A new experimental and independent art and culture bookstore is about to open in Venice

A Venezia sta per aprire una nuova libreria d’arte e cultura sperimentale e indipendente

Rupture Arts & Books is set to open a new experimental art bookstore and cultural hub in Venice’s Santa Croce district on April 29, 2026. Moving from its previous Giudecca location to the city’s "museum quarter" near Fondazione Prada, the space will function as more than a retail outlet, incorporating an independent publishing house, a record label, and a podcast production studio. Founded by Alexandre Sap and Anne-Marie Gaultier, the project aims to redefine the contemporary reading space through a multidisciplinary approach.

Two Exhibitions in Paris Galleries

Deux expositions dans les galeries parisiennes

Two notable drawing exhibitions are currently on view in Paris galleries. The first, organized by dealer Nicolas Schwed on Rue Saint-Honoré, features a strong selection of old and modern master drawings, with a surprising emphasis on 18th-century French works alongside Italian pieces. Highlights include a preparatory study by Federico Zuccaro for a Roman fresco and a rare drawing of the Trinity by Cornelis Schut, which is linked to a lost altarpiece from Cologne.

Auction house Phillips presents highlights of the next art and design auction in Milan

La casa d’aste Phillips presenta a Milano gli highlights della prossima asta tra arte e design

Phillips auction house is presenting a selection of highlights from upcoming auctions and private sales in Milan during the city's Art Week and Salone del Mobile. The exhibition, staged in a space with architecture and furnishings by Dimoregallery and Dimoremilano, features significant Italian post-war art and design pieces, including a notable 1983 'Mappa' by Alighiero Boetti made in Kabul, works by Carla Accardi and Piero Dorazio, and a Carmen Herrera painting slated for auction in New York.

Palate Cleansers at Frieze NY

Hyperallergic's coverage of Frieze New York and concurrent art fairs in the city frames the experience as overwhelming yet punctuated by standout works. Senior Editor Valentina Di Liscia compares the fair to an assembly-line salad, finding reprieve in art that evokes lush canopies, diaphanous portraiture, and ancestral gardens. The issue also includes dispatches from Future Fair, 1-54, TEFAF, NADA, and Independent Art Fair, alongside a tribute to Austrian performance artist Valie Export, who died at age 85, remembered for her radical feminist guerrilla performances that challenged the male gaze.

Hong Kong gains new foundation for global majority

The Cheng-Lan Foundation, a new independent arts initiative, has launched in Hong Kong during the city's major art week. Founded by Brian Yue, it supports artists, curators, and writers from African, Asian, Indigenous, and Latin American backgrounds through exhibitions, residencies, and commissions, with an inaugural solo show by Manila-based artist Cian Dayrit.

China’s Tech Capital Wants to Be an Art Hub, Too

Shenzhen, China's major technology hub, is making a concerted push to become a significant player in the art world. The city began 2025 with major announcements from tech giants JD.com and Tencent, which are establishing new art museums in the city, appointing prominent directors Robin Peckham and Pi Li to lead them. This follows years of building cultural infrastructure, including the OCAT museum, the Sea World Culture and Arts Center, and the growth of local art fairs like Art Shenzhen.

San Francisco De Young Museum Sexual Harassment Lawsuit

san francisco de young museum sexual harassment lawsuit

Ezra Iturribarria, a long-time security guard at the De Young Museum in San Francisco, has filed a lawsuit alleging severe sexual harassment and retaliation. The complaint names the city, the Corporation of the Fine Arts Museums, and supervisor Patrick Smithwick, detailing instances of verbal abuse, unwanted sexual advances, and physical intimidation. Iturribarria claims that after reporting the behavior, the museum conducted a 'sham investigation' and allowed the supervisor to continue contacting her, eventually forcing her to take a leave of absence.

