The Phillies Owner’s Other Superstars

John Middleton, the billionaire owner of the Philadelphia Phillies, is channeling his competitive drive into the acquisition of 19th-century American masterpieces. His private collection, which features prominent works by Andrew Wyeth, Winslow Homer, and Thomas Eakins, has quietly become one of the most significant of its kind in the United States. Middleton’s approach to collecting mirrors his sports management style, focusing on "blue-chip" historical significance and technical mastery.

Nazir Tanbouli celebrates 35 years of exhibiting his work at Yassin art gallery

The Egyptian art scene is hosting a diverse array of exhibitions this April, headlined by the Egyptian debut of the global blockbuster "Beyond Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience" at District 5 in New Cairo. This digital spectacle, directed by Mathieu Saint-Arnaud, utilizes 360-degree projections to bring over 300 of Vincent van Gogh's masterpieces to life. Simultaneously, local institutions like the Sharjah Art Gallery at AUC and the Italian Cultural Institute are showcasing contemporary talent, including the graduating class of AUC and a solo exhibition by Italian-Egyptian artist Sarah Zaki.

Creativity takes root

Students at Southern Methodist University (SMU) gathered at the Meadows Museum in Dallas for the inaugural 'ArtMix Thursday,' a monthly event designed to foster creativity and community through hands-on art-making. The debut session featured a mosaic-making workshop held in collaboration with the SMU Craft Club, allowing students to engage with the museum in a relaxed, non-academic setting. This initiative is part of a broader effort by the institution to integrate more deeply with student life through new programming and expanded membership benefits.

LIKE A DUET. In Conversation with Anne Imhof by Tyler Mitchell

Artists Anne Imhof and Tyler Mitchell engage in a cross-disciplinary dialogue reflecting on their recent solo exhibitions, "Wish You Were Gay" at Kunsthaus Bregenz and "Wish This Was Real" at C/O Berlin. The conversation explores the intersection of performance, photography, and the choreography of space, with both artists discussing how they manipulate the viewer's physical and emotional presence within an installation.

From ‘Game of Thrones’ to ‘Downton Abbey’—Iconic Costumes Go on View in Scotland

An exhibition titled "Costume Couture: Sixty Years of Cosprop" is opening at Dovecot Studios in Edinburgh, featuring over 80 iconic costumes from major film and television productions such as 'Game of Thrones,' 'Downton Abbey,' and 'Pirates of the Caribbean.' The show, which premiered last year in London, celebrates the six-decade legacy of the renowned costume house Cosprop, founded by Oscar-winning designer John Bright.

Alserkal Art Month 2026: The ultimate opening weekend guide

Alserkal Avenue in Dubai has launched its 2026 Art Month, expanding its traditional week-long celebration into a five-week program. The opening weekend features 18 participating galleries debuting flagship exhibitions, including a solo show by Anthony Akinbola at Carbon 12 and a 20th-anniversary group exhibition at Gallery Isabelle. Key highlights include interactive screen-printing workshops with Shilpa Gupta and the unveiling of her public art installation, "Still A Sky We Hold," alongside curated tours and artist talks.

The Sistine Chapel Is Coming to a Mall in Suburban New Jersey

A traveling exhibition featuring high-definition, full-scale replicas of Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel frescoes is opening for an indefinite run at the Westfield Garden State Plaza mall in Paramus, New Jersey. The show, "Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel: The Exhibition," presents all 34 ceiling and altar masterpieces using advanced printing techniques, allowing visitors to view the works up close without the crowds and time constraints of the Vatican.

A Place of Perpetual Warmth: Hyde Park Art Center and the Making of Chicago’s Creative Identity

The Hyde Park Art Center (HPAC) stands as a vital pillar of Chicago’s grassroots creative identity, serving for eighty-six years as an unpretentious alternative to the city's major encyclopedic museums. From its early days under curator Don Baum, the center became a catalyst for the avant-garde, famously launching the careers of the Chicago Imagists and the Hairy Who. Today, it continues to function as a multifaceted ecosystem that blends community education, artist residencies, and experimental exhibitions within a residential neighborhood setting.

Maspeth gallery showcases SoCal artist’s works through May 2

Los Angeles-based artist Molly Bounds makes her New York solo debut at Mrs. gallery in Maspeth, Queens, with the exhibition "The Light That Loses, The Night That Wins." The show features a series of psychological portraits and cinematic scenes rendered in oil and acrylic, capturing figures in moments of solitude, internal conflict, and escapism. Following her presentation with the gallery at The Armory Show in 2025, this exhibition highlights Bounds' transition from printmaking to complex, mood-driven painting.

Iran’s arts community and heritage suffer as US-Israeli attacks continue

The US-Israeli bombardment of Iran, beginning in late February, has severely disrupted the country's cultural life and art scene. The typically busy Nowruz (Persian New Year) period was marked by fear, travel restrictions, and internet blackouts, leading to the evacuation of museum collections, the closure of galleries, and artists being unable to work in their studios.

