Art News. Vasari Codex

museum exhibitions schedule Apr 11, 2026 visibility 43 link 15 artists, 9 galleries

can slimmed down expo chicago still throw weight around

The 15th edition of Expo Chicago, scheduled for April 9–12, marks a significant transition as the fair's first outing under new director Kate Sierzputowski and its third since being acquired by Frieze. The upcoming edition features a streamlined roster of approximately 130 galleries, a 25 percent decrease from previous years. While blue-chip giants like Gagosian and Zwirner are absent, the fair maintains a strong lineup including Karma, Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, and local mainstays like Monique Meloche, complemented by satellite events and a high-profile benefit directed by Maurizio Cattelan.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule May 21, 2026 visibility 39 link 46 artists, 8 galleries

Your Summer Guide: 20 Art World Highlights Not to Miss

ARTnews has published a summer guide highlighting 20 art world events and exhibitions not to miss in the coming months. Featured highlights include the opera 'El Último Sueño de Frida y Diego' at the Metropolitan Opera, the 'Costume Art' exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a Björk show titled 'echolalia' at the National Gallery of Iceland, a book on the Venice Biennale by Massimiliano Gioni, Raven Halfmoon's 'Flags of Our Mothers' at Ballroom Marfa, a Pierre Huyghe exhibition at Fondation Beyeler Basel, a James McNeill Whistler retrospective at Tate Britain, and the inaugural Medina Triennial in New York.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Apr 9, 2026 visibility 67 link 23 artists, 5 galleries

Chicago’s Obama Presidential Center has art at its core

The Obama Presidential Center is set to open on Chicago’s South Side on June 19, 2026. The $850m institution, designed by Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects, features more than 25 site-specific contemporary art commissions integrated into its architecture and 19.3-acre campus. Ahead of the opening, the museum has partnered with Expo Chicago to preview these works, which include monumental contributions from artists such as Julie Mehretu, Mark Bradford, and Nick Cave.

newspaper The Art Newspaper open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Apr 7, 2026 visibility 38 link 18 artists, 21 galleries

A renewed focus on rigour and connection at Expo Chicago

The 2026 edition of Expo Chicago marks a strategic shift under the leadership of new director Kate Sierzputowski, featuring a leaner roster of 130 galleries at Navy Pier. The fair has introduced a more spacious layout and a new curatorial role, filled by Essence Harden, to deepen institutional ties and scholarly rigor. Notable participants include local mainstays like Monique Meloche Gallery and Gray, alongside international exhibitors from South Korea, South Africa, and Nigeria, as well as high-profile New York newcomers like Karma.

newspaper The Art Newspaper open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Jan 27, 2026 visibility 37 link 5 artists, 95 galleries

expo chicago 2026 exhibitor list

Expo Chicago has announced the list of over 130 exhibitors for its 2026 edition, taking place April 9–12 at Navy Pier. The fair has been reduced by nearly 25 percent compared to 2025, with a smaller floor plan designed to foster deeper engagement. New features include a partnership with the Obama Presidential Center, whose museum director Louise Bernard will curate two sections, and the rebranding of the Exposure section as Focus, curated by Katie A. Pfohl. The Profile section will be curated by Essence Harden, and a continued partnership with the Galleries Association of Korea will bring 12 Korean galleries.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Feb 18, 2026 visibility 22 link 15 artists, 4 galleries

Must-see Chicago museum openings, exhibitions and events in 2026

Chicago's cultural institutions are preparing a diverse slate of exhibitions and openings for 2026. Highlights include the Art Institute of Chicago presenting Henri Matisse's complete 'Jazz' book of cutouts for the first time, a survey of Dominican artist Firelei Báez at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, the National Museum of Mexican Art exploring the history of Mexican railroad workers, and a costume design exhibition featuring Paul Tazewell's work at the Griffin Museum of Science and Industry. The year also features the grand opening of the Obama Presidential Center and a Barbara Nessim survey at the DePaul Art Museum.