de young museum lawsuits workplace culture

Security guards at the de Young Museum in San Francisco have leveled serious allegations against the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco (FAMSF) and their union, SEIU 1021, citing a decade of workplace toxicity. Multiple lawsuits detail a culture of whistleblower retaliation, wrongful termination, and harassment, including claims of religious discrimination where a guard was allegedly called a "terrorist" and threatened with gun violence by management. To date, the city has paid out over $1 million to settle seven different lawsuits from security staff, with more litigation reportedly on the horizon.

birmingham museum corietta mitchell missing artworks

The Birmingham Museum of Art has launched a public appeal to locate missing artworks by Corietta Mitchell, the first Black artist to receive a solo exhibition at the institution during the Jim Crow era. Staged quietly in March 1963 just months before the repeal of local segregation ordinances, the exhibition is documented only by a checklist and a single grainy photograph. As the museum celebrates its 75th anniversary, officials are seeking to recover these works to address a significant gap in their institutional archives.

chicago history museum union retaliation

The union for Chicago History Museum workers, formed in February with AFSCME Council 31, has accused museum management of retaliation against employees for organizing. In a letter to the board of trustees, the union alleges that four members were fired, five others threatened, and that on April 16, the senior HR director verbally accosted two visitor services employees with profanities and job threats in front of staff and visitors. The union represents nearly 70 employees including curators, librarians, and designers.

Oxford Festival Of The Arts brings world famous artists, free exhibitions and silent films to the city centre

The Oxford Festival of the Arts is bringing a major visual art component to its 2025 program, featuring free exhibitions by world-renowned artists across multiple venues in Oxford city centre. Highlights include James Gemmill's cinematic paintings at St John's College, a collaborative installation by Chinese artist Qu Lei Lei and Caroline Deane at OVADA examining humanity and geopolitics, a retrospective of Ukrainian artist Oleksandr Dubovyk's 'White Bouquet' series, and a charitable project supporting Ukrainian children through art. All exhibitions are free and require no booking.

A Singaporean Gallery Lands In The Heart Of Paris

Cuturi Gallery, founded by Spanish gallerist Kevin Troyano Cuturi, has opened its first European space in Paris's Domaine National du Palais-Royal, following its original establishment in Singapore in 2019. The gallery occupies the former boutique of legendary couture dealer Didier Ludot and launched in March with a group show. Its forthcoming exhibition, "Arbres de la Forêt, Vous Connaissez Notre Âme" (May 28 to September 26, 2026), is a solo presentation for French artist-designer Hubert Le Gall, curated by Bruno Gaudichon. The project extends to Villa Noël in Provence, which will serve as a second exhibition space for large-scale outdoor sculptures.

California Light and Space (The 21st Century Version) (OPENING RECEPTION)

David Zwirner gallery in Los Angeles is presenting "California Light and Space (The 21st Century Version)," a group exhibition organized by curator Helen Molesworth. Running through August 1 at the gallery's 606 N Western Avenue location, the show features contemporary artists from LA's diverse arts scene, exploring how the city's unique geography—its light, space, and basin topography—shapes their work. The exhibition draws a parallel to the Light and Space movement of the 1960s and 1970s, but focuses on a younger generation working across various media.

The Collective Takeover

A coalition of seven Zurich-based artist-run collectives, led by Peter Baracchi and his nomadic platform 6½, has taken over the former Museum Haus Konstruktiv building in Zurich's Selnau district. The project, titled "Oceans Flow Upwards," occupies 1,200 square meters across five floors and expands into over 2,000 square meters by activating the cellar, offices, storage, shop, café, and rooftop. Participating collectives include Hotel Tiger, Die Diele, Papillarya, MATERIAL, volumes, and zwischentext. Baracchi, who previously worked at Haus Konstruktiv as a technician and photographer, initiated the takeover after the museum relocated to Areal Löwenbräukunst, securing temporary cultural use from the City of Zurich in March. Rather than dividing the space into separate zones, the exhibition presents a single, integrated show where artists were invited by the collectives, not selected by open call.

