Barbie: The Exhibition at Kelvingrove - 70 years of an iconic doll’s design story

Barbie: The Exhibition, originally staged at London's Design Museum, will open at Glasgow's Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum on June 13, running for four months. Curated by Danielle Thom, the show explores the design history of the iconic doll, from her 1959 debut to her cultural impact, including the evolution of Barbie pink and the architectural trends reflected in Dreamhouses. The exhibition is produced in partnership with Mattel and the Design Museum, aiming to present Barbie as a significant piece of mainstream design.

How Agostino Bonalumi Turned Painting Into Space

Italian artist Agostino Bonalumi's monumental modular sculpture "Struttura modulare bianca" (1970), originally created for his solo room at the 35th Venice Biennale, will be presented at Art Basel Unlimited 2026 by Mazzoleni gallery. The rarely exhibited work, staged in collaboration with Archivio Bonalumi, marks a pivotal moment in Bonalumi's shift from painting into three-dimensional "object painting" and environmental art, as discussed by gallery directors Luigi and Davide Mazzoleni in an interview.

What is it like to be a young artist in Milan today? Matteo Montorfano answers

Com’è oggi essere un giovane artista a Milano? Risponde Matteo Montorfano

Matteo Montorfano, a young Italian artist born in 1999, discusses the challenges and opportunities of being an emerging artist in Milan. In an interview with Artribune, he reflects on his decision to study at ISIA in Urbino rather than in Milan, emphasizing the value of gaining perspective outside the city. He describes Milan as a central hub for photography and art but notes the importance of independent, self-organized projects, such as a collective exhibition in a borrowed space. Montorfano also highlights informal venues like Potlatch, Sprint, The Art Chapter, ONOFF, and Spazio Mina that support grassroots artistic research.

In a World of A.I. Slop, Trevor Paglen Is Confident in Digital Art’s Capacity to Be ‘Nutritious’

Trevor Paglen has been tapped to co-curate the inaugural edition of Zero10, Art Basel’s new digital art initiative, at Art Basel in Basel next week. Titled “The Condition,” the exhibition will feature 15 presentations from galleries worldwide, bringing together historical digital works—such as those by the late Vera Molnár—alongside contemporary pieces by artists like 0xDEAFBEEF and Leander Herzog. Paglen, who recently published the book *How to See Like a Machine: Images After AI*, joins digital art strategist Eli Scheinman in curating a show that aims to move beyond spectacle and highlight the serious, lasting artistic value of digital art.

Scotland brings Bugarin + Castle's queer and trans vision to Venice Biennale

Scotland returns to the 61st Venice Art Biennale with a collateral event titled "Scotland + Venice: Bugarin + Castle," curated by the Mount Stuart Trust. The exhibition, held at Olivolo in the Castello district through November 22, 2026, features the artistic duo Davide Bugarin and Angel Cohn Castle. Their work combines sculpture, moving images, performance, and installation to reinterpret historical rituals of public humiliation—such as rough music, charivari, and scampanate—through a contemporary queer and trans lens. Key works include "At Certayne Tymes," a hybrid sculpture evoking body, machine, and voice; "Submit to Sound," a moving-image piece created with Manila's band Kalye Teresa; and "Nocturnal Amusements," an interactive installation that asks viewers "Are you discreet?"

Museum Exhibition Reveals Long History of Playfulness in Art

The Newport Art Museum has opened "Play/Pretend," an exhibition running through January that blends contemporary artworks with 19th- and early 20th-century automatons from the private collection of Shelley Schorsch. The show features pieces by Entang Wiharso, Libby Schoettle, Gerry Perrino, and others, exploring themes of childhood, nostalgia, and the human compulsion to pretend. Highlights include Wiharso's buffalo-hide drawings, Schoettle's recurring womanchild figure, and vintage mechanical curiosities that evoke a longing for simpler times.

