Hsu, a 74-year-old artist who began creating abstract paintings with sculptural elements in the 1980s, has recently gained significant recognition. His first-ever museum survey was held at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles in 2020, followed by his debut at the Venice Biennale in 2022. Now, Hsu is showing new works at Lisson Gallery in New York through January 24, his first exhibition with the gallery after joining its roster. These paintings on wood boards incorporate artificial intelligence, a tool Hsu has embraced to generate surreal imagery that merges skin, organs, and natural forms, alongside a video created using a gaming engine.

art busan 2025

Art Busan wrapped its 14th edition on a high note, with over 100 galleries participating and a special exhibition titled “CONNECT” curated by Wonseok Koh under the theme Territories and Boundaries. The fair, part of Busan Art Week, saw strong engagement from international galleries such as Société (Berlin) and Canada (New York), with directors noting maturing visitors and serious local collectors. A new partnership with Tokyo Gendai will bring 10 Korean galleries to Japan this September, and the fair debuted a Future Art Award for emerging galleries.

‘This scene is alive’: Abidjan art week showcases city as growing cultural hub

The third edition of Abidjan Art Week recently concluded in Côte d’Ivoire, featuring extended gallery hours, bus tours, and exhibitions across diverse neighborhoods from the administrative Plateau district to the working-class area of Abobo. The event saw a significant expansion this year, with the number of participating galleries more than doubling and featuring artists from across the continent, including Cameroon, Mali, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Where to go on Pentecost weekend?

Wohin am Pfingstwochenende?

This article from Monopol presents a curated guide to art exhibitions and events across several European cities for the Pentecost weekend. Highlights include Christina Kubisch's comprehensive survey 'The Emergence of Sound' at the Ludwig Forum Aachen, Pierre Huyghe's solo show at the Fondation Beyeler in Basel, an artist talk with Jorinde Voigt at Galerie Judin in Berlin, the outdoor exhibition 'Ecologies in Motion' in Düsseldorf's Malkastenpark, Elmgreen & Dragset's intervention at the Städel Museum and Liebieghaus in Frankfurt, and 'Eine Stadt als Atelier' at the Kölnischer Kunstverein in Cologne, among others in Ludwigshafen, Warsaw, and Vienna.

22 art exhibitions in L.A. to look forward to in 2026

Los Angeles is set for a major year in visual arts in 2026, with 22 notable exhibitions and events planned across the city. Highlights include the opening of the world’s first AI arts museum (Dataland), the long-awaited Lucas Museum, Yoko Ono’s first solo show in L.A., and the LA Art Show featuring Sylvester Stallone’s abstract works and a new Latin American Pavilion. Other exhibitions include a Selena retrospective at the Grammy Museum and a video art survey at the historic Variety Arts Theater.

shanghai art week 2025

Shanghai Art Week 2025 is underway, anchored by two major concurrent art fairs: Art021 Shanghai and West Bund Art and Design, running from November 13 to 16. West Bund has relocated to a new venue, the West Bund Convention Center designed by Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill, featuring over 200 participants including 106 galleries in its main sector. Art021 returns to the Shanghai Exhibition Center with 139 galleries from 22 countries, including 33 first-time participants. The Shanghai Biennale opened early at the Power Station of Art, curated by Kitty Scott under the title "Does the Flower Hear the Bee?" featuring 67 artists and collectives. Meanwhile, alternative events like "Artist's Treat," launched by Xu Zhen in collaboration with Hol Platform and ShanghArt Gallery, are drawing attention in repurposed local spaces.

art pulled from print tishan hsu artist emergence

Tishan Hsu, a 74-year-old artist based in Brooklyn, is the subject of a feature article discussing his 40-year career exploring the boundary between the virtual and the physical. His current exhibition, "Emergence," at Lisson Gallery in New York (through Jan. 24), presents new biomorphic UV prints with silicone appendages that evoke fingers penetrating a computer screen. Hsu's interest in this territory began in the mid-1980s while working as a word processor on Wall Street, and his practice has consistently sought to give form to the paradox between bodily presence and virtual distance.

