In Kyoto, a photography festival unites artists on society's fringes

Kyotographie, an independent international photography festival in Kyoto, has announced 'The Edge' as its theme for the 2026 edition, following a focus on humanity in 2025. The festival will feature exhibitions exploring fringes, darkness, and extremes of life, including a posthumous show of Fatama Hassona's 'The Eye of Gaza', a focus on South Africa with works by Lebohang Kganye, Pieter Hugo, and a peripatetic library from A4 Arts Foundation, as well as Ernest Cole's 'House of Bondage' at the Kyoto City KYOCERA Museum of Art—his first exhibition in Japan. Other highlights include Linder Sterling's survey 'Goddess of the Mind' at the Museum of Kyoto Annex and Anton Corbijn's 'Presence' at the Shimadai Gallery.

The Vatican brings Hildegard of Bingen to the Biennale. "The ear is the eye of the soul", by Brian Eno and Patti Smith

The Holy See Pavilion at the 61st Venice Biennale, titled "The Ear is the Eye of the Soul," centers on the 12th-century Benedictine abbess and visionary Hildegard of Bingen. Curated by Hans Ulrich Obrist and Ben Vickers in collaboration with Soundwalk Collective, the pavilion spans two Venetian venues—the Mystical Garden of the Discalced Carmelites and the Complesso di Santa Maria Ausiliatrice—and features new sound works by 24 artists, musicians, and poets including Brian Eno, Patti Smith, FKA Twigs, Meredith Monk, and Jim Jarmusch. The title is borrowed from the final work of German director Alexander Kluge, who died in March 2026, and his monumental film installation forms a core part of the exhibition.

The Prizes

Los premios

Artist Gala Berger presents a three-act exhibition titled "Los premios" (The Prizes), which revisits the radical spirit of the 1968 Latin American avant-garde. The show specifically references two historic 1968 exhibitions at the National Museum of Fine Arts in Buenos Aires—the Georges Braque Prize and "Materials, new techniques, new expressions"—where artists staged protests involving egg-throwing, stink bombs, and manifestos against censorship and institutional tutelage.

Maison Margiela Opens "Tabi: Collectors Exhibition" in Chengdu, China

Maison Margiela has launched the “Tabi: Collectors Exhibition” at The Third Avenue Art Museum in Chengdu, China, running from April 9 to April 13, 2026. This immersive showcase features the personal archives of nine global collectors, including artist Theaster Gates and musician Zion.T, alongside a curated selection of the house’s own historical footwear dating back to 1989. The event is a key component of the brand's "MaisonMargiela/folders" initiative, which includes a series of regional activations across China and a digital open-source archive.

Venice Biennale curatorial team reveal how they are bringing the late Koyo Kouoh's vision to life

The curatorial team for the 61st Venice Biennale has unveiled the details for the 2026 exhibition, titled "In Minor Keys." The project follows the vision of the late Koyo Kouoh, the first African woman appointed to curate the Biennale, who passed away in May 2024. The exhibition will feature 111 artists and collectives, with a significant focus on the Global South and themes such as Shrines, Schools, and the Creole Garden. The team emphasized that the show is designed as a "collective score" rather than a traditional commentary on world events, prioritizing spiritual rest and radical social connection.

The Big Review | Monuments, The Geffen Contemporary at Moca and The Brick, Los Angeles ★★★★★

A major exhibition titled 'Monuments' is on view at two Los Angeles venues, The Geffen Contemporary at Moca and The Brick. The show places nine decommissioned Confederate monuments, some already defaced, into dialogue with works by 19 contemporary artists, most of whom are Black. The centerpiece is Kara Walker's 'Unmanned Drone' (2023), a radical reworking of a removed statue of Confederate general Stonewall Jackson, which occupies its own venue at The Brick.

Japan’s favourite puffed corn snack was just sold at auction for ¥1.15 million

A limited-edition artwork by Japanese contemporary artist Tomokazu Matsuyama, titled 'Umaibo: Contemporary Art Flavour', sold at auction for ¥1.15 million (approximately $7,600 USD). The piece reimagines the iconic ¥15 Umaibo corn puff snack, a beloved cheap candy in Japan. Originally released in 2025 as a run of 50 sticks priced at ¥100,000 each, the work was first shown at Matsuyama's solo exhibition 'Tomokazu Matsuyama: First Last' at Azabudai Hills Gallery in Tokyo. The auction result represents over ten times the original retail price.

