Giant inflatable artworks have taken over The Hague

A monthlong open-air exhibition called BlowUp Jubilee has taken over The Hague, featuring 24 giant inflatable artworks installed in parks, on buildings, and even in a train station. Highlights include a 7-meter-tall stew pot floating in front of the Mauritshuis museum, home to "Girl with a Pearl Earring," and works by artists such as Eugenie Boon, who created a piece inspired by Curaçaoan culture, and British artist Steve Messam, whose red spiked sculpture Crested sits atop a parking garage entrance. The exhibition is curated by Mary Hessing and runs until June 21.

Oshorenoya David Francis Explores Identity in Solitude, Fantasies & Becoming at 1853 Studios, Manchester

Oshorenoya David Francis presents a solo exhibition titled *In Solitude, Fantasies & Becoming* at 1853 Studios in Manchester, running from 15 to 17 May 2026. Co-curated by Obi Nwaegbe and Natasha Virli, the show features new acrylic paintings on canvas and paper that explore themes of solitude, identity, and emotional transformation through expressive figurative compositions. Key works include *Hug*, *Thoughts in Blue*, *Chapters in Atomic Habits*, and *Thy Wish*, each employing bold color, intimate perspectives, and narrative ambiguity to evoke psychological depth.

Vima 2026: Highlights From Cyprus’ Emerging International Art Fair

The second edition of Vima, Cyprus' emerging international art fair, took place in Limassol from May 15-17, 2026, drawing 5,200 visitors and featuring 26 invited galleries from over 20 countries. Artworks sold ranged from €550 to €90,000, reflecting increased sales from the inaugural 2025 edition. Highlights included a special exhibition curated by Kostas Stasinopoulos titled "The Crashing Waves," performances by Scottish choreographer Magnus Westwell, and notable presentations by galleries such as Cut Art Gallery (Riga) and Eins Gallery (Limassol). The fair also hosted 25 events including talks, live music, and off-site shows across Limassol and Nicosia.

A world record for Lena Cronqvist and several million-plus sales at Stockholms Auktionsverk’s spring art auctions

Stockholms Auktionsverk's spring auctions, The Modern Art Sale and The Contemporary Art Sale, achieved strong results including a world record for Lena Cronqvist's sculpture "Flicka med flätor och parasoll", which sold for nearly SEK 1.9 million. Other top sales included Andy Warhol's "Queen Elizabeth II" at SEK 2.5 million, Jean-Paul Riopelle's "Arthur" at SEK 1,875,000, and Warhol's triptych "Ingrid Bergman" at SEK 1.25 million. Karin Parrow also set a new personal record with "Kappseglingsdag" selling for SEK 231,250.

Human Connection Cuts Through Technology at Focus Art Fair

Focus Art Fair, New York's only art fair dedicated to contemporary Asian art, returned for its fourth edition at Chelsea Industrial, running through May 24, 2026. The fair's theme, 'human-technology coexistence,' was explored through works such as Hwia Kim's interactive installation 'What if two eyes don't work together?' presented by LG Electronics, and pieces by the Ukrainian-born F-Twins (Anna and Valeriia Lyshchenko), who founded the Primarealism art movement in response to AI's encroachment on critical thinking. Other highlights included Annu Yadav's political installation 'This Land is Wounded' (2025) and Taezoo Park's 'Hacked Snoopy' (2025), which memorializes neglected technologies. The fair featured more than 40 galleries and presenters, with a notable appearance by Japanese pop icon Kento Senga, who shared his FiNGA character as a means of connecting with his grandmother suffering from Alzheimer's.

This Family Made Gin on Zoom During Covid. Here’s How It Became an Art World Staple.

During the pandemic, the Mordant family—Simon, Catriona, Brielle, and Angus—began making gin from wild juniper on their Umbria property, splitting operations between Italy, London, and upstate New York. After enrolling in a master gin-making course and refining recipes via Zoom, they entered their creation into the World Gin Awards, earning a triple-gold medal with a score of 97 out of 100. Despite initially producing only 502 bottles not intended for sale, global demand prompted them to scale up commercially, leading to Quattro Gatti becoming the official gin of the Venice Biennale.

The regeneration of Rome's former barracks begins, where the Museum of Science will also rise. Objectives and timeline of the construction site

Parte la rigenerazione delle ex caserme di Roma, dove sorgerà anche il Museo della Scienza. Obiettivi e tempi del cantiere

The Italian government, through Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP) and COIMA Sgr, has launched the regeneration of the former Guido Reni military barracks in Rome's Flaminio district. The 5-hectare site, abandoned since 2019 and located opposite the MAXXI museum, will be transformed into a mixed-use urban district including housing, retail, a hotel, green spaces, and a new Museum of Science. Demolitions are set to begin in October 2026, with the project expected to be completed by 2029. The museum will be designed by Rome-based studio ADAT, which won an international competition in 2023.