Exhibitions Coming to West Texas & the Panhandle in Spring 2026

Art museums and institutions across West Texas and the Panhandle have announced their spring 2026 exhibition seasons. Highlights include the LHUCA Review (formerly the LHUCA Members' Show) and Laura Veles Drey's installation "Passerby: Americana" at the Louise Hopkins Underwood Center for the Arts in Lubbock; "A Texas Legacy: Gifts from the Bill and Mary Cheek Collection" and the San Angelo North American Ceramic Competition featuring Marc Leuthold at the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts; and three exhibitions at the Stanlee and Gerald Rubin Center for the Visual Arts at UTEP in El Paso, including "The Edge is a Center" showcasing graphic design from the U.S.-Mexico borderlands, "Les Sembrantes" by artists from La Semilla Food Center's fellowship, and Cynthia Gutierrez-Krapp's solo show "Strangers In Our Own Land."

Hmm, what shall we see at Paris Photo 2025?

Paris Photo 2025, the 28th edition of the international photography fair, returns to the Grand Palais from 13-16 November, hosting 179 galleries from 33 countries. Artistic director Anna Planas emphasizes a program spanning photography's full history, from 19th-century works to contemporary digital and blockchain-based pieces. Highlights include a solo installation by Hasselblad Award winner Sophie Ristelhueber, a darkroom demonstration by photographer Renato D'Agostin, and the 'Emergence' sector featuring Prix Maison Ruinart winner Marine Lanier. The fair also offers conversations, performances, and book signings with artists like Todd Hido and Wolfgang Tillmans, plus an exhibition of Latin American photography from the Estrellita B Brodsky collection.

As Art X Lagos opens, Nigeria's next generation of artists emerges

Art X Lagos, the art fair founded by Tokini Peterside-Schwebig in 2016, opens for its tenth edition from November 6-9, anchoring Lagos Art Week. The fair features a group show at Kó Art Space spotlighting artists inspired by the Oshogbo School, a 1960s Nigerian movement, and Tiwani Contemporary presents sculptural works by Lagos-based designer Nifemi Marcus-Bello, his first exhibition in Nigeria. The Guest Artists Space (GAS) Foundation, established by British-Nigerian artist Yinka Shonibare, adds talks, workshops, and cultural exchange programs, contributing to a vibrant, sprawling art week across the city.

All the new galleries and art spaces opening in Milan in 2025

Milan is experiencing a surge in new gallery and art space openings in 2025, signaling its emergence as a strategic destination for contemporary art. Notable developments include the arrival of Thaddaeus Ropac's gallery, announced in January 2025, alongside openings such as Scaramouche, Limbo, Una/Castiglioni, and Romero Paprocki. These spaces are establishing long-term investments in the city's urban fabric, with exhibitions featuring artists like James Brown, Ludovica Anversa, Federico Arani, Leilei Wu, Valentina Furian, Alessandro Carano, Kaï-Chun Chang, Max Coulon, and Jordan Madlon.

art abu dhabi focus nigeria turkey

Abu Dhabi Art returns in 2025 with 142 galleries from 34 countries, introducing two new Focus sectors: Focus: Nigeria Spotlight and Focus: Modern Türkiye. The Nigeria section, curated by Tola Akerele, features seven galleries including kò, SOTO Gallery, and O’DA Gallery, showcasing artists like Samuel Nnorom, Bara Sketchbook, and Rufus Ogundele. Focus: Modern Türkiye, curated by Doris Benhalegua Karako, presents modern masters such as Fahrelnissa Zeid, Burhan Doğançay, and Gülsün Karamustafa through Istanbul-based galleries including DG Art Gallery and Projects, Art on Istanbul Gallery, and BüroSarıgedik.

art basel paris 2025 exhibitor list

Art Basel Paris has announced the 203 galleries participating in its 2025 edition, set to take place at the Grand Palais from October 24–26, with VIP previews on October 22–23. The fair is divided into three sections: the main Galeries section with 177 dealers, Emergence featuring 16 solo booths for emerging artists, and Premise with nine presentations from 10 galleries challenging the art historical canon. Notable blue-chip participants include Gagosian, Hauser & Wirth, Pace Gallery, David Zwirner, and top Parisian galleries such as Balice Hertling, Galerie Chantal Crousel, and Mennour. The fair will also bring back its Oh La La! Initiative and public art exhibition in the Jardin des Tuileries.

Sara Shamma on Representing Syria at the 61st Venice Biennale

Sara Shamma will represent Syria at the 61st Venice Biennale (2026) with a large-scale immersive installation titled *The Tower Tomb of Palmyra*. The 15-meter-high multisensory work combines painting, architecture, light, sound, and scent, inspired by the ancient funerary towers of Palmyra that were destroyed during the Syrian War. Shamma describes the piece as a reflection on loss, resilience, and cultural memory, and notes its resonance with the Biennale's theme, *In Minor Keys*, curated by Koyo Kouoh.

