The Studio Museum in Harlem revealed its new building to the press ahead of its public reopening on November 15, showcasing a major new acquisition: Jean-Michel Basquiat's 1984 painting *Bayou*, the first Basquiat painting to enter the museum's collection. The work was gifted in 2023 by financier Joseph Perella and his wife Amy, with Joseph having mentored Raymond J. McGuire, an ARTnews Top 200 Collector and the museum's board chair.
On September 18, ARTnews celebrated the 2025 edition of its annual Top 200 Collectors list with a launch party at the newly opened Faena New York in Chelsea. The event was cohosted by collectors Beth Rudin DeWoody and Miyoung Lee, both trustees of the Whitney Museum. ARTnews Editor-in-Chief Sarah Douglas introduced the hosts, highlighting DeWoody's role as a supportive art patron and Lee as a representative of a younger generation of collectors. Other Top 200 Collectors in attendance included Michael Ovitz, Lonti Ebers, Lisa Goodman, Rodney Miller, Pete Scantland, and James Keith “JK” Brown and Eric Diefenbach. The evening featured a performance by pianist Arsha Kaviani, Cognac from LOUIS XIII, wines from Rioja, luxury perfumes from Xerjoff, and photo cards from Chubb.
Marina Abramović will celebrate her 80th birthday with a career-spanning exhibition titled "Marina Abramović: Transforming Energy" at the Gallerie dell'Accademia in Venice from May 6 to October 19, 2026, coinciding with the 61st Venice Biennale. The show, previously staged at the Modern Art Museum in Shanghai in fall 2024, features 150 works including furniture-sculpture hybrids made from quartz, amethyst, and tourmaline. Abramović's "transitory objects" will be installed throughout the 14th-century building alongside the museum's permanent collection of Renaissance masterpieces by Titian, Tintoretto, Giorgione, and Mantegna, with a notable pairing of her 1983 photograph *Pietà (with Ulay)* and Titian's *Pietà* (1575–76).
The article introduces the annual 'Icons' issue of Art in America, profiling artists whose decades-long practices reflect deep commitment to their mediums. Featured artists include Paul Pfeiffer, who became hyper-aware of image grammar through early video work; Consuelo Jimenez Underwood, who found her voice in textiles; David Diao, who references Barnett Newman; and the late Joel Shapiro, who explored transformation through wood sculpture. The issue also includes an interview with Tehching Hsieh on freethinking and art, plus departments on curatorial challenges, a Bukhara Biennial curator Q&A, and an appreciation of Dara Birnbaum.
Spike Lee's new film *Highest 2 Lowest*, an English-language reinterpretation of Akira Kurosawa's *High and Low*, prominently features artworks from Lee's personal collection—or replicas of them—as set decoration. Production designer Mark Friedberg used Lee's collection, previously surveyed at the Brooklyn Museum in 2023, as a reference to establish the character of music tycoon David King, played by Denzel Washington. Works by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Kehinde Wiley, Deborah Roberts, Gordon Parks, Henry Taylor, and others appear in the film, including Basquiat's *Horn Players* (1983) and *Now's the Time* (1985), Tim Okamura's portrait of Toni Morrison, and pieces from Andy Warhol's 'Muhammed Ali' series.
Two major New York museums are celebrating the centennial of Robert Rauschenberg's (1925–2008) birth this fall with exhibitions that spotlight lesser-known chapters of his career. At the Guggenheim New York, the monumental silkscreen painting "Barge" (1962–63) returns to New York in October for the first time in nearly 25 years as part of a show titled "Life Can't Be Stopped." The Museum of the City of New York (MCNY) will showcase Rauschenberg's undersung photography work focused on New York City. Neither exhibition features his famous "Combines," instead highlighting other aspects of his wide-ranging practice. The Guggenheim's show is part of its new "Focus" series, launched in November 2024, which aims to highlight the museum's collection.
