Adrian Ghenie: Roman Campagna | Exhibition review

Adrian Ghenie's exhibition "Roman Campagna" at a Paris gallery presents a series of paintings and charcoal drawings that subvert the romantic cliché of an artist's transformative encounter with Rome. Ghenie populates landscapes inspired by the Appian Way with grotesque, alien-headed figures hunched over smartphones, urinating on monuments, or weeping at sunsets, using brown and grey tones punctuated by bright colors. The works reference Francis Bacon and William S. Burroughs, and include direct allusions to Bacon's reinterpretation of van Gogh's self-portrait, as well as a copy of a Pompeii mosaic. The show also features large charcoal drawings on paper that reveal Ghenie's process of constructing his contemporary, alienated figures.

Marshall Vernet - all exhibitions and events about the artist

An exhibition titled "Vernet meets Piranesi" opens on May 14, 2026, at Antonacci Lapiccirella Fine Art in Rome, featuring a photographic project by New York-based artist Marshall Vernet. The show presents a dialogue between Vernet's photographs and the Vedute of Giovanni Battista Piranesi, the 18th-century Italian etcher known for his architectural views.

Mario Ceroli on display in Florence: forty works at Tornabuoni Arte

The Tornabuoni Arte gallery in Florence is hosting "Mario Ceroli. Myth and Matter," an anthological exhibition featuring forty sculptures and installations by the Roman artist Mario Ceroli. The show traces his career from the 1960s to 2000, including his iconic wooden silhouettes, works inspired by Leonardo da Vinci's Vitruvian Man, and pieces referencing Greek myth and the Riace Bronzes. The exhibition runs until May 29 at the gallery's Lungarno Benvenuto Cellini 3 location.

In pictures: flora and fauna at Design Miami

Design Miami celebrates its 20th anniversary with the theme "Make. Believe.," curated by Glenn Adamson, emphasizing the evolving possibilities of collectible design. The fair features the 10th anniversary of the Curatorial Lab Annual Design Commission, including a mirrored carousel by ceramicist Katie Stout, alongside works by artists such as Bea Pernia, Pia-Maria Raeder, Joyce Billet, Teemu Salonen, Jennifer Trask, Roham Shamekh, and Clotilde Ancarani. Pieces range from a chrome-and-stone chair inspired by marine life to benches that double as planters, reflecting a pervasive focus on flora and fauna.

Ukraine-Russia war remains front and centre for Viennacontemporary fair exhibitors

Viennacontemporary fair, held September 11–14 in Vienna, featured 97 exhibitors from 24 countries with a strong focus on Eastern Europe. Galleries from Ukraine, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Lithuania, Latvia, Hungary, Croatia, and Austria participated, many expressing solidarity with Ukraine amid the ongoing war. Artist Kateryna Lysovenko, who fled Ukraine three years ago, won the Münze Österreich Prize for her figurative paintings. Sales were slow, with many galleries reporting no or low-price sales by the second day, reflecting Austria's economic downturn. The fair included a Zone1 section for emerging artists curated by Aliaksei Barysionak and a Context section for historical works, including a booth dedicated to Hermann Nitsch.

Float Into The World Of The Balloon Museum Pop-Up In SG, Its First Time In Asia

The Balloon Museum's traveling exhibition 'Pop Air – Art is Inflatable' has opened at Marina Bay Sands Expo Hall F in Singapore, marking its first-ever show in Asia. The exhibition features 17 inflatable artworks by international contemporary artists, including pieces like 'Aria', 'Spiritus Sonata' by ENESS, 'Soft Hurricane' by Quiet Ensemble, 'Cloud Swing' by Lindsay Glatz & Curious Form, and 'Hypercosmo' by Hyperstudio. The museum, which debuted in Rome in 2021, has previously toured Berlin, Paris, London, and New York, and will remain in Singapore until August 31, 2025.

In the heart of Trastevere, an exhibition by an artist paying homage to an ancient Roman goddess

Nel cuore di Trastevere la mostra di un artista che omaggia un’antica dea romana

Diego Gualandris presents 'Floralia,' a solo exhibition at ADA gallery in Rome's Trastevere district, running until May 24, 2026. The show blends painting and music to create a modern homage to Flora, the ancient Roman goddess of spring and fertility. Gualandris displays a series of medium- and small-scale canvases from 2026 alongside a 1970s gramophone playing two original tracks—'The world in a flowerbed' improvised by the artist on piano with saxophonist Francesca Pegurri, his mother. The exhibition also references Hermann Nitsch through works like 'Prinzendorf,' and features playful, erotic botanical compositions that invite viewers to lie down and experience the space through sound and imagery.

