The article is an interview with artist Kelly Wall, conducted by Olivia Gauthier, published in the February 2026 issue of Contemporary Art Review LA. It appears within a broader issue exploring themes like scent in art, tarot, and social urgencies in contemporary practice.
Mills Morán, cofounder of the Los Angeles gallery Morán Morán, is stepping away from its day-to-day operations to focus on Felix Art Fair, the fair he cofounded with his brother Al Morán and collector Dean Valentine in 2018. The fair, held at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel alongside Frieze Los Angeles, has staged eight editions. Morán announced the decision in a statement shared with artists and colleagues, citing personal recalibration after nearly two decades in the art world and a desire to be more present for loved ones.
New York City’s First Lady, Rama Duwaji, provided an exclusive look into her creative life during a studio visit at Gracie Mansion. The interview explores her dual identity as a ceramicist and illustrator and her transition into the political spotlight, showcasing the personal practice behind her public role.
Lisa Phillips, the director of the New Museum in Manhattan since 1999, will retire in April 2026 after the completion of an $82 million expansion designed by OMA and Cooper Robertson. The expansion, which doubles the museum's exhibition space, is set to reopen this autumn, marking the culmination of Phillips's transformative 26-year tenure. She will become director emeritus and curate an exhibition on the Bowery's artistic history.
Cultured magazine profiles photographer Charlie Denis, who works across commercial and fine art photography. Denis is nominated by Nadia Lee Cohen and known for his exuberant style, with clients including Levi’s and Skims. He co-directed a four-minute experimental Christmas film starring Kim Kardashian in 2024. In the article, Denis discusses his creative process, comparing photographing women to playing with Barbie dolls as a queer child, and explains his embrace of theatricality over strict realism.
Iva Sidash, a Ukrainian photographer based in Kharkiv, has been recognized for her ongoing project "Seeing the Unseen," which documents everyday life on the frontlines of the Ukraine war. This year, she won an Ian Parry Photojournalism Grant and the Women Photograph Fellowship. Her work focuses on intimate, fragile moments—such as a woman folding laundry in a ruined apartment—rather than conventional images of destruction, aiming to preserve the humanity of those living through conflict.