‘We are all part of this intergalactic universe’: Saya Woolfalk’s solo show immerses viewers in her “Empathic Universe”

Saya Woolfalk's solo exhibition "Empathic Universe" at the Museum of Arts and Design (Mad) in New York presents two decades of her visionary world-building practice. The show unfolds in five chapters, featuring sculptures made from textiles, videos, performances, and immersive digital installations that trace the evolution of fictional plant-and-human hybrid races. Woolfalk discusses the origins of her project, which began after her return from Brazil with works like "Winter Garden: Hybrid Love Objects" (2005) at MoMA PS1, and how the Empathic Universe came into focus during her time in the Whitney Independent Study Program around 2006, drawing on mythology, anthropology, technology, and feminist theory.

Got an Idea About Who Robbed the Gardner Museum? Get in Line.

The 1990 theft of 13 artworks from Boston's Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum remains unsolved, generating countless theories about the perpetrators. A new book by the former FBI agent who led the investigation for over a decade systematically debunks many prominent public theories, arguing they distract from the actual investigation.

National Museum of Asian Art Explores the Power of Water in New Exhibition Featuring Hiroshi Senju and Bingyi

The Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art will present “Into the Waters with Senju and Bingyi: Two Contemporary Paintings,” a new exhibition opening April 2 and running through Aug. 23. It features two recent paintings by Hiroshi Senju (born 1958) and Bingyi (born 1975), each offering hypnotic visualizations of water. Senju’s pair of folding screens reimagines waterfalls using traditional Japanese techniques and contemporary methods, while Bingyi’s hanging scrolls, created with cloth and paper wrapped around an uprooted tree, incorporate natural elements like sea breeze and humidity. The exhibition marks the first showing of these works, which were acquired to expand the museum’s contemporary collections.

1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair highlights Afro-Brazilian art

The 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair will return to New York's Starrett-Lehigh Building from May 13 to May 17, 2026, for its 12th edition. Featuring over 20 exhibitors from 12 countries, the fair introduces a curated section titled "1-54 Presents: Brazil Beyond Brazil," led by Brazilian curator and professor Igor Simões, marking the fair's first focus on Afro-Brazilian art and the cultural connections between Africa and Latin America. New participants include Adegbola Gallery (Lagos), Aura (São Paulo), and Black Pony Gallery (Bermuda), alongside returning exhibitors such as 193 Gallery and Galerie Myrtis.

7 new art and culture books in bookstores. Maps of the present: between art, work, memory and forms of perception

7 nuovi libri d’arte e cultura in libreria. Mappe del presente: tra arte, lavoro, memoria e forme della percezione

This article from Artribune presents a curated selection of seven new art and culture books recently released in Italy. The featured titles range from a theoretical lexicon for 21st-century arts edited by Nicolas Martino, which redefines key terms like 'author,' 'AI,' and 'care,' to a poetic pop-up book by Japanese designer Katsumi Komagata titled 'Piccolo Albero,' which uses paper engineering to narrate the cycle of life. Other works explore themes of labor, memory, domestic space (Giorgio Morandi), inner labyrinths (Andrea Bocconi), and direct testimony from Gaza, all aiming to provide new frameworks for understanding a fractured present.

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.

What is the international exhibition of the Venice Biennale like? Review of "In minor keys" by Koyo Kouoh

Com’è la mostra internazionale della Biennale di Venezia? Recensione di “In minor keys” di Koyo Kouoh

The 2026 Venice Biennale, titled "In minor keys" and curated by the late Koyo Kouoh, opens to the public on May 9 amid controversies including the absence of the president's name in the colophon at the Arsenale entrance. The exhibition, organized by Kouoh's team (Rory Tsapayi, Siddharta Mitter, Marie Helene Pereira, Gabe Beckhurst Feijoo, and Rasha Salty), unfolds across the Giardini and the Arsenale's Corderie, featuring works that balance strength and beauty with a harmonious mix of voices and themes. The Giardini section is particularly compelling, with a non-linear, polycentric layout that feels like a living organism, while the Arsenale offers further depth.