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and the Art Bridges Foundation in Bentonville, Arkansas, have acquired 90 works of contemporary Native art from the John and Susan Horseman Collection. The acquisition includes pieces by prominent Indigenous artists such as Kent Monkman, Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, Kay WalkingStick, and Cannupa Hanska Luger. Nine works will go to Crystal Bridges, while the remaining 81 will join Art Bridges' collection, which now totals around 250 works, with Native art making up a third. The works will be displayed in upcoming exhibitions at the Alice L. Walton School of Medicine and Crystal Bridges' expanded campus, with loans to partner institutions planned.
The Guardian reports on José Luis Rey Vila, known as Sim, an anarchist illustrator who documented the Spanish Civil War from the frontlines in Catalonia. His bold, colorful sketches captured street battles, militias, nurses, and milicianas, and were widely reproduced in booklets and exhibitions, raising international awareness before Picasso's Guernica. After the war, Sim fell into obscurity and died in near-anonymity in 1983. Now, on the 90th anniversary of the conflict, Barcelona's Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya (MNAC) is exhibiting 40 recently acquired Sim illustrations, highlighting his role as a key visual chronicler of the conflict.
Georg Baselitz, the German painter known for his raw, expressive works and inverted imagery, has died at age 88. Born in 1938 in Deutschbaselitz, he lived through Nazi Germany and East German communist rule, experiences that deeply shaped his art. The Guardian's obituary traces his life through photographs, from his early years to major exhibitions at Thaddaeus Ropac, White Cube, and the Serpentine, highlighting key works such as 'Das Grosse Pathos' (1966) and his 2024 series 'A Confession of My Sins'.
A new documentary titled "Maintenance Artist" (2025) traces the decades-long practice of Mierle Laderman Ukeles, a pioneering artist who focused on marginal, unpaid, and feminine labor. The film covers her career from her 1969 "CARE" manifesto, through her role as artist-in-residence at the New York City Department of Sanitation, to her first retrospective at the Queens Museum in 2017. It highlights her critique of art-world gender biases and her efforts to recognize discounted labor in all fields.
Valie Export, the Austrian avant-garde artist known for her radical feminist performances, films, and sculptures, has died at age 85. Her gallery, Thaddaeus Ropac, announced her death, noting her groundbreaking work in the 1960s and 1970s introduced a new form of embodied feminism to Europe. Export, born Waltraud Lehner in Linz, Austria, changed her name in 1967 and became known for provocative works such as "Aktionshose: Genitalpanik" (1969) and "Tap and Touch Cinema" (1968–1971), which challenged voyeurism and the sexualization of women's bodies. She also co-founded the Austrian Filmmakers Cooperative in 1968 and was commissioned by the Austrian Broadcast Corporation for her film "Facing the Family" (1971).
Tilton Gallery in New York has announced that its upcoming exhibition, featuring late abstract painter Ruth Vollmer, will be its last. The show runs from September 30 to November 15, after which the gallery will vacate its Upper East Side space. The decision was made by Connie Rogers Tilton, Jack Tilton's widow, who has run the gallery since his death in 2017. She stated it is time to pursue her own projects in a more private setting. The gallery was founded in 1983 by Jack Tilton, who previously worked for Betty Parsons, and was known for launching careers of artists like Marlene Dumas, Nicole Eisenman, and Glenn Ligon, as well as promoting Chinese artists in the 1990s.
The Dallas Museum of Art acquired six works from the 2026 Dallas Art Fair, held April 16–19 at the Fashion Industry Gallery in the Dallas Arts District. The acquisitions, made possible by the Dallas Art Fair Foundation + Dallas Museum of Art Acquisition Fund, include pieces by Nicole Eisenman, Gloria Klein, Caroline Monnet, Hasani Sahlehe, and Raymond Saunders. Selections were made by DMA curators including Dr. Vivian Li, Ade Omotosho, Dr. Emily Friedman, Dr. Nicole R. Myers, and director Brian Ferriso. This marks the tenth year of the fund, which has added 78 works to the museum's permanent collection since 2016 through over $1 million in donations.