newspaper Christie’s open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Dec 1, 2025 visibility 26 link 8 artists

richard hunt sculptor survey ica miami

The Institute of Contemporary Art Miami is opening "Richard Hunt: Pressure," the first institutional survey of the late sculptor since his death in 2023 at age 88. The exhibition, running through March during Miami Art Week, features 28 sculptures from 1955 to 2010, drawn from Hunt's seven-decade career in which he completed over 160 public commissions and 170 solo exhibitions. The show highlights Hunt's innovative use of industrial materials and abstract forms, while also exploring the dual meaning of "pressure"—both the physical force used in his metalworking and the societal pressures he faced as a Black artist during the Civil Rights era.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Aug 11, 2025 visibility 25 link 18 artists

aspen air festival 2025

The inaugural AIR festival took place in Aspen as part of Aspen Art Week, featuring a mix of talks, performances, and a closed-door retreat for artists, writers, scientists, and theorists. Highlights included a pack of panting huskies, a psychoanalysis talk in a psychedelic chapel, an artist conversing with his AI doppelganger, and a whispery musical performance on a museum rooftop. The festival kicked off with a film by Apichatpong Weerasethakul accompanied by composer Rafiq Bhatia, followed by discussions on dreaming and catastrophe, and site-responsive works by Jota Mombaça and Paul Chan.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Apr 3, 2026 source 4 sources visibility 24 link 20 artists, 8 galleries

Expo Chicago art fair returns with a ‘refined’ floor plan and Obama Center ties

Expo Chicago, the city's major international art fair, has opened its 2024 edition at Navy Pier with a redesigned floor plan intended to improve visitor flow and gallery visibility. The fair features over 170 galleries from 29 countries, with a notable contingent of Chicago-based exhibitors and a special section dedicated to art from the African diaspora.

newspaper WBEZ Chicago Also: Colossal open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Apr 10, 2026 visibility 26 link 9 artists, 7 galleries

The 5 Best Booths at EXPO Chicago 2026

The 2026 edition of EXPO Chicago opened at Navy Pier with a renewed sense of energy, marking its third year under Frieze ownership and its first under the leadership of director Kate Sierzputowski. Early reports from the VIP preview suggest a successful revitalization of the fair, which has successfully re-engaged longtime Midwestern collectors while simultaneously attracting a more robust international audience.

newspaper Artsy Editorial open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Apr 11, 2026 visibility 58 link 14 artists, 7 galleries

The Best Booths at Expo Chicago, From a 16th-Century Belgian Manuscript to a Painting of a Mariachi Band

The 13th edition of Expo Chicago has opened at Navy Pier with a streamlined selection of 130 international exhibitors. This year’s fair features a more curated and manageable scale, drawing a significant crowd of museum directors, curators, and collectors to the Windy City. Notable presentations range from contemporary Canadian artist duos to rare historical artifacts, reflecting a high bar for quality across diverse media.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Dec 5, 2025 visibility 22 link 7 artists, 1 gallery

Steely gaze: a look back at Richard Hunt’s early work at the Institute of Contemporary Art Miami

The Institute of Contemporary Art Miami has opened "Richard Hunt: Pressure," the largest survey to date of American sculptor Richard Hunt (1935-2023), focusing on his work from 1955 to 1989. The exhibition traces Hunt's evolution from self-taught welder at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago to a master of welded steel, featuring early pieces like *Telescopic Construction* (1955) and *Hero's Head* (1956), the latter created after attending Emmett Till's open-casket funeral. Co-curated by Gean Moreno and Alex Gartenfeld, the show highlights Hunt's negotiation between formal innovation and social awareness, with works that balance beauty and brutality.

newspaper The Art Newspaper open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Jan 27, 2026 visibility 33 link 8 artists, 33 galleries

Expo Chicago lines up 130 galleries for ‘a more focused’ fair

Expo Chicago, acquired by Frieze in 2023, will return to Navy Pier’s Festival Hall this April with around 130 galleries, a 23% reduction from the 170 exhibitors in recent editions. The fair frames this as a more focused, intentionally scaled format designed to deepen engagement, and it will be the first edition under new director Kate Sierzputowski, who succeeded longtime leader Tony Karman. The fair features a strong contingent of local Chicago dealers, international galleries from South Korea, Lagos, Milan, Dublin, and elsewhere, and partnerships with the Obama Presidential Center and the Galleries Association of Korea.

newspaper The Art Newspaper open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Apr 10, 2026 visibility 27 link 10 artists, 2 galleries

Who Do Chicago’s Art Fairs Serve?

