Local artist featured in exhibition in Italy

Medicine Hat artist Poul Nielsen, 78, is exhibiting his work in Venice, Italy, as part of the exhibition 'Anima Mundi (Rituals)' held in conjunction with the Venice Biennale. Nielsen, who has shown his art in around 100 solo and collaborative exhibitions across decades, began his international career with a show in Copenhagen in 2000 and has since exhibited in England, the United States, and China. His current series, 'Atmospheric Possibilities,' was started around 2015 after his retirement from teaching at Medicine Hat College, where he helped develop a pioneering program merging fine art and graphic design.

New Seoul art fair HIVE drops booth fees in market experiment

The inaugural HIVE Art Fair in Seoul, opening May 21 at COEX Magok, is testing an alternative business model that eliminates fixed booth fees. Instead, galleries can choose which services and installations to pay for through a "selective purchase system," with the fair relying on ticket sales, corporate partnerships, and promotional lounges for revenue. The fair features 48 galleries (36 South Korean, 12 international) and 158 artists, with no overlapping artists between galleries, and will display exhibition titles and curatorial statements alongside gallery names.

Building Through Change, Jean-David Malat, Founder of JD Malat Gallery on resilience, risk and the evolving art scene in Dubai

Jean-David Malat, founder of JD Malat Gallery, opened a new outpost in Downtown Dubai in early 2025, expanding from his established Mayfair space in London. The gallery launched with a group show, *Carte Blanche*, and has since hosted solo exhibitions, with plans for a *Made in UAE* initiative that received over 1,000 applications. Malat cites the slowing London market and growing momentum in the UAE as key factors in his decision to invest in Dubai, where he spent a month building relationships with collectors and the local community before opening.

Between heroes, anti-heroes and pure humanity: an exhibition in Rome becomes a metaphor for the current crisis

Tra eroi, antieroi e pura umanità una mostra a Roma diventa metafora della crisi attuale

The Museo di Roma Palazzo Braschi in Rome is hosting "It's Happening Again," a solo exhibition by artist Adrian Tranquilli, curated by Studio Stefania Miscetti and running until May 24. The show presents new works including the monumental sculpture "Endsong" (2025), a black monolith inspired by Kubrick's "2001: A Space Odyssey" covered in hundreds of Joker faces, and a large pop-up book titled "My Little White Book" (2026). Tranquilli's pieces, often built from playing cards, explore themes of power, fragility, and the instability of cultural symbols.

In Tuscany a new festival brings contemporary art to agricultural estates with exhibitions and artist residencies

In Toscana una nuova rassegna porta l’arte contemporanea nelle aziende agricole con mostre e residenze d’artista

The first edition of CARMI.CO 2026 – Carmignano Contemporanea will take place from May 15 to 24, 2026, in the Carmignano area near Prato, Tuscany. The festival features five exhibitions and five artist residencies hosted by local wineries and agricultural estates, alongside talks, workshops, and studio visits. Exhibitions are staged at venues including the Rocca di Carmignano, Museo Archeologico di Artimino, and Museo delle Maioliche di Bacchereto, with works by artists such as Marco Bagnoli, Qiu Yi, Gola Hundun, Rachel Morellet, Fargo, Marco Ulivieri, Serena Fineschi, and others. Residencies take place at Tenuta di Capezzana, Colline San Biagio, Tenuta Le Furre, Tenuta di Artimino, and Fattoria Il Grumolo, involving artists Max Magaldi, Ronaldo Fiesoli, Vittorio Cavallini, Graziano Riccelli, and Gola Hundun.

Curatori e allestitori ci raccontano la grande mostra dedicata a Franco Vaccari a Bolzano

A major retrospective exhibition titled "Feedback. Gli ambienti di Franco Vaccari" has opened at Museion in Bolzano, Italy, dedicated to the late artist Franco Vaccari (1936–2025). The show features over twenty immersive environments, historical works, and recent video experiments drawn largely from the museum's permanent collection and the Franco Vaccari Archive of Visual Writing. Curated by Frida Carazzato and Luca Panaro in collaboration with Fosbury Architecture, the exhibition explores Vaccari's cross-disciplinary practice spanning photography, writing, and participatory installation art.

Mafalda meets Pimpa. In Rome, the dialogue between two authentic comic icons: interview with the curators

Mafalda incontra Pimpa. A Roma il dialogo tra due autentiche icone del fumetto: intervista ai curatori

A new exhibition in Rome titled "Mafalda & La Pimpa" brings together two iconic comic strip characters for the first time. Created by Quino (1964) and Altan (1975) respectively, Mafalda and Pimpa represent different approaches to childhood: Mafalda critically questions adult society, while Pimpa explores a gentle, wonder-filled world. The show runs from May 14 to July 11 at the Instituto Cervantes, featuring over 120 original strips and plates, and is organized in collaboration with ARF! Festival and other partners. Curators Stefano Piccoli and Daniele Bonomo designed the exhibition to highlight both the contrasts and surprising analogies between the two beloved figures.

