What does a woman swimming in urine tell us about the state of the world? Lots! – Venice Biennale review

The 2026 Venice Biennale, curated by the late Koyo Kouoh under the theme "In Minor Keys," has been plagued by months of turmoil including countries withdrawing, artists being fired, exhibitions cancelled, funding pulled, and protests during the preview. A five-person curatorial team took over after Kouoh's death, resulting in what the critic describes as a disjointed, committee-driven exhibition that prioritizes quiet contemplation and healing over direct political engagement. The central shows in the Giardini and Arsenale feature a vast, poorly explained array of art from the global south, with installations of ceramics, textiles, slide projectors, and serene natural scenes that the critic finds anachronistic and dull.

Fantastic visions and cosmic rhythms: how Whistler is making me see – and hear – differently

The article explores how the James McNeill Whistler exhibition at Tate in London prompts a reconsideration of the relationship between music and visual art. Whistler titled his works using musical terms like "Arrangement," "Symphony," and "Nocturne," arguing that painting should be abstract and independent of narrative, much like instrumental music. The exhibition, reviewed by Jonathan Jones, highlights Whistler's radical art-for-art's-sake philosophy, which influenced composer Claude Debussy, whose orchestral Nocturnes were directly inspired by Whistler's paintings of light and atmosphere.

Two Museums Take on Performative Masculinity, Looksmaxxing, Incels, and Other Macho Buzzwords That Don’t Belong There.

The Stedelijk Museum and Kunstmuseum St. Gallen have co-organized an exhibition titled "Beyond the Manosphere: Masculinities Today," which aims to critically examine contemporary masculinity and its online manifestations such as incels, looksmaxxing, and pickup artists. The show features works by artists including Reba Maybury and Richard Serra, and is curated by Melanie Bühler, with directors Rein Wolfs and Gianni Jetzer overseeing the project. The exhibition will travel from the Stedelijk to the Kunstmuseum St. Gallen later this year.

Sophia Rivera’s Mythology of Everyday New York

The article reviews "Sophie Rivera: Double Exposures" at El Museo del Barrio, the first survey of the late Nuyorican photographer Sophie Rivera, who died in 2021. The exhibition spans her career, including her feminist conceptual series "Rouge et Noir" and "Bowl Study" (c. 1976–78), which depict intimate bodily waste like used tampons and feces, and her socially engaged "Latino Portraits" series from the late 1970s, which countered negative media stereotypes of Puerto Ricans with affectionate, mythologizing portraits. The review highlights a moment where the critic misidentifies abstract toilet photographs as pinhole or double exposures before learning their true subject.

An Unlikely Friendship Between Artist and Forger

The article reviews Steven Soderbergh's 2026 film "The Christophers," which follows an unlikely friendship between two painters in London: Julian Sklar (Ian McKellen), an older artist facing cancellation, and Lori Butler (Michaela Coel), a young painter who restores and forges artworks. The film explores themes of attention, artistic legacy, and the purpose of art, contrasting with darker narratives like "Tár" by offering a comedic yet profound take on these issues.

Hans Holbein Painted the Human

A new book, 'Holbein: Renaissance Master' by Elizabeth Goldring, published by Yale University Press and the Paul Mellon Centre, offers a comprehensive scholarly examination of the 16th-century German painter Hans Holbein the Younger. The review focuses on Holbein's masterful portraiture, particularly his depictions of opposing Tudor-era figures like Sir Thomas More and Thomas Cromwell, which are highlighted as embodying the era's complex political and religious tensions through their visual presentation at the Frick Collection in New York.

Mark Milroy Sees, Remembers, and Imagines at Once

Artist Mark Milroy, an observational painter in his mid-50s who gained a following during the pandemic through Instagram and online shows at Nancy Margolis Gallery, is now holding his debut New York exhibition, "Jumbo," at JJ Murphy gallery through May 16. The show features 18 oil paintings and 12 colored pencil drawings, with subjects ranging from still lifes and portraits to a titular painting referencing the famous P.T. Barnum elephant killed in Milroy's hometown of St. Thomas, Ontario, in 1885. Milroy's work blends personal memory, art historical insight, and a deliberate gaze, drawing influences from Cedric Morris and 15th-century Florentine painting.

Special Interest: Marble

Spezialinteresse: Marmor

Karl Kolbitz has published a new book focusing on the depiction of marble in Early Renaissance paintings. He explores how artists used the fictional representation of marble to visualize the divine, drawing inspiration from art historian Georges Didi-Huberman and employing modern imaging techniques to reveal previously hidden details.

Alison Roman’s Top Picks from the Frieze Viewing Room

Andrew Durbin reviews the national pavilions at the Venice Biennale, contrasting a vacuous US presentation with incisive and moving installations from Britain and Germany. The review highlights the thematic and emotional depth of the British and German pavilions while critiquing the lack of meaning in the US entry.