Expo Chicago and its satellite fairs serve as a complex barometer for the Midwestern arts ecosystem, highlighting both the successes of local representation and the tensions of institutional growth. While galleries like Andrew Rafacz and Corbett vs. Dempsey demonstrate viable career paths for Chicago-based artists like Melissa Leandro and Gabrielle Garland, the fair's shifting structure reveals a narrowing field for smaller nonprofits.

newspaper Hyperallergic open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Jan 16, 2026 visibility 21 link 13 artists

theaster gates tapped for obama presidential center installation celebrating ebony and jet image archives

The Obama Foundation has commissioned artist Theaster Gates to create an expansive frieze for the Pendleton Atrium of the Obama Presidential Center (OPC), set to open on Chicago’s South Side in 2026. The installation will draw from the Johnson Publishing Company image archive and the Howard Simmons photographic collections, celebrating the visual archives of Ebony and Jet magazines. Gates, who founded the Rebuild Foundation in 2009, will join nine other artists—including Kiki Smith, Nick Cave, Marie Watt, Jenny Holzer, and Idris Khan—whose works were announced in September for the OPC campus.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Sep 11, 2025 visibility 23 link 15 artists

obama presidential center artist commissions jenny holzer nick cave

The Obama Presidential Center in Chicago has announced nine new commissions by ten artists for its 19.3-acre campus, set to open next spring. The commissioned works include a text-based sculpture spelling 'HOPE' by Jack Pierson, a bronze sculpture by Kiki Smith, a digital mural by Jules Julien, a textile-and-sound installation by Nick Cave and Marie Watt, paintings by Jenny Holzer and Idris Khan, a sculpture by Nekisha Durrett, a mural by Aliza Nisenbaum, and an outdoor bronze by Alison Saar. These join five previously announced commissions, with plans for over 25 site-specific works total.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule May 20, 2026 visibility 6 link 1 artist

For the Obama Center, Mark Bradford Paints a Fierce and Luminous Chicago

Mark Bradford has completed "City of the Big Shoulders," a monumental painting for the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago. The work, which took five years to create, maps migration patterns and structural racism, reflecting the city's strength and complexity through Bradford's signature abstract, layered style.

newspaper New York Times Art open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule May 20, 2026 visibility 11 link 18 artists

From Obama Presidential Center opening to Anne Frank to Pokemon: Chicago museums unveil ambitious summer exhibitions

Chicago museums have announced a slate of ambitious summer exhibitions, including the opening of the Obama Presidential Center, an Anne Frank exhibition, and a Pokemon-themed show. These exhibits span a range of cultural and historical topics, aiming to attract diverse audiences to the city's major cultural institutions.

newspaper Daily Herald open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Apr 10, 2026 visibility 35 link 4 artists

Cleveland Museum of Art opening ‘Martin Puryear: Nexus,’ a career survey

The Cleveland Museum of Art has launched "Martin Puryear: Nexus," the most comprehensive survey of the 84-year-old American sculptor’s work in nearly two decades. Co-organized with the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, the exhibition features approximately 50 pieces, including large-scale sculptures, drawings, and maquettes spanning 50 years of Puryear’s career. A unique feature of the show is the inclusion of diverse interpretations from various artists and architects, though many works are left intentionally open-ended to encourage personal viewer connection.

newspaper News-Herald open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Oct 1, 2025 visibility 21 link 9 artists

Artist Lindsay Adams explores Black experience and artistry in her latest exhibition

The Frary Gallery at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center in Washington, D.C., will host its first solo exhibition, titled "Ceremony," by award-winning painter Lindsay Adams, opening October 29. The show features paintings and drawings that explore Black histories, movement, and world-building, including a large diptych titled "Kind of Blue (1959)" inspired by Miles Davis' iconic album. Archival materials by Billie Holiday, Josephine Baker, and other Black artists from the Johns Hopkins Sheridan Libraries will also be on view to provide historical context.

newspaper Johns Hopkins University open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Apr 22, 2025 visibility 16 link 10 artists, 1 gallery

Spencer Finch and Lindsay Adams to create large-scale commissions for Obama Presidential Center

The Obama Presidential Center has commissioned new site-specific works by artists Spencer Finch and Lindsay Adams for its 19-acre campus in Chicago's Woodlawn neighborhood. Finch will create a wall tile installation inspired by the color palettes of Honolulu, Nairobi, Jakarta, and Chicago—cities formative to Barack Obama's life—while Adams will translate her 2024 painting "Weary Blues" into silkscreened fabric panels for the public cafe. The center, opening in the first half of 2026, will feature over 20 commissioned artworks, including previously announced pieces by Maya Lin, Richard Hunt, and Julie Mehretu.

newspaper The Art Newspaper open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Apr 10, 2026 visibility 19 link 3 artists

EXPO Chicago isn't just at Navy Pier this weekend

EXPO Chicago has returned to Navy Pier with a streamlined format of 130 booths, but the fair's influence is increasingly felt through satellite exhibitions across the city. A notable example is 'Neighbors,' an alternative exhibition space hosted in a Gold Coast apartment by Mirka Serrato, which provides a more affordable and intimate platform for 15 emerging galleries and artists from around the world.

