Hong Kong Marquee Art Sales Total $164.9 M., Up 18 Percent From Equivalent 2025 Auctions

Christie's, Phillips, and Sotheby's spring marquee auctions in Hong Kong generated a combined $164.9 million, an 18% increase from the equivalent sales in spring 2025. The auctions, strategically timed to coincide with Art Basel Hong Kong, saw strong demand for trophy works, with Christie's leading the season at $83.8 million. Key sales included a Gerhard Richter painting for $11.77 million and a Sanyu work for $8.17 million, while Sotheby's sold a Joan Mitchell painting for $17.6 million, the season's top lot.

Guggenheim Museum Gets a New Director

The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum has appointed Melissa Chiu as its next director, succeeding Richard Armstrong. Chiu joins the New York flagship institution after a twelve-year tenure at the Smithsonian’s Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, D.C., and is expected to assume her new role this coming September.

What If Every City Provided Artists With Free Supplies?

Materials for the Arts (MFTA), a program of the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, provides free art supplies and tools to over 4,500 organizations, including public schools, nonprofits, and social justice groups. By diverting millions of pounds of materials from landfills—ranging from film production sets to high-end fabrics—the organization has reallocated over $40 million worth of goods to the creative community. The program's leadership is now advocating for an expansion of this model, envisioning dedicated reuse centers in every borough to meet the growing demand for accessible creative resources.

Radiohead Hits the Road With a Haunting Immersive Installation

Radiohead has announced a North American tour for "Motion Picture House," a massive 17,000-square-foot immersive audiovisual installation. The project features a 75-minute film titled Kid A Mnesia, directed by Sean Evans, which incorporates art created by frontman Thom Yorke and longtime collaborator Stanley Donwood. Launching at the Coachella festival before traveling to cities like Brooklyn and Mexico City, the experience combines surround-sound studio recordings with physical galleries displaying the original source art from the band's seminal turn-of-the-century albums.

UK National Gallery to recoup £2m a year after completing voluntary redundancy process

The National Gallery in London has successfully reached a target of £2 million in annual savings following a voluntary redundancy program and a recruitment freeze. Initiated in February to address a projected £8.2 million deficit, the voluntary exit scheme allowed the institution to avoid compulsory redundancies among its nearly 500 employees. While the gallery has met its initial savings goal, it must still find ways to bridge a remaining multi-million pound shortfall through non-staff cost reductions.

Modern heroes and a ravaged Earth: reboot of 1950s space comic Dan Dare has liftoff

The legendary British space hero Dan Dare is set for a 21st-century revival with the upcoming graphic novel "Dan Dare: First Contact." Created by writer Alex de Campi and artist Marc Laming under B7 Comics, the project reimagines the 1950s icon for a modern audience while retaining core characters like Digby and Professor Peabody. The reboot follows a successful Kickstarter campaign and aims to provide a fresh alternative to dominant sci-fi franchises like Star Wars and Star Trek.

Modern heroes and a ravaged Earth: reboot of 1950s space comic Dan Dare has liftoff

The legendary British sci-fi hero Dan Dare is returning in a new graphic novel titled 'Dan Dare: First Contact,' published by B7 Comics. Written by Alex de Campi and illustrated by Marc Laming, the project marks a 21st-century reboot of the character originally created by Frank Hampson for the Eagle magazine in 1950. The new iteration modernizes the cast, transforming Professor Peabody into a character of Indian descent and reimagining the sidekick Digby as a young working-class engineer, while maintaining the core conflict against the villainous Mekon.

A Parisian Man Just Won a $1 Million Picasso Painting with a $117 Raffle Ticket

Ari Hodara, a 58-year-old engineer from Paris, has won a Pablo Picasso painting valued at approximately $1 million after purchasing a raffle ticket for just 100 euros. The artwork, a 1941 gouache-on-paper titled "Head of a Woman," depicts the artist's muse Dora Maar and was provided by Opera Gallery. The raffle sold 120,000 tickets globally, successfully raising significant funds for charity.

French Engineer Snags $1 Million Picasso With $116 Raffle Ticket

French engineer Ari Hodara has won a 1941 Pablo Picasso painting titled 'Tête de Femme' through a charity raffle after purchasing a single €100 ticket. The draw, held at Christie’s Paris, sold 120,000 tickets globally and raised €12 million for the Alzheimer’s Research Foundation. The artwork was sourced from the Opera Gallery, which will receive approximately €1 million of the proceeds.

Paris art enthusiast wins €1m Picasso painting in €100 charity raffle

Ari Hodara, a Parisian sales engineer and art enthusiast, won a 1941 Pablo Picasso portrait valued at over €1 million through a €100 charity raffle ticket. The draw, held at Christie’s in Paris, featured the painting 'Head of a Woman,' a portrait of the artist’s muse Dora Maar. The lottery successfully sold all 120,000 available tickets, raising a total of €12 million.

