Recasting Turandot: Daughters of a Disputed Land

The exhibition "TURANDOT: To the Daughters of the East" at ACP–Palazzo Franchetti in Venice (May 9–Oct 31, 2026) explores the cultural and political history of the Turan region—encompassing parts of modern-day Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan—through the lens of the fictional heroine Turandot. Curated by Ziba Ardalan, the show features 11 female artists including Mona Hatoum, Nazira Karimi, Huma Bhabha, and Afruz Amighi, whose works address themes of nomadic identity, shifting empires, dowry practices, and the opium trade, using the character's transformation from Persian poetry to Puccini's opera as a starting point.

TalaAnyo Opens Exhibition "Orion in Sight: A View of Collective Work" at Ateneo Art Gallery

TalaAnyo, a collective of seven Philippine artist-led initiatives formalized in 2025, opens its first museum exhibition titled "Orion in Sight: A View of Collective Work" at the Ateneo Art Gallery on 28 June 2026. The show features a monumental painting by founding artists, collaborative and community-engaged works, and materials from earlier collectives such as Kaisahan and Tambisan sa Sining, curated by Lisa Ito-Tapang.

How the Louis Vuitton Monogram Predicted Logomania

The article traces the 130-year history of the Louis Vuitton monogram, designed in 1896 by Georges Vuitton as a tribute to his father Louis. It details how the interlocking L and V, combined with floral motifs inspired by Neo-Gothic cathedrals and Japanese mon crests, became a pioneering logo that set the standard for luxury branding. The piece covers the monogram's evolution from embroidered linen to hand-painted stencils, its role in cementing Louis Vuitton as a leader in modern travel, and its transformation into a cultural canvas through collaborations with artists like Takashi Murakami, Stephen Sprouse, and Rei Kawakubo. The article concludes with the brand's 130th-anniversary tribute campaign, including the new Monogram Anniversary Collection.

Art Notes, June 3

Ann Coen has opened a new gallery called North in Barnegat Light, New Jersey, featuring works by local artists Chris Pfeil, Julie Goldstein, Elizabeth Sabine, and Dianne Rinaldi. The article also highlights a variety of community art events on Long Beach Island, including a kid-friendly workshop at the Ocean County Library, painting sessions at Wildflowers in the Woods, a night market at Firefly Gallery, and several gallery openings and exhibitions. Notable exhibitions include the 28th annual "Works on Paper" at the Long Beach Island Foundation of the Arts and Sciences, juried by Metropolitan Museum of Art curator Joanna Sheers Seidenstein, and Alexander Taylor's "Washed Upon the Shore" at the Ocean County Library.

India Surges Ahead as Asia’s Art Market Splinters

Asia's fine art auction market generated $2.2 billion in total sales in 2025, a sharp decline from its $5.4 billion peak in 2021, while lot volume remained steady at roughly 61,000 works sold per year. The average hammer price has more than halved to $36,000, and the five major regions—China, India, Japan, Korea, and Southeast Asia—have diverged into distinct market trajectories. India has emerged as the standout performer with a median hammer price of $10,864 and a sell-through rate of 89 percent, while Mumbai-based auction house AstaGuru grew revenue by 138 percent and opened a London outpost. Christie's New York set records with a $13.4 million sale of a work by modernist M.F. Husain and will hold its first London sale of South Asian modern and contemporary art in seven years.

Artists are making ‘anti-slop’ to rebel against AI: ‘It’s been rammed down our throats’

A group of filmmakers, commercial directors, and AI industry influencers gathered at the Runway AI Summit in New York City, where Rob Wrubel of ad firm Silverside promoted Coca-Cola's AI-generated 2025 Holiday Caravan ad, which was widely criticized for its poor quality. In response to the backlash against AI-generated content, many artists and creatives are embracing an aesthetic called 'anti-slop,' which celebrates handmade, janky, and primitive design as a rejection of AI's slick, uncanny output. Examples include Michael Schmelling's scribbly book covers for Roberto Bolaño reissues and Stoopid Buddy Stoodios' stop-motion Green Bay Packers ad.

Stoke-on-Trent—the UK's home of ceramics—seeks emergency funds for crumbling heritage

Stoke-on-Trent city council has issued an urgent appeal to save dozens of historic industrial buildings tied to the UK's ceramics heritage, warning that without immediate intervention, these structures could be lost forever. The council declared a "heritage emergency" in a recently published prospectus, noting that at least 16 major sites are formally designated "at risk" and many more are in advanced decay. An estimated £325 million is needed over the next decade to stabilize and restore key sites, including up to £150 million for the Chatterley Whitfield colliery complex. The appeal targets central government, national funding bodies, and private investors.

