The Best April Fools’ Jokes in the Art World This Year

Hyperallergic compiled a list of notable April Fools' Day pranks executed by major arts and cultural institutions in 2025. The jokes included the Morgan Library and Museum pretending to give its ornate interior a cheap "Landlord Special" makeover, the New York Public Library announcing it would replace its iconic lion statues with beaver sculptures, and the Brooklyn Museum and Brooklyn Botanic Garden proposing a whimsical, amusement park-style tunnel connecting their campuses.

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The New York Botanical Garden's 34th annual "Holiday Train Show" features miniature replicas of New York landmarks crafted from natural materials by the botanical artists of Applied Imagination. This year's edition adds two new models: the recently renovated Delacorte Theater in Central Park and the Whitney Museum of American Art's Meatpacking District flagship, designed by Renzo Piano. The Whitney replica, built over three months by artist Ava Roberts and fabrication director Kaitlin Schmidt, uses a new two-way mirrored acrylic glass technique for the windows and incorporates materials like purple smoke bush branches, horse chestnut bark, and fallen Zelkova bark. The company, founded by Paul Busse in 1991 and now run by his daughter Laura Busse Dolan, creates whimsical versions of landmarks using leaves, sticks, fungi, and other dried plant materials.

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German sculptor Cosima von Bonin transformed the Loewe Fall/Winter 2026 runway at Paris Fashion Week into a whimsical maritime environment. The presentation featured her signature oversized plush sea creatures—including whales, clams, and crabs—alongside a new series of canine sculptures titled "The Beaux," which referenced her recent survey at Mudam Luxembourg.

Marina Abramović Is the Unlikely Star of the New Balloon Museum

Marina Abramović Is the Unlikely Star of the New Balloon Museum

Performance artist Marina Abramović has created a large-scale inflatable installation for the new permanent New York outpost of the Balloon Museum. Titled *Snowy/Windy/Spring On The Planet Z*, the immersive work transforms the Tin Building into an imagined extraterrestrial meadow filled with balloon sculptures, light, and air currents, opening in July 2026.

I thought my cuckoo clock was amazing, but it’s got nothing on my statue of Bert the cheery chef | Adrian Chiles

Adrian Chiles, a writer and broadcaster, recounts his acquisition of a whimsical figurine of a cheerful chef, which he named Bert after the reclamation yard owner from whom he bought it in the Black Country. He describes the personal joy and daily lift the statue brings him, contrasting it with a cuckoo clock whose novelty eventually wore off. Chiles details the statue's charming, slightly worn appearance and its role as a conversation piece, particularly due to the West Midlands slang word "bostin'" written on its menu board.

What you (perhaps) didn't know about Alexander Calder

Ce que vous ne saviez (peut-être) pas sur Alexander Calder

The Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris has launched the exhibition "Calder. Rêver en équilibre," prompting a retrospective look at the life and technical mastery of Alexander Calder. The article explores the artist's journey from his arrival in Paris in 1926 to his interactions with avant-garde masters like Duchamp and Miró, highlighting how he defied traditional artistic labels through his innovative use of movement and simple materials.

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Design Miami 2025 preview drew a bustling crowd with over 70 exhibitors under the theme "Make Believe." Highlights included Katie Stout's whimsical carousel featuring marine animals, Roham Shamekh's biomorphic "Roots" sofa with integrated headphones, and ATRA's futuristic "Intelligence of Evolution" seating system upholstered in Hermès fabric. The Spanish silver brand Garrido showcased collaborations with Peter Marino, while the fair's 20th anniversary edition embraced a carnivalesque atmosphere with popcorn and mirrored walls.