Maine College of Art & Design Presents the 2026 MFA Thesis Exhibition

Maine College of Art & Design (MECA&D), in collaboration with the Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA) at MECA&D, presents the 2026 MFA Thesis Exhibition, showcasing the culminating work of nine graduate candidates in the Master of Fine Arts in Studio Art program. The exhibition features artists Abigail G. Cloutier, Harley Ngai Grieco, Molly Knobloch, Stephen Medeiros, Darby Miller, Dylan Ouellette, Caitlin Perrigo, Jonathan Spath, and Isaac L. Stern, working across ceramics, drawings, photography, prints, sculpture, sound, and video installations. The show runs from May 7–16, 2026, at the ICA in Portland, Maine.

The Paradox of Contemporary Art: The World Is Violent, but the Works Are Correct and Inoffensive

Il paradosso dell’arte contemporanea: il mondo è violento, ma le opere sono corrette e inoffensive

The article examines a paradox in contemporary art: as the world grows more violent and chaotic, art has become increasingly 'correct,' morally irreproachable, and inoffensive. The author argues that over the past fifteen years, artworks have been judged primarily by their moral and identity credentials, with curators acting as moral gatekeepers and censors. This shift coincides with a period when geopolitics, history, and public behavior have spiraled out of control, creating a strange compensatory dynamic where art is expected to be perfectly controlled and polite while reality grows brutal.

What Did Mozart’s Life Look Like?

An exhibition at the Morgan Library & Museum, titled "Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Treasures from the Mozarteum Foundation of Salzburg," presents a curated journey through the composer's life and career. The show features well-preserved ephemera, including Mozart's childhood violin, original sketches for the opera "The Magic Flute," and personal letters that reveal his scatological humor, alongside portraits of his patrons.

Jockey Club unveils global horse art exhibition in Tsim Sha Tsui to celebrate 140th anniversary

The Hong Kong Jockey Club launched the Harmonious Horse International Exhibition Tour in Tsim Sha Tsui on Friday, featuring large-scale horse sculptures by artist Simon Ma. The opening ceremony at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre Piazza was attended by Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-han and Jockey Club CEO Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges. The exhibition runs until May 21 at Tsim Sha Tsui before moving to Tamar Park in Admiralty, then traveling to Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Guangzhou. A nighttime light show accompanies the display, and winners of a youth art competition inspired by Xu Beihong's equine paintings were announced.

New exhibit at Art Museum of Eastern Idaho celebrates region's agricultural identity

A new exhibition titled "Sacred Spaces: Visions of the West from the Prosaic to the Sublime" has opened at The Art Museum of Eastern Idaho in Idaho Falls, featuring works by six contemporary artists—David Dibble, Bryan Mark Taylor, Josh Clare, Allie Zeyer, Louisa Lorenz, and Carson Thompson. The show, curated by museum Executive Director Alexa Stanger, focuses on the agricultural landscapes of the American West, portraying farms, ranches, and working spaces not as scenic backdrops but as living environments shaped by labor, memory, and generational stewardship. It runs through July 3.

Will Higgins uncovers the Indy 500's wacky history in new exhibit

Former IndyStar reporter Will Higgins has opened a new exhibition titled "The Speedway's Attic" at the Contemporary Art Museum of Indianapolis (CAMi), running until August 16. The show presents nine quirky, true stories from the margins of the Indianapolis 500, featuring artifacts recreated by Higgins based on his own research. One highlighted tale involves a fake 1938 Mercedes Benz convertible linked to Adolf Hitler, which appeared at the 1949 Indy 500 with mannequins and alleged "Hitler's wife's underwear." Higgins, known for his gonzo journalism style, previously created exhibits like "The American Society of Presidential Urine Collectors" and "The Museum of Fabulosity."

Before Language: An Interview with Song E Yoon at Biennale Arte 2026

Song E Yoon's exhibition "Songs Across Time" at Spazio 996/A in Venice, presented as a Collateral Event of the 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, pairs her Song E Code with Frédéric Bruly Bouabré's Bété alphabet. In an interview with Kun Sok, Yoon discusses how her work uses dots, intervals, and repetition to create a visual language that exists before conventional meaning, emphasizing bodily encounter, sensation, and the productive role of misreading.

Morton Contemporary Gallery exhibition will combine art, music and light

Morton Contemporary Gallery in Philadelphia will open “Alchemy: The Sound of Color,” a new exhibition combining painting, music and light, on Saturday, June 6. The show is a collaboration between Los Angeles artist Donna Isham and Emmy and Grammy-winning composer Mark Isham, marking their first exhibition in Philadelphia. It will feature large-scale installations that blend Donna Isham’s paintings with original music, animation and light effects, alongside additional paintings. The opening reception runs from 6 to 8 p.m. on June 6, is free and open to the public, and includes wine and a chance to meet the artists.