€1m Picasso painting to be won for €100 in charity raffle

A charity raffle in France is offering participants the chance to win a 1941 Pablo Picasso portrait, 'Tête de Femme', for the price of a €100 ticket. The initiative aims to sell up to 120,000 tickets to raise funds for the Alzheimer’s Research Foundation in Paris, with the painting's current owner, Opera Gallery, receiving €1m from the proceeds. The artwork will be displayed at Christie’s in Paris ahead of the drawing.

Michael Armitage in Venice, monumental and disturbing. What the exhibition at Palazzo Grassi looks like

Michael Armitage is the subject of a major solo retrospective at Palazzo Grassi in Venice, marking his largest exhibition in Europe to date. Organized by the Pinault Collection, the show features monumental paintings that blend African identity, local Kenyan chronicles, and mythological narratives. Armitage’s work is noted for its physical scale and its ability to transform the chaos of human affairs into a syncretic epic, utilizing traditional materials like Lubugo bark cloth to ground his contemporary subjects.

Forget Masterpieces—Show Me Everything

The Victoria & Albert Museum has launched the V&A Storehouse in East London, a massive open-storage facility housing over 250,000 objects, 1,000 archives, and a vast library. Designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro in collaboration with Austin-Smith:Lord, the space eschews traditional curated narratives in favor of a dense, immersive environment where visitors navigate four stories of artifacts arranged by cataloging logic rather than art-historical themes.

Joan Mitchell becomes most expensive female artist at auction in Asia with US$17.6m Sotheby's sale

Joan Mitchell’s diptych "La Grande Vallée VII" sold for HK$137 million (US$17.6 million) at Sotheby’s Hong Kong, setting a new record for the most expensive work by a female artist ever sold at auction in Asia. The 1983 masterpiece, part of a celebrated 21-painting cycle dedicated to a grieving friend, led a successful Modern and Contemporary Evening Auction that saw a 100% sell-through rate for its 54 lots. Other notable results included a Mark Rothko canvas that more than doubled its low estimate and significant sales for works by Sanyu and Zao Wou-Ki.

Beer With a Painter: Tom Burckhardt

Artist Tom Burckhardt discusses his creative process and upbringing in a studio interview, highlighting his upcoming work and the influence of his New York School lineage. The son of artists Yvonne Jacquette and Rudy Burckhardt, he explores the concept of "mouthfeel" in painting—a textural quality that parallels culinary experiences—while utilizing humor and skepticism to challenge artistic pretension.

A Painter Faces His Biggest Show, and the Truth About Success

Hurvin Anderson is preparing for a major retrospective of his work at Tate Britain, a significant milestone in his career. Despite this achievement, the artist expresses a complex and uncertain relationship with his own success, reflecting on his journey and the meaning of recognition.

Marcel Duchamp at MoMA: Five Revelations From the Artist’s First North American Survey in Over 50 Years

The Museum of Modern Art in New York has launched a major retrospective of Marcel Duchamp, marking the artist's first comprehensive North American survey in over half a century. The exhibition traces Duchamp’s evolution from his early satirical drawings and avant-garde paintings to his revolutionary experiments with movement and mechanization, featuring iconic works like "Nude Descending a Staircase" and "L.H.O.O.Q." alongside technical diagrams and studies for "The Large Glass."

Glenstone Is Celebrating 20 Years Of Art, Architecture, & Nature

Glenstone Museum in Potomac, Maryland, is celebrating its 20th anniversary as one of the largest private contemporary art museums in the United States. Founded in 2006, the institution offers a unique, immersive experience across 230 acres, combining world-class art, minimalist architecture, and expansive nature trails. The museum currently features major works by iconic artists such as Jackson Pollock, Ruth Asawa, and Kerry James Marshall within its two primary structures, The Gallery and The Pavilions.

Readers react to LACMA’s new David Geffen Galleries: L.A. arts and culture this weekend

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) is preparing for the public debut of its $724-million David Geffen Galleries, designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Peter Zumthor. Ahead of the April 19 member opening, public discourse has intensified following a series of reports detailing the building's architecture, the reinstallation of Alexander Calder’s "Three Quintains (Hello Girls)," and the project's massive budget. Reader reactions remain deeply polarized, reflecting a two-decade-long debate over the structure's unconventional design and its impact on the urban landscape.

LACMA spent nearly $724 million on the David Geffen Galleries — here's how it was all used

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) has finalized the construction of the David Geffen Galleries, a $723.8-million project designed by Swiss architect Peter Zumthor. As the museum prepares for its April 16 gala, officials have released a detailed breakdown of the spending, which supported over 8,600 jobs and generated an estimated $1.2 billion in regional economic activity. Despite the massive investment, the project remains a lightning rod for controversy due to its unconventional modernist design and the fact that it offers less gallery space than the four buildings it replaced.