Four years on from the Taliban takeover, Afghan women are asserting themselves through art

Four years after the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in 2021, Afghan women are using art as a means of expression and resistance. The article profiles artist Alina Gawhary, who fled to study art in Belfast, and highlights the work of the UK-based NGO Turquoise Mountain, which collaborates with women carpet weavers in Bamiyan. Afghan-British artist Maryam Omar collected poetry from illiterate weavers and designed watercolor patterns that were woven into carpets, displayed in the selling exhibition "Weaving Poems" at Sotheby's in London. The exhibition foregrounds the women's creative voices and returns profits to the weavers.

Beyond The Mini-Bar: How Hotels Are Reimagining The Modern Art Gallery

Hotels are increasingly transforming their spaces into dynamic platforms for contemporary art, moving beyond generic decor to embed curation into their operational core. The article highlights 21c Museum Hotels, which operates nearly 80,000 square feet of free exhibition space across seven U.S. locations, featuring works by artists such as Xenobia Bailey, María Magdalena Campos-Pons, Natia Lemay, and Xavier Daniels. Chief Curator Alice Gray Stites emphasizes radical accessibility, removing barriers like ticket prices and elitism, and fostering partnerships with institutions like Artadia to support local artists.

‘Cultural innovation comes from the margins’—tales of artists pushing boundaries in 1960s New York

J. Hoberman, the longtime Village Voice film critic, has published a new book titled *Everything Is Now: The 1960s New York Avant-Garde—Primal Happenings, Underground Movies, Radical Pop*. The book expands his focus from cinema to a broad array of artists, poets, theater makers, musicians, and other figures in New York City's 1960s arts scene, including Andy Warhol, Barbara Rubin, Edie Sedgwick, Yoko Ono, and Jonas Mekas. Hoberman emphasizes collective and marginal cultural innovation, tracing how these figures influenced each other and responded to events of the era, such as Robert Moses's urban redevelopment plans.

Let him entertain you: Robbie Williams gets honest in latest Moco exhibition

Pop star Robbie Williams opened his new exhibition "Radical Honesty" at the Moco Museum in London on May 2, 2025, featuring his latest sculptures and paintings. The show was attended by celebrities including documentary maker Louis Theroux, artists Chris Levine and Daniel Lismore, and comedian Leigh Francis. Williams's works incorporate his trademark sarcastic and self-deprecating humor, with one painting bearing the text: "To be completely honest I’m not sure if we are friends or we’ve just been in the same room a lot in the last 15 years." This is not Williams's first art venture; in 2022 he presented 14 large-scale works at Sotheby's London co-created with Ed Godrich under the name Williams Godrich, and he is also an art collector with pieces by Banksy, Peter Blake, Christopher Page, and Morris Wade.

Participatory Design or Processual Formalism? Frei Otto, the Ökohaus, and the Ökohäusler by Matthew Kennedy

The Ökohaus (Eco-House) project in Berlin stands as a radical experiment in participatory architecture, born from the 1987 Internationale Bauausstellung (IBA) urban renewal program. Designed by Frei Otto, the complex features three residential buildings characterized by a 'double informality' where dense foliage and a patchwork of diverse cladding materials—ranging from timber and metallic shingles to exposed concrete—create a ruin-like yet meticulously resolved aesthetic. The project challenged traditional housing models by allowing residents, or 'Ökohäusler,' to engage in a collective and individualized construction process.

The Austrian Pavilion at the Biennale brings performances and installations around the Venice Lagoon

Il Padiglione Austria in Biennale porta performance e installazioni in giro per la Laguna di Venezia

Austrian artist and choreographer Florentina Holzinger (Vienna, 1986) will represent Austria at the 61st International Art Exhibition of the Venice Biennale with a project titled "SeaWorld Venice." Curated by Nora-Swantje Almes, the interdisciplinary initiative combines a permanent installation at the Austrian Pavilion with a series of site-specific performances and actions spread across Venice and its lagoon. The project explores the body, water, and the tensions between nature and technology, drawing on mythological and classical imagery populated by aquatic creatures. It includes "Études," performative formats developed by Holzinger since 2020, which activate urban spaces through participatory and immersive experiences, engaging both spectators and citizens.

Trees are a model to follow: A festival in Modena confirms it

Gli alberi sono un modello da seguire. A Modena c’è un festival che lo conferma

The Alberi Festival in Modena transforms the Villaggio Artigiano Ovest into an open-air laboratory focused on the intersection of botany, architecture, and urban planning. Inspired by the seminal 1960s research of Cesare Leonardi and Franca Stagi, the event features exhibitions, installations, and discussion tables centered around the "Officina Botanica," an experimental green regeneration project housed in a former industrial warehouse.