Fashion Loves Art: All of the Exhibitions to See at the 2026 Venice Biennale

The article, published by L'Officiel Art, provides a guide to fashion-brand-sponsored exhibitions at the 2026 Venice Biennale. It highlights projects by luxury houses including Bottega Veneta, Louis Vuitton, Zegna, and Bvlgari, framing them as unmissable cultural events within the broader Biennale program.

DO Savannah: Ella Langley, TEDxSavannah, and more

This article is a local events calendar for Savannah, Georgia, covering the week of May 12–21, 2026. Highlights include a SCAD Jewelry Trunk Show, a Telfair Museums anniversary preview of Impressionism and Modernity: French and American Painting with a lecture by National Gallery of Art curator Mary Morton, the opening of the Seven Ladies Exhibit at the Davenport House Museum, the 15th annual TEDxSavannah, a country concert by Ella Langley, a brewery anniversary party, a jazz fundraiser, and several preservation-focused lectures including one by National Preservation Partners Network CEO Kim Trent and a talk on landscape architect Clermont Lee. The Courtyard Concert Series at SCAD MOA concludes with local bluegrass band Swamptooth.

Pavlina Vagioni Oikeiōsis: A Greek Artist Asks Venice to Remember How to Belong

Pavlina Vagioni's exhibition *Oikeiōsis*, presented by the Hellenic Diaspora Foundation at the Venice Biennale, takes its name from a Stoic concept about recognizing belonging and expanding care outward. The show is structured in two rooms: the first, named Neikos (strife), features a fragmented plexiglass cube that reflects visitors in multiplied form, evoking separation. The second, Philotes (harmony), contains warm rock-salt seats and a layered vocal soundscape that activates the Tartini effect—a psychoacoustic phenomenon where two frequencies produce a phantom third tone, symbolizing collective kinship. The salt seats will physically change over the Biennale's six-month run, accumulating the memory of each visitor.

Magical Realism Against the Harshness of the Suburbs

Magischer Realismus gegen die Härte der Vorstadt

French-Chilean artist Tohé Commaret presents an exhibition at MMK Zollamt in Frankfurt featuring quiet, still images that highlight invisible care work and feminist solidarity. The show focuses on women who silently enable events like weddings and galas without being seen, exploring female alliances and the attempt to reclaim new narratives from the suburbs.

La loi sur les restitutions des biens culturels pillés pendant la colonisation définitivement adoptée

The French Parliament has definitively adopted a permanent law on the restitution of cultural property looted during colonization, replacing the previous case-by-case legislative approach. The Senate unanimously approved the final text on May 7, 2026, following agreement in a joint committee on April 30, and the National Assembly had approved it the day before. The law creates a general derogation from the principle of inalienability of public collections, establishing a bilateral scientific committee to examine provenance, with final decisions made by decree of the Council of State. Key amendments from the National Assembly—including binding parliamentary votes on restitution and conditions on conservation and public access—were removed by the joint committee to avoid perceptions of neocolonial tutelage.

La loi-cadre sur les restitutions définitivement adoptée par le Parlement

The French Parliament has definitively adopted a framework law on the restitution of cultural property that was illicitly acquired. The Senate unanimously approved the conclusions of the joint committee on May 7, following the National Assembly's approval on May 6, after an agreement was reached on April 30. The law establishes a general mechanism for returning objects from French public collections without requiring a specific law for each case, covering items acquired through looting, theft, forced sale, or other illicit means before the 1970 UNESCO Convention. It creates a permanent national commission and a bilateral scientific committee to assess claims, with restitution ultimately decided by government decree subject to legal review by the Council of State.

La tour Perret, premier gratte-ciel en béton armé d’Europe, renaît à Grenoble après 60 ans de fermeture

The Tour Perret in Grenoble, Europe's first reinforced concrete skyscraper, will reopen to the public on July 11, 2026, after being closed since the 1960s. Designed by Auguste Perret in 1925 for the International Exhibition of White Coal and Tourism, the 95-meter tower has undergone a complex restoration led by heritage architect François Botton, addressing water infiltration and corrosion while preserving its original character.

Andrew Christopher Green at Galerie Khoshbakht

Andrew Christopher Green presents a solo exhibition titled "Catkins" at Galerie Khoshbakht in Cologne, running from April 17 to May 23, 2026. The show features a selection of works documented through 9 images and 1 video on the gallery's exhibition page, with photography by Mareike Tocha.