Lee Bul's Retrospective Transforms M+ During Art Basel

The M+ museum in Hong Kong has launched a major retrospective of South Korean artist Lee Bul, timed to coincide with Art Basel Hong Kong 2026. Titled 'Lee Bul: From 1998 to Now,' the exhibition features over 200 works, including her iconic 'Cyborg' and 'Anagram' series, as well as large-scale immersive installations like 'The City of the Sun.' Co-organized with the Leeum Museum of Art, this exhibition marks the artist's largest retrospective to date and traces her evolution from early body-centric performances to complex, sci-fi-inspired urban landscapes.

How Expo Chicago’s One-of-a-Kind Curatorial Forum Came to Be

Expo Chicago has distinguished itself within the global art fair circuit through its unique Curatorial Forum, a partnership with Independent Curators International (ICI) that began in 2014. Originally conceived by Tony Karman and Renaud Proch, the program has evolved from a small gathering into a major national convening that provides curators with professional development, networking opportunities, and a platform for thought leadership. The initiative has been so successful that ICI established its only year-round satellite office in Chicago to support the local curatorial community.

Sotheby’s Paris Notches a $41 M. Modern and Contemporary Sale, Led by a $12 M. Monet Unseen for a Century

Sotheby’s Paris achieved a landmark result for its modern and contemporary art sale, totaling €35 million ($41 million) and surpassing its high estimate. The auction was headlined by two Claude Monet paintings that had been hidden from public view for roughly a century, including 'Vétheuil, effet du matin' (1901), which sold for €10.2 million ($12.1 million), setting a record for the artist at auction in France.

Why the Photo Market Is Moving Closer to Painting, With Unique Works Leading the Way

Artnet Auctions has launched its Spring Photographs sale, running through April 16, 2026, featuring works by blue-chip artists such as Peter Beard, Adam Fuss, and Diane Arbus. The auction highlights a significant shift in the photography market toward unique, one-of-a-kind works—including photograms, hand-painted images, and collages—that blur the lines between photography and painting. This trend is evidenced by increasing auction prices, with several works recently crossing the $1 million and $2 million thresholds.

How Pharrell’s Joopiter Is Redefining What an Auction House Can Be

Pharrell Williams launched his own auction platform, Joopiter, after finding traditional auction houses ill-suited to sell his collection of fashion, jewelry, and timepieces. The platform has rapidly expanded from single-owner sales into a multi-category auction house, handling luxury goods, sports memorabilia, pop culture artifacts, and contemporary art, with a recent headline lot being a $5 million Triceratops skeleton named Trey.

Still Life Painter Poppy Jones’s Career Is on the Move

British artist Poppy Jones has seen a meteoric rise in market and institutional recognition over the past year. Her enigmatic still lifes, created by mono-printing photographic images onto found materials like silk and suede, have resonated with collectors, leading to a major jump in searches on the Artnet Price Database and auction results that have tripled estimates, with her record now over $60,000.

Museum openings: V&A East and Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Plus, William Blake in Dublin—podcast

Two major museum projects have reached completion as London’s V&A East prepares for its public debut and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) unveils its new $700m David Geffen Galleries. V&A East opens with a focus on community-driven programming and its inaugural exhibition, 'The Music is Black: A British Story,' while LACMA’s long-awaited Peter Zumthor-designed building begins member previews amidst ongoing debates regarding its scale and cost.

Monumental 37ft-long Indian scroll goes on public view for the first time at Yale Center for British Art

The Yale Center for British Art has unveiled the 'Lucknow scroll,' a monumental 37-foot-long early 19th-century watercolor, following an extensive two-year conservation project. Part of the exhibition 'Painters, Ports and Profits,' the scroll offers a panoramic view of Lucknow, India, during the reign of Ghazi-ud-Din Haidar Shah. Due to its immense size and fragility, the museum is displaying the work in two stages, unrolling different sections over the course of the exhibition to manage light exposure and space constraints.

V&A East collection review – a dazzling wealth of inspiration to fire up the geniuses of the future

The Victoria and Albert Museum has unveiled the first look at its new V&A East outpost in London’s Olympic Park, showcasing a collection that emphasizes diversity, global exchange, and the integration of art into daily life. The inaugural displays feature a wide-ranging mix of objects, from Althea McNish’s vibrant Caribbean-inspired textiles and Vivienne Westwood’s punk designs to a talismanic shirt inscribed with the Qur’an and a Japanese screen documenting colonial encounters. While the museum's public-facing branding focuses on community engagement, the actual curation offers a sophisticated, open-ended exploration of how different cultures influence and define one another.

Already 100,000 Visitors at Cologne's Kusama Exhibition

Schon 100.000 Besucher in Kölner Kusama-Ausstellung

The Museum Ludwig in Cologne has reached a significant milestone, welcoming 100,000 visitors to its Yayoi Kusama retrospective within just four weeks of opening. The exhibition, which features 300 works ranging from early childhood drawings to contemporary installations, has proven to be an unprecedented draw for the institution, surpassing the director's initial expectations for attendance speed.