anna weyant gagosian tefaf new york

Gagosian Gallery will present a new body of work by artist Anna Weyant at TEFAF New York, featuring intimately scaled paintings of jewelry rendered with trompe l’oeil precision. The booth, designed with lavender walls and pine-hued carpet, showcases pieces like "Pearl Earrings" (2025) and "Pearl Bracelet (Sold)" (2025), some with cheeky price tags and red dot stickers. Weyant, represented by Gagosian since 2022, has seen her market soar, with her auction record set at $1.6 million for "Falling Woman" (2020) at Sotheby’s in 2022.

chanel fund high tech arts center calarts

California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) will establish the Chanel Center for Artists and Technology, funded by the Chanel Culture Fund. The initiative focuses on artificial intelligence, machine learning, and digital imaging, creating dozens of new roles, fellowships for artists and technologists-in-residence, and graduate student support, along with cutting-edge equipment. CalArts president Ravi S. Rajan described it as among the largest corporate partnerships the school has had, potentially the largest for any art school.

howard castle completes restoration

Castle Howard, the historic North Yorkshire estate known for its role in Netflix's *Bridgerton* and the 1981 film *Brideshead Revisited*, is reopening to the public after major restoration work. The centerpiece is the tapestry drawing room, which had stood as an empty shell since a 1940 fire devastated much of the house. The room has been fully reconstructed with a new ceiling, floor, fireplace, paneling, and window casings, overseen by architect Francis Terry. Four 18th-century tapestries by John Vanderbank, depicting the seasons, have been restored and reinstalled in their original locations for the first time since the early 1700s. The restoration also prompted a rehang of the Long Gallery and a reimagining of the grand staircase, which now displays artifacts collected by the earls of Carlisle.

why did leonardo and michelangelo have beef

Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo, two of history's most celebrated artists, had a well-documented rivalry rooted in competition for commissions, class differences, and artistic disagreements. Their first known encounter occurred when Leonardo served on a committee deciding the placement of Michelangelo's *David* (1501), where Leonardo reportedly mocked the sculpture by sketching it as the sea god Neptune. Their rivalry escalated when both were commissioned to paint opposing murals in Florence's Salone dei Cinquecento—Leonardo's *Battle of Anghiari* and Michelangelo's *Battle of Cascina*—neither of which was completed. The artists traded insults over the years, with Michelangelo criticizing Leonardo's view of sculpture as inferior to painting, and Leonardo deriding Michelangelo's muscular figures as resembling "a bag of walnuts."

renaissance painting feast of the gods

The article examines Giovanni Bellini's painting *The Feast of the Gods* (1514–29), a mythological scene depicting Roman deities at a feast, which was later reworked by Dosso Dossi and Titian. Commissioned by Duke Alfonso d'Este for his private gallery, the work is notable for including what is believed to be the earliest painted example of Chinese porcelain in European art. The painting draws from Ovid's 'Fasti' and was Bellini's last completed work, finished when he was in his 80s.

megastar artist kent monkman is rewriting colonial narratives on canvas

Kent Monkman, a member of the Fisher River Cree Nation and a leading contemporary painter based between Toronto and New York, is the subject of a feature article discussing his career and his first major U.S. museum exhibition, "History is Painted by the Victors," opening at the Denver Art Museum. Monkman is known for epic, genre-bending canvases that subvert classical European painting traditions, particularly 19th- and 20th-century history painting, to expose colonial distortions and omissions. Central to his work is Miss Chief Eagle Testickle, his time-traveling alter ego who queers history and repositions Indigenous presence and agency. The article includes an interview where Monkman reflects on his upbringing in Winnipeg, his relationship to museums, and how painting serves as both a political tool and a method for processing historical trauma.

american civil liberties union of texas artists in residence

The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas (ACLU of Texas) has named Houston-based painter Vincent Valdez and Austin-based author KB Brookins as the recipients of its artists-in-residence program for 2025–26. Each artist will receive $30,000 to fund individual projects and will collaborate with the ACLU of Texas and community leaders to advocate for civil rights. Valdez plans to paint portraits of local community leaders and create poster packets combining Know Your Rights information with archival research for statewide distribution. Brookins will address pretrial detention in Texas jails through original compositions, workshops, and public presentations, focusing on mass incarceration issues in Harris County. The pair were selected from roughly 200 applicants following a statewide open call, succeeding artist Kill Joy, who led an immigrants' rights tour with large puppets.