Top Hudson Valley Art Exhibitions to See in January 2026

The article surveys five notable art exhibitions opening in the Hudson Valley region in January 2026, each exploring how artists connect to place, time, and memory. Shows include "Earth Endures, Stars Abide" at Carrie Haddad Gallery, featuring five painters interpreting local landscapes; "Notes from Here" at O+ Exchange, presenting intimate works by 15 O+ artists; "Wish You Were Here" at the Tremaine Art Gallery, pairing Fern Apfel and Colleen McGuire in a meditation on memory and observation; and "Connecting Emergence" at Lace Mill Galleries, showcasing Paul Keskey's layered oil paintings of nature and imagination.

art new york chelsea exhibtion guide

The article surveys current Chelsea gallery exhibitions, highlighting two major shows: "Louise Bourgeois. Gathering Wool" at Hauser & Wirth (through April 2026) and "Milton Avery: The Figure" at Karma (through December 2025). The Bourgeois exhibition features rarely seen works from the artist's last three decades, including the motorized sculpture "Twosome" (1991) and the fountain "Mamelles" (1991/2005), curated by Philip Larratt-Smith. The Avery show presents a survey of his figure paintings from the 1920s to 1964, emphasizing his flat, interlocking forms and unexpected color palettes.

Lenz Geerk’s Theatre of the Mind: painting as regulation of appearance

Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo in Turin presents "Theatre of the Mind," the first Italian institutional solo exhibition by German-born painter Lenz Geerk. The show features recent works from 2022 to 2024, exploring painting as a perceptual device where figures, objects, and domestic interiors exist in unstable, unresolved configurations. Installation views by Giorgio Perrottino accompany the exhibition, which runs at the foundation's space.

Milano Art Week 2026 Tops and Flops: The Best and Worst of the Art Week

Milano Art Week 2026 top e flop: il meglio e il peggio della settimana dell’arte

The 2026 edition of Milano Art Week, anchored by the 30th anniversary of the miart fair, presented a mixed bag of organizational shifts and high-quality artistic programming. Key highlights included the successful Milanese debut of Paris Internationale at Palazzo Galbani and the emergence of new cultural hubs like Mulino Factory, which continue Milan's trend of repurposing industrial heritage. However, the primary fair's relocation to the Allianz MiCo South Wing drew criticism for its labyrinthine layout and logistical hurdles despite the scenic park setting.

A New Space Built to Replicate an Old-Fashioned Art Salon

The New York Times highlights the emergence of a new physical art space designed to emulate the intimate, conversational atmosphere of traditional 19th-century European salons. Moving away from the sterile 'white cube' aesthetic of modern galleries, this venue prioritizes domestic-scale viewing and intellectual exchange among artists, collectors, and critics.

Indonesia's 'scarred' art scene regroups following nationwide protests

Art Jakarta's 2024 edition (October 3-5) took place just weeks after nationwide anticorruption protests swept Indonesia and spread to other countries. The fair's director Tom Tandio noted that the demonstrations left a "scar" on the local art community, which had been vocal in organizing donations, attending protests, and sharing digital posters on social media. Despite low expectations due to economic uncertainty, the fair proceeded with new galleries like Ara Contemporary, which sold about 70% of its stand on opening day, featuring politically charged works such as Agung Harahap's manipulated photographs and Irfan Hendrian's paper installations referencing the 1998 anti-Chinese riots. The fair also overlapped with ruangrupa's 25th anniversary exhibition, which included interactive projects and talks promoting sociopolitical engagement.

New exhibition explores how Max Beckmann's hard-edged signature style first emerged in his drawing

An exhibition opening at Frankfurt's Städel Museum focuses on Max Beckmann's drawings, featuring 80 works that trace the emergence of his hard-edged signature style. Curated by Regina Freyberger, Stephan von Wiese, and Hedda Finke, the show spans from before World War I to the artist's final years in the US, including loans from major collections. It highlights how Beckmann's drawing evolved from preparatory studies to autonomous artworks, with key pieces like a 1928 portrait of his wife Quappi and the eerie watercolor 'The Murder' (1933).

