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.
Puke Ariki museum in New Plymouth, New Zealand, is hosting TUKU: Open Studio | Emerging Māori Artists, a collaborative project where senior artist Wharehoka Smith mentors early-career artists Jodie Tipa and Dwayne Duthie in creating eight manaia (spiritual guardian figures) in a public studio setting. Running from today through 12 July, the open studio prepares the museum's Temporary Gallery for the upcoming Kiingi Tuheitia Portraiture Award exhibition, which opens on 25 July and features 40 tūpuna portraits. Visitors can watch the artists at work, engage with their creative process, and participate in free public events including workshops and talks.
The McNay Art Museum in San Antonio is hosting a free Family Day event on June 7, 2026, titled "Elements in Action." The afternoon features hands-on art activities, live performances, and family-friendly fun across the museum's grounds and galleries, coinciding with the spring banner exhibition "untitled: 20 Years of Collecting Contemporary Art." Admission to the museum and the exhibition is free for all attendees.
The Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art in Washington, D.C., has opened "Of the Hills: Pahari Paintings from India’s Himalayan Kingdoms," an exhibition featuring 48 paintings and colored drawings that trace the evolution of Pahari painting across three key periods between 1620 and 1830. The show highlights the genre’s ties to the region’s landscapes, courtly life, and devotional practices, with works created using opaque watercolors, beetle wings, and gold, many of which have not been publicly displayed before. The exhibition runs until July 26.
The Peoria Riverfront Museum will host an exhibit featuring the world's largest Etch-A-Sketch and other retro toy attractions. The show, titled 'World’s most legendary toys,' is set to open in Peoria, Illinois, as reported by the Peoria Journal Star on May 8, 2026.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art has opened a new exhibition titled 'Costume Art' that showcases a diverse range of body types through fashion and costume design. The display features garments and ensembles designed to celebrate inclusivity, with mannequins and presentations representing various shapes, sizes, and abilities, challenging traditional fashion norms.
The Ontario provincial government has announced a $35 million investment over two years to support the Art Gallery of Ontario's (AGO) expansion project, the Dani Reiss Modern and Contemporary Gallery. The funding will create at least 13 new galleries across five floors, adding 40,000 square feet of space and increasing display area by 30%. Construction is expected to be complete by fall 2027, enabling the AGO to welcome up to 120,000 additional visitors annually. This provincial contribution supplements a $35 million lead gift from Dani Reiss, $25 million from the Government of Canada, and other private donations.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art has announced the opening of the Condé M. Nast Galleries, a new exhibition space within the museum. The galleries are named after the late publishing magnate Condé Montrose Nast, founder of Condé Nast Publications.
An exhibition titled “Of the Hills: Pahari Paintings from India’s Himalayan Kingdoms” has opened at the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, part of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Asian Art in Washington, D.C., running through July 26. The show features 48 rare paintings created for Hindu kings in the Pahari region of northern India between the 1620s and 1830s, highlighting diverse styles from lyrical and naturalistic to boldly colored and abstracted. Key works include pieces acquired from art historian Catherine Glynn Benkaim and collector Ralph Benkaim, some never publicly exhibited before, along with loans from the Cleveland Museum of Art.
Nearly 70 student artists are featured in SUNY Oneonta’s 2026 Juried Student Show, now on display at the Martin-Mullen Art Gallery through May 2. The exhibition includes over 90 works in media such as painting, sculpture, ceramics, photography, digital art, and mixed media, selected by faculty from more than 100 submissions. A public reception with 17 awards will be held on April 30.
The Jane Heller Gallery at Otterbein SeniorLife Granville in Ohio will open a new exhibit titled "Connecting with Jane" on May 1, 2026. The exhibition honors the late founding resident Jane Heller, showcasing her abstract art that has been displayed at the Columbus Museum of Art and featured in regional competitions over the past 50 years. The opening reception runs from 5 to 6 p.m., and the exhibit will be on view for two months.
The Estevan Art Gallery and Museum (EAGM) in Saskatchewan is hosting two new exhibits until May 29: 'Below the Tree Line' by Nicole Adair and 'Selection of Specimens' by Kristin Teetaert. Adair's photography explores the landscapes of southeast Saskatchewan, highlighting the region's prairie environment, native plants, and wildlife. Teetaert's exhibit features drawings, felt sculptures, and painted tiles inspired by botany and nature, emphasizing interconnection and playfulness.
