Self-generated income for UK museums ‘can only go so far’ in filling gaps left by funding cuts, report says

A new report from the National Audit Office (NAO) warns that state-funded UK museums are reaching a breaking point as they attempt to offset significant government funding cuts with self-generated income. Analyzing 15 major institutions including the British Museum and Tate, the report reveals that while self-generated revenue rose by 53% since 2021-22, it remains highly volatile and susceptible to external factors like tourism costs and membership churn. Despite a recent £31m funding boost from the DCMS, over half of these institutions report being in a worse financial position than they were three years ago.

Pictures: Castle Drogo hosts powerful women’s history art exhibition this March

The Herding Cats Arts Collective is presenting a month-long exhibition titled 'A Woman’s Place' at Castle Drogo, a National Trust property on Dartmoor. The exhibition, running throughout March 2026, features contemporary works that explore the domestic and social structures governing the lives of women connected to the estate during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Through research conducted with castle historians, the artists utilize domestic materials and imagery to highlight the often-overlooked histories of both the working-class staff and the upper-class residents of the fortress.

Lake Tahoe Community College Staff and Faculty Art Exhibition celebrates opening reception inside Haldan Art Gallery

Lake Tahoe Community College's Haldan Art Gallery hosted the opening reception for its Biennial Staff and Faculty Arts Exhibition. The event drew over 150 attendees to view 60 works by 19 artists from the college's faculty and staff, featuring a diverse range of mediums including ceramics, painting, sculpture, photography, poetry, and music, unified under a theme of color and collaboration.

London’s Courtauld to Open New Contemporary Art Galleries Following £10m Gift

The Courtauld in London has announced plans to create two new contemporary art galleries and a reading room, supported by a £10 million donation from the Blavatnik Family Foundation. The spaces, named The Blavatnik Contemporary Galleries, are set to open in 2029 on the top floor of the institution's North Wing at Somerset House. They will host special exhibitions, commissions, and events, and are part of an £82 million transformation project overseen by Witherford Watson Mann architects, announced ahead of the institution's centenary.

Art on Main presents "Women in Art: Revealing Our Magnificence" opening reception

Art on Main in Dallas is presenting "Women in Art: Revealing Our Magnificence," a juried exhibition featuring bold, expressive works across mediums such as painting, drawing, photography, fiber art, sculpture, printmaking, and ceramics. The opening reception includes live music by the East Dallas Uke-A-Ladies and a set by DJ MISO, along with a Best in Show award presentation, and the exhibit runs through May 30.

Renowned Victoria artist hosts exhibition with proceeds going to 10 local charities

Renowned Victoria artist and philanthropist Tanya Bub is presenting a new exhibition titled "Wild Art for the Big of Heart" at the Gage Gallery in Victoria’s Bastion Square from May 12th to 31st. The show features dozens of sculptural works made from driftwood, wire, and paper, with prices ranging from $30 to $8,000. Twenty-five percent of all sales will go to the charity of the buyer’s choice, with 10 local charities benefiting, including Broken Promises Rescue, Elder Carl Olsen — Goldstream / SELE₭TEȽ Watershed, CNIB Victoria, Georgia Strait Alliance, Mustard Seed, Rainbow Haven, Soap for Hope, The Thinking Garden, Victoria Therapeutic Riding Association, and Voices in Motion. The exhibition also includes three weeks of talks, performances, and interactive events in partnership with the charities.

Victoria artist organizes exhibition to benefit lesser-known charities

Victoria artist Tanya Bub is organizing a benefit exhibition titled "Wild Art for the Big of Heart" at the Victoria Gage Gallery from May 12 to 31, 2026. The show features 10 sculptures or installations, each representing a different local charity focused on people in need, animals, and the environment. Buyers can choose which charity receives 25% of the purchase price. Bub, who has been making art in Victoria since 2019, aims to highlight lesser-known organizations like Soap for Hope, and participating charities will host public events such as film screenings and talks.

Inaugural art crawl opens more than 100 studios to Victoria art lovers

The Vancouver Island Visual Arts Society (VIVAS) is launching its inaugural Art Crawl on April 18, 2026, opening over 100 artist studios and five galleries to the public. The event spans two major creative hubs in Victoria: the established arts center at 780 Blanshard Street and the newly opened Hourglass location on Yates Street. Visitors can access exhibitions at venues including Rockslide Gallery and The Vault Gallery, alongside live music and performance art.