Nella Tenuta Todini in Umbria sta per aprire un parco di sculture d’arte contemporanea. Le immagini

A new contemporary sculpture park, Parco Sculture Todini, is set to open on May 23 within the Tenuta Todini estate in Collevalenza, near Todi, Umbria. The debut features two site-specific works: "VITE" by Matteo Attruia, which plays on the double meaning of vine and lives, and "Tempus Mirabilis" by Silvia Ranchicchio, a reflective environmental sculpture that changes with light and seasons. The park is curated by Massimo Mattioli and supported by the Arvedi steelworks of Terni and entrepreneur Luisa Todini.

La grande artista Carla Accardi e l’arte italiana sono da record nell’asta da Dorotheum a Vienna

Dorotheum opened its Contemporary Week in Vienna on May 19, 2026, with modern and contemporary art sales that achieved strong results, particularly for Italian artists. Carla Accardi set a new auction record when her 1986 triptych *Fonda Notte Pieno Giorno* sold for €520,000, while works by Piero Dorazio, Emilio Vedova, Marino Marini, and Gino Severini also far exceeded their estimates. Top lots included Claude Monet’s *Waterloo Bridge* (€611,000) and Mikuláš Medek’s *Too Deep a Sleep V* (€546,000).

130+ Artists Illuminate the Vast Creative Possibilities of the Nightlight

DUDD LITE, a collaboration between design collective Dudd Haus and The Future Perfect gallery, presents over 130 artist-designed nightlights on view through June 26. Curated from nearly 400 open-call submissions, the exhibition transforms a mundane household object into a canvas for small-scale sculptures made from stained glass, wood, sea shells, ceramic, cotton, and more. Featured artists include James Burial, Chris Wolston, Nicholas Holmes, and Mikei Huang, among others.

In a Year of Remarkable Filmmaker Debuts, Here’s How Aleshea Harris Set ‘Is God Is’ Apart

Aleshea Harris has adapted her award-winning 2016 play 'Is God Is' into a feature film, marking her directorial debut. The story follows twin sisters with burn scars who, summoned to their mother's deathbed, learn their father caused their disfigurement and are urged to seek revenge. The film stars Kara Young, Mallori Johnson, Vivica A. Fox, Sterling K. Brown, and Janelle Monáe. Harris brings her playwright's precision to the screen, using avant-garde typography and captions inspired by a 1964 edition of Eugène Ionesco's 'The Bald Soprano' designed by Robert Massin, with title design by Teddy Blanks.

Hubert Robert & Fragonard. Le sentiment de la nature

The Musée d'art et d'archéologie in Valence, France, is presenting an exhibition titled "Hubert Robert & Fragonard. Le sentiment de la nature" from March 7 to June 21, 2026. The show traces the artistic friendship between Hubert Robert and Jean-Honoré Fragonard, who met as young French artists sketching in the ruins of Rome under the guidance of Charles-Joseph Natoire. It features works from the museum's renowned collection of sanguine drawings, notably those from the foundational bequest of Julien Victor Veyrenc (1835-1836), and includes new attributions proposed by curator Sarah Catala, a graduate conservator from the Institut National du Patrimoine.

These Four Filmmakers Have Never Fully Gotten Their Due. The Kitchen Wants To Change That.

The Kitchen, a New York nonprofit arts organization, held its annual spring gala at City Winery to honor four female filmmakers: Cheryl Dunye, Garrett Bradley, Shari Frilot, and Catherine Gund. The event was co-chaired by prominent figures including Ava DuVernay, Julie Mehretu, and Komal Shah, and featured performances, remarks, and a crowd of artists, curators, and collectors. The gala celebrated the filmmakers' contributions to cinema, with special recognition of their work in expanding representation and narrative boundaries.

Meet the artists behind the women’s Western art exhibition at Southwest Art Gallery and Science Center

The Southwest Art Gallery and Science Center in Dickinson, North Dakota, hosted a public artist reception on May 14 for its women’s Western art exhibition, featuring regional female artists whose work depicts the landscapes, wildlife, and culture of the Northern Plains and American West. The exhibition includes paintings, sculptures, and mixed-media works centered on ranching, farming, and rural life, and will remain on display through June 12. Featured artists include Daphne Clark, Afton Ray Rossol, Barb Kalenze Kraft, Oksana Zvyagelskiy, Trish Stevenson, and Kelsey Jacobson, each sharing personal stories of how art became a creative outlet and source of healing.

Regional exhibition of Ohio Collage Society opening May 29 at Coburn Art Gallery

The Coburn Art Gallery at Ashland University in Ashland, Ohio, will host a regional exhibition featuring 70 works by members of the Ohio Collage Society from May 29 through July 24. The free opening reception takes place on May 29 from 6 to 7:30 p.m., showcasing two-dimensional and three-dimensional collages that explore diverse materials and techniques. Featured artists include Anita Burgess, Nancy S. Sotka, Mary Ann Sedivy, and others.