Chrome, Canvas, Cultura: Art On Main’s Chicano Exhibition Redefines East Dallas Experience

Art on Main in East Dallas is hosting "Chicano," a massive group exhibition featuring 79 works by 58 artists from the Dallas-Fort Worth area and beyond. Curated by Junanne Peck and Ariel Esquivel, the show spans painting, photography, metal sculpture, and printmaking to explore themes of identity, resilience, and the lived experiences of the Mexican-American community. Highlights include Rodrigo Paredes’ tribute to street vendors and Lisa Batchelder’s surrealist explorations of her Oak Cliff upbringing.

Alexandria Art Galleries in April: Floral Exhibits, Events & Spring Shows

The Alexandria art scene is hosting a diverse array of exhibitions and events throughout April 2026, centered around the Torpedo Factory Art Center, Del Ray Artisans, and Nepenthe Gallery. Key highlights include Marcus Beauregard’s solo printmaking show "Paint to Print," a car-themed exhibition titled "Fast and Fabulous" curated by Kelly and Scott MacConomy, and a series of weekly receptions at Nepenthe Gallery featuring artists like Sweta Shah and the NOVA Plein Air Artists. Many of these events serve charitable purposes, with proceeds from specific sales at Del Ray Artisans being donated in memory of late local artists Donna Gallo and Rusty Lynn.

RELEASE: Christie's Spring Auction Series in New York Achieves a Combined Total of $1.79 billion - Christie's

Christie’s concluded its Spring auction series in New York with a historic total of $1.79 billion, bolstered by the landmark sale of the Peggy and David Rockefeller Collection. The two-week marathon featured high-profile evening and day sales that attracted over 85,000 visitors and bidders from 52 countries. Significant results included record-breaking prices for artists such as Kazimir Malevich, Constantin Brancusi, and Joan Mitchell, alongside major works by Francis Bacon and Vincent van Gogh.

After Five Years of Community Building, Social Practice CUNY Initiative to End in 2027

The Social Practice CUNY (SPCUNY) initiative, a major program fostering the intersection of art and social justice across the City University of New York’s 25 campuses, will officially sunset in February 2027. Co-directed by artists Chloë Bass and Greg Sholette, the program will conclude following its final 2025–26 fellowship cohort. The decision to end the project stems from the directors' personal transitions, including Sholette’s upcoming retirement and Bass’s shift away from full-time teaching to focus on her studio practice.

'I’m interested in breaking binaries, barriers and boundaries': Sarah Rosalena on her new LACMA commission

Artist Sarah Rosalena has completed a monumental 27-foot tapestry titled "Threading the Boundless: Omnidirectional Terrain" (2025), commissioned for the Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s (LACMA) new David Geffen Galleries. The work utilizes an industrial-scale jacquard-rapier loom to weave complex patterns that distort NASA satellite imagery of Earth and Mars. By blending her Wixárika maternal weaving traditions with computational craft, Rosalena transforms scientific data into a tactile, atmospheric landscape that challenges traditional methods of planetary mapping.

More than 200 cultural figures sign statement criticising international response to destruction of Iran’s heritage

More than 200 international scholars and cultural heritage professionals have signed a joint statement condemning the United States and Israel for inflicting "irreversible damage" on Iran’s cultural heritage. The group, which includes academics from leading global institutions, alleges that recent military strikes have damaged over 130 UNESCO-registered monuments and museums, including the Senate Palace in Tehran and sites in Isfahan. They argue these actions violate the 1954 Hague Convention and criticize international bodies like UNESCO for failing to issue a sufficiently forceful response.

A View From the Easel

Artist Katya Granova discusses her creative practice within her studio at the Spinnerei, a massive former yarn factory in Leipzig, Germany. Granova details her daily routine, which is dictated by natural light and a soundtrack of rock and metal music, and explains how the industrial scale of the space allows her to create large-format works that blend painting with physical movement akin to dance.

Carnival celebrations at a Hungarian retirement home: János Bődey’s best photograph

Hungarian photojournalist János Bődey captures a poignant moment of joy at a retirement home in Páty, near Budapest, featuring two elderly women dressed as a bride and groom for a carnival celebration. The photograph is part of his series "Carnival at the Retirement Home," which documents the resilience and vitality of Hungarian pensioners who maintain a zest for life despite economic hardships and a strained healthcare system.

Chobi Mela XI Review: Can We Start Over?

The 11th edition of the Chobi Mela photography festival has opened in Dhaka, Bangladesh, under the curatorial direction of artists Munem Wasif and Sarker Protick. With the theme 'Re,' the festival presents work from 58 artists across nine exhibitions, aiming to explore renewal and tenacity in lens-based storytelling following the disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic and the July 2024 uprising.

New Orleans Galleries’ Spring Sale Blooms With Modern and Contemporary Works

New Orleans Auction Galleries has announced its upcoming Fine Art and Design sale, featuring 279 lots that span over a century of modern and contemporary art. The auction highlights a diverse range of works, including pieces by Mexican modernist José Clemente Orozco, Abstract Expressionist Grace Hartigan, and Southern Regionalist John McCrady. The selection focuses on themes of identity, social consciousness, and the intersection of text and visual media.

