60 years after the Belice earthquake: Gibellina chooses Virgilio Sieni's dance to build community

60 anni dopo il terremoto del Belìce. Gibellina sceglie la danza di Virgilio Sieni per fare comunità

Gibellina, a small town in northwestern Sicily that was destroyed by a devastating earthquake in 1968 and later rebuilt as an open-air museum of contemporary art, has been named Italian Capital of Contemporary Art for 2026. To mark the occasion, the town commissioned choreographer and dancer Virgilio Sieni and his dance production center Cango to create "Cerimonia," a participatory community performance project. Over three weeks in May 2026, residents of four municipalities—Gibellina, Salemi, Santa Ninfa, and Salaparuta—along with adolescents from a recovery community, a local band, and a trio of musicians, took part in workshops led by Sieni and his team. The project culminated on May 30 with an itinerant performance that began in Piazza Joseph Beuys and ended at the Ex Church of Gesù e Maria, incorporating rubble from the earthquake as symbolic objects.

BPER Banca continua a puntare sull’arte e sulla cultura: aprono nuovi poli a Ferrara e L’Aquila

BPER Banca is opening two new cultural centers in Italy: Palazzo Farinosi-Branconio in L'Aquila (September 2026) and Palazzo Barbantini-Koch in Ferrara (October 2026). These join the existing Palazzo San Carlo in Modena, home of La Galleria BPER. The L'Aquila palace, restored after the 2009 earthquake, will showcase works by Luca Giordano, Salvator Rosa, and Cola dell'Amatrice, while the Ferrara venue will feature Tiziano, Guercino, and De Pisis, with an inaugural exhibition on mortality in 19th- and early-20th-century Italian painting. The bank's 160-year-old art and archival collection, including 7,000 archival units, is being digitized in partnership with the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia.

Sagrada Familia is finally complete. The colossal work of Antoni Gaudí inaugurated by Pope Leo XIV

La Sagrada Familia è finalmente completa. La colossale opera di Antoni Gaudí inaugurata dal papa Leone XIV

Pope Leo XIV has inaugurated the completed Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, exactly one hundred years after the death of its architect, Antoni Gaudí. The centerpiece of the completion is the Torre de Jesucristo (Tower of Jesus Christ), the tallest tower of the basilica, which now stands at 172.5 meters. A 17-meter cross, designed with Gaudí's signature double-twist geometry, was installed atop the tower in February. Inside the cross is an Agnus Dei sculpture by Italian artist Andrea Mastrovito, who won a 2025 international competition for the commission, beating out artists like Edoardo Tresoldi and David Oliveira. The basilica, a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2005, began construction in 1882 and faced numerous delays including the Spanish Civil War, funding issues, bureaucratic hurdles, and the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Center for the Arts takes shape in Lucca. Construction begins on the new museum hub: over 10 million in investments

A Lucca prende forma il Centro delle Arti. Parte il cantiere del nuovo polo museale: oltre 10 milioni di investimenti

Construction has begun on the Centro delle Arti (Center for the Arts) in Lucca, Italy, a new museum and exhibition hub located in the former Cinema Nazionale and former Manifattura Tabacchi social club in Piazzale Verdi. The project is led by the Fondazione Centro delle Arti Lucca ETS, established in 2024 by the Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Lucca and the Fondazione Centro Studi sull'Arte Licia e Carlo Ludovico Ragghianti ETS. With an investment of over €10 million, the 2,500-square-meter historic building will be restored and repurposed to include exhibition spaces, educational facilities, and event areas, while preserving original 18th-century decorations. The architectural design is by Too Studio, and the center is scheduled to open in 2029.

The homage to Kafka in the first major exhibition of super artist William Kentridge in Prague

L’omaggio a Kafka nella prima grande mostra del super artista William Kentridge a Praga

The Kunsthalle Praha in Prague has opened a major exhibition dedicated to South African artist William Kentridge, titled after a series of large-format prints he created in 1998. The show explores Kentridge's deep connection to the Czech Republic, inspired by figures like Jan Palach and Alexander Dubček, and draws on the influence of Franz Kafka and Milan Kundera. Through works that blend black-and-white aesthetics, film, and installation, the exhibition examines themes of choice, uncertainty, and moral reflection, inviting visitors to engage with questions of freedom, oppression, and the legacy of colonialism.

In Milan there is a curious museum dedicated to the Capuchin friars

A Milano c’è un curioso museo dedicato ai frati Cappuccini

The article explores the Museo dei Cappuccini in Milan, a museum dedicated to the Capuchin friars, which opened in 2001. It highlights the order's history of austerity and poverty, contrasting their humble materials (wood, straw) with the opulence of the era. The museum, directed by art historian Rosa Giorgi, houses a permanent collection and temporary exhibitions, such as "Quel che passa il convento," which features two paintings of the Visitation by Camillo Procaccini from Lombard convents.