Trace the making of Fermata: Hong Kong in Venice through complete artwork reveals and installation photography

The article details the making of 'Fermata: Hong Kong in Venice,' a collateral event at the 61st Venice Biennale curated by the Hong Kong Museum of Art (HKMoA). The exhibition features two Hong Kong-based artists—established media artist Ng and emerging artist Angel Hui—whose works explore the poetic rhythms of everyday life in Hong Kong, engaging with the Biennale's theme 'In Minor Keys' by Koyo Kouoh. The selection process involved nominations from local tertiary institutions and professional art organizations, with over 200 artists considered before Ng and Hui were chosen.

'Greater New York' Exhibit Gets Real at MoMA PS1

MoMA PS1 opened the sixth edition of its quinquennial exhibition 'Greater New York,' featuring over 50 artists from the New York area. The show, which debuted in 2000 as the first joint project between the Museum of Modern Art and P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center, fills all floors of the Queens museum with works addressing local themes such as immigration, taxi drivers, massage parlors, rats, and bodega cats. Notable installations include 'Unfree Free Time' by fields harrington, which pays a delivery driver minimum wage for each hour his bike is displayed, and a mural by the Cevallos Brothers, known for their posters for local businesses.

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art Opens New Innovative Exhibition Space

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) has opened its new David Geffen Galleries, a landmark building designed by Swiss architect Peter Zumthor. The structure features floor-to-ceiling windows, spans Wilshire Boulevard 30 feet above the Miracle Mile, and houses galleries organized around maritime trade routes. The museum celebrated its inaugural events with a gala and ribbon-cutting, opening to the public on April 20, 2026. The new space displays over 155,000 art objects from the permanent collection, spanning ancient civilizations to contemporary works.

Must-See Museum Exhibits in New Orleans This May

The article highlights two must-see photography exhibitions in New Orleans this May. The New Orleans Jazz Museum presents "Less is More: The Photography of Steve Rapport," which opened April 21 and combines Rapport's earlier rock 'n' roll photography with new, emotionally charged portraits made since he moved to New Orleans—the first time both bodies of work are shown together. Meanwhile, the Ogden Museum is hosting "Herman Leonard: Images of Jazz" (through July 12), featuring the legendary photographer's iconic images of jazz musicians from the bebop and cool jazz eras, including a print of Ella Fitzgerald. Leonard lived in New Orleans later in life, and the Ogden Museum protected his negative archive during Hurricane Katrina.

Mayor Mary Sheffield visits the newly renovated Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit, or MOCAD

Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield toured the newly renovated Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD) on April 23, 2026, accompanied by Co-Directors Marie Madison-Patton and Jova Lynne, and Board Chair Charles Boyd. The renovation includes the renamed Julia Reyes Taubman Building, new large windows, an HVAC system, and a bar area, with exhibitions featuring works by Olayami Dabls, Carole Harris, and Martha Mysko.

Sorolla and Valencia: an itinerary in the light of the master who captured the soul of the Mediterranean

The city of Valencia is actively promoting a cultural itinerary dedicated to Joaquín Sorolla, tracing the master painter's life from his birthplace in the historic center to the Mediterranean shores that inspired his most famous works. The route encompasses key biographical sites including the Church of Santa Caterina, the School of Craftsmen, and the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Carlos, where his early sketches and academic records are preserved.

Review: “The Things We Carry” at Un Grito Gallery

The exhibition "The Things We Carry" at Un Grito Gallery serves as the centerpiece for the 2026 Contemporary Art Month (CAM) Perennial in San Antonio. Curated by Casie Lomeli and Leslie Moody Castro, the show features eight artists including Matt Rebholz, whose vibrant, alien-like landscapes subvert traditional Western imagery, and Tina Linville, who presents tactile sculptures composed of salvaged materials and concrete. The exhibition is part of a larger city-wide initiative spread across five artist-run spaces.