Interview: Sébastien Léon’s Material Exploration

Sébastien Léon, a French-born, New York-based multi-hyphenate creator, discusses his material-driven practice in an interview with Observer. Léon works across sculpture, furniture design, sound, and installation, using materials like glass, resin, and metal to create perception-shifting objects. He recently completed an 18-month residency at the Ralph Pucci sculpture studio in Manhattan, resulting in a new body of work titled "Inca City," inspired by speculative archaeology and the idea of a lost civilization. Léon also debuts a new soundwork, "The Echoes of Our Dreams," at NOMAD Hamptons, blending sculpture, sound, and technology.

Houston museum sounds off after vandals deface artist's painting

The article highlights a series of summer art exhibitions opening across Houston, Texas. Key shows include the debut of the permanent contemporary art collection at the Ismaili Center Houston, featuring works by local and international artists and an inaugural exhibition by Iranian-American artist Raheleh Filsoofi. Other notable exhibitions are "Daybreak" at Laura Rathe Fine Art, featuring artists Carly Allen Martin, Sandrine Kern, and Lucrecia Waggoner; "Proximity: Constructed Relations" at Spring Street Studios, curated by Katherine Rhodes Fields; and "Ink & Image" at Archway Gallery, part of the PrintHouston 2026 biennial.

SLG Forever: a selling exhibition in support of the South London Gallery

Christie's in London is hosting 'SLG Forever,' a selling exhibition in support of the South London Gallery (SLG), marking the institution's 135th anniversary. The show features works donated by artists with a special connection to the gallery, including Tracey Emin, Antony Gormley, Yinka Shonibare, Gabriel Orozco, Frank Bowling, Firelei Báez, and Joseph Yaeger. Proceeds from the exhibition will fund the SLG's future projects.

Ismaili Center's new art gallery and 9 more openings to see in Houston

Summer brings a wave of contemporary art exhibitions across Houston, including the debut of the Ismaili Center Houston's permanent art collection and a new dedicated gallery for temporary shows. The inaugural exhibition features Iranian-American interdisciplinary artist Raheleh Filsoofi, with interactive works like a transformed Kermani rug turned into a four-string instrument. Other notable openings include "Daybreak" at Laura Rathe Fine Art, "Proximity: Constructed Relations" at Spring Street Studios, and "Ink & Image" at Archway Gallery, showcasing local and international artists across diverse mediums.

Lee Kang So Opens Another Genealogy of Korean Contemporary Art Beyond Dansaekhwa:《A Field of Becoming》in New York and the Transition of Korean Art

The article reports on the exhibition "Lee Kang So: A Field of Becoming" at the Korean Cultural Center New York (KCCNY), running from May 13 to June 20, 2026. It surveys the artist's career from the 1970s to the present, featuring painting, sculpture, installation, photography, and performance. Lee Kang So is a key figure in Korean Experimental Art of the 1960s and 1970s, a movement that the article positions as an alternative genealogy to the more internationally recognized Dansaekhwa movement.

South Florida artists scale up for Orlando Museum’s Florida Prize

The article reports that South Florida artists are creating large-scale works for the Orlando Museum of Art's Florida Prize exhibition. The Florida Prize is an annual competition that showcases contemporary artists from across the state, and this year's edition features several artists from the Miami area who have expanded their typical studio practices to produce ambitious, oversized pieces specifically for the museum's galleries.

Auctions of the week: manuscripts, design and ancient art

A roundup of auctions scheduled between June 11 and 17, 2026, highlights a busy week for the art and collectibles market across Italy and internationally. Italian houses including Pandolfini, Il Ponte, Capitolium Art, Cambi Casa d’Aste, Finarte, and Bertolami Fine Art hold timed and live sales in Florence, Milan, Genoa, and Rome, covering categories from manuscripts and design to jewelry, modern art, and ancient art. The week also features online sessions by Blindarte and Maison Bibelot, with international giants in Paris, London, and New York drawing global buyers.

From erupting volcanoes to Elon Musk’s swaddling satellites: the cosmic, chaotic art of Caragh Thuring

Caragh Thuring, a London-based artist, discusses her chaotic and cosmic paintings in her east London studio. Her works blend medieval and contemporary imagery, from US military airplanes morphing into knights to Elon Musk's Starlink satellites depicted as a celestial map. Thuring, who grew up watching nuclear submarines on Holy Loch, creates without preparatory drawings, allowing her imagination to guide layered, open-ended compositions that explore themes of war, peace, religion, and technology.