100 anni tra arte e poesia per annullare i confini. Intervista a Lamberto Pignotti

Lamberto Pignotti, the 100-year-old Florentine artist and poet and a leading figure in visual poetry, is celebrated with two concurrent exhibitions: "Pignotti 100. Pop-esie visive" at the Mart in Rovereto (in collaboration with the Collegio Cairoli of Pavia) and the dual solo show "Identikit di Pignotti e Hogre" curated by Marco Giovenale at Galleria Bianco Contemporaneo in Rome. The latter exhibition, born from a dialogue between Pignotti and the anonymous artist Hogre, centers on a collection of envelopes Pignotti has saved for over fifty years—each addressed to him with varying titles (architect, artist, poet, professor) or altered names (Alberto, Lorenzo, Mario, Giuseppe)—revealing his fragmented identity. Pignotti co-founded the Gruppo '70 in Florence in 1963 with Eugenio Miccini, a movement that brought together multidisciplinary artists including Lucia Marcucci, Ketty La Rocca, and musicians Giuseppe Chiari and Sylvano Bussotti.

Fragility and Resistance of an Iranian Artist on Display in Rome

Fragilità e resistenza di un’artista dell’Iran in mostra a Roma

The Galleria Anna Marra in Rome is hosting "Assemblages," the first Italian solo exhibition of Iranian artist Sepideh Salehi. The show features works that blend collage, Japanese paper, photography, and drawing to depict Iranian women living in the United States who have shared experiences of displacement and political upheaval. Salehi’s figures often avert their gaze or conceal their faces, symbolizing a "calligraphy of refusal" and a quiet resistance against the historical traumas of the 1979 Islamic Revolution and the Iran-Iraq war.

‘A very basic human desire to want some control’: US exhibition explores the power of magic

The Toledo Museum of Art has opened an exhibition titled 'Cursed!' that explores the widespread use of magic spells and objects in ancient Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, and Rome. The show features amulets, inscribed gemstones, and figurines used for purposes ranging from protecting newborns and winning lawsuits to casting coercive love spells.

ancient olive oil complex tunisia

Archaeologists have unearthed the Roman Empire's second-largest olive oil processing complex in the Kasserine region of Tunisia, near the Algerian border. Co-directed by Ca' Foscari University of Venice, the excavation at the 33-hectare site called Henchir el Begar revealed a monumental torcularium with twelve beam presses, a second eight-press facility, oil mills, cisterns, and a water collection basin. The team also found artifacts including a copper-and-brass bracelet, a limestone projectile, and architectural elements dating from the modern to Byzantine periods. A Latin inscription confirms senatorial approval for a bimonthly market on the land in 138 AD, indicating the site was a hub for social, political, and religious life.

egyptian bracelet missing melted down

A 3,000-year-old gold bracelet belonging to King Amenemope was stolen from a conservation lab in Egypt, sold for 194,000 Egyptian pounds (about $4,000), and melted down by a gold smelter. The theft was carried out by a restoration specialist who took the artifact from a safe, and four suspects have since been arrested with proceeds recovered. The bracelet was being prepared for an upcoming exhibition titled “Treasures of the Pharaohs” at the Scuderie del Quirinale in Rome.

israeli attacks on palestinian heritage sites constitute war crimes un report

A United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry has concluded that Israeli attacks on cultural and religious sites in occupied Palestinian territory constitute war crimes and the crime against humanity of extermination. The report focuses on ten specific sites in Gaza, including the Greek Orthodox Church of St. Porphyrius, the Great Omari mosque, Al Mat'haf Museum, and the Pasha Palace Museum, which were destroyed, looted, or severely damaged between October and December 2023. The commission found that Israeli security forces should have known the locations and significance of these sites and that their attacks violated international law, including intentionally directing attacks against religious and historic monuments and causing excessive damage to civilian objects.

SHE: Exhibition of street art at Rome gallery

Rosso20sette arte contemporanea in Rome is hosting a group exhibition titled 'SHE Street (Art) – Her (Art) – Exhibition,' featuring six internationally acclaimed female street artists: Swoon, Faith XLVII, Sandra Chevrier, Jacoba Niepoort, Handiedan, and Patrícia Mariano. Curated by Giorgio Silvestrelli, the show presents works on paper and canvas, some never previously exhibited and others created specifically for the occasion. The exhibition runs until 10 July at the gallery on Via del Sudario 39.