'Do or die': Flick's journey from jail to artist and First Nations mentor

Flick Chafer-Smith, a First Nations artist, turned her life around after being incarcerated on her 18th birthday and spending six years in and out of prison due to drug addiction. Through the Victorian Indigenous arts program The Torch, she discovered painting as a means of expression and healing. She is now among 424 artists featured in Confined 17, an annual exhibition at Glen Eira Town Hall showcasing works by First Nations artists with lived experience of incarceration in Victoria. The exhibition includes paintings, weavings, ceramics, and carved emu eggs, with sales proceeds going directly to the artists.

Adam Art Gallery Autumn Exhibition Focuses On The Voice - Scoop

Te Pātaka Toi Adam Art Gallery has announced its autumn exhibition, "Peal the Bells," featuring five projects that explore the human voice as a medium for collective action, lament, and political critique. The group show includes paintings, sonic installations, and moving image works by artists Noor Abed, Anoushka Akel, Qianye and Qianhe Lin, Maree Sheehan, and Mo H. Zareei. The exhibition investigates how speech and listening function in an era of digital chatter and bureaucratic evasion, highlighting the voice as a vital index of contemporary social dynamics.

‘Together with Art’ exhibit at Town Hall highlightsAsian American and Pacific Islander cultures

Tiburon Town Hall is hosting "Together with Art," a group exhibition celebrating Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) cultures. Running through June 30, the showcase features five Bay Area artists, including Santa Rosa photographer Glenna Yee, whose work focuses on themes of serendipity and juxtaposition. The exhibition is timed to coincide with the town’s third annual AAPI Heritage Festival in May.

Woodhaven Art Circle hosts inaugural gallery show ‘Love, Left Open’ in Kew Gardens

The Woodhaven Art Circle artist collective launched its inaugural gallery exhibition, titled 'Love, Left Open,' at the Neighborly Events space in Kew Gardens, Queens. The show features introspective works from over 16 local artisans, ranging from ink illustrations and digital photography to mixed-media pieces, all exploring themes of personal and communal love. The opening night was complemented by poetry readings and a celebration of International Mother Language Day, emphasizing the intersection of cultural heritage and creative expression.

News From Around the South Carolina Lowcountry

The Society of Bluffton Artists (SOBA) announces its "Large Art" exhibition, running from January 5 to February 2 at the SOBA Gallery in Old Town Bluffton, South Carolina. The show features oversized works by SOBA member artists, including vibrant abstracts, mixed media, and contemporary compositions. Proceeds from artwork sales and donations during the exhibition will support SOBA's fundraising efforts to secure a new, permanent home for the nonprofit organization.

Reopening of Libya's national museum celebrated as ‘new beginning’

The National Museum of Libya in Tripoli reopened on 12 December after being closed since 2011, following the fall of Muammar Gaddafi and years of civil war. Housed in the historic Red Castle (Al-Saraya Al-Hamra), the museum was originally established by Italian colonizers in 1919 and later expanded by the British. Gaddafi opened a modernized version in 1988. A comprehensive restoration project with UNESCO assistance began in 2023 to bring the institution up to international standards.

Call to step up to end violence against women - Ballarat Times

The Ballarat community has launched the 16 Days of Activism campaign to end violence against women, beginning on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (November 25) and running until Human Rights Day (December 10). The campaign includes a '16 Ways for 16 Days' trail map with daily activities, and features the 'Transforming Pain into Power' art exhibition at Ballarat Library, Barkly Square, and Art Space Ballarat, showcasing works by local artists speaking out against gendered violence. Survivor Marita Forsyth's artwork depicts her perpetrators in a burning car, symbolizing her empowerment.

Mind of the Masters in collaboration with WASCA and NK Art Space set to exhibit The Spirit of Coffee

Mind of the Masters, in collaboration with the West African Specialty Coffee Association (WASCA) and NK Art Space, is hosting an art exhibition titled “The Spirit of Coffee” at The Spotlight Hub in Victoria Island, Lagos, from November 29 to December 12, 2025. The exhibition features 20 artworks curated by Mind of the Masters and NK Art Space, created by professional artist Lenrie Preks, whose works such as “The Spirit of Coffee,” “Coffee Blitz,” and “Flavour of Coffee” explore coffee culture through ritual, memory, and geometric abstraction.