An Imperial Jardinière for Sèvres

Une jardinière impériale pour Sèvres

The Musée national de Céramique in Sèvres has acquired a rare 'Louis XV oval jardinière' at auction, preempting it for €40,000 during a Millon sale on April 10. The porcelain piece, created between 1863 and 1866 by the Manufacture impériale de Sèvres after designs by Jules Diéterle, with sculptural work by Jean-Denis Larue, features a 'pâte sur pâte' decoration and a red griotte marble base with dolphin-shaped feet. It was originally chosen by Empress Eugénie to decorate her Parisian hôtel on rue de l'Élysée.

Splendors of the Baroque. From Greco to Velázquez

Splendeurs du baroque. De Greco à Velázquez

The article reports on the exhibition "Splendeurs du baroque. De Greco à Velázquez" currently on view at the Musée Jacquemart-André in Paris. It features around forty paintings on loan from the Hispanic Society of America in New York, an institution founded in 1904 by philanthropist Archer M. Huntington. The museum, which also houses a vast library including about 250 incunabula, has been led since 2018 by French curator Guillaume Kientz, formerly a curator of Spanish paintings at the Louvre and curator of the Velázquez retrospective. The exhibition offers a partial but compelling selection of works from the Hispanic Society's collection, aiming to introduce French audiences to this relatively little-known New York institution.

Passavant le Meilleur. Champagne in the Time of the Counts

Passavant le Meilleur. La Champagne au temps des comtes

An exhibition titled "Passavant le Meilleur. La Champagne au temps des comtes" is on view at the Cité du Vitrail in Troyes from May 5 to October 31, 2026. The show, curated by Didier Rykner, brings together historical documents and objects from the era of the Counts of Champagne, including significant artworks such as a stone statue of Isabelle de France, a reliquary of the Holy Sepulchre, a sculpture of Jeanne de Navarre, and illuminated manuscripts. Its major art-historical draw is the first-ever assembly of all eighteen surviving stained-glass fragments from the axial chapel of the cathedral, dating to the late 12th century.

Art in the Atrium Opens 34th Annual Exhibit in Morris County

Art in the Atrium, a community art exhibition program, has opened its 34th annual exhibit in Morris County, New Jersey. The show is hosted by the County of Morris and features works by local artists displayed in the county government building's atrium space.

Glasgow International Festival of Contemporary Art

The 11th edition of the Glasgow International Festival of Contemporary Art (GI) takes place from 5-21 June 2026 across 32 venues in Glasgow, featuring over 60 artists. Highlights include Renèe Helèna Browne's moving image installation 'Flat' at the Briggait, which documents the mica scandal in Donegal and her uncle's resilience; James Gladwell's joyful cross-stitch drawings at Project Ability; Joanna Piotrowska's Jungian-inspired photographic collages at The Common Guild; and a collaborative archival presentation of Katy Dove and Lygia Clark at Kinning Park Complex. The festival is reviewed by Beth Williamson, who emphasizes the warmth, generosity, and creative spirit of the biennial.

Gilles Jacot “Homeworks” at Café des Glaces, Tonnerre

Gilles Jacot's exhibition "Homeworks" is being held at Café des Glaces in Tonnerre, France. The show explores the DIY ethos, tracing its roots back to the 1970s and examining how the concept has been aestheticized, commodified, and simulated over time, particularly in contrast to contemporary crypto-company-funded architectural projects.

David Hockney, painter, 1937-2026

David Hockney, the celebrated British painter known for his vibrant depictions of Los Angeles swimming pools, Yorkshire landscapes, and iPad drawings, has died at the age of 88. The Financial Times obituary traces his career from his early days at the Royal College of Art through his move to California, where he created iconic works such as *A Bigger Splash* and *Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures)*, to his later experiments with digital media in Normandy.

ADOLFO MARTÍNEZ: FOR THE REASON OF THINGS, OR THE FORCE OF OBJECTS

ADOLFO MARTÍNEZ: POR LA RAZÓN DE LAS COSAS, O LA FUERZA DE LOS OBJETOS

Adolfo Martínez's exhibition "Trifulca, Objetos Penitentes" is on view at the Museo de Arte Contemporáneo (MAC) in Santiago de Chile. The show features sculptural works and installations that incorporate objects like boots, drums, yokes, coins, and ropes, which are manipulated to explore Chilean popular culture, labor hierarchies, and forgotten rural-urban traditions. The pieces operate mechanically, evoking a sense of relentless work and ritualized punishment, drawing on social realism with deliberate economy of means.