newspaper Axios open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Jul 11, 2025 visibility 15 link 3 artists

New Exhibition on Richard Hunt, Chicago Sculptor Who Made Monuments for the Nation, Provides an Intimate Look

The Loyola University Museum of Art (LUMA) has opened "Freedom in Form: Richard Hunt," an exhibition showcasing the work of the late Chicago sculptor who created over 160 public monuments across the U.S. The show, which runs through Nov. 15, 2025, features sculptures, maquettes, tools, and selections from Hunt's personal library, offering an intimate view of his career. It premiered in 2024 at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library in Springfield, where it was organized after First Lady of Illinois M.K. Pritzker recommended Hunt. The exhibition includes early works like "Hero's Head" (1956), inspired by Emmett Till, and later pieces such as "Hero Ascending," planned for installation at the Emmett Till/Mamie Till-Mobley historic landmark home.

newspaper WTTW open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule May 26, 2026 visibility 7 link 7 artists

Take a Sneak Peek at Nick Cave and Marie Watt’s Obama Presidential Center Commission

Nick Cave and Marie Watt have collaborated on a multimedia textile installation commissioned for the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago's Jackson Park, set to open on Juneteenth. The piece, assembled in February, will be installed in the Center's lobby alongside works by Jenny Holzer, Jack Pierson, Kiki Smith, and Idris Khan. Virginia Shore, an independent advisor and curator, spearheaded the commissions, and Louise Bernard serves as the founding director of the Center's museum.

newspaper Cultured open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule May 25, 2026 visibility 7 link 6 artists

From art school to soccer pitch: Peter Robinson's six-decade career celebrated in new exhibition in Glen Ellyn

The Daily Herald reports on a new exhibition in Glen Ellyn celebrating the six-decade career of artist Peter Robinson, whose work spans from his art school training to unexpected subjects like soccer pitches. The show highlights the breadth of his practice and his enduring creative output over sixty years.

newspaper Daily Herald open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule May 21, 2026 visibility 8 link 5 artists

‘Walking With Giants’ exhibition to bring larger-than-life art to COD campus

The College of DuPage (COD) will host a new outdoor exhibition titled 'Walking With Giants,' featuring large-scale sculptures and installations by various artists on its campus in Glen Ellyn, Illinois. The show aims to transform the campus environment into an immersive art experience, with works placed in public spaces for students and visitors to encounter.

newspaper Daily Herald open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Apr 15, 2026 visibility 26 link 14 artists

MCA Chicago show explores the power of Dancehall and Reggaeton

The Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago has launched "Dancing the Revolution: From Dancehall to Reggaetón," an interdisciplinary exhibition exploring the political and cultural impact of Caribbean music genres. Curated by Carla Acevedo-Yates, the show was inspired by the 2019 "perreo combativo" protests in Puerto Rico that led to the governor's resignation. The exhibition features a diverse array of media, including paintings by Jean-Michel Basquiat and Denzil Forrester, sculptures by Michael Richards, and archival materials like Dancehall posters and sound system equipment.

newspaper OnMilwaukee open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule Dec 17, 2025 visibility 18 link 9 artists

Theaster Gates to create giant frieze for Obama Presidential Center

The Obama Presidential Center has announced a new commission by Chicago-based artist Theaster Gates, who will create a large frieze made of photo-printed aluminum using images from the Johnson Publishing Company archives—the publisher of Ebony and Jet magazines—and the work of photographer Howard Simmons. The installation, set to open in 2026, honors the dignity of Black life and the vibrancy of Black culture throughout the 20th century. Gates has been working with 20,000 photographs from the archive since 2016, and the frieze will be visible from Stony Island Avenue, near his own Stony Island Arts Bank. Other high-profile commissions for the center include works by Julie Mehretu, Maya Lin, Lindsay Adams, Nick Cave, Aliza Nisenbaum, Jenny Holzer, and Idris Khan.

newspaper The Art Newspaper open_in_new Read original

museum exhibitions schedule May 1, 2026 visibility 15

The Audacity of Art at the Obama Presidential Center

Barack and Michelle Obama commissioned 30 artists to create site-specific works for the Obama Presidential Center on Chicago's South Side, which begins visitor previews next week. The commissioned artworks span multiple media and will be integrated throughout the campus, reflecting the Obamas' commitment to public art and community engagement.

newspaper New York Times Art open_in_new Read original