Frist Art Museum Will Present 100 Years of Contemporary Indigenous Art

The Frist Art Museum in Nashville will present "An Indigenous Present," an exhibition spanning 100 years of modern and contemporary Indigenous art, from June 26 to September 27, 2026. Co-curated by artist Jeffrey Gibson and independent curator Jenelle Porter, the show features 15 artists who use abstraction as a tool for liberated expression, including Teresa Baker, Raven Chacon, Kimowan Metchewais, Caroline Monnet, George Morrison, Mary Sully, Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, and Kay WalkingStick. Organized by the Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston, the exhibition draws from Gibson and Porter's landmark 2023 publication of the same title and is structured into five thematic sections that place emerging artists in dialogue with established makers.

The Female Artists To See at This Year's Venice Biennale

The 61st Venice Biennale returns amid controversy, including calls to exclude Israel, scrutiny over Russia's participation, and the reinstatement of Australian artist Khaled Sabsabi. Despite the political tensions, the exhibition will feature a strong lineup of female artists, from established names like Marina Abramović and Jenny Saville to emerging voices such as Maja Malou Lyse, who becomes the youngest artist to represent Denmark. The 2026 edition also introduces dedicated spaces for Black and Indigenous artists for the first time, with works exploring themes from male fertility to patriarchal violence and resilience.

New Perspectives: "Roy Lichtenstein in the Studio"

The Dallas Museum of Art (DMA) and the Nasher Sculpture Center have jointly opened "Roy Lichtenstein in the Studio," a landmark two-venue exhibition celebrating the pop artist's centennial. Organized by curators Dr. Catherine Craft, Ade Omotosho, and Dr. Emily Friedman, the show features over 50 works gifted by the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation, which is closing its operations. The exhibition marks the first collaboration between the neighboring institutions since "Matisse as Sculptor" nearly 20 years ago, and includes prints, drawings, maquettes, and sculptures that establish Dallas as a study center for Lichtenstein's work.

Review: Manet-Morisot exhibition is a deep dive into artistic ways of seeing, making

The Cleveland Museum of Art's spring exhibition examines the artistic relationship between 19th-century French Impressionist painters Édouard Manet and Berthe Morisot, showcasing 36 paintings and seven works on paper. Organized by curator Emily Beeny of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, the show is the first to closely analyze how the two artists influenced each other, correcting the historical record that long positioned Manet as the dominant figure while undervaluing Morisot's contributions. Through side-by-side juxtapositions, the exhibition reveals that Manet may have taken more from Morisot than she from him, highlighting their collaborative and competitive dialogue over 15 years.

George Morrison painting highlights May 7, 2026 Heritage sale

Heritage Auctions will offer George Morrison's painting *Palisade* (1958) as the highlight of its May 7, 2026 Modern & Contemporary Art Signature Auction. The 76-lot sale features a global survey of postwar and contemporary abstraction, including works by Takeo Yamaguchi, Fritz Winter, Andy Warhol, Tom Wesselmann, Wayne Thiebaud, Fernando Botero, David Bates, KAWS, and George Rickey.

Amplifying Indigenous Voices with Phil Cash Cash and the Portland Art Museum

The Portland Art Museum is launching a program to bring on a team of Native American co-curators to revitalize its Native American art collection, led by curator Kathleen Ash-Milby. The museum has partnered with multi-disciplinary artist and scholar Phil Cash Cash, a member of the Nez Perce and Cayuse tribes, who will contribute Indigenous perspectives to the collection's evolution. Cash Cash, who holds a PhD in Anthropology and Linguistics and co-founded the Crow's Shadow Institute of the Arts, gave a talk to the museum's Native American Art Council in early 2026, marking a new collaborative phase.

