Reaching for the stars: enduring symbols of Soviet science – in pictures

Photographer Eric Lusito documents Soviet-era scientific institutes across former USSR states in his book "Soviet Scientific Institutes," published by FUEL. The photo essay captures decaying facilities and enduring equipment at locations including the Institute of Radio Astronomy in Kharkiv, Ukraine; the Byurakan astrophysical observatory in Armenia; the Andronikashvili Institute of Physics in Tbilisi, Georgia; and the Fesenkov Astrophysical Institute in Kazakhstan, among others.

Australian photographer wins at world photography awards with ‘barefoot volcanologist’ image

Australian photographer Elle Leontiev has been named the Open Photographer of the Year at the 2026 Sony World Photography Awards. Her winning image, titled 'Barefoot Volcanologist,' features Phillip Yamah standing on a lava bomb at Mount Yasur in Vanuatu. Leontiev captured the surreal portrait under challenging technical conditions, relying entirely on autofocus beeps after her camera screens shorted out due to volcanic activity.

Edgar Calel at Kunsthalle Bern

Edgar Calel, a Guatemalan artist born in 1987, is the subject of an exhibition at Kunsthalle Bern. His work draws on the rituals and traditions of his native Guatemala, focusing on the working conditions and environmental impact of export-oriented agricultural industries, particularly palm oil and coffee plantations that dominate the country's economy.

Exhibition | Yelena Popova, 'Moments of Grace' at Osnova gallery, Valencia, Spain

Yelena Popova's solo exhibition 'Moments of Grace' opens at Osnova gallery's new space in Valencia, Spain, marking a decade of collaboration between the artist and the gallery. The show brings together works from several of Popova's major series, including 'Painting Installations' (2012-2017), 'Evaporating Paintings', 'Post-Petrochemical Paintings', and three jacquard-woven tapestries, tracing her practice over the past fifteen years. Popova approaches each project as part of an interconnected body of work, comparing her logic to garden cultivation—a layered, cyclical process. Her cross-disciplinary research focuses on the material conditions of painting, exploring temporal transformations like evaporation, oxidation, and decay, as well as the dynamics between image, surface, and space.

Damola Adepoju Evokes Hope With ‘Light’, His Solo Exhibition

Nigerian artist Damola Adepoju has opened his third solo exhibition, titled 'Light', at Mydrim Gallery in Lagos. The show, curated by Idowu Bankole to commemorate Adepoju's 50th birthday, features 30 paintings and mixed-media works created between 2015 and the present, focusing on Lagos cityscapes and employing his signature technique of newspaper prints, acrylic, and soft gold on a grey palette.

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.

Unlearning Optimization – with Heike Geißler

Optimierung verlernen – mit Heike Geißler

Award-winning author Heike Geißler discusses the necessity of resisting constant self-optimization and embracing despair as a response to modern labor conditions. Drawing from her experiences working in an Amazon warehouse, which inspired her book "Saisonarbeit," Geißler argues that the pressure to perform often leads to a "culture of contempt" and that acknowledging systemic failures is a vital form of resistance.

A Document in Motion: ArtWorld Passports head to the Venice Biennale.

Zimbabwean artist Richard Mudariki has created 'ArtWorld Passport,' a participatory artwork debuting at the Venice Biennale 2026. The piece functions as a social sculpture and performance, where passport holders collect stamps, signatures, and drawings from artists, exhibitions, and pavilions across the Biennale, transforming the bureaucratic tool of travel into a speculative exploration of access and authorship.

‘Apoi’ and Weaving What Remains

Ugandan artist Acaye Kerunen presents her first solo museum exhibition in Germany, titled 'Apoi,' at the Kunstmuseen Krefeld. The show, installed across the modernist spaces of Haus Lange and Haus Esters, features handwoven textiles, sculpture, sound, and film that draw on Indigenous knowledge systems and intergenerational exchange. It is part of the museum's ongoing 'HL HE Dialog: What Comes After Art' series.

Ephemeral Geographies: Where Land, Light and Time Shift at Gallery Pradarshak

A group exhibition titled 'Ephemeral Geographies: Where Land, Light and Time Shift' opens at Gallery Pradarshak in Mumbai on April 24, 2026. The show features ten emerging and mid-career Indian artists—Alistan Dias, Amol Pawar, Bhoomika Karbhari, Manthan Tambe, Meetul Agarwal, Pradip Suryawanshi, Rohan Bhavsar, Sharu Anjirbag, Siddhant Bansod, and Suresh Jangid—who present landscapes across mediums like painting and mixed media as evolving conditions shaped by perception, memory, and atmospheric change.