A Land Artist Asks: What Will Be Left When I’m Not Here?

Meg Webster, a land artist known for creating ephemeral works using natural materials like soil, salt, and plants, is now 82 and grappling with her legacy. Her current exhibition at the Paula Cooper Gallery in New York marks a reflective turn, as she considers what will remain of her practice after she is gone.

MoMA PS1 Celebrates Its 50th Anniversary Promoting Emerging Art

MoMA PS1 is celebrating its 50th anniversary, marking five decades since its founding in 1971 by Alanna Heiss in a former abandoned school in Long Island City, Queens. Originally established as an anti-museum alternative space for emerging and offbeat artists, it merged with MoMA in 1999 and launched the quinquennial survey "Greater New York" in 2000. The anniversary highlights the institution's enduring role in showcasing local, innovative art, with the upcoming 2026 edition of "Greater New York" focusing on themes of surveillance, economic precarity, and shifting technologies.

Remembering David Hockney

Stephanie Barron, a senior curator at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), recounts her decades-long friendship with David Hockney following his death on June 11 at age 88. She first met him in 1976 at the opening of his show "Works in the Eye" at Nick Wilder's gallery in Los Angeles, and over 50 years she visited his studios, co-organized his first retrospective at LACMA in 1988, and sat for a portrait for his series "82 Portraits and 1 Still-life." Barron reflects on Hockney's profound curiosity, his technical innovations in perspective and realism, and his deep connection to LACMA, which he considered one of "his" museums alongside the Tate.

British artist known as an icon of the 1960s has died at 88. See some of his most celebrated work in Portland

British artist Sir Peter Blake, widely regarded as an icon of the 1960s, has died at the age of 88. Known as the "Godfather of British Pop Art," Blake is best known for co-creating the iconic cover of The Beatles' *Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band* album. His death was reported by OregonLive.com, which also noted that some of his most celebrated works are currently on view in Portland, Oregon.

This Summer, Rare Giacometti Sculptures Take Up Residence in The Met’s Temple of Dendur

Seventeen rare bronze and plaster sculptures by Swiss artist Alberto Giacometti are now on display at the Temple of Dendur in New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art. The exhibition, titled "Giacometti in the Temple of Dendur," runs from June 12 through September 8, 2026, and highlights the influence of ancient Egyptian art on Giacometti's work. Pieces such as *Walking Man* (1960), *Pointing Man* (1947), and *The Cat* (1954) are positioned throughout the temple, with fragile painted plasters on rare loan from the Fondation Giacometti before they move to the new Giacometti Museum in Paris, opening in 2028.

Artist David Hockney, whose work is on view at the Portland Art Museum, dies at 88

Artist David Hockney, whose work is currently on view at the Portland Art Museum, has died at the age of 88. The news was reported by Oregon ArtsWatch, noting his ongoing exhibition at the museum.

A dose of non-reality: Country's best abstract art to go on show at Hamilton’s Artspost Gallery

Hamilton’s Artspost Gallery will host an exhibition showcasing the country's best abstract art, titled "A dose of non-reality." The show brings together leading abstract artists from across New Zealand, offering a curated selection of works that emphasize non-representational forms, color, and texture. The exhibition aims to highlight the depth and diversity of abstract art being produced in the country today.

Birdy to Perform at Charlotte Colbert’s Venice Biennale Exhibition During Regata Storica

British singer-songwriter Birdy will perform live on September 6, 2026, at Palazzo Corner della Ca’ Granda in Venice as part of Charlotte Colbert's exhibition "Possible Landscapes," which is currently on view during the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia. The event coincides with Venice's historic Regata Storica and includes a public discussion with Colbert, curator Yasmine Helou, and contributors, as well as the presentation of the exhibition catalogue. The exhibition, running until September 30, 2026, across Palazzo Corner della Ca’ Granda and Aman Venice, features surrealist stainless-steel sculptures exploring imagination as a transformative force.