Alexander Calder Thought 'It Would Be Fun' to Set Abstract Art in Motion. His Mesmerizing Mobiles Transformed the Definition of Sculpture

A major exhibition titled "Calder: Dreaming in Equilibrium" has opened at the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris, showcasing 300 works by Alexander Calder, including his pioneering mobiles, stabiles, paintings, drawings, and wire portraits. The show marks 100 years since the artist's arrival in France in 1926 and 50 years since his death in 1976. It features iconic pieces such as the 19-foot-long mobile *Triumphant Red* (1963) and his earliest known kinetic sculpture—a brass duck from 1909—alongside works by contemporaries like Barbara Hepworth, Pablo Picasso, and Paul Klee, as well as photographs by Man Ray, Agnès Varda, and Gordon Parks.

the eight Impressionist exhibitions

Between 1874 and 1886, a group of avant-garde artists in Paris—including Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Edgar Degas, Camille Pissarro, and Berthe Morisot—organized eight independent exhibitions as a rebellion against the government-sponsored Salon. Rejected by the Salon's conservative jury, which favored academic standards, these artists pooled resources to stage their own shows, initially held at photographer Nadar's atelier on the boulevard des Capucines. The exhibitions had fluctuating lineups and varied titles, and the term "Impressionist" was only applied retrospectively by art historians in the 20th century.

Artists at work: A peek behind the canvas

The Norton Museum of Art in West Palm Beach has opened a small exhibition titled "Artists at Work," curated by first-time curator Sarah Bass, a curatorial research associate at the museum. The show features paintings, photographs, and sculptures that focus on the creative process rather than finished works, including pieces by Charles Griffin Farr, Hiram Williams, Ben Benn, Bay Williams, Robert Bailey, and William Zorach. Highlights include a self-portrait by Farr, Williams's seemingly incomplete "Big Studio Table," and Zorach's terra-cotta sketch for "Youth" displayed alongside the final marble sculpture. Photographs of artists like Henri Matisse, Georges Braque, and Fernand Léger in their studios further emphasize the theme of the artist at work.

Dataland, World's First A.I. Arts Museum, Will Open in June, and Other News.

Dataland, billed as the world's first museum dedicated to AI-generated art, will open June 20 at The Grand LA in downtown Los Angeles, founded by Refik Anadol and Efsun Erkılıç. Its inaugural exhibition, 'Machine Dreams: Rainforest,' uses vast environmental datasets to create multi-sensory AI interpretations of nature. In other news, Tuan Andrew Nguyen's 27-foot-tall sandstone Buddha sculpture has been installed on New York's High Line Plinth; Chanel is launching its first-ever Coco Beach pop-up in Shanghai; Kengo Kuma collaborated with Jaipur Rugs on a carpet collection unveiled at Milan Design Week; and Pittsburgh's new $31 million Arts Landing civic space opened in the Cultural District.

Review: “Maya Blue” at the San Antonio Museum of Art

The San Antonio Museum of Art is presenting "Maya Blue: Ancient Color, New Visions," an exhibition curated by Kristopher Driggers that explores the ancient Maya pigment known as Maya blue. The show features eight earthenware artworks and one stucco piece dating from 550 to 1,500 years ago, alongside five modernist and contemporary works that highlight the enduring influence of Indigenous knowledge. Objects on view include figurines, a censer, and jade pieces, many bearing traces of the distinctive blue pigment, which was difficult to produce and held sacred significance in Maya culture.

Philadelphia Museum of Art exhibit featuring Rocky Balboa statue gets underway

The Philadelphia Museum of Art has opened a new exhibition titled "Rising Up: Rocky and the Making of Monuments," centered on the iconic bronze statue of fictional boxer Rocky Balboa that sits at the bottom of the museum's steps. Guest-curated by Paul Farber, the show explores the statue's transformation from a movie prop into a real-world symbol of perseverance and public devotion, tracing over 2,000 years of boxing imagery through works by artists such as Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and Andy Warhol. The museum, which once fought to have the statue removed, now embraces it as part of Philadelphia's identity.