Hilarious or a nightmare? Exhibition displays the worst album covers ever

An exhibition titled "Worst Record Covers in the World" has opened at Mansfield Museum in Nottinghamshire, showcasing hundreds of hilariously bad album sleeves curated by Steve Goldman. The show features the infamous 1979 Peter Rabbitt album *Roadstar*, whose cover depicts band members with rabbit bodies, and includes other gems like *All My Friends Are Dead* by Freddie Gage and *Handgemeng* by Satanic Panic Attack. Former Peter Rabbitt frontman JT Thompson is guest of honour, and visitors can vote for the worst cover.

Paris frozen in time in May 1970 – in pictures

In March 1970, Paris launched an amateur photography competition called 'C’était Paris en 1970' to document the city amid rapid urban development. A grid system divided Paris into 1,755 squares, and a photographer was assigned to each square during May 1970, resulting in 91,655 photographs. A selection of these images is now on display at the Bibliothèque Historique de la Ville de Paris until 7 October 2026, capturing everyday life—from a game of pétanque to cafe society on the Champs-Élysées—alongside the city's transformation.

In Milan there is an exhibition where drawing seeks to give form to the ideal

A Milano c’è una mostra dove il disegno vuole dare forma all’ideale

A new exhibition titled "Ritratti ideali" (Ideal Portraits) by artist Stefano De Paolis has opened at Castiglioni in Milan, featuring four new graphite drawings. The works depict the artist himself in minimal, everyday actions such as reading, smoking, observing a gramophone, and drawing. The show explores the concept of the self-portrait as a vehicle for an ideal form, drawing a parallel to Antonio Canova's idealized faces. The drawings are characterized by their subtle modulation of gray graphite, creating a quiet, contemplative atmosphere that invites close viewing.

Inaugural Medina Triennial transforms small village in upstate New York

The inaugural Medina Triennial opens on June 6 in the small village of Medina, New York (population 6,000), running through September 7. Initiated by the New York State Canal Corporation—a subsidiary of the New York Power Authority—as part of a $300 million tourism drive along the Erie Canal, the triennial has a budget under $2 million and is curated by Kari Conte and Karin Laansoo. Titled "All That Sustains Us," the first edition features 39 artists and collectives across ten sites, including a YMCA, a church, and a former high school, with works inspired by Mierle Laderman Ukeles's concept of "maintenance art." Funding comes from regional foundations and overseas grantmakers such as Outset in the UK and the Mondriaan Fund in the Netherlands.

Simeon Barclay review – shut out by the gates of a drab modern Britain

Simeon Barclay's exhibition in Southampton presents a sharp, pop-cultural critique of exclusion and belonging in modern Britain, featuring works that incorporate Star Wars Imperial Guards, taxidermy pigeons, locked enclosures, and football scarves with Romelu Lukaku's face. The show, described by Barclay as "a lament of sorts, to access and loss," comes shortly after his nomination for the Turner Prize and makes a strong case for why he should win.

The Pope Will Inaugurate Antoni Gaudí’s Sagrada Família After 144 Years of Construction

Pope Leo XIV will visit Barcelona on June 10 to inaugurate and bless the Tower of Jesus Christ, the final tower of Antoni Gaudí’s Sagrada Família, completing 144 years of construction. The tower was finished in February, and the ceremony falls exactly one hundred years after Gaudí’s death in 1926. The event will be attended by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and coincides with Barcelona’s UNESCO designation as a World Capital of Architecture.

Quentin Blake’s sprawling Centre for Illustration to launch in London

The Quentin Blake Centre for Illustration, a vast new arts space founded by the celebrated illustrator Quentin Blake, opens this week in a former waterworks at the historic New River Head site in Islington, north London. The centre features a permanent gallery dedicated to Blake's works, with an opening show titled "Quentin Blake: Performance" (5 June–1 April 2027) exploring his theatrical influences, alongside temporary exhibitions including "Queer as Comics" (5 June–4 October) showcasing LGBTQ+ comics and graphic novels, and a solo show by Sri-Lankan-Welsh artist Murugiah. The £12.5m project was funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, the London Borough of Islington, and several foundations.

Gaudí’s Sagrada Família finally shakes off its ‘incompletable’ tag, as Pope prepares to inaugurate its tallest and final tower

Antoni Gaudí's Sagrada Família in Barcelona has completed its 18th and final tower, the Tower of Jesus Christ, topped with a glass and ceramic cross. On June 10, the centennial of Gaudí's death, Pope Leo XIV will bless the tower at a mass attended by Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, marking the symbolic completion of the basilica after 144 years of construction. The project, which began in 1882 under architect Francisco de Paula del Villar and was taken over by Gaudí a year later, has survived the Spanish Civil War and the destruction of original plans, with craftsmen reconstructing his vision from photographs and models.