Pete Davidson’s Pop-Filled Art Collection Revealed in Westchester Home Listing

Actor and comedian Pete Davidson has listed his Westchester County home for $2.2 million, revealing a vibrant art collection rooted in pop culture and nostalgia. The 2,300-square-foot residence features a diverse array of works ranging from Peter Max prints and Al Hirschfeld caricatures to contemporary design pieces like the Gufram x Paul Smith 'Sunset Cactus.' The interior reflects Davidson's 'man cave' aesthetic, blending high-end collectibles with whimsical references to television, film, and his native Staten Island.

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A 1976 Hippopotamus Bar by François-Xavier Lalanne sold for $31.4 million at Sotheby's after a 26-minute bidding war, setting a new auction record for the French artist. The hand-wrought copper, steel, and wood piece, commissioned by art patron Anne Schlumberger, is the only copper prototype from the series and features concealed compartments for bottle storage, ice bucket, and glassware. The sale was part of the Schlumberger collection, which also included a gold-patinated bronze armchair by Claude Lalanne that fetched $1 million and a pair of bronze gates that sold for $787,400.

‘Vandalised, disembowelled and dismembered’: Artist Jack Milroy gives books a brutal treatment with beautiful results

The artist Jack Milroy has launched a new solo exhibition titled 'Bibliophilia' at Shapero Modern in London, featuring his signature 3D cut-out artworks. The 87-year-old artist transforms books and everyday objects, such as sardine tins, into intricate sculptures where illustrated figures like birds and fish appear to escape their physical confines. The show marks Milroy's first collaboration with the gallery, which is uniquely situated beneath an antiquarian bookshop, providing a thematic contrast between preserved rare volumes and Milroy’s "vandalised" artistic interpretations.

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British artist Lucy Sparrow has brought a new felted candy shop installation titled "Sugar Rush" to Art Miami, featuring hand-sewn and hand-painted confectionery treats like Snickers, Peppermint Patties, and Twix, priced at $50 each. The interactive project, presented by London's TW Projects, includes affordable items such as $5 jellybeans and a $10,000 case of Haribo gummies, continuing Sparrow's decade-long tradition of delighting Miami Art Week audiences with her playful felt sculptures. Sparrow's career breakthrough came in 2016 when her installation "Sparrow's Deli" was purchased by 21C Museum Hotels, and she has since created notable projects including a felt bodega in New York and a felt McDonald's in Miami.

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The Victoria & Albert Museum presents "Schiaparelli: Fashion Becomes Art," the first UK retrospective dedicated to the Italian designer Elsa Schiaparelli. The exhibition highlights her central role within the Parisian avant-garde of the 1930s, showcasing her famous collaborations with artists like Salvador Dalí, Alberto Giacometti, and Meret Oppenheim. By displaying iconic pieces such as the 1938 skeleton dress alongside personal notes and related artworks, the show argues that Schiaparelli was not merely a follower of Surrealism but a primary catalyst for its innovation.

Pedro Friedeberg, Surrealist Artist Known for Hand-Chair, Dies at 90

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Pedro Friedeberg, the prolific artist and designer central to Mexico’s Surrealist-aligned circles, has died at age 90 in San Miguel de Allende. Born in Italy and having fled to Mexico to escape fascism, Friedeberg became a singular figure in Latin American art, known for his architectural paintings and whimsical, absurdist sculptures. His death was confirmed by his New York representative, Ruiz-Healy Art.

Colours of Time review – Monet meets Mamma Mia in charming French artist comedy

Director Cédric Klapisch’s new film, *Colours of Time* (originally *La Venue de L’Avenir*), is a sentimental French comedy that weaves a fictional romantic history around Impressionist master Claude Monet and pioneering photographer Félix Nadar. The plot follows a group of modern-day descendants who discover a trove of historical secrets in a derelict cottage, leading to a whimsical, time-bending exploration of their ancestors' lives in Belle Époque Paris.