Bristol Upfest: Europe's biggest graffiti festival turns city into 'open-air art gallery'

Bristol's Upfest, Europe's largest street art festival, has returned for 2026, transforming the city into an open-air gallery. Organizers say 150 new murals will be created across Bedminster and the city center over 17 days, with five world-renowned artists—Inkie, Insane51, My Dog Sighs, Melo, and HazardOne—redesigning Quakers Friars into Quakers Art Lane. The festival, running until 31 May, includes workshops, walking tours, panel discussions, and interactive spaces, and is expected to draw over 80,000 visitors.

Peruvian artist's solo exhibition opens at Heydar Aliyev Center [PHOTOS]

On May 21, a solo exhibition of Peruvian artist Ronald Companoca titled "The Theater of Dreams" opened at the Heydar Aliyev Center in Baku, Azerbaijan. The ceremony was attended by Leyla Aliyeva, Alena Aliyeva, Minister of Culture Adil Karimli, and other dignitaries. The exhibition features many works shown for the first time, including pieces inspired by Azerbaijani culture, such as carpet elements and national motifs. Companoca described his style as a synthesis of realistic and mystical elements, rooted in magical surrealism. An artistic performance with live characters mirroring the artwork accompanied the opening. The exhibition runs until March 1, 2027.

A Gallery Turned Casino: How Below Grand's "Club Bar" Blurs the Lines of Contemporary Art, NYC

Below Grand, a gallery on Orchard Street in New York, has transformed its space into "Club Bar," an immersive exhibition curated by Marissa Graziano that blurs the line between art and entertainment. The show features a pool table, free beer and hot dogs, and a white roulette table dealt by artist Sam Guy, where guests gamble for raffle tickets to win artworks. The exhibition includes works by Alexis Akua, Thomas Bohm Jr., Alex Cassetti, Angela Dufresne, and others, with a suggested donation of $25 for five plays and raffle tickets.

Opening Conversation: International Surrealism from Tate

The Frist Art Museum in Nashville will host "Opening Conversation: International Surrealism from Tate" on May 21, 2026, from 6:30 to 7:30 PM. The event features a discussion with Dr. Matthew Gale, exhibition curator; Michael J. Ewing, Frist Art Museum associate curator; and Caroline Yates, Susan H. Edwards Curatorial Fellow, focusing on the exhibition "International Surrealism from Tate: Fifty Years of Dreams." The exhibition, drawn from the Tate's collection in the United Kingdom, presents a broad selection of paintings, photographs, sculptures, publications, and archival material that traces the long trajectory and global reach of surrealism. A live musical performance in the Grand Lobby precedes the conversation from 5:15 to 6:15 PM, and the museum remains open until 9:00 PM for gallery visits.

Au Royaume-Uni les contraintes budgétaires des musées pèsent sur les effectifs

A survey of 329 museum directors in the UK, published in the Art Fund's Museum Directors Research 2026 report, reveals that staff shortages have overtaken building maintenance as the top concern for cultural institutions. Conducted by Wafer Hadley between January and March 2026, the study shows that 85% of directors cite team size and capacity as the main barrier to programming, ahead of budget constraints (67%) and lack of specialized expertise (23%). The National Gallery in London launched a voluntary redundancy plan in February 2026 to address a projected deficit of £8.2 million, while the Museum of Cambridge cut a third of its staff and reduced opening hours. Local authority grants have decreased or ceased for 45% of institutions between 2024-2025 and 2025-2026, and over a third of museums have reduced or plan to reduce opening hours and annual exhibitions.

World-renowned photographer Roger Ballen will visit Latvia with a lecture at ISSP and a retrospective exhibition at the Mark Rothko Art Centre

World-renowned photographer Roger Ballen will visit Latvia in June 2025 for a public lecture at the contemporary photography platform ISSP in Riga, followed by a major retrospective exhibition titled "The Other Mind: Roger Ballen. Retrospective" at the Mark Rothko Art Centre in Daugavpils. The lecture, held on June 6, offers a rare opportunity to hear Ballen discuss his creative process and over fifty years of work, while the exhibition, running from June 5 to August 30, spans his career from early documentary works to his signature "documentary fiction" and recent color photography.

Art fair showcases Beijing’s evolution as cultural destination - China Daily

The Beijing Dangdai Art Fair opened on Thursday at the National Agricultural Exhibition Center, running through Sunday. It features a wide range of works from late artist Zao Wou-ki’s tiny sketch drafts to large-scale installation art and robot pieces co-developed by artists and tech companies. Galleries from Beijing’s 798 art zone, other Chinese cities, and international institutions are participating. The fair also marks the launch of the 2026 Beijing Art Season, which includes Beijing Design Week and Gallery Weekend Beijing, and offers an off-site exhibition at WONDER · China World Mall through May 31.