TOXIC’s ‘ALWAYS EVER SINCE 83’ brings four decades of uncompromising practice to Woodbury House

Torrick Ablack, known as TOXIC, will present a major solo exhibition titled 'ALWAYS EVER SINCE 83' at Woodbury House in London from 14th May to 26th June 2026. The show features new paintings alongside rarely seen early works dating back to 1983, marking what the gallery calls a long-overdue recognition of TOXIC's career. TOXIC emerged from the downtown New York scene of the early 1980s alongside figures like Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, and Rammellzee, and participated in the landmark Post-Graffiti exhibition at Sidney Janis Gallery in 1983. The exhibition positions 1983 as a psychological and artistic turning point, tracing over four decades of his uncompromising practice.

Pro Arts Jersey City presents A Margin of Influence: Artists and the books that inform them

Pro Arts Jersey City presents "A Margin of Influence: Artists and the books that inform them" at ART150 Gallery from May 8-31, 2026. Curated by Raymond E. Mingst and Arthur Bruso, the group exhibition features ten artists—including Agnieszka Wszolkowska, Alvin Quiñones, Brad Terhune, Dorie Dahlberg, Elliot Appel, Hank Yaghooti, Josephine Barreiro, Laura Lou Levy, Nanette Reynolds Beachner, and Peter Delman—who explore how books shape their creative practice. The show runs weekends with an opening reception on May 8.

Are All Crises Equal? A Conversation with MOS’s Michael Meredith and Hilary Sample by ANY

Architects Michael Meredith and Hilary Sample of the firm MOS discuss the concept of "polycrisis"—the intersection of economic, political, and ecological failures—and its impact on architectural form. The conversation highlights a growing void between the formal aesthetic project of architecture and the urgent political realities of the modern world. Sample specifically addresses how the dominance of political and regulatory restrictions in collective housing has stifled formal innovation, often reducing architecture to a mere byproduct of governance rather than a tool for social or cultural expression.

'Intellectual Structures: Trigger, Judgment, and Decision' at Each Modern, Taipei, Taiwan on 25 Apr–6 Jun 2026

The group exhibition 'Intellectual Structures: Trigger, Judgment, and Decision' at Each Modern in Taipei explores the cognitive processes behind artistic creation. Featuring works by DAZHI, Ding Hongdan, Jing Ao, Liang Yuanwei, Wenjue, and Xu Qu, the show examines how human thought remains distinct from artificial intelligence by focusing on the 'neural algorithms' of the brain. The curatorial framework breaks down the creative act into three stages: the initial sensory trigger, the critical judgment between experience and transcendence, and the final decision that collapses multiple possibilities into a singular work.

Korea's longest-running art fair to open with largest exhibition to date in April

The Galleries Association of Korea has announced that the 2025 Galleries Art Fair will be its largest edition since its inception in 1979. Opening on April 8 at the Coex convention center in Seoul, the fair will feature 169 member galleries, including major names like Kukje Gallery and Gana Art. The event will include a "Zoom In" section highlighting 10 emerging artists and a special archival exhibition celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Galleries Association of Korea.

Late Night Art Returns to DUMBO This Fall

DUMBO's First Thursday Gallery Walk returns on October 2, offering free late-night access to galleries and cultural spaces across the neighborhood. The event features live music, artist talks, exhibitions, and a free Insider's Tour from 6:30 to 7:30 PM, with stops at Platform Project Space, Lucky Risograph, A.I.R. Gallery, and Loop of the Loom. Participating venues include A.I.R. Gallery, AMR Art DUMBO, Center for Cuban Studies, Smack Mellon, and many others, showcasing works by artists such as Abbey Williams, Elizabeth Bick, Samuel E. Vázquez, and Chang Yuchen.

Exhibition: Perception

The Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art in Las Vegas is presenting "Perception," an exhibition drawn from its permanent collection that explores the relationship between sight and cognition. Featuring works by over twenty artists—including new acquisitions by Thomas Burke, Denise R. Duarte, Dirk Staschke, and Thomas Ray Willis—the show includes paintings, sculptures, photography, and neon pieces that challenge viewers' trust in visual perception. The exhibition runs from June 20 to December 20, 2025, with an opening reception on September 5.

fashion art 6397 creative growth

On a rainy evening at 495 Broadway in SoHo, fashion label 6397, founded by designer Stella Ishii, partnered with the Oakland-based nonprofit Creative Growth for a fashion show and fundraiser. The event, hosted by PAPER Magazine's Kim Hastreiter and Mickey Boardman alongside Ishii and Creative Growth's executive director Sunny A. Smith, featured a runway collection of minimalist silhouettes adorned with artworks by Creative Growth's artists, who are individuals with disabilities. Guests browsed limited-edition pieces and wearable art before the show, which included New York creatives as models.

