Il grande artista Michelangelo Pistoletto apre un hotel d’arte a Biella

Michelangelo Pistoletto has opened Hotel Cittadellarte in Biella, Italy, within his Cittadellarte Fondazione Pistoletto. The 31-room hotel houses the exhibition "L'ospite inatteso" by Giuseppe Stampone, curated by Ilaria Bernardi, with each room containing a unique artwork designed to be lived with rather than quickly viewed. The exhibition includes Stampone's "Fotocopie intelligenti" and large tapestries from the Brioni manufactory, addressing themes of migration, belonging, memory, and coexistence. The building was sustainably renovated with PNRR funds.

Body as Device. Guide and Reflection on the Performances of the Venice Biennale

Corpo come dispositivo. Guida e riflessione sulle performance della Biennale di Venezia

The article analyzes the role of performance art at the 2026 Venice Biennale, arguing that performance is no longer a rediscovered genre but a structurally institutionalized primary form of experience production. It examines how the body reemerges not as an alternative to image-based works but as an internal interruption of the artwork system, preventing closure and reintroducing instability. Key pavilions are discussed: Austria's Florentina Holzinger with "Sancta" draws on 1970s radical performance and feminist body art, creating an immersive environment of continuous movement; Belgium's Miet Warlop with "IT NEVER SSST" engages post-dramatic theater and postmodern dance repetition; Japan's Ei Arakawa-Nash with "Grass Babies, Moon Babies" activates Gutai avant-garde legacies through viewer interaction with soft dolls.

Casabianca is the name of the new art space to visit in Como

Si chiama Casabianca il nuovo spazio per l’arte da visitare a Como

A new art space called Casabianca has opened in Como, Italy, housed in a 1930s building designed by Piero Ponci. The project is spearheaded by hoteliers Paolo and Antonella De Santis, who have transformed the former luxury villa and bank into a domestic-style exhibition venue for their contemporary art collection. The space features works by artists such as Giulio Paolini, Stefano Arienti, Alighiero Boetti, Mario Merz, Marina Abramovic, and Joseph Kosuth, with no labels or didactics to preserve the feel of a private home.

L’arte vibra come un’onda. 7 artisti nell’elegante mostra a Casa Sanlorenzo a Venezia

Casa Sanlorenzo, the artistic division of the luxury yacht brand, has opened a new exhibition titled "Waves" in Venice, coinciding with the Venice Biennale. Curated by Sergio Risaliti and Cristiano Seganfreddo, the show spans 1,000 square meters across two floors plus a 600-square-meter garden, featuring works by seven artists: Alexander Calder, Lucio Fontana, Fausto Melotti, Tony Cragg, Marcello Maloberti, Christine Safa, and Friedrich Andreoni. The exhibition explores the concept of the wave as a metaphor for artistic expression, with a focus on sculpture and sound, including Melotti's poetic sculptures, Andreoni's immersive sound installation, and Calder's mobiles.

An Italian artist makes an exhibition in Tunis inspired by Le Corbusier's architectures

Un artista italiano fa una mostra a Tunisi ispirandosi alle architetture di Le Corbusier

Italian artist Cristian Chironi has opened the seventh chapter of his ongoing project "My house is a Le Corbusier" with an exhibition in Tunis titled "My house is a Le Corbusier (Villa Baizeau)". The project centers on Villa Baizeau, a Le Corbusier-designed house built between 1928 and 1930 for industrialist Lucien Baizeau, which is now inaccessible inside the Tunisian presidential park. Chironi, inspired by a failed attempt by artist Costantino Nivola to bring Le Corbusier's architecture to his hometown Orani, instead travels the world temporarily inhabiting Le Corbusier's buildings. For this iteration, he set up a residency at La Boîte – Centre d'Art & d'Architecture in the Medina of Tunis from January 22 to April 5, 2026, culminating in an exhibition that opened April 3, 2026, using the villa as a lens to read the city rather than a physical space to occupy.

L’artista Kader Attia ci racconta la sua opera alla Biennale di Venezia 2026. L’intervista

Kader Attia presents his multimedia installation "Whisper of Traces" at the 2026 Venice Biennale, curated by Koyo Kouoh under the theme "In Minor Keys." The work explores the intersections of magic, spirituality, traditional healing, and digitalization, drawing on Attia's long-standing interest in how colonialism, neoliberalism, and technology have transformed shamanic and healing practices. Attia describes the project as an accumulation of psychic traces from human history, which his mother called "ghosts."