May First Friday: 8 shows to see this month around Missoula

Missoula artist Julia LaTray presents a solo exhibition titled "Animal Pleasures" at Bob's Your Uncle gallery in May, featuring paintings of animals on glitchy, digitized backgrounds alongside lighting and other works. The gallery is only open to the public on dedicated nights, so the exhibition is paired with performances, comedy, and readings on May 1, 8, 15, and 29. Separately, Hanis Coos artist Sara Siestreem brings her major exhibition "Acts of Love, Refusal and Resistance" to the Missoula Art Museum, filling the museum's main galleries with large-scale mixed-media paintings and sculpture, including handmade baskets and ceramic molded versions with gilded flourishes. The museum hosts a First Friday reception on May 1 and a "Coffee and Conversation" with the artist on May 2.

Denver Art Museum Luncheon by Design, a fundraiser event for DIVA exhibition, opening fall 2026

The Denver Art Museum (DAM) held its annual Luncheon by Design fundraiser, celebrating the 60-year career of costume designer Bob Mackie as a prelude to the upcoming DIVA exhibition opening in fall 2026. The event featured a conversation between Joe McFate, Mackie's long-time design director, and Jill D'Alessandro, DAM's director and curator of the Avenir Institute of Textile Arts, sharing stories behind Mackie's iconic costumes worn by Cher, Tina Turner, and P!NK. Funds raised support the DIVA exhibition, which will run from October 4, 2026, to January 31, 2027, at the museum.

World-class contemporary art exhibition coming to four North Yorkshire venues

A major exhibition celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Aesthetica Art Prize will be presented across four venues in North Yorkshire, England. The show, featuring works by 50 leading contemporary artists, will be divided into four thematic parts and staged at Skipton Town Hall, the Mercer Art Gallery in Harrogate, Scarborough Art Gallery, and Scarborough’s Woodend Gallery from late April through September.

Raphael Exhibition at the Met Offers Rare Glimpse Into Renaissance Master's Genius

The Metropolitan Museum of Art has launched a major retrospective titled 'Raphael: Sublime Poetry,' featuring over 230 works sourced from more than 60 international institutions and private collections. The exhibition provides a chronological survey of the Renaissance master’s career, spanning his early years in Urbino to his definitive period at the papal court in Rome, and includes iconic paintings such as the 'Alba Madonna' alongside rare preparatory sketches and immersive projections of his Vatican frescoes.

Whitney Biennial 2026 | Art & Artists

The 2026 Whitney Biennial has opened at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York, featuring a video and sound installation by artists Basel Abbas and Ruanne Abou-Rahme. Their work, titled 'Until we became fire and fire us,' explores collective feelings of love, longing, and haunting in the context of Palestinian erasure, weaving together traditional songs, contemporary footage of indigenous plants, and personal ephemera like drawings by Abou-Rahme's father.

Caravaggio portrait of influential patron—and future Pope Urban VIII—purchased by Italy for €30m

The Italian government has acquired a rare Caravaggio portrait of Maffeo Barberini, the future Pope Urban VIII, for €30 million following a year of negotiations with private owners. The 17th-century masterpiece, which depicts one of the artist's most influential patrons, will join the permanent collection of the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica at Palazzo Barberini in Rome. It represents one of the largest sums ever paid by the Italian state for a single work of art.

Show on fantastical neoclassicist Johan Tobias Sergel heads to Stockholm and New York

A major exhibition dedicated to the 18th-century Swedish neoclassical sculptor and draughtsman Johan Tobias Sergel is opening in two parts. 'Fantasy and Reality' premieres at Stockholm's Nationalmuseum this month, featuring nearly 400 works, before traveling to the Morgan Library & Museum in New York in the autumn for the artist's first US monographic show.

Iranian galleries close amid protests and communications blackout

Iranian galleries have closed or altered their hours as nationwide protests, sparked by economic turmoil and a crashing currency, escalated into violent unrest. The protests began on 28 December among bazaar traders and spread to artists and gallerists, with many shutting their doors or canceling exhibitions, some under public pressure. A government-imposed internet and communications blackout on 8 January has severely limited information, though one gallerist speaking anonymously described the closures as a unified act of solidarity across society, not merely a response to safety concerns. The gallerist noted that the economy is in its worst condition, with basic necessities unaffordable and even bubble-wrap prices fluctuating wildly. Another gallery founder confirmed that all projects are on hold, and staging exhibitions risks public backlash. Instagram account Galleryinfo.ir faced online criticism for promoting exhibitions during the crisis, while Bavan Gallery reversed its initial stance of "resilience is an art form" and announced it would hold no exhibitions.