The Cosmic Entanglements and Inner Transformations of ‘Metamorphosis’.

Isaac Julien has created a new site-responsive film installation titled 'All That Changes You. Metamorphosis' at The Cosmic House in London. The work, which features protagonists Lilith and Naomi, explores themes of transformation, cosmology, and interdependence through a non-linear narrative that moves from Californian redwoods to Renaissance interiors, using the postmodern architecture as an active participant in the dialogue.

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A 16th-century portrait, attributed only to the "French or Flemish School," sold for $2.3 million at a Sotheby's New York auction, dramatically exceeding its estimate. The work, from the collection of Dutch magnate Anton Philips, sparked a 10-minute bidding war among four participants, likely driven by speculation it could be by the Dutch-born French painter Corneille de Lyon.

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Rome has introduced a €2.35 entry fee for the Trevi Fountain, one of the world's most famous monuments, effective February 1 during daylight hours (9am to 9pm). The measure, announced by Mayor Roberto Gualtieri, aims to curb overtourism by limiting viewership to 400 people at a time. The fountain currently welcomes up to 70,000 visitors per day, and the fee could raise an estimated $7.6 million annually for maintenance. Similar fees will apply to four other city sites, while Roman citizens retain free access.

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Vanessa Horabuena, a Christian speed painter known for her rapid, faith-driven artworks, made headlines after a $2.75 million charity art auction with President Donald Trump on New Year's Eve at Mar-a-Lago. Horabuena, who sells original paintings for $15,000 to $40,000, creates what she calls 'worship paintings' in front of live audiences, blending art, prayer, and dance. She has also promoted conspiracy theories, including denying the moon landing and questioning the Earth's shape.

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A new study by University of Bristol historian Benjamin Pohl, published in the journal *Historical Research*, proposes that the Bayeux Tapestry was originally designed as mealtime reading for monks in the refectory of St. Augustine’s Abbey in Canterbury. Pohl argues that the tapestry’s moralistic episodes, inclusion of Aesop’s fables, and simple Latin text align with Benedictine rules requiring silent dining accompanied by edifying readings. The theory builds on earlier speculation that the tapestry once hung in a private school’s refectory, but Pohl provides documentary and archaeological evidence for the Canterbury location.

charlie kirk statue florida new college 1234752355

New College of Florida, a public liberal arts school in Sarasota that was overhauled by Governor Ron DeSantis in 2023 to become a conservative institution, announced on September 17, 2025, that it will commission a statue of Charlie Kirk, the right-wing activist and founder of Turning Point USA who was assassinated in Utah the previous week. The statue, privately funded by community leaders, will depict Kirk seated at a table with two empty chairs, speaking into a microphone, and is intended to honor his legacy and commitment to free speech and civil discourse on campus.

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A team of researchers has successfully recreated Egyptian blue, the world's oldest synthetic pigment, which was used by ancient Egyptians from as early as 3100 B.C.E. The study, published in NPJ Heritage Science, was led by John S. McCloy of Washington State University and Edward P. Vicenzi of the Smithsonian Institution's Museum Conservation Institute, in collaboration with the Carnegie Museum of Natural History. The researchers experimented with various minerals, heating them in ovens at around 1,000 degrees Celsius for up to 11 hours, and used modern microscopy and analysis techniques to compare their results with ancient artifacts from the Carnegie Museum's collection.

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Writer and theorist Nadia Asparouhova has published a new book titled *Antimemetics: Why Some Ideas Resist Spreading*, which introduces the concept of "anti-memes"—cultural phenomena whose influence derives from being hard to find or difficult to understand, rather than from popularity and visibility. The book is released by the Dark Forest Collective, a group of artists and thinkers inspired by Yancey Strickler's metaphor of the internet as a "dark forest," where meaningful exchange retreats to private spaces away from commercial and contentious public platforms. Artnet News critic Ben Davis reviews the book, connecting its ideas to contemporary art that deliberately operates below the radar.