Sound Archives Open in Ravenna: The Best of National and International Performing Arts Now Available

A Ravenna aprono gli Archivi Sonori: a disposizione il meglio delle arti performative nazionali e internazionali

The city of Ravenna has officially inaugurated the Archivi Sonori (Sound Archives) at Palazzo Malagola, a new international center dedicated to vocal and sonic research. Founded by actress Ermanna Montanari and scholar Enrico Pitozzi, the archives offer public access to a vast collection of audio and video materials documenting the experimental work of 33 influential Italian and international performers, including Demetrio Stratos, Joan La Barbara, and Alvin Curran. The facility features specialized listening and viewing rooms, including an immersive sonic chamber and a cinema hall, all navigated via touchscreens featuring anatomical heart motifs designed by artist Stefano Ricci.

When the Night Bleeds into the Day

Wenn die Nacht auf den Tag abfärbt

Berlin-based graffiti artist Paradox Paradise, known for his distinctive red-and-blue "Paraglyphs" painted on high facades, discusses his evolution from classic graffiti to a radically reduced visual language. In an interview with Monopol, he explains how he stripped away decorative elements to focus on precise, vertical outlines and messages like "Mieten runter Wände bunter" (lower rents, more colorful walls). He describes his nocturnal actions as states of heightened presence requiring weeks of planning, where every movement has immediate consequences.

Lenke Rothman “Quality of Life” at Kunstverein in Hamburg

The Kunstverein in Hamburg is presenting "Quality of Life," the first comprehensive survey of Swedish Hungarian artist Lenke Rothman outside of Sweden. The exhibition spans Rothman's career from the 1950s until her death in 2008, showcasing her unique oeuvre that juxtaposes everyday life with her biographical and historical experiences, characterized by a radical processing of personal and collective memory.

Fragments of Belonging in ‘Black Bricolage’.

Photographer and writer Johny Pitts presents 'Black Bricolage' at MEP Studio, a visual essay spanning two decades of work documenting Black life across European cities like Paris, Lisbon, and Berlin. The exhibition utilizes a mix of photography, personal notes, and lived encounters to map the 'Afropean' experience, focusing on the quiet textures of daily life rather than grand spectacles.

There Is a Fountain Even If Pale That Flows Beneath Us All.

Hajra Waheed’s upcoming solo exhibition at Kunstinstituut Melly, titled 'There Is a Fountain Even If Pale That Flows Beneath Us All', explores the intersection of sound, politics, and collective resistance. Curated by Hera Chan as part of the Call & Response series, the show features a multidisciplinary array of new commissions and recent works, including the central multichannel sound installation 'HUM' (2020), which amplifies the voices of political prisoners.

fashion fall winter isabelle wenzel

German acrobat-turned-photographer Isabelle Wenzel photographed Fall/Winter 2025 looks from Balenciaga, Loewe, Miu Miu, Alaïa, and other fashion houses for CULTURED's Art + Fashion issue. Her images capture models in sculptural garments—voluminous fabrics, reflective leather, silky fringe—as they tumble, leap, and contort, blending precision with play. The shoot features models Anneliek Heuvel and Akti Konstaninou wearing pieces by Vaquera, Acne Studios, Issey Miyake, Prada, Valentino, Gucci, Chanel, Givenchy, Saint Laurent, and more, with creative direction by Studio&.

Experimental Funding Schemes and Militant Analysis: The Experience of CERFI

The Center for Institutional Studies, Research, and Training (CERFI), a research cooperative co-founded by Félix Guattari in the wake of May 1968, sought to merge militant political practice with institutional psychotherapy. By adopting a model of 'analytical self-management,' the group utilized rotational roles and collective research to avoid the hierarchies and alienation typical of traditional academic and political organizations. This experimental structure was heavily influenced by the 'grid' system used at the La Borde psychiatric clinic, aiming to turn administrative labor into a tool for subjective liberation.

Agitate, Educate, Organize. A Conversation with the Indonesian Collective That Is in Venice with Two Projects

Agitare, educare, organizzare. Una conversazione con il collettivo indonesiano che è a Venezia con due progetti

Sale Docks, an activist art space born from a 2007 occupation in Venice, has invited the Indonesian collective Taring Padi to collaborate on two projects. The first is the exhibition "Taring Padi: People's Liberation," which reactivates banners as tools for propaganda, mobilization, and resistance. The second is a public intervention in Venice, where the collective and local community will repaint the walls of the historic social center Laboratorio Occupato Morion. The article includes an interview with Taring Padi, which was founded in 1998 in Yogyakarta by students and activists, and discusses their use of wayang shadow-puppet imagery and collaborative processes to agitate, educate, and organize communities.

design formafantasma andrea trimarchi simone farresin

Andrea Trimarchi and Simone Farresin of Milan-based design studio Formafantasma have become fashion and art's go-to design duo. In the past year, they designed runways for Meryll Rogge's Marni debut, scenography for the new Fondation Cartier, and a radical take on the Shaker legacy for a show at the Vitra Design Museum. In an interview, they discuss their critical approach to design, the gap between design's progressive claims and its environmental and labor impacts, and their commitment to using design as a tool for inquiry rather than mere form-making.