CUANDO LOS OBJETOS HABLAN. MUSEO HECHIZO, DE JUAN JOSÉ SANTOS

Juan José Santos's book "Museo hechizo" (Metales Pesados, 2025) challenges the perceived neutrality of the Western museum, presenting it as an institution shaped by colonial logics of classification, extraction, and representation. The essay centers on the concept of "lo hechizo"—understood as both artisanal precariousness and disruptive enchantment—and explores small, community-based Latin American museum experiences that operate from precarity, reciprocity, and care. Santos argues that the museum is a space of conflict where voices, narratives, and ways of constructing history are contested, and he proposes thinking of the museum through its minor, situated, and alternative forms in Latin America.

‘Afterimages’: What Does It Mean to See Through Overload?

Andrew Durbin reviews the national pavilions at the Venice Biennale, contrasting a vacuous US presentation with incisive and moving installations from Britain and Germany. The article critiques the lack of meaningful engagement in the US pavilion while praising the depth and emotional resonance of the British and German contributions.

Ayotunde Ojo Maps Interiority Under the Public Gaze

The article, a critic's guide review by Andrew Durbin, contrasts the US national pavilion presentation at an unspecified biennial with those of Britain and Germany. The US presentation is described as vacuous and lacking in meaning, while the British and German installations are praised for being incisive and moving. The review critically examines the thematic and conceptual approaches of each national pavilion, highlighting a disparity in artistic depth and engagement.

The Books That Influence Sohrab Hura

Andrew Durbin reviews the national pavilions at an unnamed biennial, contrasting a vacuous US presentation with incisive and moving installations from Britain and Germany. The review critiques the lack of meaning in the US pavilion while praising the depth and emotional resonance of the British and German contributions.

How to Have the Perfect Day at Frieze New York 2026

Andrew Durbin reviews the national pavilions at Frieze New York 2026, contrasting a vacuous US presentation with incisive and moving installations from Britain and Germany. The review highlights the disparity in conceptual depth and emotional resonance among the three pavilions, with the US offering little meaning while the British and German contributions engage seriously with contemporary issues.

Ariel West Probes Our Desire for Oil

Andrew Durbin reviews the national pavilions at the 2026 Venice Biennale, contrasting a vacuous US presentation with incisive and moving installations from Britain and Germany. The review critiques the US pavilion for lacking meaningful content, while praising the British and German contributions for their depth and emotional resonance.

‘In Minor Keys’ Review: Its Best Moments Live in the Institutions Koyo Kouoh Built

Andrew Durbin reviews the national pavilions at the 2026 Venice Biennale, contrasting a vacuous US presentation with incisive and moving installations from Britain and Germany. The review highlights how the best moments of the exhibition live in the institutions built by curator Koyo Kouoh, who organized the Biennale's main exhibition.

What’s Showing in Chelsea During Frieze Week New York

This article is a critic's guide reviewing national pavilions during Frieze Week New York. Andrew Durbin contrasts a vacuous US presentation with incisive and moving installations from Britain and Germany, questioning the meaning and depth of the American contribution.

‘YBA & BEYOND’ Exports British Cool

Frieze critic Andrew Durbin reviews the national pavilions at the Venice Biennale, contrasting a vacuous US presentation with incisive and moving installations from Britain and Germany. The British pavilion, titled 'YBA & BEYOND,' exports British cool by showcasing works from Young British Artists and their successors, while the German pavilion offers a deeply resonant experience. The US pavilion is criticized for lacking meaningful content, raising questions about curatorial direction and national representation.

Frieze’s Christine Messineo Takes a Tour of Chelsea

Andrew Durbin reviews national pavilions at the Venice Biennale, contrasting a vacuous US presentation with incisive and moving installations from Britain and Germany. The review highlights the disparity in thematic depth and emotional resonance among the three pavilions.

Seba Calfuqueo and the Colonized Body

Andrew Durbin reviews national pavilions at the 2026 Venice Biennale, critiquing the US presentation as vacuous while praising incisive and moving installations from Britain and Germany. The review highlights Seba Calfuqueo's work in the context of colonized bodies, though the article's main focus is on the comparative quality of the pavilions.

Seven Shows to Catch Across the US This May

Art critic Andrew Durbin reviews national pavilion presentations at the Venice Biennale, contrasting a vacuous US exhibition with incisive and moving installations from Britain and Germany. The review highlights the disparity in thematic depth and emotional resonance among the three pavilions.