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The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) debuted a massive art installation called the Freedom to Be Monument on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., coinciding with the start of WorldPride 2025. The 9,000-square-foot piece consists of 258 six-foot-square quilts created by over 1,000 trans artists and allies from across the country, celebrating trans joy and resilience. The project aims to rally support for the trans community ahead of the Supreme Court case United States v. Skrmetti, which will decide whether state bans on gender-affirming care for minors violate the Equal Protection Clause, and comes amid efforts by President Donald Trump and conservative lawmakers to roll back trans rights.

great sphinx origin 2631406

The article examines the enduring mystery of who the Great Sphinx of Giza was modeled after. While the 66-foot-tall statue is universally recognized, its origins remain debated among Egyptologists. Some believe Pharaoh Khafre commissioned it in his own image, citing a 1853 discovery of a Khafre statue nearby and a connecting road to his pyramid. Others argue it was built by Khafre's brother Redjedef to honor their father Khufu, the builder of the Great Pyramid. Damage to the Sphinx's nose from erosion and human conflict complicates identification.

Births, deaths and a first kiss: life near the frontline in Ukraine – in pictures

British-Iranian artist Aria Shahrokhshahi's long-term photographic project "Wet Ground" captures daily life in Ukraine during Russia's full-scale invasion, focusing on moments of youth, subculture, and fragile continuity rather than traditional war imagery. The series, developed through repeated stays and volunteering since 2019, includes scenes from teenage discos, hospital wards, a birth during a missile attack, and a first kiss near the frontline, all shot in stark black and white.

Body, Territory, and Food Sovereignty at MAMM

CUERPO, TERRITORIO Y SOBERANÍA ALIMENTARIA EN EL MAMM

The Museo de Arte Moderno de Medellín (MAMM) has inaugurated a trio of exhibitions titled 'Nos habitan pájaros y montañas', 'La luz, el fuego y la ceniza', and 'El susurro del barro'. These shows collectively explore the intersection of the human body, territorial sovereignty, and food security, featuring a dialogue between the museum's permanent collection—specifically the work of Débora Arango—and contemporary artists. The exhibitions utilize diverse media, including sound and raw materials like clay and soil, to address environmental and social crises.

parties filmmakers cooperative anniversary john waters

The Film-Makers’ Cooperative celebrated its 65th anniversary with a gala at Judson Memorial Church in New York City on a recent Friday. The event featured performances by Isaiah Barr, a recreation of Yvonne Rainer's Trio A by Brittany Bailey, and a closing set by musician Kinlaw. Notable attendees included photographer Nan Goldin, video artist Joan Jonas, and filmmaker John Waters, who was honored in absentia. The evening included speeches, a shoppable collection of film ephemera, and a crowd of artists, actors, and filmmakers.

design literature best books of 2025

Cultured magazine has published its annual list of the best design and architecture books of 2025, featuring ten titles that span cookbooks, travelogues, political design history, photography, and architectural theory. Highlights include "Campania: Recipes & Wandering Across Italy’s Polychromatic Coast" edited by Apartamento, "Furnishing Fascism" by Ignacio G. Galán, "Synthesis" by Mari Katayama, and "Monumental" by Cat Dawson, which examines how contemporary artists are reshaping memorial landscapes.

Hilma af Klint en 2 minutes

Hilma af Klint (1862–1944) is profiled as a pioneering Swedish abstract artist who created a vast body of visionary, large-scale abstract paintings decades before Kandinsky, yet kept them secret during her lifetime. The article traces her life from a childhood steeped in science and nature, through her studies at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Stockholm, to her dual artistic practice: conventional landscapes and portraits for income, and radically abstract works guided by spiritualist séances and theosophical beliefs. She founded the group "The Five" with fellow female artists, and from 1906 onward produced the monumental series "Paintings for the Temple" (193 works), convinced she was channeling a higher force. She stipulated in her will that her abstract works not be revealed until 20 years after her death, and they were only rediscovered in the late 1960s.