In Minor Keys and legacies held in common

The article reflects on the 61st Venice Biennale, curated by Koyo Kouoh, who passed away on 10 May 2025 at age 57 after a cancer diagnosis. Her curatorial concept, "In Minor Keys," will be realized posthumously by her team. The Biennale preview opens on 6 May 2026, with the public opening on 9 May. Additionally, artist Henrike Naumann, selected for the German Pavilion, died on 14 February 2025 at age 41, also from cancer; her work will be shown in her name.

In Philly, artists are using ‘Radical Americana’ to challenge patriotic nostalgia

The Clay Studio in Philadelphia has launched "Radical Americana," a citywide initiative involving 24 arts organizations and 45 artists to mark the United States' 250th anniversary. The project features 25 exhibitions across the region, showcasing new works that engage with American craft heritage and material culture. Participating artists were tasked with researching historical objects—ranging from Federal-period furniture to Pennsylvania Dutch fraktur—to create contemporary responses that reflect on the nation's complex history.

Angela de la Cruz Breaks the Frame

The art world is witnessing a significant shift toward the 'one-work exhibition,' a format that rejects the traditional gallery model of high-volume displays in favor of singular, immersive encounters. By isolating a single masterpiece or installation, institutions are encouraging 'slow looking' and recasting the act of viewing as a deliberate spatial experience. This trend serves as a direct response to the digital age's relentless pace and the overwhelming 'glut' of contemporary visual culture.

One Art One Community: Exhibit illustrates the transformative power of art among the incarcerated

An unconventional art exhibition titled “One Art One Community” is on display at Case Western Reserve University’s Wade Park Community Engagement Center, featuring 46 works by 16 incarcerated artists from Grafton Correctional Institution. Curated by Eric Gardenhire, who directs the prison’s arts and crafts program, and co-curated by Megan Alves, the show replaces traditional artist statements with “Community Voice labels” written by Cleveland residents impacted by incarceration, including formerly incarcerated artist Gwendolyn Garth. The exhibit opened on October 30 and aims to bridge the gap between inmates and the broader community.

Rhea Anastas

Rhea Anastas, an art historian, critic, and curator, publishes a critical essay challenging the dominance of market-driven values in contemporary visual art. She argues that the art world's focus on auction prices, luxury investment, and professional categorization has obscured the true purpose of artistic practice, which she sees as rooted in experimental culture, Black culture, performance, and film. Anastas condemns the past two decades as marked by dishonesty, particularly regarding how art history and criticism have been built on white-on-Black dispossession and violence. She calls for an end to the commodification of artists' lives and works, advocating instead for attention to non-visible practices, critique, and embodiment.

'Everything you will see is the fruit of her work': Venice Biennale 2026 will follow late curator Koyo Kouoh's vision

The 2026 Venice Art Biennale will proceed exactly as planned by its curator, Koyo Kouoh, who died earlier this month at age 57. Titled "In Minor Keys," the edition is scheduled to open on May 9, 2026. At a press conference in Venice, Biennale press head Maria Cristiana Costanzo confirmed that Kouoh had intensively developed the curatorial concept, selected artists and works, and defined the exhibition's theoretical framework, graphic identity, and spatial design before her death. Her core team will complete the show in strict accordance with her plan, with full support from her family. Collaborators read texts she prepared and displayed images she selected during the presentation.

Two new art centres set to open in Venice

Two new art centres are set to open in Venice in early May 2025. The San Marco Art Centre (SMAC) will launch on 9 May on the second floor of the Procuratie in St Mark’s Square, founded by David Hrankovic, Anna Bursaux, and David Gramazio. It will focus on temporary exhibitions spanning art, architecture, fashion, technology, and film, and is funded through admissions and sponsors. Its inaugural shows, timed with the Venice Architecture Biennale, feature architect Harry Seidler and landscape designer Jung Youngsun. Separately, the Nicoletta Fiorucci Foundation opens a non-profit venue in the Dorsoduro district on 7 May, with a site-specific installation by Georgian artist Tolia Astakhishvili.