Nick Cave’s “Mammoth” Collection of Objects Is a Public Deep Dive Into Personal History

Nick Cave's immersive solo exhibition "Mammoth" is on view at the Smithsonian American Art Museum through January 3, 2027. The show features a vast, illuminated table covered with hundreds of everyday objects—faux fruits, bejeweled vegetables, wooden canes, glass fish, toy trucks, and leather slippers—arranged with deliberate purpose. Alongside these collected items, Cave has constructed mammoth hides and bones, and a video projection brings the ancient creatures to life. The exhibition draws deeply on Cave's personal history growing up in Missouri, with memories of his grandparents' farm and his family's traditions of making, quilting, and craftsmanship informing the assemblage.

Maine art galleries showcase dozens of artists in summer shows

A roundup of summer art exhibitions across Maine highlights dozens of artists showing at galleries and pop-up spaces from Rockport to Portland. Notable shows include Alexandre Gallery's pop-up featuring charcoal works by the late Cooper Union-trained artist Emily Nelligan, who spent decades depicting Cranberry Island; Karma's annual summer pop-up at artist Ann Craven's deconsecrated church in Thomaston; and solo exhibitions at Caldbeck Gallery, Courthouse Gallery, and Cove Street Arts. Other venues such as Carver Hill Gallery, Corey Daniels Gallery, Dowling Walsh, and Moss Galleries present group and solo shows spanning landscape painting, mythical imagery, and works addressing social resistance.

7 artists to have on your radar at Gallery Weekend Berlin 2026

Gallery Weekend Berlin returns for its 22nd edition from May 1 to 3, 2026, featuring 50 galleries across 66 locations throughout the city. The event showcases both established and emerging artists from over 30 countries, with highlights including Martine Syms's pop-up boutique at Sprüth Magers, Göksu Kunak's performance-based exhibition at Ebensperger, and a new sector called Perspectives featuring James Turrell. Other notable presentations include Wynnie Mynerva's exploration of love and colonialism at Société, Monty Richthofen's city-wide performance at Dittrich & Schlechtriem, and Hanna Stiegeler's intimate screenprinted canvases at Sweetwater.

BE PART OF A COLLECTIVE ART WORK BY CHIHARU SHIOTA FOR THE CURITIBA INTERNATIONAL BIENNIAL

Japanese artist Chiharu Shiota has announced a new site-specific installation titled *The Space Between Us* for the 16th Curitiba International Biennial – THRESHOLDS, opening June 14 through November 15, 2026 at the Oscar Niemeyer Museum (MON) in Curitiba, Brazil. Curated by Tereza de Arruda, the work invites the public to submit letters—in text, collage, or other manual forms—which Shiota considers self-portraits of each participant’s inner universe. Submissions must be sent by May 20, 2026, and will be woven into a large-scale collective installation that makes visible the hidden experiences of individuals.

What not to miss from the new edition of The Phair, the photography fair in Turin

Cosa non perdere della nuova edizione di The Phair, la fiera della fotografia di Torino

The seventh edition of The Phair, a photography fair in Turin, Italy, opened on Thursday, May 21, at the Sala Fucine of the Officine Grandi Riparazioni. Founded by Roberto Casiraghi and Paola Rampini, the fair features 42 national and international galleries. Highlights include a surprising automotive partnership at the entrance, and standout presentations from Red Lab Gallery (Ezio D’Agostino and Carlotta Valente), Alberto Damian Gallery (Paolo Gioli), Roccavintage (Costanza Gastaldi), Tucci Russo (Giulio Paolini), Raw Messina (Kri Babusci), and Galleria Umberto Benappi (Ugo Mulas). Other notable artists include Arnulf Rainer, Anton Corbijn, Luigi Ontani, and Simon Starling.

A Painting by Gerard van Honthorst in Utrecht

Un tableau de Gerard van Honthorst à Utrecht

The Centraal Museum in Utrecht has acquired a painting by Gerard van Honthorst, titled *Extase de Marie-Madeleine* (c. 1618-1620), purchased from Cantore Galleria. The work was previewed at TEFAF Maastricht, where the museum also announced a major retrospective dedicated to the artist, titled "Gerard van Honthorst - En tout point différent de Rembrandt," which opened on April 25.