Memorial Art Gallery Announces Frontiers of Impressionism: Paintings from the Worcester Art Museum Opening Nov. 2

The Memorial Art Gallery (MAG) in Rochester, NY, will present "Frontiers of Impressionism: Paintings from the Worcester Art Museum" from November 2, 2025, through March 1, 2026. The exhibition features fifty-two masterworks from the Worcester Art Museum's collection, including Claude Monet's 1908 painting "Nymphéas (Water Lilies)"—the first water lily painting ever purchased by an art museum. More than thirty European and American artists are represented, such as Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Camille Pissarro, Mary Cassatt, Childe Hassam, and John Singer Sargent.

Albanian dictator’s fortress-like palace becomes ‘hub for artistic experimentation’

Vila 31, a Brutalist compound in Tirana that once served as the fortress-like residence of Albanian dictator Enver Hoxha, has been transformed into an artistic hub called Vila 31—Art Explora. Opened in April by the Paris-based Art Explora Foundation, the site now hosts up to 30 international artists annually for residencies and experimentation, with programming developed in collaboration with the École nationale supérieure d’arts de Paris-Cergy, the Museum of Contemporary Art Skopje, and Oral History Kosovo. The conversion, led by NeM Architectes, preserves key elements of the original structure while radically reimagining its interior, turning a symbol of repression into a center for creative freedom.

Rejected by Museums Around the World, This New Art Exhibition Explores the Historical Roots of the Term 'Homosexual'

An ambitious new exhibition titled “The First Homosexuals: The Birth of a New Identity, 1869-1939” has opened at Chicago’s Wrightwood 659 gallery, featuring over 300 works by more than 125 artists from 40 countries. Curated by Jonathan D. Katz, the show traces the historical roots of the term 'homosexual,' coined in 1868 by Hungarian writer Karl Maria Kertbeny, and explores the artistic and social transformations surrounding the emergence of homosexual identity up to 1939. The exhibition includes loans from major institutions like the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Musée d’Orsay, with works by artists such as George Catlin, Jean Cocteau, John Singer Sargent, and Thomas Eakins, organized into eight thematic sections.

Could 17th-century Italy provide a useful model for today’s challenging art market?

An exhibition at Nicholas Hall Gallery in New York, titled "Beyond the Fringe," explores the understudied early art market of 17th-century Italy, featuring 30 works on loan from public and private collections. The show highlights how barbers, tailors, innkeepers, and other tradespeople became part-time art dealers, while a decentralized network of collectors and middlemen emerged alongside foreign artists in Rome, such as the Bentvueghels, who produced new genres like landscape and genre scenes. The exhibition and its catalogue, with new research by art historians Patrizia Cavazzini and Caterina Volpi, trace the rise of art as an alternative asset class independent of traditional aristocratic and ecclesiastical patronage.

London Gallery Weekend 2025: must-see shows for digital art lovers

London Gallery Weekend (LGW) 2025 features a strong digital art focus, with must-see shows by artists including Auriea Harvey, Tyler Hobbs, Beeple, and Robert Alice. Highlights include Beeple's interactive video sculpture *Tree of Knowledge* at the first South By Southwest London festival, LoVid's 25-year exploration of video and hand-stitched textiles at Gazelli Art House, David Salle's AI-assisted paintings at Thaddaeus Ropac, and Máté Orr's digital-first folklore paintings at JD Malat Gallery. The festival, where *The Art Newspaper* moderated a panel, underscores London's emergence as a digital art capital.

UAE unveils ‘Washwasha’ at Venice Biennale

The article reports on the UAE Pavilion's presentation at the Biennale Arte 2026 in Venice, titled 'Washwasha'. It also covers several art exhibitions in Dubai, including 'In Abstracto, In Concreto' at Efie Gallery featuring artists like Tunji Adeniyi-Jones and Ludovic Nkoth, the 'White' faculty exhibition at XVA Gallery, and the inaugural exhibition at Tatintisian Gallery's new Dubai space with works by Ron Arad, Peter Saul, and Tony Matelli. Additionally, it mentions a book of the week and a photo of the UAE Pavilion.

Gallery showcases artists in their element

Qualia Contemporary Art in Palo Alto is currently hosting two concurrent exhibitions, "Emergence" and "Tidal Traces," featuring the work of Yulia Pinkusevich, Cathy Lu, and Stella Zhang. The shows explore the four classical elements—fire, earth, air, and water—through a diverse range of media including large-scale ceramic incense sculptures, paintings incorporating charcoal and ash, and mixed-media works inspired by oceanic tides.