The Biennale releases the rules for voting on the Visitors' Lions while many artists and pavilions renounce competing for the prizes

La Biennale diffonde il regolamento per votare i Leoni dei Visitatori mentre molti artisti e padiglioni rinunciano a concorrere ai premi

The 61st Venice Biennale has opened to the public, introducing a controversial new voting system for the Golden Lions. After the entire jury resigned en masse on April 30, the Biennale decided to let the public decide the winners of the so-called "Leoni dei Visitatori" (Visitors' Lions). Voting is open from May 9 to November 22, 2026, and requires ticket holders to visit both main venues (Giardini and Arsenale) to receive a voting link. One vote per person is allowed for each of two categories: an artist in the main international exhibition "In Minor Keys" curated by Koyo Kouoh, and a national pavilion.

A Roma una mostra celebra il leggendario scenografo e costumista Dante Ferretti

A new exhibition titled "Dante Ferretti. Con i miei occhi" has opened at the Musei di San Salvatore in Lauro in Rome, celebrating the legendary Italian set designer and costume designer Dante Ferretti. Curated by Raffaele Curi, the show runs until July 19, 2026, and features a collection of Ferretti's sketches, charcoal drawings, and collages that served as the foundational visual ideas for films by directors including Pier Paolo Pasolini, Martin Scorsese, Federico Fellini, and Tim Burton. The exhibition presents these preparatory works not merely as production tools but as autonomous works of art, tracing Ferretti's visual genealogy from Renaissance painters like Piero della Francesca and Caravaggio to contemporary cinema.

Nick Cave at the 2026 Biennale. Seven works between loss, memory and protest

Nick Cave è alla Biennale 2026. Sette opere tra perdita, memoria e protesta

Nick Cave presents "Two Points in Time at Once" at the 2026 Venice Biennale, a project spanning seven locations across Venice. The installation features a series of bronze works, including the "Amalgam" series (Seated, Origin, Plot, Resuscitation, Meditation) along with "Grapht" and "Siren." This marks a significant material shift from Cave's iconic fabric Soundsuits to bronze, exploring themes of loss, memory, trauma, and protest through a more static yet politically charged presence.

At the 2026 Venice Biennale, pavilions shut down for pro-Palestine strike. The map of protests

Alla Biennale di Venezia 2026 serrata dei padiglioni per sciopero pro Palestina. La mappa delle proteste

On May 8, 2026, the third VIP preview day of the 61st Venice Biennale, a massive strike shut down numerous national pavilions and disrupted the exhibition. Led by the Art Not Genocide Alliance (Anga), the protest demands Israel's exclusion from the Biennale over allegations of genocide in Palestine, and also targets poor labor conditions in the cultural sector. Pavilions closed one after another due to staff shortages, and protest posters appeared around artworks at the Giardini and Arsenale. The strike involved the Biennale Foundation itself, along with about twenty contractors managing services and national pavilions, with unions Adl Cobas, USB Lavoro privato, and Cub supporting the action. Tensions rose when the UK Pavilion reportedly replaced striking staff to remain open, and the Foundation issued a statement falsely denying that its employees were covered by the strike.

Un big della fotografia del Novecento è in mostra a Venezia: tanti scatti inediti

A major exhibition dedicated to 20th-century photography master Horst P. Horst has opened at Le Stanze della Fotografia on San Giorgio Maggiore Island in Venice. Titled "La Geometria della Grazia" (The Geometry of Grace), it is the largest and most significant show ever devoted to the photographer, featuring over 400 works—about half of which are exhibited for the first time. The display pairs original vintage prints with archival materials such as period magazines, preparatory drawings, sketches, letters from Coco Chanel and Salvador Dalí, and slide projections. The exhibition is organized into eight sections exploring Horst's constant search for balance and proportion, moving beyond his famous fashion photography for Vogue to highlight the classical and modernist influences in his work.