Brandon Sines, the artist behind FrankApeWorld, opens his first solo exhibition in eight years, titled “Let’s Be Frank,” on May 1 at Cycol Gallery in New York. The show features a cohesive, journey-like curation culminating in a site-specific immersive installation, with every piece minted on Exchange.Art. Cycol Gallery, located at 91 Allen Street, describes itself as Solana’s first brick-and-mortar gallery, built on Solana infrastructure and powered in part by the BONK memecoin, which acquired Exchange.Art in March 2025. Physical display uses Blackdove Art’s digital frames, allowing works to exist as tangible objects and verifiable onchain assets simultaneously.
The annual Hartnell Student Art Show for 2026 is now on display at the Hartnell College Art Gallery in Salinas, California. The exhibition features a range of multimedia student works created in Hartnell art classes, including drawing, sculpture, painting, photography, mixed-media, and digital art. A piece by student Justin Heart is highlighted. The show runs until May 1, 2026, at the Visual & Performing Arts Center on campus.
Open Art Gallery will open its doors on May 1, 2026, at 32 West Main Street, Unit C, in Saluda. Owner Hector DelCampo, a silhouette artist who moved to the area three years ago, is launching the space to foster community and showcase local talent. The inaugural featured artist is 15-year-old Sila, whose vibrant works will be on display. The grand opening runs from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. with refreshments and meet-the-artist opportunities.
The Bailey Art Gallery in Hobe Sound, Florida, will open a new exhibition on April 24 featuring works by local painter Dan Mackin and photographer M.E. Gruber. Mackin’s highly stylized paintings—created with airbrush and traditional techniques—depict idyllic coastal scenes on canvas, navigation maps, surfboards, and a guitar, and include collaborations with Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys. Gruber’s mid-century Kodachrome transparencies, drawn from an archive of over 5,000 images, document the emerging surf culture of Palm Beach County and the Treasure Coast. The exhibition will display 50 full-frame prints from this collection.
Local Strathmore artist Emmeline Keeling will participate in the one-day Obsidian Art Show at the Calgary Chinese Cultural Center. She is among over 50 artists selected for the event, which is organized by the Public Display Agency to connect artists with gallery owners from Webster Galleries, The New Gallery, and Gallery Underground.
Penticton-based artist and hockey player Glenn Clark presents "Wackem Sackem," a pop-up exhibition at the Kelowna Art Gallery that runs concurrently with the Memorial Cup tournament from May 21 to 31. The show features sculptural paintings on floor stands depicting NHL fights and historic rivalries like Canadiens vs. Maple Leafs, along with interactive activities such as a goalie selfie challenge, a crowd mural, and custom gear design.
Wakefield-born artist Kyle Wilkinson has opened his first international exhibition in New York through his immersive art and design studio, Haus of Thrills (HoT). Founded in Sheffield in 2024, the studio has already secured commissions from major brands including Santander and Silverstone, and designed the 60th anniversary Mustang for Ford. The new exhibition, titled 'Metropolis in Motion', is on view at the Myria gallery in Tribeca, New York.
Bloch Bauers Gallery of Fine Art has officially opened in downtown North Bay, Ontario, at 222 McIntyre St. W. The new space features regional, Indigenous, and Inuit art, along with works from private estates and consignments. The opening event included speeches, a ribbon cutting, and the unveiling of the "Lawrence Nickle Collection." A self-portrait by longtime local art teacher Ernest "Ernie" Taylor drew particular attention from attendees, including Nipissing MPP Vic Fedeli and Mayor Peter Chirico, who praised the gallery's connection to the city's artistic heritage. Co-owner and curator Joey Nadeau noted the months of preparation behind the opening and emphasized the importance of showcasing Indigenous art, including works by painter Stephen Snake.
The Ashe Arts Center in Lansing, North Carolina, is hosting an opening reception for "Shadow of the Hills," a new exhibit featuring artwork created by the Blue Ridge Art Clan (BRAC). The reception will take place on Friday, May 8, from 5-7 p.m., and the exhibit will remain on display through June 6. BRAC, founded by Florence Thomas in 1978, promotes fine arts and supports artistic excellence, with members including professional and hobby artists from Ashe County and the surrounding High Country. The 2026 exhibit features 28 participating artists, including Scott Ballard, Lynn Baranowski, and Pete Benda, among others.