Art Week Tokyo, which launched in November 2021 during border closures, has adopted a unique "post-art fair" model that forgoes a traditional art fair in favor of connecting museums and galleries across Tokyo via free buses and inviting international art professionals. The fourth full edition coincides with three major Japanese art festivals—the Aichi Triennale, Okayama Art Summit, and Setouchi Triennale—creating a powerful autumn art season. Key highlights include AWT Focus, a selling exhibition at the Okura Museum of Art curated by Adam Szymczyk, featuring over 50 artists with increased international gallery participation, and the museum exhibition "Prism of the Real: Making Art in Japan 1989-2010" at the National Art Center, Tokyo, curated by Doryun Chong.
The Studio Museum in Harlem will reopen in November 2025 after a major renovation and expansion designed by Adjaye Associates. The new building, located on West 125th Street, will feature increased gallery space, a sculpture garden, and improved public amenities. The reopening marks the culmination of a multi-year capital project that began during the museum's temporary closure.
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York has opened "Jack Whitten: The Messenger," the first full-scale retrospective of the pioneering abstract artist Jack Whitten (1939-2018). The exhibition features over 175 works spanning six decades, including paintings, sculptures, and works on paper, alongside archival materials. Whitten, known for his inventive techniques such as using squeegees, rakes, and Afro combs to manipulate paint, explored themes of race, identity, history, and technology. Key works include "Birmingham 1964," inspired by the 1963 church bombing, and "9.11.01," responding to the September 11 attacks. The show runs from March 23 to August 2, 2025, exclusively at MoMA.
This guide highlights 15 art exhibitions across Upstate New York for summer, featuring moody paintings by Emily Pettigrew at Fenimore Art Museum, Native artists exploring time and memory at Hudson River Museum, Renée Green’s conceptual word shuffling at Dia Beacon, and Black history in the Hudson Valley at Vassar College's Loeb. Other shows include Arlene Shechet's intimate sculptures at Catskill Art Space and Larry Fink's photography at CPW in Kingston.
Moffat Takadiwa, a Zimbabwean artist born in 1983, transforms post-consumer waste like computer keyboards and bottle tops into intricate sculptures and wall works that reflect his Korekore heritage and address consumerism, inequality, post-colonialism, and environmental decay. His recent exhibitions include a solo show "Second Life" at Nicodim Gallery in New York (2025), participation in the 60th Venice Biennale (2024), and shows at mumok Vienna and the Orange County Museum of Art. He is represented by Nicodim Gallery and founded Mbare Art Space, an artist-led hub in Harare's Mbare township.
Global auction sales for design, decorative arts, and furniture surged 20.4 percent to $172 million in the first half of 2025, according to ArtTactic, while other art market segments declined. Sotheby’s design sales in New York and Paris reached $75 million combined, among the highest totals ever for the category, with Christie’s and Phillips also posting strong results. Record prices were set for works by Tiffany Studios, including the Danner Memorial Window ($12.4 million) and a Frank Lloyd Wright lamp ($7.5 million), fueled by new and younger buyers and institutional acquisitions.
Maren Hassinger, the 78-year-old artist known for her sculptural work with steel and wire rope, discusses her upcoming retrospective at the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive, opening in June. In an interview, she reflects on her early rejection from a dance major at Bennington College, which led her to sculpture under the mentorship of Isaac Witkin, and her long collaboration with fellow artist Senga Nengudi since the 1970s. She also talks about her current studio practice, creating large-scale vessels, and her move from Los Angeles to New York to sell her work.
Anastasia Samoylova, an artist who works in photography and painting, is presenting her rarely shown "Breakfasts With" series at Casa Tua Aspen this summer. The series, begun in 2015 after she received her green card, combines breakfast food with photo books by notable creatives, creating still-life "conversations" that serve as daily creative prompts. The exhibition follows her dual show with Walker Evans at the Met, which showcased two differing visions of Florida. In an interview, Samoylova discusses how the series developed from a meditative morning ritual into a practice that helped her ground herself after leaving a tenured teaching position, and how intuitive pairings—like a cut mango with Barbara Kasten's work—emerged from spontaneity rather than conceptual planning.