Rocky statue moved inside the Philadelphia Museum of Art for new show.

The iconic bronze statue of Rocky Balboa has been relocated from its outdoor spot at the base of the Philadelphia Museum of Art's steps into the museum building itself. This move is in preparation for a major new exhibition titled 'Rising Up: Rocky and the Making of Monuments,' which opens in late April.

‘Love Is a Sensation’ Spotlights the Boundless Creativity of L.V. Hull

The Mississippi Museum of Art is hosting "Love Is a Sensation," a major exhibition dedicated to the work of L.V. Hull, a self-taught Black artist who transformed her Kosciusko home into a vibrant, immersive art environment. The show features a diverse array of Hull’s assemblages and painted found objects, ranging from Rock’Em Sock’Em Robots to glass bottles and straw hats, many of which were preserved by the Kohler Foundation.

The Narrow Corridor of Normality

Der schmale Korridor der Normalität

Artist Beate Gütschow reflects on Pieter Bruegel the Elder’s 16th-century engraving "Spes" (Hope), which she encountered during a visit to the Kunstmuseum Basel. The artwork depicts a personified figure of Hope standing amidst a chaotic scene of shipwrecks and flooding, symbolizing the necessity of maintaining focus and action even in the face of overwhelming disaster.

Almost Everything in the World Depends on This Substance

"Fast alles in der Welt hängt von dieser Substanz ab"

Artist Monira Al Qadiri presents her exhibition "Hero" at the Berlinische Galerie, focusing on oil tankers as central figures. The show explores the hidden violence and scale of the petroleum industry through a large wall painting of the supertanker Hero, miniature tankers with satirical names, and a video work depicting their destruction. Al Qadiri connects this to her long-term artistic investigation of oil's imagery and materiality.

Nicéphore Niépce in 2 Minutes

Nicéphore Niépce en 2 minutes

Joseph Nicéphore Niépce, a Burgundian engineer and inventor, is credited with creating the world's first permanent photograph, "Point de vue du Gras," in 1827. Using a process he termed heliography, Niépce utilized bitumen of Judea on pewter plates to fix images captured in a camera obscura. Despite his groundbreaking achievement, he died in relative obscurity in 1833, shortly after entering a partnership with Louis Daguerre, who would later receive the primary credit for the invention of photography.

New exhibition ‘Personal Structures – Confluences’ to open in Venice in May 2026

The European Cultural Centre Italy has announced the eighth edition of its biennial contemporary art exhibition, 'Personal Structures – Confluences,' set to run from May 9 to November 22, 2026, in Venice. Spanning Palazzo Bembo, Palazzo Mora, and the Marinaressa Gardens, the massive showcase will feature 175 artists from over 40 countries, including high-profile figures like ORLAN, Rashid Al Khalifa, and Hirohiko Araki. This edition introduces 'PS Design,' a new section dedicated to the intersection of art and architecture, and will host the national pavilions of El Salvador and Seychelles alongside a significant collaboration with the Palestine Museum US.

Bose Krishnamachari’s resignation from Kochi Biennale came after sexual harassment allegations

Bose Krishnamachari resigned as director of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale and from the board of its foundation in January. The Kochi Biennale Foundation chairperson has now stated the resignation followed a December complaint alleging Krishnamachari sexually harassed a female employee at his apartment, making unwanted remarks and advances. Krishnamachari had initially cited family reasons for his departure.

Amy Sherald exhibit sets 21st century visitor record at BMA

The Baltimore Museum of Art (BMA) has achieved a historic milestone with its exhibition 'Amy Sherald: American Sublime,' which drew 84,000 visitors between October 2025 and March 2026. This figure more than doubled the museum's initial projections and set a new record for the highest attendance of any exhibition at the institution in the 21st century. The show featured 45 large-scale portraits by the Baltimore-born artist, focusing on themes of identity and representation.

Art exhibitions explore Appalachian identity and newcomer experiences

The Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine is launching a dual exhibition featuring "From These Hills" and "Making it in America," opening April 14 in Roanoke. "From These Hills," on loan from the William King Museum of Art and curated by Kathy Foley, showcases contemporary Appalachian art across various media that explore regional identity and memory. Complementing this, photojournalist Heather Rousseau’s "Making it in America" documents the lived experiences of immigrants and refugees in Southwest Virginia, capturing the resilience of Afghan, Ukrainian, and Latino newcomers through five years of visual storytelling.

Art museum paints a picture of despair

The Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Art Museum in Gqeberha is facing a catastrophic institutional collapse due to years of municipal neglect and a 64% staff vacancy rate. A recent report reveals that the museum’s priceless collection—which includes works by George Pemba, Gladys Mgudlandlu, and LS Lowry—is being threatened by leaking roofs, spreading mold, and failing fire and security systems. While the galleries have been closed to the public for over a year, the facility currently lacks a qualified conservator to address the mounting damage to its historical and contemporary holdings.