kevin beasley storm king acoustic mirror

Kevin Beasley has created a large-scale acoustic mirror for Storm King Art Center, opening May 7. The 11-foot-tall, 100-foot-wide four-part sculpture is inspired by World War I–era concrete acoustic mirrors used for detecting enemy aircraft. Unlike those obsolete relics, Beasley's work is made from recycled clothes cast in resin and will amplify visitors' voices and outdoor sounds. The piece engages with the history of the Hudson River School painters and themes of colonialism, Manifest Destiny, and contested land, while also celebrating agricultural cycles through its seasonal titles: Proscenium| Rebirth, Growth, Harvest, and Dormancy.

emily fisher landau picasso sothebys

Pablo Picasso's 1932 painting *Femme à la montre*, depicting his lover Marie-Thérèse Walter, sold for $139.4 million (including fees) at Sotheby's New York during the highly anticipated Emily Fisher Landau sale. The work, estimated at $120 million, was the centerpiece of the auction, with bidding starting at $95 million and concluding after a two-minute standoff among three phone bidders, including one from Asia. Brooke Lampley, Sotheby's head of global fine art, secured the winning bid on behalf of a client. The sale was handled by Sotheby's, which won the right to auction the estate of Landau, a longtime Whitney Museum board member and private collector.

what is the dubai collection art

The Dubai Collection, launched in 2021 under the patronage of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, is billed as the emirate's first institutional collection of modern and contemporary art. However, it has no physical location, does not acquire artworks, and exists primarily as a digital platform where top Dubai collectors list their holdings. At Art Dubai 2025, the Collection presented its third exhibition, "Common Grounds," organized by Zayed University students, featuring works from 1949 to 2024. The initiative also includes research, education, and cultural preservation programs, along with events like Dubai Collection Nights.

national endowment for humanities sculpture garden trump

The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has announced a new grant program to fund statues for President Trump’s National Garden of American Heroes, a sculpture garden first proposed in 2021. The garden will feature life-size statues of 250 notable Americans, with a location still to be determined. Selected artists, who must be U.S. citizens, can receive up to $200,000 per statue, which must be made of traditional materials like marble or bronze and depict figures in a realistic style. The application deadline is July 1, and the project is jointly funded by the NEH and the National Endowment for the Arts with a total of $34 million, drawn from federal grants originally allocated to other cultural programs but later canceled by the administration.

re air how textiles took over the art world

This episode of Artnet News's podcast "The Art Angle" re-airs an interview between host Ben Davis and curator and writer Elissa Auther, author of "String Felt, Thread: The Hierarchy of Art and Craft in American Art." They discuss the recent surge in interest in fiber art, from textile-based works at the Venice Biennale to the major traveling exhibition "Woven Histories: Textiles and Modern Abstraction," which has just opened at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Auther, chief curator at the Museum of Arts and Design, provides historical context on how tapestry was once as revered as painting and explains the factors driving the current boom.

mexico francisco toledo dobel tequila

Francisco Toledo, the renowned Mexican artist, collaborated with Maestro Dobel Tequila on a limited-edition luxury tequila vessel before his death. The Dobel Tequila Grandes Maestros Collection: The Francisco Toledo Edition features the world's first extra añejo tequila finished in mezcal barrels, housed in a hand-engraved bottle with a sculptural wooden cube display. Only 15 of the 281 editions are available in the U.S. market, each priced at $5,000, and are now being auctioned via Artnet.

kehinde wiley new sexual assault complaint

Artist Ogechi Chieke has filed a legal complaint against Kehinde Wiley, accusing him of sexual assault stemming from an incident in 2007. Chieke alleges that after a New York exhibition she was included in, Wiley groped her and made unwanted sexual advances, causing her to leave New York and abandon her art career. Wiley denies the allegations, calling them a "blatant money-grab" and stating he has never met Chieke. The suit was filed under New York City's Victims of Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Law just before the statute of limitations window closed on March 1, 2025.