Read the Room: Dallas Museum of Art’s “International Surrealism” Misses the Mark

The Dallas Museum of Art's exhibition "International Surrealism" is critiqued as a missed opportunity during the centennial of the surrealist movement. The author argues that while the show presents a broad survey of mixed-media works from around the world, divided into six thematic subgroups, it lacks the political urgency and revolutionary context that defined surrealism's origins in 1925. The exhibition, initially curated by Matthew Gale from the Tate Modern collection and presented locally by Sue Canterbury, is described as whimsical and decorous, reducing the movement's subversive power to quirky categories and gift-shop fodder.

Witness a poetic dialogue between humanity and nature come alive at this exhibition in New Delhi

Artist Yashika Sugandh presents 'Vartaman', a solo exhibition exploring the relationship between humanity and nature, at the Living Traditions Centre, Bikaner House, New Delhi from September 27 to October 1, 2025. The show features intricate watercolor paintings and mixed-media works that blend whimsical hybrid creatures with motifs like tree branches, influenced by Indian miniature art. After its run at Bikaner House, the exhibition will continue at Black Cube Gallery, New Delhi until October 31.

Witness a poetic dialogue between humanity and nature come alive at this exhibition in New Delhi

Artist Yashika Sugandh presents 'Vartaman,' a solo exhibition exploring the relationship between humanity and nature, at the Living Traditions Centre, Bikaner House, New Delhi, from September 27 to October 1, 2025. The show features intricate paintings and mixed-media works that blend whimsical hybrid creatures—such as snails carrying giraffes and turtles becoming tomatoes—with motifs like tree branches, reflecting Sugandh's reverence for the natural world. After its run at Bikaner House, the exhibition will continue at Black Cube Gallery, New Delhi, until October 31.

Five Women Artists Bring 'Psychedelic' Sense of Play to Pioneer Square Exhibit

The Beauty Shop collective, a group of five female artists based in the Puget Sound region, has launched a new group exhibition titled "The Party Mix" at Gallery 110 in Seattle's Pioneer Square. Featuring works by Arni Adler, Lynette Charters, Saundra Fleming, Kate Harkins, and Ingrid Sojit, the show presents a diverse array of media unified by a "psychedelic" sense of play, intuitive creative processes, and a focus on the female figure. The exhibition, which runs through March 28, was born out of a collaborative support network that began during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Haas Brothers’ Creative Creations Are on Tour

The Haas Brothers, twin artists Simon Haas and Nikolai Haas, are the subject of a midcareer survey exhibition that is currently touring the United States. The show highlights their whimsical, colorful, and often functional sculptures and furniture pieces that blend craft, design, and fine art.

Pedro Friedeberg, Whose Hand Chair Drew Outsize Attention, Dies at 90

Pedro Friedeberg, the Mexican surrealist artist and designer, has died at age 90. He was best known for his iconic "Hand Chair," a functional sculpture shaped like a hand that became a symbol of 1960s and '70s pop culture and design, as well as for his intricate, fantastical paintings of impossible architectures.

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The Walters Art Museum in Baltimore has opened an exhibition titled "Paws on Parchment," exploring the depiction of cats in medieval manuscripts from Europe, Asia, and the Islamic world. The show was inspired by a 15th-century Flemish manuscript that still bears the inky paw prints of a cat that walked across the pages while they were drying. Curator Lynley Anne Herbert assembled the exhibition after discovering the manuscript in the museum's collection, researching medieval poetry, bestiaries, and encyclopedic works to understand historical attitudes toward cats. The exhibition runs through February 22, 2026, and is the first of three shows dedicated to animals in art.

Two new ceramic exhibitions open at the Yellowstone Art Museum in Billings

The Yellowstone Art Museum in Billings, Montana, has launched two new ceramic-focused exhibitions: "Folktales and Fanfare" and "Embedded in the Overlap." A central highlight of the new programming is the work of Ukrainian ceramicist Janina Myronova, whose exhibition features whimsical stoneware figures and drawings that explore themes of home, hope, and human connection. Myronova’s work, including her 2023 piece "Two Heads Are Better Than One," blends traditional ceramic techniques with dreamlike narratives.