In a Rome exhibition, an artist draws his own atlas: the body becomes world

In una mostra a Roma un artista disegna un proprio atlante: il corpo diventa mondo

Luca di Luzio's exhibition "Atlas ego imago mundi" at Palazzo Mattei in Rome, hosted by the Italian Geographical Society, presents a personal geography where the artist's body becomes landscape and world. Curated by Anna Cestelli Guidi, the show features around 40 maps, three large canvases, and a handmade book created between 2015 and 2023. Di Luzio uses his body as a palette, pressing skin directly onto paper or canvas to generate imaginary territories that merge sensory experience with artistic expression, referencing Merleau-Ponty's philosophy and Leonardo da Vinci's Vitruvian Man.

Are the Visitors' Lions at the Venice Biennale an Opportunity for Art Criticism? Let's Seize It?

I Leoni dei Visitatori alla Biennale di Venezia sono un’opportunità per la critica d’arte. Cerchiamo di coglierla?

The article discusses the newly instituted "Leoni dei Visitatori" (Visitors' Lions) at the Venice Biennale, established after the resignation of the International Jury. The author, Alberto Villa, argues that this change shifts significant influence to art media and critics, as visitors will rely on reviews and recommendations from specialized magazines, websites, and social media to decide which pavilions to prioritize. Villa calls on critics to embrace this responsibility with heightened critical rigor, seeing it as an opportunity to revive the mediating role of art criticism.

Un ciclo di mostre è allestito sotto terra in un ipogeo del quartiere Pigneto a Roma

A family of entrepreneurs acquired an ancient bar in Rome's Pigneto neighborhood in 2020, inheriting a Roman-era hypogeum dating back to the 1st century BC. Originally a pozzolana quarry, later a wine cellar and WWII air-raid shelter, the space beneath the historic bar Necci dal 1924 reopened to the public on March 12 as an exhibition venue. It now hosts "Sottoforma," a cycle of three exhibitions curated by Donatella Giordano and Agatha Jaubourg that explore the theme of the invisible through contemporary art. The first exhibition features works by Eva Marisaldi, Enrico Serotti, and Luca Vitone, running until March 31, followed by shows with Iginio De Luca and Liliana Moro in April, and José Angelino and Elena Bellantoni in May 2026.

A Venezia sta aprendo un nuovo Palazzo delle Arti e delle Culture grazie alla Fondazione Giancarlo Ligabue. L’intervista

A new Palazzo delle Arti e delle Culture – Collecto is opening in Venice at Palazzo Erizzo Ligabue, a 15th-century palace on the Grand Canal. The initiative, spearheaded by Inti Ligabue (45), son of the late paleontologist and entrepreneur Giancarlo Ligabue, will open to the public from May 7 to May 24, 2026, offering guided tours of a collection of over 400 pieces spanning from 4.5-billion-year-old fossils to contemporary works by artists such as Arcangelo Sassolino, Nico Vascellari, and Giorgio Andreotta Calò. The project builds on the Fondazione Giancarlo Ligabue, established in 2016 from the original Centro Studi founded in 1973, and will feature a residency by artist Marta Spagnoli.

C’è un artista che ha deciso di vivere in povertà come un monaco francescano. La storia

Miltos Manetas, a Greek-born artist, has adopted a life of Franciscan poverty as both a personal practice and an artistic project called "Francesco_2026." His work is featured in the exhibition "Vita minore. San Francesco e la santità dell’arte contemporanea" at Palazzo Collicola in Spoleto, curated by Gianni and Giuseppe Garrera. Manetas has also launched the tenth Internet Pavilion at the Venice Biennale, inviting Saint Francis as the artist, using AI conversations and a monastery in the Venetian lagoon to create an informal community of "Fratelli e Sorelle" who follow a shared rule based on poverty, absence of preparation, and divine providence.

A Londra compare una statua firmata da Banksy. Trovata di marketing o davvero una nuova opera dell’artista?

A satirical statue has appeared in Waterloo Place, London, depicting a man in a suit with his face covered by a large waving flag. Initially met with skepticism due to its unusual chalk signature and three-dimensional form—departing from Banksy's typical stencil and mural work—the artist later claimed the piece via an ironic video on his Instagram page. The statue stands near the Crimean War Memorial and statues of Edward VII and Florence Nightingale, and is interpreted as a critique of authoritarian trends in democracies.