brutalist adrien brody architect

Adrien Brody won the Best Actor Oscar at the 97th Academy Awards for his role in *The Brutalist*, a film directed by Brady Corbet that premiered at the 2024 Venice Film Festival, where it won the Silver Lion for best director. The epic, three-and-a-half-hour film follows Bauhaus-trained Hungarian Jewish architect László Toth, a Holocaust survivor who emigrates to America and struggles to rebuild his career, drawing on the lives of real architects like Louis Kahn, Mies van der Rohe, and Marcel Breuer. Shot in Budapest on celluloid for under $10 million, the film was acquired by A24 after a 12-minute ovation at Venice.

canada giant van gogh easel fate

In 1997, artist Cameron Cross installed The Big Easel, a 75-foot-tall sculpture of an easel displaying a reproduction of Vincent van Gogh's sunflower paintings, in Altona, Canada, to honor the town's status as the Sunflower Capital of Canada. After a windstorm on February 28 blew off a panel of the painting and further damage occurred on March 15, the town removed the four-ton painting and conducted a survey to gauge public support for restoration. A majority of respondents (68%) voted to save the artwork, with 60% preferring a hand-painted canvas over a printed replica and 61% wanting to keep the Van Gogh sunflowers. Cross plans to rebuild the fiberglass canvas from scratch and repaint the image in 2026, with costs estimated at CA$70,000 ($50,500) for a durable marine-grade plywood version.

Delegitimation, Denunciation and Insecurity

"Delegitimation, Denunziation und Verunsicherung"

German cultural critic Georg Seeßlen warns in his taz column of a right-wing 'war of conquest' targeting liberal cultural institutions through systematic delegitimation, denunciation, and intimidation. Meanwhile, a new Berlin artist study reveals that the average annual income from artistic work is just €6,000, highlighting a structural dysfunction in the art system. Additionally, Jonathan Meese's play 'Alaska Kid' has been canceled at the Volksbühne Berlin following the death of his mother Brigitte Meese, who was his organizer, muse, and confidante.

The Prototype of an Artist

Der Prototyp eines Künstlers

Timm Ulrichs, the self-proclaimed "Totalkünstler" (total artist) known for his boundary-pushing performances—tattooing himself, locking himself inside a hollowed boulder, and running naked in thunderstorms—has died at age 86 in Berlin. A pioneer of Land Art, Body Art, concrete poetry, and endoscopic imaging, Ulrichs created works that anticipated later artists like Isa Genzken, and was invited to Documenta 6 in 1977. Despite his prolific output and influence on younger generations, he often lamented being overlooked by the international art market compared to peers like Georg Baselitz and Gerhard Richter.

First Details of the German Pavilion

Erste Details zum deutschen Pavillon

The German Pavilion at the upcoming Venice Biennale will present an exhibition titled "Ruin," featuring works by the late Henrike Naumann and artist Sung Tieu. Curated by Kathleen Reinhardt, the exhibition explores historical ruptures and the lingering effects of political and social voids following German reunification. Tragically, Naumann passed away shortly after completing her contributions, and her studio team is now working to realize her final artistic vision for the prestigious international stage.

Already 100,000 Visitors at Cologne's Kusama Exhibition

Schon 100.000 Besucher in Kölner Kusama-Ausstellung

The Museum Ludwig in Cologne has reached a significant milestone, welcoming 100,000 visitors to its Yayoi Kusama retrospective within just four weeks of opening. The exhibition, which features 300 works ranging from early childhood drawings to contemporary installations, has proven to be an unprecedented draw for the institution, surpassing the director's initial expectations for attendance speed.

I think I didn't understand many artists

"Ich glaube, ich habe viele Künstler nicht verstanden"

Adrian Searle, the long-standing chief art critic for The Guardian, is stepping down after three decades at the publication and nearly 50 years in art criticism. In a reflective interview, Searle discusses his transition from a practicing painter and educator to a critic, noting that his early interactions with students like Peter Doig and Isaac Julien helped him realize his true strength lay in writing rather than art-making. He recounts his experiences navigating the British art scene, from the decline of Greenbergian abstraction to his encounters with formidable figures like Richard Serra.