The Kimbell's January 2026 Schedule

The Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, Texas, has announced its January 2026 schedule, headlined by the special exhibition "Myth and Marble: Ancient Roman Sculpture from the Torlonia Collection," running through January 25. The month-long program includes a wide range of free events such as Kimbell Kids Drop-In Studios, docent tours, lectures like "Women of a Certain Age" by Jessica L. Fripp, film screenings including "Destination: Ancient Rome," family festivals, sensory-friendly hours, and guided tours of the museum's iconic buildings designed by Louis I. Kahn and Renzo Piano.

That time a bunch of radical artists got under the hood at Mia – and stayed there

A group of experimental Minnesota artists in the 1970s, frustrated with the established art scene, successfully pitched the Minneapolis Institute of Art (Mia) to create the Minnesota Artists Exhibition Program (MAEP). Launched in 1975, MAEP gave artists direct control over curating a dedicated gallery within the museum, selecting their peers for exhibitions. Fifty years later, the program remains active, with artists chosen through an open call and an advisory committee, and has featured influential figures like Phyllis Wiener, Judy Onofrio, and George Morrison.

New York museum celebrates boundary-pushing artist behind Central Park’s Bethesda Fountain

The Heckscher Museum of Art in Huntington, New York, has opened "Carving Out History," the first-ever exhibition dedicated solely to 19th-century sculptor Emma Stebbins, creator of Central Park's iconic Bethesda Fountain. Curator Karli Wurzelbacher spent over five years assembling 14 marble sculptures from around the world, including pieces from Oregon, Rome, and Belfast, after a descendant of the artist contacted the museum in 2021. The exhibition is accompanied by a 256-page book and aims to establish Stebbins among the canon of great Neo-Classical sculptors.

The US’s largest Raphael exhibition is opening at the Met next year

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York will present the largest-ever Raphael exhibition in the Americas next spring, titled "Raphael: Sublime Poetry" (29 March–28 June 2026). Curated by Carmen Bambach, the show brings together over 200 works—including paintings, drawings, decorative objects, and tapestries—spanning Raphael’s career from Urbino and Florence to Rome. Major loans include the Alba Madonna from the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.; the Portrait of Baldassare Castiglione from the Louvre; and works from the British Museum, Uffizi, Prado, and Vatican Museums. The exhibition is structured chronologically, with special focus on recent scientific analysis and Raphael’s depictions of women.

Waiting to Be Discovered? Curators Reveal How Emerging Artists Can Get Noticed

Top curators share advice on how emerging artists can get noticed in a tough art world. Key tips include being proactive in building networks, approaching curators directly, and presenting organized online portfolios. Curators like Hitomi Iwasaki (Queens Museum), Marie-Anne McQuay (Liverpool Biennial), and Lisa Long (formerly Julia Stoschek Foundation) emphasize that artists should not wait to be discovered but instead engage with peers, attend shows, and reach out to curators, even those early in their careers.

Sicily's new anti-mafia museum honours ‘strength of the vulnerable over fear’

Sicily has inaugurated the Museum of the Present (Museo del Presente) inside Palermo's historic Palazzo Jung on 23 May, marking 33 years since the assassination of anti-Mafia judge Giovanni Falcone. The museum commemorates Mafia victims and confronts the ongoing threat of Cosa Nostra through personal artifacts, multimedia installations, and historical documentation, including items from Falcone and his colleague Paolo Borsellino. The opening was attended by Italy's interior, justice, and culture ministers, and entry remains free until 19 July.

Science inspired art on display at White City

Eight artworks created live during the Great Exhibition Road Festival, as part of the annual science-art project Paint Lab, will go on display at Imperial College London's White City campus from July 16 to September 18. The large-scale paintings were produced by local London artists collaborating with Imperial scientists, drawing inspiration from research topics such as space weather prediction, plant self-preservation, early Parkinson's detection, and human connection during cancer treatment. The festival, organized by Imperial in partnership with the Science Museum, Natural History Museum, and V&A, attracted 55,000 visitors.

Are you not entertained? Three ancient helmets headline UK exhibition exploring the ‘real’ gladiators

Three exceptionally well-preserved ancient bronze gladiator helmets, discovered in Pompeii, are the centerpiece of a new exhibition titled *Gladiators: Heroes of the Colosseum* at the Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds. The show, organized in collaboration with the Colosseum in Rome, marks the first UK iteration of a touring exhibition that has attracted over a million visitors worldwide. It features arms, armour, and everyday objects from the National Archaeological Museum in Naples, along with immersive installations exploring gladiatorial life.