‘Walking With Giants’ exhibition to bring larger-than-life art to COD campus

The College of DuPage (COD) will host a new outdoor exhibition titled 'Walking With Giants,' featuring large-scale sculptures and installations by various artists on its campus in Glen Ellyn, Illinois. The show aims to transform the campus environment into an immersive art experience, with works placed in public spaces for students and visitors to encounter.

Artist Chuck Sperry unveils his Archetypes in a free exhibition at the Art Generation Gallery

American artist Chuck Sperry, renowned for his concert posters for The Rolling Stones, U2, Bob Dylan, Grateful Dead, and Pearl Jam, presents a free exhibition titled "Archetypes" at the Art Generation Gallery in Paris from June 13 to August 1, 2026. The show features his signature silkscreen prints on paper and wooden panels, personal archives, and collector cards, focusing on powerful female figures, goddesses, and allegorical themes such as the Danaids, Courage, Love, and Athena.

Joan Semmel Roars at The Jewish Museum

The article reviews Joan Semmel: In the Flesh, a retrospective exhibition at The Jewish Museum in New York (December 2025 – May 2026). The author describes an initial discomfort with Semmel's graphic nude paintings of aging female bodies, but after researching the artist's significance in feminist art, comes to appreciate her unapologetic honesty. The show is arranged chronologically, tracing Semmel's evolution from works like Erotic Yellow (1973) to later paintings that grow in confidence and freedom, all while maintaining a focus on female embodiment and pleasure from a female perspective.

Artist celebrates 21 years with Project Art Works in new Hastings exhibition

Project Art Works in Hastings is presenting "The Twenty-One Year Itch," a solo exhibition by artist Charlotte Stephens, running from 22 May to 13 June 2026. The show marks Stephens' 21-year association with the organization, bringing together key paintings from over two decades of her studio practice, including portraits, studies of nature, and large-scale process-led works. Stephens joined Project Art Works in 2005 as one of its original artist collaborators and has also served as an advisor to the board of trustees.

A fairy-tale exhibition in Milan: the paintings look like Disney film sets

A Milano una mostra da fiaba: i quadri sembrano scenografie da film Disney

The Galleria Gaburro in Milan is presenting a solo exhibition of British artist Iain Andrews, titled "Whispers from the Red Room." The show features over 30 paintings and a handcrafted diorama, the "Diorama del Leviatano," which Andrews uses as a source of inspiration. His work blends fairy-tale and nightmare imagery, drawing on his background as a psychotherapist specializing in childhood trauma. The paintings evoke the visual language of Disney films and Rococo art, with oil and acrylic works that range from large immersive canvases to small, intricate panels.

Giant glacier painting disappears from Argentina’s presidential palace after new law passes loosening protections for these icy regions

Days before Argentina’s Congress approved an amendment to the glacier law that weakens protections for glacial regions to facilitate mining, President Javier Milei’s government removed a monumental painting of the Perito Moreno Glacier from the Casa Rosada presidential palace. The work, Helmut Ditsch’s photorealist *The Triumph of Nature* (2006), had been on loan and on display since 2012. The government cited “maintenance reasons” and “structural damage,” but the artist says he was not notified and has contacted lawyers. A portrait of Juan Domingo and Evita Perón was also removed the same day, with the same vague explanation.

At Galerie Martel, Ugo Bienvenu unveils his dreamlike drawings in a free exhibition

À la galerie Martel, Ugo Bienvenu dévoile ses dessins oniriques dans une expo gratuite

French artist Ugo Bienvenu presents his new exhibition "Futur antérieur" at Galerie Martel in Paris, featuring around twenty ink-on-paper drawings created during the marathon promotion of his debut animated feature film "Arco." The show offers an intimate glimpse into Bienvenu's creative process, where drawing serves as a necessary respite from the demands of filmmaking, blending childhood memories, mythology, and science fiction into dreamlike compositions.

“Not for Sale”: Jingyi Yu’s New Exhibition Questions What Happens When Art Stops Trying to Be Useful

Photographer and curator Jingyi Yu, who earlier this year served as sole juror for the group exhibition "New Year, New [Me]ntal Issues" at A Space Gallery, now presents a new exhibition titled "Not for Sale," co-curated with Qi Ling and opening May 24. The show features work selected from an international open call that received nearly one hundred submissions from artists across the United States, China, Korea, and Europe, including London-based artist and animator Marian Obando. The exhibition centers on pieces made without strategic intention or commercial ambition—private, impulsive, or emotionally driven works that were never intended for public circulation.