The Neosho Valley Spring Art Exhibit has opened at the Chanute Art Gallery in Chanute, Kansas, showcasing original works by artists from the Four-State area. The exhibition features a variety of mediums including paintings, photography, sculpture, and ceramics, and will run through the end of the month. A reception is scheduled for May 23, with awards including a $200 best of show prize, first- and second-place prizes in each category, and a people’s choice award.
Several Carson High School art students earned top honors at the Nevada Artists Association Student Art Show. Senior Serenity Rodriguez placed first in the 3D category for her piece “Buried in Flowers,” while freshman Abbey Ortega earned third place for “Comic Book Art” and an honorable mention for “Cat Caught Fish.” Other students received honorable mentions across 2D and 3D categories. The Spring 2026 High School Art Exhibition features 69 entries from Carson, Dayton, Douglas, and Whittell high schools, on view at the Nevada Artists Association Gallery in Carson City through May 8.
Funun Arts Group, in collaboration with Novotel Sharjah Expo Center, launched the fourth chapter of its Epochs of Art series titled 'Light in Motion: Impressionism to Post-Impressionism' at the hotel in Sharjah, UAE. The exhibition runs from April 24 to June 24 and was inaugurated by artist-guests including Ahmed Al Awadhi, Abdul Jabbar Weiss, Majd Faraj, and Anjini Prakash Laitu, alongside Robin Solomon, General Manager of Novotel Sharjah Expo Center. The event featured an immersive meditative painting session and direct artist-visitor interactions, showcasing works by international artists exploring the interplay of light, movement, and emotion.
In February 2025, the University of North Texas (UNT) in Denton abruptly canceled a solo exhibition by Brooklyn-based artist Victor “MARKA27” Quiñonez just nine days after its opening. The show, titled “Ni de Aqui, Ni de Allá,” was displayed at the College of Visual Art & Design (CVAD) Gallery and featured works from Quiñonez’s I.C.E. Scream series, including large-scale paleta sculptures embedded with handcuffs and firearms, and a cart bearing the phrase “U.S. Department of Stolen Land Security.” The exhibition was closed without notice, its street-facing windows covered with brown paper, and UNT terminated its loan agreement with Boston University Art Galleries, which had originally hosted the show in September 2025. Faculty and students responded with an open letter to UNT President Harrison Keller, condemning the censorship and demanding transparency.
Melanie Mullan interviews three women redefining the art world: contemporary artist Petria Lenehan, who transitioned from fashion design to painting and now works from her studio in Wicklow, Ireland, promoting her work via Instagram; and Trish Lambe, CEO and Artistic Director of Photo Museum Ireland, who began her career at the museum in the 1990s and now leads its curatorial team. The article highlights Lenehan's intuitive painting process and Lambe's hands-on approach to exhibition production.
The Reading Guild of Artists (RGA) has partnered with Honesty Café in Thames Quarter, Reading, to host monthly art exhibitions by its members. The first display features vibrant prints by artist Mark Burden, launched at an event on April 16. This initiative follows other RGA projects at Reading Museum and Royal Berks Hospital, expanding the guild's community outreach.
The article highlights several arts events in Bellingham, Washington, including a community mural celebration led by Coast Salish artist Jason LaClair, an opening reception for Charles Villiers' solo exhibition "Untethered" at Cordata Gallery, an improvised musical called "You: The Musical" at The Upfront Theatre, and a Youth Chamber Music Competition hosted by the Harmony Chamber Music Festival. These events span visual art, theater, and classical music, with the mural project involving over 500 children and families in selecting the design.
Artist and educator Brad Chapman Bleau, a graduate of Massachusetts College of Art and Design and Goddard College, discusses his multifaceted career in a recent interview. Bleau works as an adjunct professor at Worcester State University and assistant director of the Mary Cosgrove Dolphin Art Gallery, while also curating the Worcester Center for Crafts Hot Night in the City exhibition. He creates mixed-media "junk paintings" using vintage objects and ephemera, sells art at Almanac Market in Paxton, and teaches a nature-based art class at Turn Back Time farm and forest education center.
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.