This Item From Diane Keaton’s Estate Sale Just Sold For 98 Times Its Estimate

Following Diane Keaton's death in October 2024 at age 79, British auction house Bonhams held a sale of her personal estate across New York, Los Angeles, and online, closing at $4.2 million total. The auction featured treasures from her eclectic collection, including artwork by Annie Leibovitz, Cindy Sherman, Ed Mell, and Maynard Dixon, along with personal items like dog and penguin figures and crafting supplies. Notable highlights included the original *Annie Hall* script, which sold for $394,200—98 times its estimate—and a David Wojnarowicz photograph that set a new world auction record for the work.

Julio Torres, Anne Imhof, and Serpentwithfeet Bring Performa to Broadway

Performa celebrated its 20th anniversary on Wednesday night at Town Hall in New York with a variety show featuring over 50 artists. The lineup included Yvonne Rainer’s "Chair/Pillow, 1969/2026," Lonnie Holley with Shahzad Ismaily, Marcel Dzama’s "Moth Dance," Laurie Simmons and Michael Rohatyn’s "Music of Regret," a performance of Mary Lou Williams’s "A Fungus Amungus" directed by Solange Knowles and Carlos Soto, and a closing act by Alexa West. Julio Torres delivered a comedic meditation with a Diet Coke can, and the evening drew a crowd of artists, musicians, and curators, including Solange Knowles, Alia Shawkat, and others. After the show, an afterparty took place at the premiere of "MUTTER: The Diary of a Mother."

In an Ozempic-Suffused Scene, Brontez Purnell Embraces Being a ‘Fake Skinny Bitch’

Brontez Purnell, in a personal essay for Cultured's "Indulgence" issue, reflects on gluttony and his experience with weight-loss drugs. After a diabetes diagnosis, he began taking Mounjaro in 2024, losing 64 pounds in a month, then switched to Ozempic after losing insurance. He grapples with body dysmorphia, shifting gay beauty standards, and the moral implications of using GLP-1s, ultimately questioning whether Ozempic is a form of "elevated anti-gluttony."

The Laziness Canon: Helen Molesworth on Artists Who Made Great Work by Doing Nothing

In this essay for Cultured's "Indulgence" issue, curator and critic Helen Molesworth reflects on the sin of sloth, exploring how laziness has inspired significant works of art. She cites artists like Lee Lozano (General Strike Piece, 1969), Robert Barry (Closed Gallery, 1969), Tom Marioni (The Act of Drinking Beer with Friends is the Highest Form of Art, 1970), and Marcel Duchamp (Étant Donnés, 1946–66), who embraced idleness or redefined labor as art. Molesworth also discusses Mierle Laderman Ukeles's "maintenance art" (1970–73), which elevated domestic work to art, and references Paul Lafargue's 1883 tract The Right to Be Lazy.

Gustave Courtois à la galerie La Nouvelle Athènes

Galerie La Nouvelle Athènes in Paris is presenting a new monographic exhibition featuring 29 small early paintings by Gustave Courtois (1852-1923), a student of Jean-Léon Gérôme and close friend of Pascal Dagnan-Bouveret. The works, which include history paintings such as 'Ulysse et Anticlée' (c. 1873-1875), come from Courtois's studio estate that was dispersed in 2009. The exhibition is both a display and a sale, highlighting Courtois's lesser-known early output alongside his established reputation as a portraitist.

Exhibition | Moka Lee, 'Persona Works' at David Kordansky Gallery, Los Angeles, United States

Moka Lee's solo exhibition 'Persona Works' is on view at David Kordansky Gallery in Los Angeles, United States. The show presents a series of works by the artist, as reported by Ocula.

South Africa's art market is slowing down but collectors aren't walking away

The South African art market is experiencing a slowdown amid a cost-of-living crisis, with major galleries like Kalashnikovv Gallery and Stevenson's Johannesburg branch closing after years of operation. However, new spaces such as Kumalo | Turpin are opening, and art fairs like FNB Art Joburg and Investec Cape Town Art Fair continue to draw crowds, suggesting a complex, evolving landscape rather than outright decline.

Art Museum to Showcase Alumnus John Thompson in Manhattan Exhibition

The Syracuse University Art Museum presents “John Thompson ’72: Infinite Variation” at the Bernard and Louise Palitz Gallery in New York City through Sept. 29. The exhibition features works spanning Thompson’s entire career, from his student days at Syracuse to his most recent prints, highlighting his distinctive approach to printmaking. Unlike traditional printmakers who create new matrices for each print, Thompson re-uses existing matrices as building blocks, recombining and reimagining them across compositions—a method rooted in the experimental studio culture he encountered at Syracuse. The show emphasizes his sustained observation of nature, particularly gardens, grasses, stalks, and ponds.