Gallery openings and exhibits in Central Oregon this week

This article lists numerous gallery openings and ongoing exhibits across Central Oregon, including venues such as Amejko Artistry, Art Adventure Gallery, Artists’ Gallery Sunriver, and the High Desert Museum. Featured shows include nomadic woven artwork by Anna Amejko Peterson, a 40th anniversary exhibition of Jefferson County artists, “A Man Named York” at the Belknap Exhibit Center, and “Drawn West — A History of Promoting Place” at the High Desert Museum, among many others spanning pottery, photography, fiber art, and historical displays.

Anaheim's new $4 billion, 100-acre entertainment district will double as an open-air art gallery with 70+ free public artworks

Anaheim's $4 billion OCVIBE entertainment district, a 100-acre development around the Honda Center, has partnered with art and design studio FUTUREFORMS to create a public art program featuring over 70 original artworks. The program includes permanent and rotating installations such as sculptural landmarks, murals, and interactive pieces, with early works already taking shape in the food hall and concert hall. Notable artworks include 'Stretto' by Nataly Gattegno and Jason Kelly Johnson, 'Rhythm, Flavor, Motion' by Brian Peterson, 'Gratitude' by Carla Roque, and 'Sunrise – Sunset' by Marina Zumi. The first phase will be accessible to the public in early 2027.

Art on the Square returns for 24th year with art, food and entertainment

Belleville Art on the Square returns for its 24th year from May 15-17, 2026, in downtown Belleville. The festival features over 100 artists from more than 27 states and one international artist, showcasing works in multiple mediums. Highlights include artist demonstrations by the Gateway East Artists Guild, a high school art show with judged awards, a Children's Art Garden with interactive activities, live entertainment at the Wine Court, and food vendors offering a variety of cuisines. Admission is free, and the event runs Friday evening through Sunday afternoon.

Why Italy's cultural wealth never really enters public accounts and budgets?

Perché la ricchezza culturale italiana non entra mai davvero nei conti e nei bilanci pubblici?

Italy has exceeded the European Commission's structural adjustment path by 0.1 percentage points of GDP, reopening fiscal scrutiny. Amid this debate, the article highlights a deeper issue: Italy's immense cultural heritage is drastically undervalued in public accounts. For example, the Pompeii Archaeological Park is recorded at just €48.9 million, the Colosseum at under €15 million, and the Uffizi at about €2 billion—figures based on outdated 2002 ministerial criteria that bear no relation to actual economic or cultural worth. The State General Accounting Office, with the University of Roma Tre and EU technical assistance, has proposed a new methodology to value cultural assets by discounting their future net financial flows, including direct revenues and indirect tourism-related returns.

A Firenze nasce la “nuova” istituzione GAMB che riunisce la Galleria dell’Accademia di Firenze e i Musei del Bargello (con nuovo logo d’autore)

A new museum institution called GAMB (Galleria dell’Accademia di Firenze e Musei del Bargello) has been established in Florence, unifying seven cultural sites under a single autonomous museum system. The sites include the Galleria dell’Accademia, Museo Nazionale del Bargello, Orsanmichele, Casa Martelli, Palazzo Davanzati, Cappelle Medicee, and the former Church of San Procolo. A new visual identity designed by Milanese studio Migliore+Servetto features a pictogram that maps the geographic distribution of the venues, along with a custom typeface and color palette unique to each location. The launch also coincides with the start of a public restoration project for the base of Benvenuto Cellini’s *Perseo* at the Bargello, open to visitors from May 12 to September 5, 2026.

Exhibition | Lin Zhipeng, 'LIN ZHIPENG (NO. 223): Relationship Duplicates' at DE SARTHE, Hong Kong

DE SARTHE gallery in Hong Kong presents 'Relationship Duplicates', the second solo exhibition by Beijing-based photographer Lin Zhipeng (No.223). The show, on view from May 16 to June 27, explores the tactile, intimate dimensions of human relationships through large-scale photoprints, a smartphone installation, and curated collages. Lin redefines 'duplicates' as supplements that extend relationships rather than mere copies, using nudity and physicality to counter the alienation of digital connectivity.

Window to the past: Worcester history on show in Denholm installation

A new public art installation titled “Uniquely Worcester: Celebrating Worcester’s Past & Present” has opened in the windows of the Denholm Building in Worcester, Massachusetts. The exhibition features work from 10 local artists across eight front windows, highlighting the city’s history through themes such as sports, the arts, and notable figures like rocket pioneer Robert Goddard, Valentine card popularizer Esther Howland, and smiley face creator Harvey Ball. One window showcases Abu Mwenye’s vibrant paintings inspired by his Kenyan and Tanzanian heritage, while another displays musical instruments spanning 250 years, including a rope drum from the American Revolution and a guitar made at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. The installation runs throughout 2026 and was organized by project manager Melissa Mattson.