Metropolitan Opera and MoMA Together Put Kahlo at Center Stage

The Metropolitan Opera and the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) have launched a rare cross-disciplinary collaboration centered on the life and work of Frida Kahlo. The project features a new operatic production at the Met, complemented by a specialized exhibition at MoMA conceived by the opera's set designer to provide visual and historical context.

A Thomas J Price Bronze Opens Door to London’s V&A East

British artist Thomas J Price has unveiled a monumental bronze sculpture at the entrance of the Victoria and Albert Museum’s new outpost, V&A East, in Stratford, East London. The large-scale work depicts an anonymous Black figure, continuing Price's practice of utilizing the traditional language of monumental sculpture to celebrate everyday individuals who are often marginalized in public spaces.

MoMA Survey Shows How Marcel Duchamp Changed the Art Game

The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) has launched a comprehensive survey of Marcel Duchamp’s work, highlighting the artist's revolutionary impact on the definition of art. The exhibition traces Duchamp's transition from traditional painting to his radical 'readymades,' which prioritized intellectual concepts over aesthetic craftsmanship.

culture editors gift guide christmas holidays

Cultured magazine's editors have published a holiday gift guide featuring a curated selection of items ranging from books and film memberships to robes, facials, and art-related products. Recommendations include Elaine Kraf's novel "The Princess of 72nd Street," an AAA24 membership from production company A24, a Hanro shawl collar cotton robe, a facial from Cali Strauhs, and a set of architecture-themed notebooks and books from the New Museum and Special Special. The guide also highlights a bronze sculpture by artist Ryan Schneider, tying the list to contemporary visual art.

Tuguldur Yondonjamts’s Animalistic Realm

Mongolian artist Tuguldur Yondonjamts explores the habitat of the saker falcon through a series of accordion-style books titled *The Secret Mountain of Falcons* (2011–14), created during fieldwork across Mongolia. The drawings, presented in Perspex vitrines at his solo exhibition *Wolf Loving Princess* at Gallery Ver in Bangkok, depict the falcon's perspective as imagined by the artist, blending black-and-white film-like imagery with abstract textures. The work responds to the falcon trade, particularly to the Middle East, and the species' declining population, which led to its designation as Mongolia's national bird in 2012.

ArtReview April & May 2026 Issue Out Now

ArtReview's April & May 2026 issue explores boundaries and limitations in art, with a focus on the 61st Venice Biennale opening amid global conflicts. The cover features Japanese-American performance artist Ei Arakawa-Nash with his husband and twin babies, whose collaborative installation at the Japanese Pavilion incorporates the unpredictability of childcare. The issue includes coverage of controversial national pavilions (Russian, Israeli, American), profiles of artists representing Mongolia and Singapore, and features on Beverly Buchanan, Arthur Jafa, Richard Prince, and Zehra Doğan's report from Rojava. It also reviews the 82nd Whitney Biennial, the 25th Biennale of Sydney, and the 15th Shanghai Biennale.

Ibrahim Mahama awarded 2026 Arnold Bode Prize

Ghanaian visual artist Ibrahim Mahama has been awarded the 2026 Arnold Bode Prize by the city of Kassel. The prize, announced by his gallery White Cube, includes a €10,000 award in recognition of his artistic practice.

Event: Hammad Nasar and Billy Tang, Off the Record

ArtReview and Ursula magazine have announced a collaborative talk featuring curators Hammad Nasar and Billy Tang as part of their "Off the Record" series in London. The event, held at the Farm Shop in Mayfair, is designed as an intimate, live conversation focused on the working methods and inspirations of creative visionaries. Nasar, a veteran curator and MBE recipient, will join Tang, the Artistic Director of the new Yan Du Project, to discuss their respective practices and the evolution of creative thinking.

Museum as Networked Modality

The article examines the evolving and often problematic relationship between museums and digital art. It highlights the institutional struggle to define and categorize works that use contemporary technologies like AI, blockchain, and robotics, noting that canonical figures like Leo Villareal, Jenny Holzer, and Andreas Gursky are often excluded from the "digital art" label. The piece cites specific examples, from Harold Cohen's early algorithmic work to Sougwen Chung's robotic collaborations and Rhea Myers's responsive NFTs, to illustrate the diverse and transmedia nature of these practices.