The Italian artist who sails from the Island of Elba to Saint Helena: talking about power and making a film

L’artista italiano che parte dall’Isola d’Elba in barca a vela per raggiungere Sant’Elena: si parla di potere e si gira un film

Italian artist Luca Vitone (born Genoa, 1964) has launched a project titled "Pro Tempore," which involves a two-month sailing journey from the Island of Elba—Napoleon Bonaparte's first place of exile—to the remote island of Saint Helena, where Napoleon died in exile. The voyage, aboard the boat Adriatica, includes four intermediate stops (Balearic Islands, Algeciras, Canary Islands, Cape Verde) and is funded by the 14th edition of the Italian Council grant, in partnership with the Fondazione Oelle. The project explores the concept of temporary power and uses Napoleon's biography and the sea as metaphors for control and instability.

Ferris State alum and rising artist Jackson Wrede continues emergence with inaugural solo exhibition

Ferris State University Kendall College of Art and Design alum Jackson Wrede held his first solo exhibition, "Menagerie," at the Birmingham Bloomfield Art Center earlier this year. The show featured 25 recent paintings spanning realist portraits, landscapes, still lifes, and symbolist works inspired by Japanese art and pop culture. Wrede, who earned his MFA in 2021, has quickly gained recognition, winning the Quinquagenary Grand Prize at the Swope Art Museum’s 79th Wabash Valley Exhibition and the Grand Prize at the 44th Michigan Fine Arts Competition, which led to this solo opportunity. He also received a Certificate of Excellence in the Portrait Society of America’s International Portrait Competition and first place in the PSA’s 2024 Members Only competition.

South Coast Artists exhibition brings 112 works to Gallery X

The 2026 Members’ Invitational Exhibition organized by South Coast Artists Inc. is now on view at Gallery X in New Bedford, Massachusetts, through May 16. The show features 112 works by 61 artists selected from nearly 200 active members, spanning media such as photography, fiber, encaustic, porcelain, cyanotype, pastel, acrylic, oil, watercolor, mixed media, printmaking, digital art on metal, and found-object assemblages. Awards were presented at the opening reception on April 25, with first place going to Dot Bergen, second to Serena Parente Charlebois, and third to Robert Abele; juror’s choice awards were given to Diana Azevedo-Carns, Lindsey Epstein, and Heather Stivison, selected by independent juror Catherine Carter.

Local artist’s new exhibit captures Florida’s quiet contradictions

Painter Bill Gallagher opens his solo exhibition “The State of Florida” on May 2 at Jane’s Art Center in New Smyrna Beach, featuring a new body of realistic oil paintings that capture everyday Florida scenes—cafés, coastlines, parking lots, sidewalks, and public spaces. The works explore subtle tensions between presence and distraction, connection and isolation, using a classical realist approach to transform the state into a psychological stage. Gallagher, who began exhibiting in his 20s in New York, Orlando, Los Angeles, and Milan, left the gallery world for a successful advertising career before returning to painting two years ago, earning multiple awards including first place at the Artists’ Workshop NSB Members Show for his painting “Release.”

Beloved Arts Gallery In The Woodlands Wants You To Look Through Glass — Showcasing a Vital Material

Ardest Gallery in The Woodlands, Texas, is presenting "Thresholds," a juried exhibition curated by Austin-based glass artist Malina Cipleu, running through May 30. The show features kiln-formed glass works from Texas artists, with first place awarded to Deborah Ellington for "Encased in Time III," second place to Mary Torres for "Polka Dot Jungle," and third place to Sandi Neiman for "River Dreams." Gallery owner Julie Verville hosted the opening and awarded ribbons, while Cipleu's curatorial statement explores glass as a material of transition and connection.