Hombres Libres / Free Men

Roberto Diago's exhibition 'Hombres Libres / Free Men' at the Cuban Pavilion during the 2026 Venice Biennale presents scarred, monumental heads made from oxidised steel, salvaged timber, and remnants. The work rejects tourist-friendly imagery of Havana, instead confronting histories of empire, labour, and Black survival. Diago, a Cuban artist from the impoverished Pogolotti barrio and grandson of modernist Roberto Juan Diago Querol, draws on Afro-Cuban traditions and the scarcity of Cuba's Período Especial to create sculptures that expose their own construction as a form of testimony.

Allegories: Marked by Memory

American artist Vaughn Spann presents 'Allegories', a solo exhibition at the Tampa Museum of Art featuring four monumental works from his 'Marked Men' series. The show runs until 5 July 2026 and uses abstraction, specifically a recurring X motif, to explore themes of race, surveillance, and collective memory, drawing from Spann's personal experiences of racial profiling.

THE FUTURE IS INDIGENOUS. AMAZONIAN VISIONS AND STRUGGLES

EL FUTURO ES INDÍGENA. VISIONES Y LUCHAS DE LA AMAZONÍA

The article reviews the exhibition "The Future is Indigenous. Amazonian Visions and Struggles," curated by Alfredo Villar at the Rautenstrauch-Joest-Museum in Cologne, Germany, in 2026. The show was conceived as a critical response to Sebastião Salgado's photographic exhibition "Amazônia," which Villar argues presents an idealized, essentialist, and ahistorical view of the Amazon and its Indigenous peoples. In contrast, Villar's exhibition features works by Indigenous and Amazonian artists such as Gê Viana, Natália Tupi, Rodrigo Duarte, Paulo Desana, and Olinda Silvano, using photography, video, installations, embroidery, and posters to depict a contemporary, urbanized, and diverse Amazon marked by cultural hybridity, extractivism, and neocolonial threats.

Be Seen: North Sydney pride portraits – in pictures

The Guardian presents "Be Seen," an archival photographic project by Anna Hay and Sophie Willison that documents the lives of LGBTQIA+ individuals connected to the North Sydney council area. The series, commissioned by North Sydney Council for Pride Month 2026, features portraits and personal stories of queer people at various locations around North Sydney, including Berry Island Reserve, the Pickled Possum bar, and private homes. The exhibition runs from 15–30 June at In Transit gallery in North Sydney, NSW.

‘It reminds me of the love I felt for my faithful companion’: Tony Hertz’s best phone picture

Tony Hertz, a photographer with a career spanning three decades who has captured images of queens, popes, and a president, shares his favorite phone picture of his dog Lolly, a chow-chow-cocker spaniel mix. The photo was taken during a sunset walk in Pismo Beach, California, as part of a series and book project centered on shadows. Hertz noticed in their shadows that Lolly was looking directly at him, and he composed the shot to show their profiles turned toward each other, with his brimmed hat adding a noir aesthetic. Lolly died in November from chronic kidney failure.

"Die Wahrheit ist: Es gibt keine Wahrheit"

Canadian artist Chloe Wise presents her exhibition "Extrasensory" at the Kulturstiftung Basel H. Geiger, featuring a three-channel video installation that explores the divine, paranormal, and limits of human perception. In an interview, Wise discusses her interest in UFO myths, the supernatural, and the boundaries of sensory experience and language.

The Art World Is Great at Spotting Talent. Keeping It? Not So Much.

Artnet, in partnership with the Association of Women in the Arts (AWITA), released its second annual "Hardwiring Change" report, titled "Buying Back Time," at Deutsche Bank’s London headquarters. The report reveals that nearly half of Gen Z and millennial women are considering leaving the arts within five years, citing inadequate pay, opaque advancement criteria, and administrative overload. A panel discussion featuring five arts leaders, including British Pavilion curator Ese Jade Onojeuro and 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair founder Touria El Glaoui, explored these findings, highlighting that 76% of women aged 35–54 face structural barriers linked to gender, race, or class, and that Black and Asian women report race as an even bigger barrier than gender.

Knicks and Spurs Game Gets an Arts Wager

San Antonio's Department of Arts and Culture challenged New York City's Department of Cultural Affairs to a friendly wager ahead of Game 5 of the NBA playoff series between the New York Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs. The losing city must post its favorite public artwork from the winning city on social media. The challenge was issued in a video, and NYC's DCLA responded enthusiastically in the comments, accepting the bet.