"Treasures of the Pharaohs" exhibition flies to the U.S. after record in Rome

The blockbuster exhibition "Treasures of the Pharaohs," which drew over 400,000 visitors at the Scuderie del Quirinale in Rome, is set to travel to the United States after its Roman run ends on June 14, 2026. The show, which attracted a notably young audience including 60,000 students, will debut at the de Young Museum in San Francisco from August 1, 2026 to January 31, 2027, then move to the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, Texas, from March 14 to September 19, 2027. The U.S. tour will feature 130 artifacts, including pieces never before exhibited in North America, such as treasures from the Golden City of Amenhotep III discovered in 2021.

James McNeill Whistler retrospective in London has Colby ties - Colby News

The Colby College Museum of Art has contributed works to a major retrospective of James McNeill Whistler at the Tate Modern in London. The exhibition, which is the first comprehensive survey of Whistler's work in decades, includes several pieces from Colby's collection, highlighting the museum's significant holdings of the artist's work.

Kimbell Art Museum offers free summer programs

The Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, Texas, is offering a wide range of free public programs throughout summer 2026, including films, happy hours, performances, family festivals, and educational activities. Highlights include the Family Festival/Fiesta de la Familia on July 19 with free ice cream, documentary screenings on Picasso, Munch, and Modigliani, and special events tied to the exhibition "The Holy Sepulcher: Treasures from the Terra Sancta Museum, Jerusalem." Programs are designed for all ages, from Kimbell Kids Drop-In Studios to adult happy hours and sketching tours.

One Fine Show: “Zurbarán” at the National Gallery in London

The National Gallery in London has opened "Zurbarán," the first major UK exhibition dedicated to the Spanish Baroque painter Francisco de Zurbarán (1598-1664). Featuring over 40 paintings drawn from the Prado, the Louvre, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Thyssen-Bornemisza, the Cleveland Museum, the Norton Simon, and the Gallery's own collection, the show spans Zurbarán's career from Seville to his brief stint painting for Philip IV in Madrid. Highlights include the unusual mythological work *Hercules and Cerberus* (1634), the fashion-forward *Saint Casilda* (c. 1635), and the meditative *Agnus Dei* (c. 1635-1640), which the review praises for its blend of beauty and visceral realism.

“Finders Keepers”– An Art Scavenger Adventure

The DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities (DCCAH) hosted its first art scavenger walk in the Navy Yard on April 25, as part of the exhibition “Finders Keepers” at the Eye Street Gallery. Curated by Ira Tattelman and Kanchan Balse, the show features 15 artists who transform discarded objects into art, celebrating environmental sustainability and community engagement. Participants joined a two-hour scavenger hunt to collect trash treasures and create mini sculptures, with the event tied to Earth Month and the tradition of found art dating back to Marcel Duchamp.

Jasper Johns: Silence, Loss, Love, Memory and Grief Guggenheim Bilbao – Miranda Carroll

The article reviews "Jasper Johns: Night Driver" at the Guggenheim Bilbao, an exhibition of nearly 140 works spanning over seventy years of the artist's career. It features early motifs like flags, targets, and numbers, alongside key pieces such as *Painting with Two Balls* (1960), stage designs for Merce Cunningham, and a series of works on paper including *Tantric Detail* (1980) and the *Foirades/Fizzles* (1976) collaboration with Samuel Beckett. The show explores Johns's departure from Abstract Expressionism toward a more conceptual, object-based practice.

Rare Gwen John portrait to go on display in Edinburgh for first time since 1964

A rare painting by Welsh artist Gwen John, titled "Girl Reading at a Window" (c.1911), will go on public display in Edinburgh for the first time since 1964. The work is part of a major exhibition, "Gwen John: Strange Beauties," opening August 1 at Modern Two and running until January 4, 2027. The show features over 200 works, including oil paintings, watercolours, sketches, and archival materials, and marks the first major presentation of John's work in Scotland. Another painting, "Young Woman with a Coral Necklace," previously owned by scholar Mary Edmond Taubman, has been loaned by her family in her memory.

The Italy exhibitions worth planning your summer trip around

Vogue Adria has published a guide to must-see art exhibitions in Italy that are worth planning a summer trip around. The article highlights several major shows across the country, featuring both contemporary and historical artists, and provides practical advice for art-loving travelers.