Chicago Artist Brian Sykes draws huge crowd for emotional exhibit debut

Chicago-based artist Brian Sykes returned to the Beverly Arts Center for the opening of his multimedia exhibition, “I Heard the City Breathe.” The event drew a significant crowd and featured a unique blend of visual art, film, and live vocal performances, including a set by Sykes himself. The project explores the emotional and cultural realities of Chicago’s Black experience, utilizing an intergenerational approach to discuss identity and memory.

DePaul Art Museum Bids Farewell with Barbara Nessim’s Retrospective

The DePaul Art Museum (DPAM) is hosting a career-spanning retrospective for New York-based artist Barbara Nessim titled "My Compass Is the Line" before the institution permanently closes in June. The exhibition marks Nessim’s first solo show in Chicago, featuring works from the 1960s to the present that span painting, computer art, and her iconic 1982 Time magazine cover. The show highlights Nessim’s exploration of femininity and sexuality, drawing stylistic parallels to the Chicago Imagists while showcasing her technical versatility.

EXPO Chicago isn't just at Navy Pier this weekend

EXPO Chicago has returned to Navy Pier with a streamlined format of 130 booths, but the fair's influence is increasingly felt through satellite exhibitions across the city. A notable example is 'Neighbors,' an alternative exhibition space hosted in a Gold Coast apartment by Mirka Serrato, which provides a more affordable and intimate platform for 15 emerging galleries and artists from around the world.

A Paris exhibition spotlights Estonian women artists

The Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris has launched "Estonian Realities," a significant cross-generational exhibition featuring the works of Olga Terri, Anu Põder, and Kris Lemsalu. Spanning nearly 90 years of artistic production, the show marks a major collaboration between the Art Museum of Estonia and the City of Paris, tracing the evolution of Estonian art from the psychological anxieties of the 1940s to the bold, performative installations of the contemporary era.

Phoenix Artist Eliza McLamb Celebrates 25-Year Career

Phoenix-based painter Eliza McLamb is marking a quarter-century of artistic practice with a major retrospective at the Phoenix Art Museum. Titled "Eliza McLamb: 25 Years of Color and Emotion," the exhibition features over 40 abstract works produced between 1996 and 2021, showcasing her signature emotive style and deep connection to the Sonoran Desert.

AMUM opens two exhibits for acquisitions and the works of local artist Maysey Craddock

The Art Museum of the University of Memphis (AMUM) has launched two concurrent exhibitions. One showcases recent acquisitions to the museum's permanent collection, while the other is a solo exhibition featuring the work of Memphis-based artist Maysey Craddock.

Must-See Museum Exhibits in New Orleans This April

New Orleans is set to host several major museum exhibitions this April, highlighting the city's deep artistic roots alongside its famous festival season. Key highlights include "I Am the Face" at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, which explores the evolution of Southern photographic portraiture from the early 20th century to today, and a significant retrospective of Louisiana native Robert Gordy at the New Orleans Museum of Art.

Must-See Museum Exhibits in New Orleans This April

New Orleans is highlighting its vibrant visual arts scene this April with two major museum exhibitions that offer deep dives into Southern identity and local art history. The Ogden Museum of Southern Art has launched "I Am the Face," a comprehensive survey of Southern photography and portraiture from the early 20th century to today. Meanwhile, the New Orleans Museum of Art (NOMA) is preparing to open a significant retrospective of Louisiana native Robert Gordy, marking the first major presentation of his multidisciplinary work at the institution in over forty years.

One Day in SA: Is Every Month Contemporary Art Month?

San Antonio’s art scene is characterized by a rapid-fire schedule of artist-run exhibitions and pop-up events that often center around the Blue Star Arts Complex. A recent survey of the city's offerings highlighted diverse installations, including Scott Martin’s immersive automotive video work at Slab Cinema Arthouse and Lauren Raye Snow’s mystical portraiture at FL!GHT gallery. The local landscape is defined by a DIY spirit where openings are frequent, fleeting, and deeply communal.