Christo-Inspired Public Artwork in Paris By French Artist JR Delayed Because of Storm

A public artwork by French artist JR, inspired by Christo and Jeanne-Claude's 1985 wrapped Pont Neuf, has been delayed after a storm damaged the installation over the River Seine in Paris. The piece, titled La Caverne du Pont Neuf, was scheduled to open on June 6 but has been postponed to a date after June 6 pending a full damage assessment. The trompe l'oeil wrapping transforms the 419-year-old bridge into a rocky outcropping and includes a sound element by Thomas Bangalter of Daft Punk.

JR's wrapped Pont Neuf installation in Paris damaged in storm

French artist JR's monumental public installation, La Caverne du Pont Neuf, which wrapped the Pont Neuf bridge in Paris in a trompe l'oeil canvas, was damaged by a storm just days before its scheduled opening on 6 June 2026. The project's technical experts are investigating the incident, and a new opening date will be announced after the assessment is complete. The work pays homage to Christo and Jeanne-Claude's 1985 wrapped Pont Neuf and is privately funded through sales of JR's works and support from Snap Inc., Bloomberg Philanthropies, Paris Aéroport, and Salesforce.

Women behind the lens: ‘Once naked, they formed a circle. The kicking and screaming occurred naturally’

Peruvian artist and teacher Ana Elisa Sotelo describes her ongoing photography series "Women of the Water," which began in 2022 in Puerto Natales, Chile, when three female swimmers asked her to photograph them naked in the frigid water. The series expanded through open calls to Argentina, the US, and Barbados. One image, "Women's Circle," was shot in March 2023 on playa Agua Dulce in Lima, Peru, following a string of femicide cases. Sotelo organized the shoot via Instagram and WhatsApp, with women swimming out to sea, removing their swimsuits, and forming a naked circle in the water while she flew a drone from shore. The performance, themed "Alive and Fearless" with a vest made by artist Ana De Orbegoso, was intended as an act of sisterhood and solidarity against gender-based violence.

Eglė Budvytytė on Representing Lithuania at the 61st Venice Biennale

Eglė Budvytytė, representing Lithuania at the 61st Venice Biennale (2026), will present a film installation inspired by the archaeological research of Marija Gimbutas, a 20th-century Lithuanian archaeologist and anthropologist. The work, titled "animism sings anarchy (still)," is a three-channel video and 16mm film transferred to 4K projection, exploring Neolithic spiritual practices and a nonviolent, animist, feminist vision of prehistory. Budvytytė collaborated with performers from various geographies and aims to challenge the concept of national representation within the pavilion.

Alexey Morosov on Representing Kyrgyzstan at the 61st Venice Biennale

Alexey Morosov, an artist representing Kyrgyzstan at the 61st Venice Biennale (2026), will present a site-specific installation titled "BELEK" in the Santa Catarina Church. The work combines sculpture, video, and painting, using materials like unfired clay (terra cruda/saman) and poplar, alongside an 8K video fresco contrasting the equestrian game kok-boru with brutalist dams. Morosov discusses how his project addresses water resource issues in Central Asia and relates to the Biennale's theme "In Minor Keys," emphasizing a quiet, tactile approach to existential questions.

Anca Benera and Arnold Estefán on Representing Romania at the 61st Venice Biennale

Anca Benera and Arnold Estefán, the artists representing Romania at the 61st Venice Biennale (2026), discuss their upcoming installation titled "Black Seas — Scores for the Sonic Eye" in the Giardini pavilion. The work combines a two-channel video, sound, and sculptural elements made from floating buoys collected from various seas, reflecting on the parallels between oceanic turbulence and geopolitical instability, particularly in the Black Sea region. The interview, part of ArtReview's series of questionnaires with national pavilion participants, explores how their project relates to the Biennale's theme "In Minor Keys," emphasizing poetry and subtle signals over spectacle.

CFGNY’s Social Puddles

CFGNY, a New York-based collective comprising Daniel Chew, Ten Izu, and Tin Nguyen, presents 'Puddles into Pond' at Amant in New York. The exhibition features installation-based works made collaboratively with friends, including 'Landscape Composition' and 'Fuzzy Bridge' (all 2026), which create a taxidermied simulacrum of nature. Thirteen friends contributed circular ceramic tiles displayed on reflective pedestals. In a second gallery, 'System (Five Times)' presents five water clocks keyed to different rhythms, circulating fluid from a central tank, evoking themes of time, cultural convergence, and globalized trade.