Fellow Painters and Also Friends. Zandomeneghi and Degas Are on Show in Rovigo

Colleghi pittori e anche amici. Zandomeneghi e Degas sono in mostra a Rovigo

Palazzo Roverella in Rovigo is hosting the exhibition "Zandomeneghi e Degas. Impressionismo tra Firenze e Parigi," curated by Francesca Dini. The show brings together works by Italian 19th-century painter Federico Zandomeneghi and French Impressionist Edgar Degas, featuring about fifteen paintings and sculptures by Degas alongside works by Zandomeneghi. It explores their friendship, mutual artistic influence, and shared commitment to realism, tracing their connections from Florence's Caffè Michelangiolo to Paris, where their paths fully converged. Themes such as dance and the nude are highlighted, with works like Degas's "Classe de ballet" (1888) and Zandomeneghi's "Visita in camerino" and "Donna che si asciuga" on view.

Kunsthaus Paradiso is Born in Venice: Italian Art Has a Home, Despite the Biennale

Nasce a Venezia la Kunsthaus Paradiso: l’arte italiana ha una casa, malgrado la Biennale

A new project called Kunsthaus Paradiso has opened in Palazzo Molin Querini in Venice, running from May 4 to May 31 in conjunction with the Venice Biennale. Founded by curator Caroline Corbetta, the initiative evolved from her earlier Crepaccio project (2012–2016) in Milan and the Padiglione Crepaccio, which debuted at the 2013 Biennale Arte curated by Massimiliano Gioni. Kunsthaus Paradiso focuses on Italian and Venice-based artists—including Thomas Braida, Fabio De Meo, Caterina Rossato, Ornella Cardillo, Alessandro Miotti, Melania Fusco, Mauro Campagnaro, Marta Spagnoli, Barbara De Vivi, Spazio Punch, Giorgio Andreotta Calò, Mattia Sinigaglia, and the collective Scafandra—offering a platform for emerging and local talent during the Biennale.

The Biomorphic Sculptures of Alma Allen in the U.S. Pavilion at the 2026 Venice Art Biennale (Amid Controversy)

Le sculture biomorfiche di Alma Allen nel Padiglione USA alla Biennale d’Arte di Venezia 2026 (tra le polemiche)

Alma Allen, a self-taught American sculptor, has been selected to represent the United States at the 61st Venice Biennale in 2026 with the exhibition "Call Me the Breeze." The pavilion, curated by Jeffrey Uslip, will feature site-specific biomorphic sculptures that explore the concept of "elevation" through a hybrid creative process combining pre-industrial carving and hand-modeling with advanced robotic sculpting. Works will incorporate local American materials such as walnut burl, Cantera green volcanic rock, and Yule marble from Colorado, and the pavilion is tied to America250, the celebration of the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Declaration of Independence.

France reopens its historic pavilion at the 2026 Venice Art Biennale after restorations with artist Yto Barrada

La Francia riapre il suo storico padiglione alla Biennale Arte 2026 dopo i restauri con l’artista Yto Barrada

France will reopen its historic pavilion at the 61st Venice Biennale (May 9–November 22, 2026) after restoration, with Franco-Moroccan artist Yto Barrada (b. 1971) presenting the immersive textile-based project "Comme Saturne," curated by Myriam Ben Salah. The exhibition uses the "dévoré" technique—acid selectively corrodes fabric—as a metaphor for destruction and creation, featuring a goat-skin kite, a Room of Folds with wool drapery that fades in natural light, a Laboratory inspired by Saturnalia, and a Study Room linked to Barrada's garden of dye plants in Tangier, culminating in the Room of the Devoured where chemically attacked material fragments into an aesthetic of wear and formlessness.

Una delle opere più importante esposte alla Galleria Nazionale di Roma sta ammuffendo

An article by Laura Carlotta Cortoni on Artribune reports that Pino Pascali's iconic 1967 work "32 mq di mare circa" ("32 square meters of sea approximately"), on display at the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea (GNAMC) in Rome, is covered in mold, dust, and insects due to a total lack of maintenance. The author describes the installation as resembling a neglected warehouse and notes that visitors unfamiliar with the piece mistake the decay for an intentional environmental statement, creating a critical paradox given Pascali's own series of works titled "Muffe" (Molds).