Blue Fern Artists Collective Gallery will host grand opening in Peterborough on Sept. 5

Blue Fern Artists Collective Gallery will hold its grand opening and ribbon-cutting on Friday, Sept. 5, from 6 to 8 p.m. at 40B Main St. in Peterborough, N.H., in a space formerly occupied by Grey Horse Candles. The gallery, founded by Deborah Caplan and a group of local artists, had a soft opening during the Aug. 8 Night Market. It features 18 artists working in diverse media including paintings, drawings, collage, multimedia, ceramics, felting, jewelry, leather work, and photography. The collective is collaboratively owned and run, with each artist paying a nonrefundable buy-in and monthly dues, and working two shifts per month. Artists receive 82% of sales profits, far above the typical 40-50% gallery commission. The gallery is also partnering with MAXT Makerspace to showcase makers’ work and plans to host classes, art history lectures, poetry readings, and evening events in the adjacent alley.

This architecturally spectacular environment-focused arts space has just opened in regional Victoria

A new arts and environmental precinct called Where Art Meets Nature (WAMA) has opened in Halls Gap, Victoria, on a 16-hectare property in the Grampians. The site features Australia's first National Centre for Environmental Art (NCEA), designed by MvS Architects and Taut Architects, along with a botanic garden, native grasslands, wetlands, and outdoor artworks. The inaugural exhibition is by Western Australian artist Jacobus Capone, focusing on humanity's engagement with nature through multidisciplinary works.

New National Centre for Environmental Art opens near Grampians

A new Wama Foundation has opened near the Grampians (Gariwerd) mountain range in Pomonal, western Victoria, Australia, featuring the National Centre for Environmental Art and a native Australian botanical garden. The 16-hectare project, 14 years in the making, launched on July 5 with an exhibition titled 'End & Being' by Jacobus Capone, which uses pre-recorded performance art filmed on Mont Blanc glaciers to address climate change. The site also includes a feral-proof endemic plant garden serving as a seed bank for post-bushfire revegetation.

Paradise Center for the Arts Hosts Opening Gallery Reception Tonight; The Work of Aramis Wells, Dana Lacina, Trudi Schaefer, Marissa Shackleford, Monica Wilder, and the Minnesota Mosaic Guild on Display

The Paradise Center for the Arts in Faribault, Minnesota, is hosting an opening reception tonight for new gallery exhibitions featuring multiple artists. The displays include work by the Minnesota Mosaic Guild, painter Dana Lacina, assemblage artist Trudi Schaefer, oil painter Marissa Shackleford, acrylic painter Monica Wilder, and Northfield photographer Aramis Wells. Wells, an astro and landscape photographer, is showing a series of winter scenes from Lake Superior alongside his signature images of the Northern Lights and solar eclipses. The reception runs from 5pm to 7pm and is free to the public, with the galleries open through August 9th.

A grocery store turned art gallery? Only in the East Village

Village Gourmet Grocery, a corner store on 2nd Avenue and East 6th Street in New York's East Village, is hosting "EN EL KIOSCO," a solo exhibition of surreal paintings by Miami-born artist Juan Jose Heredia, through June 29. The show is organized by the nomadic Desnivel Gallery, founded by artist-curator Maria De Victoria, and features Heredia's works on soft fabrics like burlap, including pieces such as "Bunny ears of absence" and "Anemone Cerberus." The grocery store remains open for regular business from 8 a.m. to 1 a.m. (3 a.m. on weekends), allowing visitors to view contemporary art while shopping for snacks.

'It's something we should all be concerned about' - Belfast studio moves to temporary hub amid rising costs

Vault Artist Studios, a Belfast-based arts collective with over 100 members including musicians, circus performers, and visual artists, has moved into a temporary hub at Bankmore House on Bedford Street after spending three years at Victoria Street and the Shankill Mission building. The collective, formed in 2017 to transform derelict buildings into affordable studio space, now provides studios for 30 artists plus a gallery and project space, with further space opening soon in a former Masonic Lodge on the lower Newtownards Road. Their first exhibition in the new space, titled 'Mayday Mayday', serves as both a distress signal and a rallying call for workers.