Dozens of Venice Biennale Artists Withdraw From Awards En Masse

Almost half of the artists in the 61st Venice Biennale's international exhibition, along with 16 national pavilion teams, have withdrawn from awards consideration in solidarity with the jury's resignation. The jury resigned on April 30 after stating it would not consider countries whose leaders are charged with crimes against humanity by the ICC, effectively disqualifying Israel and Russia. The Biennale Foundation then replaced the traditional Golden Lions with new "Visitor Lions" decided by public vote, reinstating all pavilions including Israel and Russia. The withdrawal follows protests at the Russian and Israeli pavilions and a historic labor strike that shuttered multiple pavilions.

Oh What A Time at Air de Paris

Air de Paris presents "Oh What A Time," a group exhibition running from April 16 to May 2, 2026, featuring works by Trisha Donnelly, Joseph Grigely, Pati Hill, Pierre Joseph, Allen Ruppersberg, Lily van der Stokker, Mona Varichon, and Amy Vogel. The show brings together eight artists in a concise two-week presentation at the Parisian gallery.

Part root vegetable, part deity: Inside Everything Is Terrible’s new Meow Wolf L.A. installation

Meow Wolf's upcoming Los Angeles location, set to open later this year in a former Cinemark movie theater in West L.A., will feature a 20-foot-tall, 1,000-pound amoeba-like creature named WoWoW, created by the L.A.-based multimedia collective Everything Is Terrible. WoWoW serves as the centerpiece of "the N.E.S.T.," an EIT-designed section of the 26,000-square-foot immersive exhibition space that tells the story of the Noothies, a fictional community of former film workers who discover a god and a hidden truth about reality. The installation pays tribute to maximalist roadside attractions like Wisconsin's House on the Rock and New Mexico's Tinkertown Museum, and is one of 45 installations by local collaborating artists including Gabriela Ruiz and David Altmejd.

Corals as Living Geology. In Conversation with Julian Charrière by Timothée Chaillou

Julian Charrière has created two new bodies of work, *Chorals* (2025) and *Veils* (2025), in collaboration with Maison Ruinart. The projects are inspired by the Lutetian Sea, which submerged the Champagne region 45 million years ago, and explore themes of deep time, climate change, and the interconnectedness of organic and mineral life. *Chorals* is a permanent sound installation in Ruinart's cellars in Reims, featuring amplified recordings of ocean reefs, while *Veils* comprises wall works and sculptures centered on corals and fading coral imagery. The works travel to art fairs as preludes to the permanent installation.

46th annual Cerro Gordo Photo Show open at Charles H. MacNider Art Museum

The 46th Annual Cerro Gordo Photo Show has opened at the Charles H. MacNider Art Museum's Center Space Gallery in Mason City, Iowa. The exhibition features 36 photographs by 20 artists from Cerro Gordo County and North Iowa Area Community College, selected by a panel of judges from 62 entries. Artists include Alec Heggen, Brad Janson, Wendy Janson, Dennis Nettifee, Margo Underwood, Lisa Wolf, and many others from Clear Lake, Mason City, and Plymouth. The show is sponsored by the Safford and Lena Lock Photo Endowment Fund, with an opening reception and awards ceremony scheduled for May 7, offering cash prizes including $125 for Best in Show.

Artist Kasper Eistrup Maps the Human Condition on Canvas

Danish artist Kasper Eistrup (b. 1973) presents his first solo exhibition in Germany, titled "Bridges Over Magma," at Galerie Schimming in Hamburg. The show features a new body of work created during a recent artist-in-residence program in Hamburg, where Eistrup drew inspiration from the city's famous bridges and his ongoing exploration of painting and drawing. The compositions blend meticulously rendered figures with architecture, flora, fauna, handwritten text, and abstract textures, exploring themes of human connection and resilience.