New Gallery Exhibit at CU Anschutz Honors Son's Legacy

A new photo exhibition and speaker series titled "Love, Anything: 28 Expressions for 28 Luminous Years" has opened at the Fulginiti Pavilion for Bioethics and Humanities on the University of Colorado Anschutz campus. The show features 28 photographs and journal entries by the late photographer Ryyan Chacra, who died by suicide in May 2024 at age 28 while struggling with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The opening reception on April 10 drew over 120 attendees, including family, friends, and university faculty.

Ndidi Dike “Rare Earth Rare Justice” at Secession, Vienna

Ndidi Dike, a British-Nigerian sculptor and multi-disciplinary artist, presents her first major solo exhibition at an Austrian institution, titled "Rare Earth Rare Justice," at Secession in Vienna. The show features works across mixed media, painting, sculpture, collage, photography, video, and installation, addressing social, political, and economic conditions of the modern world.

Accused of Harassing Staff, Martha Ortiz Steps Down as Director of Bogotá’s MAMBO

Martha Ortiz has stepped down as director of Bogotá’s Museo de Arte Moderno (MAMBO) amid allegations of harassing staff and fostering a toxic work environment. The museum announced her retirement and will begin a search for a successor, with board president Ángela Royo and financial manager Francy Hernández assuming interim leadership. Ortiz, who had no prior museum management experience, took the role in March 2024. Her departure follows the ousting of artistic director Eugenio Viola less than three months earlier, after he raised concerns about deteriorating working conditions.

Design and Motorcycle Collector Opens a Museum Dedicated to the Piaggio Vespa in Milan: Unique 80-Year-Old Specimens

Collezionista di design e moto ha aperto un museo dedicato alla Vespa Piaggio a Milano: esemplari unici di 80 anni fa

Former Ikea executive Stefano Biffi has transformed a 700-square-meter former tire workshop in Milan into "My Vintage," a private museum and event space housing one of the world's most significant collections of Piaggio Vespa scooters. The venue features rare specimens from the 1940s, 50s, and 60s, including original 1946 models displayed without kickstands to reflect the muddy road conditions of post-war Italy. The space is designed to be a sustainable cultural hub, offering guided tours alongside rentals for events, film shoots, and ceremonies.

Geological encounters

Wadi Finan Art Gallery presents "Geological Encounters," an exhibition running from April 25 to May 14, 2026, at its Jabal Amman location in Amman, Jordan. The show features the work of Jordanian artist and architect Ammar Khammash, whose multidisciplinary practice engages directly with Jordan's terrains, responding to their geological, social, and cultural conditions.

Aumenti salariali e welfare per i lavori della cultura. È stato firmato il nuovo Contratto Nazionale di Lavoro. L’intervista

A new national labor contract for Italy's cultural sector has been signed. The Federculture National Labor Contract, finalized on April 30, 2026, includes a 7.5% increase in minimum wages (effective December 1, 2024), doubled welfare contributions for healthcare, and a simplified job classification system. The agreement was reached between Federculture and major unions including FP CGIL, CISL FP, UIL FPL, and UIL PA, with negotiations for the 2025-2027 term set to resume on May 26.

Discover 20th‑century Paris by night in a free photo exhibition at the Roger-Viollet Gallery

The Roger-Viollet Gallery in Paris is hosting a free photography exhibition titled "Paris, Open All Night" ("Paris, ouvert la nuit") from June 11 to October 3, 2026. The show features 70 photographs taken between 1900 and 1970, capturing the city's nocturnal life—from cabarets and street vendors to neon signs and holiday celebrations.

Salford Uni’s Energy House 2.0 appoints new Iranian-born artist in residence

Iranian-born artist Omid Asadi has been appointed as the new artist-in-residence at the University of Salford’s Energy House 2.0 research facility. Running from Spring 2026 through the end of the year, the residency will see Asadi collaborate with researchers at the world-leading climate laboratory, which features two massive chambers capable of simulating extreme global weather conditions. The artist plans to create new installations and sculptures in response to the facility's pioneering retrofit research, specifically focusing on a recreated 1930s-era house.

Off-campus galleries in Dallas and Denton step in as UNT art students boycott school spaces

University of North Texas (UNT) art students are boycotting on-campus exhibition spaces, prompting off-campus galleries in Dallas and Denton to step in and provide alternative venues for their work. The boycott stems from student grievances over institutional policies and conditions within the university's art program, leading to a grassroots shift in where student art is displayed.