During the Venice Biennale there is also the Ibiza Pavilion, inside a takeaway pizzeria

Durante la Biennale di Venezia c’è anche il Padiglione Ibiza, dentro una pizzeria da asporto

During the Venice Art Biennale, an independent project called the Ibiza Pavilion opens from May 7 to 9, 2026, inside Pizza al Volo, a popular takeaway pizzeria in Campo Santa Margherita, Dorsoduro. Conceived and curated by Margherita Chiarva with support from Victoria Genzini and Gabriele Della Maddalena, the three-day initiative features a group exhibition, performances, collective embroidery, tarot readings, and somatic practices by international artists connected to Ibiza through experience or collaboration, including Noemi Manser, Beatrice Dettori, Liz Kueneke, COSIMA, and Maria Giulia Alvigini.

Six contemporary artists reimagine ‘the Gothic’ for new Tyntesfield exhibition

Six contemporary artists have created new works reimagining the Gothic aesthetic for an exhibition at Tyntesfield, a Victorian Gothic Revival house in Somerset, England. The artists were invited to respond to the architecture, collections, and atmosphere of the National Trust property, producing paintings, sculptures, and installations that engage with themes of the macabre, the supernatural, and the uncanny.

Church History Museum Showcases 13th International Art Competition

The Church History Museum of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah, is presenting an exhibition of works selected from the 13th International Art Competition, running from April 24, 2025, to January 3, 2026. The exhibition features 150 artworks chosen from hundreds of submissions by five jurors, with artists from 26 countries including Angola, Argentina, Australia, and Vietnam. The theme, “Lift Up the Hands Which Hang Down,” is drawn from Doctrine and Covenants 81:5, and the show includes a variety of media such as sculpture, ceramic, chitenge, and tapa. Purchase and merit awards were announced at an April 24 ceremony, and a virtual gallery allows public voting for a Visitors’ Choice Award through November 30, 2025.

Gtz Art Gallery opening soon on West Davis Street

A new art gallery, Gtz Art Gallery, is opening soon on West Davis Street in a yet-to-be-announced date in May. Founded by Josue Gutiérrez, a self-taught artist who left a corporate career in global business to pursue art, the gallery will focus on emerging artists and the convergence of art and design. The inaugural exhibit features 27 of Gutiérrez’s own works, drawn from three prior exhibitions—Metamorphosis, Bloom, and Raw—with plans to later issue an open call for local artists.

Mass for Care of Creation; exhibition of art inspired by Laudato Si'

The London Jesuit Centre is hosting "Paintings of Prayer and Protest," an exhibition featuring the works of artists Helen Elwes and Martin Jarvis. The show coincides with a special Mass for the Care of Creation at Farm St Church in Mayfair, marking the anniversary of Pope Francis' death. Both artists, members of Christian Climate Action and the Laudato Si' Movement, present works that blend ecological activism with spiritual devotion, including painted banners used in climate marches and contemporary icons addressing rainforest devastation.

‘Visions of Freedom’ America 250 exhibit opens in Riverhead

The Suffolk County Historical Society Museum in Riverhead has launched "Visions of Freedom: America 250," a multidisciplinary exhibition curated by the nonprofit Women Sharing Art. Featuring 45 works by 38 artists, the show utilizes painting, sculpture, mosaics, and fiber art to explore themes of democracy, empowerment, and the 250th anniversary of the United States. Key works include Sue Miller’s "Broken Barricades," which addresses gender-based social barriers, and Gail Neuman’s provocative sculptural interpretation of the U.S. Constitution.

Montreal studio for neurodiverse artists to hold June exhibit

A Montreal art program for neurodiverse adults, called Art Seen, is preparing for an exhibition at the McClure Gallery from June 12 to 22, 2025. The program, run in partnership between the Visual Arts Centre and the English Montreal School Board (EMSB) at the Wagar Adult Education Centre, provides studio space and training in painting, printing, cartooning, and collage. Students like Victoria McIntosh, Matthew Brotherwood, Lisa Potter, Juliette Plamondon, and Jonathan Pepin are creating works for the show, which includes a theme titled 'the reconstructed' that involves repurposing old art history books to assert their place in the narrative.

Birmingham city centre outdoor art exhibition now Open to visit

The Birmingham Open 25 outdoor art exhibition has opened in Birmingham city centre, organized by Central BID and Colmore BID. The free, annual exhibition returns for its second year, showcasing emerging artists from the Birmingham area under the theme "LIGHT," inspired by the first Birmingham Light Festival. The top 10 shortlisted artworks are displayed at Snow Hill Square, with additional works at Victoria Square near the Floozie fountain. Visitors can vote for the 'People's Choice' award via QR code. The exhibition runs from 20 May until the end of June.