Un itinerario fotografico tra installazioni e progetti d’autore della Design Week 2026. La collaborazione tra Artribune e i computer di MSI

This article outlines a one-day itinerary through Milan's 2026 Fuorisalone design week, highlighting key installations and exhibitions. It begins at Torre Velasca, featuring Polish Modernism and Brazilian modernist Jorge Zalszupin, then moves to the University of Milan's cloisters for the Interni magazine exhibition themed 'Materiae,' with oversized sculptures and a yacht installation by Piero Lissoni for Sanlorenzo. Other stops include Palazzo Litta, where architect Lina Ghotmeh presents 'Metamorphosis in Motion,' and Galleria Rossana Orlandi, focusing on the theme of doors. The itinerary concludes at Alcova in the former Baggio Military Hospital, an abandoned space reactivated by curators Valentina Ciuffi and Joseph Grima.

‘Hippopotame Bar’ Shatters Design Auction Records, Sells for $31.4 Million

François-Xavier Lalanne's 1976 'Hippopotame Bar,' a whimsical copper, steel, and wood cabinet shaped like a hippopotamus with hidden compartments, sold for $31.4 million at a Sotheby's auction on December 10, 2025. Originally commissioned by the late oil heiress and philanthropist Anne Schlumberger, the piece sparked a 26-minute bidding war that far exceeded its $7–10 million estimate, making it the most valuable design object ever sold at auction and shattering Lalanne's previous auction record.

'Blind Sight': Local artist to present show at Equinox Village

The Gallery at Equinox Village in Manchester, Vermont, will host an exhibition titled "Blind Sight" by local resident and artist Jane Johnson. The opening reception on November 20 will feature live music by Mark LaChac, appetizers, and refreshments, and the show runs through January 6. Johnson, who became legally blind in October 2024, presents a whimsical collection including "Vermont Impressions" paintings, pierced portraits, and floral arrangements, inspired by her journey before and after losing her sight.

“Butcher, Hymes, & Murtha,” April 29 through June 29

The Quad City Arts International Airport Gallery is hosting a three-person exhibition featuring the work of Aaron Butcher, MaryKay Hymes, and Diane Murtha from April 29 through June 29. The showcase brings together Butcher’s whimsical illustrations on shaped wood with diverse fiber art pieces created by Hymes and Murtha, highlighting a range of techniques from collage to intricate quilting.

THE ART OF DR. SEUSS Exhibition to go on View at Gallery Veronique in Cincinnati

Gallery Veronique in Cincinnati has announced the opening of "The Art of Dr. Seuss," a permanent and exclusive exhibition featuring the artistic legacy of Theodor Seuss Geisel. The collection includes concept art from classics like The Cat in the Hat and How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, as well as his private "Midnight Paintings" and "Unorthodox Taxidermy" sculptures. This marks the first time this body of work has found a permanent home in Ohio, offering fans and collectors a rare look at the author's surrealist and personal creative output.

Racine Art Museum PEEPS art exhibition winners announced; show runs through April 18

The Racine Art Museum has announced the winners of its annual PEEPS art exhibition, a community-focused event where artists create works using the iconic marshmallow candy. The exhibition, which features these whimsical, edible-art entries, is now open to the public and will run through April 18.

At Milan Design Week, Function and Form Take on New Meanings

Milan Design Week has transformed the Italian city into a sprawling showcase of avant-garde furniture and experimental objects. This year's highlights include whimsical, kinetic installations such as a spinning Christmas tree and sculptural tables designed to mimic the organic forms of flowers, pushing the boundaries between utilitarian furniture and fine art.

‘Jimmy & the Demons’ Review

A new documentary film by Cindy Meehl, titled 'Jimmy & the Demons,' profiles the life and work of artist James Grashow. The film explores his whimsical yet profound sculptural practice and delves into the dynamics of his long-lasting marriage, offering an intimate portrait of the artist's personal and creative world.