Staff at Goldsmiths art college plan industrial action ahead of redundancies

Staff at Goldsmiths, University of London, have voted to take industrial action in response to a massive restructuring plan aimed at saving £22 million by 2027. The University and College Union (UCU) reports that the 'Future Goldsmiths' initiative will lead to significant redundancies for both professional services and academic staff. Tensions have escalated following revelations that the institution spent over £14 million on private consultants and legal fees related to previous restructuring efforts while simultaneously cutting jobs.

The INHA library will remain open in August

La bibliothèque de l’INHA restera ouverte en août

The National Institute for Art History (INHA) has announced that its library, located in the Labrouste Room in Paris, will remain open throughout the month of August. This decision breaks from the traditional summer closure common among major French academic and research institutions, ensuring uninterrupted access to one of the world's largest collections of art history resources.

The Burlington Magazine - No. 1477 Vol. CLXVIII - April 2026

The Burlington Magazine - n°1477 vol CLXVIII - April 2026

The April 2026 issue of The Burlington Magazine presents a wealth of new scholarship, highlighted by significant discoveries regarding the 'Rainbow' portrait of Queen Elizabeth I and a previously unpublished portrait of Sarah Churchill by Godfrey Kneller. The edition spans centuries of art history, featuring research on 18th-century color theorist Mary Gartside, the pottery windows of William Bell Scott, and newly identified drawings by Marcellus Laroon the Younger.

After Five Years of Community Building, Social Practice CUNY Initiative to End in 2027

The Social Practice CUNY (SPCUNY) initiative, a major program fostering the intersection of art and social justice across the City University of New York’s 25 campuses, will officially sunset in February 2027. Co-directed by artists Chloë Bass and Greg Sholette, the program will conclude following its final 2025–26 fellowship cohort. The decision to end the project stems from the directors' personal transitions, including Sholette’s upcoming retirement and Bass’s shift away from full-time teaching to focus on her studio practice.

Hampshire College, Alma Mater to Many in the Arts, Closing

Hampshire College, the experimental liberal arts institution in Massachusetts, has announced it will permanently close after nearly sixty years of operation. The college's board cited insurmountable financial pressures and a failure to meet regulatory requirements as the primary drivers behind the decision, noting that progress toward a stable financial foundation fell short of expectations.

Walker Art Center Restaurant Cuts Front-of-House Staff as QR Codes Take Over

Cardamom, the in-house restaurant at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, is laying off sixteen front-of-house staff members as it transitions to a QR-code-based ordering system. The restaurant’s operator, DDP Restaurant Group, cited fluctuating museum traffic and rising operational costs as the primary drivers for the shift to a counter-service model. While kitchen staff and bartenders will remain, the move effectively replaces traditional table service with digital automation.

Beloved CUNY Social Practice Art Program to Shut Down

Social Practice City University of New York (SPCUNY), an artist-led initiative supporting social justice-minded art across the CUNY system, will cease operations in February 2027. Founded in 2021 by artists Chloë Bass and Gregory Sholette with support from the Mellon Foundation, the program distributed over $535,000 in fellowships to 129 faculty and student fellows. The closure is prompted by the departure of both co-directors from their academic positions at Queens College, leaving the independent project without a clear institutional pathway for leadership transition.

A drawing by Toulouse-Lautrec for Albi

Un dessin de Toulouse-Lautrec pour Albi

The Musée Toulouse-Lautrec in Albi has acquired a rare drawing by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, depicting the intimate daily lives of women in a Parisian brothel. The work, created during the artist's frequent visits to the establishment on Rue des Moulins, captures a candid, non-judgmental moment of modern life, reflecting the artist's commitment to Baudelairian realism.

Treviso is a Painted City: The Benetton Foundation Details Its Research

Treviso è una città dipinta. La Fondazione Benetton racconta tutto nelle sue ricerche

The Fondazione Benetton Studi Ricerche has unveiled the results of its decade-long multidisciplinary project, "Treviso urbs picta," which documents the extensive history of frescoed facades in Treviso, Italy. Spanning the 13th to the 21st centuries, the initiative has produced a comprehensive database of 614 buildings, a scholarly publication, and a topographical map. The project includes a digital archive featuring professional photography and historical mapping to track the evolution and current state of the city's unique painted architecture.

Merchant at the Fair, but with Art: The Art Edition of the Popular Board Game is Born in Milan

Mercante in Fiera però con l’arte. A Milano nasce l’Art Edition del popolare gioco di società

The creative agency Plus Srl and the curatorial collective The Art Society have launched "Mercante in Fiera – Art Edition," a contemporary art reimagining of the classic Italian card game. Debuting at the forthcoming Luceferma space in Milan, the project replaces traditional game cards with artistic imagery and visual references to spark informal dialogue among participants. The initiative functions as a social device, stripping away academic barriers to engage players in spontaneous interpretation and community building.

A New "Creative" Campus in Rennes

Un nouveau campus « créatif » à Rennes

The private higher education group Icônes is investing €33 million to construct a new 16,000-square-meter "creative campus" in the EuroRennes district of Rennes, France. Scheduled to open in 2027, the complex will feature three buildings designed by architect Philippe Dubus, including a new home for the ESMA 3D animation school, a 300-studio student residence, and coworking spaces dedicated to creative startups.

The Musée de La Poste becomes the "Musée Postal" once again

Le musée de La Poste redevient le « musée postal »

The Musée de La Poste in Paris has rebranded itself as the "Musée Postal," reclaiming its original 1946 name as it approaches its 80th anniversary. Alongside a new visual identity featuring a blue and white "M" logo, the institution is shifting its focus from a strictly corporate museum to a "museum of society" with a more universal outlook. Under the leadership of director Guillaume Goy, the museum aims to modernize its permanent collection and recover its pre-pandemic attendance figures, targeting 150,000 annual visitors.

Oviedo to host the world's first philosophy museum

Oviedo accueillera le premier musée de philosophie au monde

The Gustavo Bueno Foundation has announced plans to open the world's first museum of philosophy in Oviedo, Spain, scheduled for January 2027. Housed in the historic Miñor sanatorium, the institution will serve as a physical extension of the Oviedo School of Philosophy, focusing on the "philosophical materialism" developed by the late thinker Gustavo Bueno. The museum aims to move beyond academic circles to engage the general public in critical thinking and the rigorous analysis of social structures.

Biennale Tecnologia Begins in Turin: Five Days of Theater, Performance, Artificial Intelligence, and Distorted Futures

A Torino inizia la Biennale Tecnologia. Cinque giorni tra teatro, performance, intelligenze artificiali e futuri distorti

The Biennale Tecnologia has launched in Turin, featuring over 120 events across 20 venues, including lectures, exhibitions, and a significant performing arts program. The festival utilizes theater and audiovisual performances to translate complex technological themes—such as artificial intelligence, environmental infrastructure, and ethics—into accessible narratives. Key highlights include Marco Paolini’s exploration of the Po River at OGR Torino and the play 'Retrofuturo,' which uses a comedic time-travel premise to critique societal reliance on algorithms.