Human Connection Cuts Through Technology at Focus Art Fair

Focus Art Fair, New York's only art fair dedicated to contemporary Asian art, returned for its fourth edition at Chelsea Industrial, running through May 24, 2026. The fair's theme, 'human-technology coexistence,' was explored through works such as Hwia Kim's interactive installation 'What if two eyes don't work together?' presented by LG Electronics, and pieces by the Ukrainian-born F-Twins (Anna and Valeriia Lyshchenko), who founded the Primarealism art movement in response to AI's encroachment on critical thinking. Other highlights included Annu Yadav's political installation 'This Land is Wounded' (2025) and Taezoo Park's 'Hacked Snoopy' (2025), which memorializes neglected technologies. The fair featured more than 40 galleries and presenters, with a notable appearance by Japanese pop icon Kento Senga, who shared his FiNGA character as a means of connecting with his grandmother suffering from Alzheimer's.

Workers Push to Rename Wexner Center for the Arts Over Epstein Ties

Unionized staff at Ohio State University's Wexner Center for the Arts, organized as Wex Workers United, have officially called for the renaming of the arts center and other campus buildings named after billionaire benefactor Les Wexner. The union argues that Wexner's name, due to his decades-long association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein—who had power of attorney over Wexner's fortune—harms artists and community members. The call follows similar demands from the Ohio Nurses Association regarding the Wexner Medical Center and ongoing student protests, including an April 10 action where students covered Wexner's name on the art center's façade with a black tarp. OSU spokesperson Chris Booker noted that over 500 renaming requests have been filed under the university's official review procedure, while OSU President Ted Carter has emphasized that name changes require fact-finding and cannot be based on supposition.

Future Fair Is a Big Artist Party

Future Fair, held at Chelsea Industrial in New York from May 13–16, 2026, brought together 69 exhibitors from nine countries. Unlike traditional art fairs with segmented booths, the fair emphasized interconnectedness and interpersonal connection, featuring artist-run booths and family-led presentations. Notable participants included Nanor Hakimian showing her brother Garo's paintings, Olivia Janna Genereaux exhibiting with her son Hans Silas Jovine, and artists Cloe Galasso, John Vitale, and Miles Ingrassia. The fair also highlighted its profit-sharing model, dedicating 15% of proceeds plus exhibitor donations to subsidize emerging galleries.

Met Gala Boycott Message Projected on Bezos’s Manhattan Penthouse

On May 3, 2026, the activist group Everyone Hates Elon projected messages condemning Jeff Bezos and Amazon onto Bezos's luxury penthouse in Manhattan's Madison Square Park, ahead of the Met Gala on May 4. The projections included a video testimony from Amazon warehouse worker Mary Hill, who called for honoring workers instead of billionaires, and slogans such as 'Boycott The Bezos Met Gala.' The group also projected onto the Chrysler and Empire State buildings. This action follows earlier protests, including littering the Met with fake urine bottles and wheatpasting posters across the city, all targeting Bezos's role as an honorary co-chair of the gala.

At the Casa di Goethe in Rome, two controversial episodes in the history of science in Mischa Kuball's light installations

Alla Casa di Goethe di Roma due episodi controversi della storia della scienza nelle installazioni di luce di Mischa Kuball

The Casa di Goethe in Rome is hosting a solo exhibition of German conceptual artist Mischa Kuball from April 30 to October 4, 2026. The show features two light installations: "Newton/Goethe luce nera," which contrasts Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's and Isaac Newton's opposing theories on color and light refraction, and "five suns / after Galileo," which visualizes Galileo Galilei's observations of sunspots and his conflict with the Catholic Church. The exhibition is curated by the museum's director, Gregor H. Lersch.

72 Hours in Venice: Palazzos, Protests, and a Biennale on the Brink

The article recounts a journalist's 72-hour visit to the Venice Biennale, beginning with a protest by Pussy Riot and Femen at the Russian Pavilion. The action features pink smoke, chants of "Blood is Russia's art," and a guerrilla performance of the song "Disobey," set against a backdrop of internal Biennale strife—including juror resignations over countries whose leaders face ICC arrest warrants (Netanyahu and Putin). The narrative also notes the presence of alt-right figures like Ryan Coyne and sculptor Alma Allen's troubled U.S. pavilion representation.