Jerald Cooper’s Top Picks from Frieze New York 2026

Andrew Durbin reviews the national pavilions at the 2026 Venice Biennale, contrasting a vacuous US presentation with incisive and moving installations from Britain and Germany. The article critiques the lack of meaning in the American pavilion while praising the depth and emotional resonance of the British and German contributions.

Sung Tieu and the Art of Difficulty

Sung Tieu, a Vietnamese-born German artist, is the subject of a critical feature in Frieze that examines her work's engagement with difficulty—both in terms of the complex political and historical themes she tackles and the challenging formal qualities of her installations. The article highlights her recent projects, including works shown at the Venice Biennale, which address issues of surveillance, migration, and Cold War legacies through meticulous research and unconventional materials.

National Pavilions Review: Who’s Afraid of Meaning?

Andrew Durbin reviews national pavilions at a major biennial, contrasting a vacuous US presentation with incisive and moving installations from Britain and Germany. The review critiques the lack of meaningful content in the US pavilion while praising the depth and emotional resonance of the British and German contributions.

Patchwork Lost – A Critique of the Princeton University Art Museum’s American Art Wing

The article critiques the newly opened American art wing at the Princeton University Art Museum, arguing that its curatorial approach prioritizes contemporary social justice narratives over historical accuracy and national pride. The author contends that the exhibition presents a fragmented, politicized view of American history, highlighting slavery and racial injustice while omitting or minimizing the contributions of Princeton alumni to the nation's founding, such as James Madison and John Witherspoon. Specific examples include the inclusion of a 2022 revisionist painting of the Signing of the Constitution and selective signage that emphasizes marginalized figures while ignoring male patriots.

Body as Device. Guide and Reflection on the Performances of the Venice Biennale

Corpo come dispositivo. Guida e riflessione sulle performance della Biennale di Venezia

The article analyzes the role of performance art at the 2026 Venice Biennale, arguing that performance is no longer a rediscovered genre but a structurally institutionalized primary form of experience production. It examines how the body reemerges not as an alternative to image-based works but as an internal interruption of the artwork system, preventing closure and reintroducing instability. Key pavilions are discussed: Austria's Florentina Holzinger with "Sancta" draws on 1970s radical performance and feminist body art, creating an immersive environment of continuous movement; Belgium's Miet Warlop with "IT NEVER SSST" engages post-dramatic theater and postmodern dance repetition; Japan's Ei Arakawa-Nash with "Grass Babies, Moon Babies" activates Gutai avant-garde legacies through viewer interaction with soft dolls.

Joan Semmel Roars at The Jewish Museum

The article reviews Joan Semmel: In the Flesh, a retrospective exhibition at The Jewish Museum in New York (December 2025 – May 2026). The author describes an initial discomfort with Semmel's graphic nude paintings of aging female bodies, but after researching the artist's significance in feminist art, comes to appreciate her unapologetic honesty. The show is arranged chronologically, tracing Semmel's evolution from works like Erotic Yellow (1973) to later paintings that grow in confidence and freedom, all while maintaining a focus on female embodiment and pleasure from a female perspective.

In "Dancing the Revolution," Puerto Rico Pushes Back

The article reviews "Dancing the Revolution," a multi-genre collective exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago that explores the music of dancehall and reggaetón, their roots, history, and evolution, and their inextricable link to colonial oppression. The show is inspired by the massive 2019 protests in Puerto Rico against then-Governor Ricardo Rosselló, where music and dance were used as forms of resistance, drawing on centuries of Black Atlantic protest in the Caribbean.

Rome and its visions in contemporary photography: from Carbone to De Angelis, to Hervé Gloaguen

Roma e le sue visioni nella fotografia contemporanea: da Carbone a De Angelis, fino a Hervé Gloaguen

The article critiques a recent trend in contemporary photography of Rome, exemplified by a 2020 exhibition at the Mattatoio (Nuove produzioni 2020 per la collezione Roma) that presented black-and-white images reducing the urban landscape to a dark, lifeless mass. The author contrasts this with a personal photograph of a horse taken during the Covid-19 pandemic, which captures Rome's periphery with warmth and specificity, and praises the 2024 exhibition "Roma 1975, città, volti e storie dell'anno giubilare" featuring photojournalist Fabio De Angelis's rediscovered work as a vital counterpoint.

"Dispossessions in the Americas" Confronts the Colonialism That Invades All Territory

The article reviews "Dispossessions in the Americas," a group exhibition at Wrightwood 659 in Chicago curated by Jonathan D. Katz and Eduardo Carrera. Featuring works from 1960 to 2025, the show examines colonial legacies in the Americas, focusing on the forced dispossession of land, culture, and language from indigenous, Afro-descendant, queer, and trans communities. The review critically questions how a polished, architecturally prestigious venue can coherently display art about socially voiceless communities without falling into voyeurism or fetishization of pain.