French Street Artist JR’s Paris Installation Postponed Due to Wind Damage

French street artist JR's monumental public art project "La Caverne du Pont Neuf" has been postponed after high winds in Paris damaged the inflatable printed canvas installation, which was set to drape over the Pont Neuf bridge. The artwork, scheduled to open June 6th and run through June 28th, would have allowed visitors to walk through its interior. Organizers are assessing the damage and will announce a new opening date once the investigation is complete.

Cecilia Alemani to curate 2027 Taipei Biennial

Cecilia Alemani, currently the director and chief curator of High Line Art in New York, has been appointed as the curator of the 2027 Taipei Biennial. The announcement was made by the Taipei Fine Arts Museum (TFAM). Alemani, who was born in Milan and is based in New York, has previously curated major exhibitions including the 59th Venice Biennale in 2022 and the 12th SITE Santa Fe International in 2025.

Artist Swoon's new Santa Fe show tackles a painful past.

Artist Caledonia Curry, known as Swoon, presents her new solo exhibition "Swoon: Into the Forest" at Turner Carroll Gallery in Santa Fe, running through July 10. The show marks a departure from her earlier urban street art, featuring drawings, paintings, a stop-motion animated film, and an 88-card oracle deck that draw on her childhood in a swampy, impoverished part of Florida. The work blends Southern gothic and magical realism, centering on the Sibylant Sisters and archetypal figures to explore themes of poverty, addiction, and healing.

‘Get a California King Bed’ and 17 Other Tips for Dating Within the Creative Community

Dealer Pietro Alexander married writer and filmmaker Sara Apple inside his new eponymous SoHo gallery just before the opening of his inaugural exhibition, “The Wedding Show.” The show, inspired by Tiny Tim’s 1969 televised wedding on The Tonight Show, features works by West Coast artists including Billy Al Bengston, Jaxon Demme, Ken Price, and John Altoon, alongside New Yorkers such as Cristine Brache, Ryan Brown, and Tallulah Dirnfeld. The article also compiles relationship advice from artists, designers, and other creative figures who attended the wedding or are featured in the exhibition.

“Contemporary Texas Sculpture”: Talking with Editor Diana L. Roberts

Diana L. Roberts, an independent arts writer, curator, and administrator based in San Antonio, Texas, served as editor and production coordinator for "Contemporary Texas Sculpture: Artists of the Texas Sculpture Group," a 244-page book published in 2025 celebrating the organization's 15th anniversary. The volume features over 100 artist members of the Texas Sculpture Group (TSG), including biographical information, artist statements, and more than 600 photographs, along with an "In Memoriam" section for ten deceased artists. The project took approximately five years from conception to completion, navigating challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic, extensive consensus-building among members, and managing a large volume of material.

Secrets of Indigenous astronomy revealed in new exhibition

Newcastle Art Gallery in Australia has opened "Multiverse," a major solo survey exhibition of Torres Strait Islander artist Brian Robinson. The show, the gallery's first since reopening after a four-year refurbishment, spans Robinson's work across illustration, printmaking, sculpture, animation, and public art, including pieces like the 6-metre sculpture "Citizens Gateway to the Great Barrier Reef" and a new vinylcut print titled "Abracadabra" created during a residency at the University of Newcastle. Robinson, a Maluyligal and Wuthathi man, draws on Indigenous storytelling, cosmology, pop culture, and personal history, with his work also featured at Vivid Sydney and the National Maritime Museum.

OMAH opens submissions for 25th annual juried art exhibition

The Orillia Museum of Art & History (OMAH) has opened submissions for the 25th annual Tradition Transformed juried art exhibition, inviting Canadian artists to reinterpret the Canadian landscape through drawing, painting, sculpture, photography, media arts, and mixed media. The exhibition honors Franklin Carmichael, a Group of Seven member born in Orillia. Submissions close July 31, 2026, with prizes including the Jurors’ Prize ($1,500), Kevin J. Batchelor Emerging Artist Award ($1,000), Philip Jackman Photography Prize ($500), and Norma Duggan Award ($300). Jurors are Tanya Cunnington and Bewabon Shilling.

Main Street Arts in Clifton Springs to open four new exhibitions, featuring 57 artists

Main Street Arts in Clifton Springs, New York, will open four new visual arts exhibitions on Saturday, June 5, 2026, featuring 57 artists. The main attraction is 'Horse Power,' a group show in the Main Gallery that explores horses and related themes through diverse mediums including bronze sculpture, glass mosaic, and painting. Additional exhibitions include a textural installation by Jappie King Black in the Window Front Gallery, framed collages by Beverly Amborski in the Stairwell Gallery, and vibrant paintings by recent Nazareth College graduate Mikayla Guck in the Emerging Artist Gallery. A free public reception will be held from 3 to 6 p.m. on opening day, and all exhibitions run through July 15.