Il Padiglione della Gran Bretagna alla Biennale d’Arte di Venezia 2026 spiega cos’è l’appartenenza

The British Council has selected artist Lubaina Himid to represent Great Britain at the 2026 Venice Biennale. Her exhibition, titled "Predicting History: Testing Translation," will transform the British Pavilion into a large-scale installation exploring belonging, displacement, and the recreation of home in new contexts. Created in collaboration with artist Magda Stawarska, the show features multi-panel paintings and a surreal soundscape that engages with the neoclassical architecture of the pavilion. Himid, a Turner Prize winner and pioneer of the Black British Art Movement, focuses on cultural memory and identity, challenging Eurocentric narratives and highlighting overlooked Black figures in Western history.

In Milan, the Italian Renaissance Meets Artificial Intelligence: An Interview with Refik Anadol

A Milano il Rinascimento italiano incontra l’intelligenza artificiale: intervista a Refik Anadol

Refik Anadol's immersive AI artwork, 'Renaissance Dreams,' is on extended daily view at Milan's MEET Digital Culture Center during Design Week. The piece uses artificial intelligence to process a dataset of Italian Renaissance visual and written works from 1300-1600, generating ever-changing audiovisual environments for visitors.

What does a technology fair have to do with the art world? A report from MIR in Rimini

Cosa c’entra una fiera della tecnologia con il mondo dell’arte? Un report dal MIR di Rimini

The article reports from the MIR (Live Entertainment Expo) technology trade fair in Rimini, an event focused on professional audio/video equipment and systems integration. While dominated by corporate stands and live sound demonstrations, the fair also hosted discussions on the precarious working conditions and pension system for cultural and entertainment workers, revealing underlying anxieties in the creative industries.

What are these 'art clubs' that Alessandro Benetton is opening around Italy? The story.

Cosa sono questi “art club” che Alessandro Benetton sta aprendo in giro per l’Italia? Il racconto

21Art, a company founded by Alessandro Benetton based on a project by entrepreneur Davide Vanin, is expanding its network of gallery spaces and affiliated 'Art Clubs' across Italy and into Monaco. This spring, a new location in Montecarlo will join existing galleries in Rome, Padua, and Treviso, with plans for further openings in Milan, Cortina, and Jesolo by 2027. The expansion is accompanied by a spring 2026 exhibition program featuring shows by Mario Ceroli in Treviso, Ahmet Güneştekin in Rome, and Jan Fabre in Montecarlo.

Linda Lach, Diane Severin Nguyen at Gunia Nowik Gallery

Gunia Nowik Gallery in Warsaw presents a two-person exhibition featuring artists Linda Lach and Diane Severin Nguyen, running from April 10 to May 23, 2026. The show is organized in collaboration with Galerie Molitor and includes a bilingual guide in English and Polish. Documentation of the exhibition comprises 18 images, photographed by Katarzyna Legendź.

Artist appointed, axed then reinstated from Venice Biennale triumphs

Khaled Sabsabi, a Lebanese Australian artist, presents his installation 'conference of one's self' at the Australia Pavilion of the Venice Biennale, alongside a second work 'khalil' in the main exhibition 'In Minor Keys' curated by Koyo Kouoh. His participation follows a tumultuous period in February 2025 when he was initially appointed to represent Australia, then controversially sacked by Creative Australia's board after a political dispute triggered by Senator Claire Chandler's comments, and later reinstated. Sabsabi is now one of only three artists in the Biennale's 131-year history to show in both a national pavilion and the main exhibition.

Exciting evolution for SJIMA

Blake DeYoung is stepping down as Executive Director of the San Juan Islands Museum of Art (SJIMA) at the end of May to become Executive Director of the Skagit Valley College San Juan Center branch, replacing Randy Martin. Deputy Director Wendy Smith will serve as Acting Director during the transition. The museum board remains unchanged, and the institution views this as an opportunity to realign its structure and build on recent successes, including record attendance in 2025.

Kiss Me, Beneath the Milky Twilight

The article reviews the exhibition "Ahhh! Beije-me" (Ahhh! Kiss me) at Martins & Montero gallery in São Paulo, featuring the late Brazilian artist Hudinilson Jr. (1957-2013). The show presents works from the 1970s and 1980s, including photocopies, stencils, paintings, and personal objects from the artist's apartment, which was closed by his family for twelve years after his death. Highlights include a billboard artwork "Zona de tensão," newly discovered gouache and pastel works on photocopies of Michelangelo's "David," and stencil matrices made from laundry detergent boxes used in street graffiti. The exhibition also incorporates furniture, decorative objects, and photographs by Mauro Restiffe documenting the apartment before its dismantling.