A collection of intimate works by Keith Haring, including a rare self-portrait, a painted crib, and personal letters, has gone on view at Sotheby's Breuer building in New York City. The works were gifted by Haring to his childhood best friend and fellow artist, Kermit Oswald, over the course of their friendship from 1977 to 1989. The free public exhibition precedes a series of three auctions beginning May 14, with highlights including the self-portrait estimated at $3–5 million and a crib-and-dresser set expected to fetch $250,000–350,000.
An original Andy Warhol exhibition poster from 2021 is being offered for sale by Baldwin gallery, with locations in London, Miami, and Dubai. The offset lithograph on paper measures 19.7 × 27.6 inches, is in mint condition, unsigned, and includes a Certificate of Authenticity. Priced at £650, the work ships from London with domestic shipping at £45 and international at £55, and is covered by the Artsy Guarantee.
British painter Hurvin Anderson's exhibition at the Art Gallery of Ontario features his lush, layered paintings that explore themes of home, belonging, and cultural memory. The show includes his "Ball Watching" series, which reworks a 1983 photograph taken in Birmingham's Handsworth Park, transforming a personal snapshot into a meditation on place and identity.
The Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London has launched a dedicated digital hub to document the provenance of its collection, specifically addressing objects acquired through violence, coercion, or looting. The initiative includes detailed research on controversial items such as the Maqdala material from Ethiopia, Asante Regalia from Ghana, and imperial Chinese jade. This transparency effort coincides with International Provenance Research Day and aims to provide public accountability regarding the museum's colonial-era acquisitions.
A significant 8.5-foot segment of the Eiffel Tower's original 19th-century spiral staircase will be auctioned by Artcurial on May 21. This piece, removed during a 1983 renovation and one of only 24 sections created, has remained in private French hands since its initial sale that same year and is expected to fetch between €40,000 and €50,000.
Sylvester Stallone and Jennifer Flavin's Palm Beach home, featured in a Veranda profile, showcases their extensive contemporary art collection. The house includes works by Andy Warhol, George Condo, Damien Hirst, Bridget Riley, Fernando Botero, Rashid Johnson, Sterling Ruby, and LeRoy Neiman, among others. Stallone, who began collecting at age 16, treats the home as a constantly rotating gallery, with a long hallway kept blank for changing displays and a dining room anchored by a Hirst mosaic and Condo abstract. The collection is integrated into daily life, with art hanging in the screening room, entry, and even near the gym.
Lougher Contemporary, a UK-based specialist in blue-chip editions, has identified David Hockney's five most important print series for collectors. The series include the iconic Pool Series, inspired by Los Angeles swimming pools; the iPad Drawings, which began with the iPhone and evolved into works like 'The Arrival of Spring'; and The Weather Series, a set of six color lithographs influenced by Japanese Ukiyo-e prints. Other series are also highlighted for their market value and artistic significance.
È il grande Mark Rothko a guidare le prime aste di Sotheby’s a New York
Sotheby's kicked off New York's art and auction week with two major sales on May 14, 2026, led by the highly anticipated Robert Mnuchin: Collector at Heart Evening Auction. The top lot was Mark Rothko's "Brown and Blacks in Reds" (1957), which sold for $85.8 million, the second-highest price ever for the artist at auction. The Mnuchin auction achieved a "white glove" sale, selling all 11 lots for a total of $166.3 million, followed by The Now & Contemporary Evening Auction which brought in $266.8 million. Combined, Sotheby's generated $433.1 million, a 133% increase over its May 2025 session. The sales reflect a strong return of high-value trophy lots to the secondary market, driven by the dispersal of prominent collectors' estates.