Katie DeGroot: The Arboreal Life

Katie DeGroot's exhibition "The Arboreal Life" at Kathryn Markel Fine Arts in New York (April 2–May 9) presents tree paintings that anthropomorphize branches into human-like figures. Works such as "Chit Chat" (2026) and "Family Matters" (2025) depict trees leaning, gesturing, and tangling in ways that suggest intimate relationships, arguments, and familial bonds. DeGroot, who moved from New York City to a farm in upstate Fort Edward, began using fallen branches as models after lacking human subjects, developing compositions that emphasize color, texture, and the interplay of fungi and lichen. Her use of opaque and translucent watercolors balances natural observation with poetic interpretation.

What Does the Future Hold for Female Collectors? We Got a Sneak Peek.

CULTURED Editor-in-Chief Sarah Harrelson hosted a panel discussion at Christie’s Rockefeller Center with collectors Tiffany Zabludowicz, Sophia Cohen, and Victoria Rogers, exploring the evolving role of women in the art market. The event coincided with Christie’s Marquee Week sales, which included a record-breaking $1.1 billion night, and featured works from the collections of legendary female patrons such as Agnes Gund, Marian Goodman, Lorinda de Roulet, and Marilyn Arison. Guests viewed masterpieces on display and received remarks from Christie’s Senior Vice President Isabella Lauria, who is leading the 21st Century Sale on May 20.

Changes at Manifesta as Hedwig Fijen steps down

Hedwig Fijen, founding director of Manifesta, the European Nomadic Biennial, will step down on October 5. Emilia van Lynden and Catherine Nichols will succeed her as general director and artistic director respectively, as announced by the supervisory board of the International Foundation Manifesta. Fijen, who was commissioned by the Netherlands Office for Fine Arts in 1991 to develop a pan-European platform, has led Manifesta through editions in Palermo, Pristina, Barcelona, and the upcoming 2026 edition in the Ruhr region. Van Lynden has served as deputy director since 2019, while Nichols, a Berlin-based curator, contributed as creative mediator for the 2022 edition and artistic board member for 2026. The new leadership will begin with Manifesta 17 in Coimbra, Portugal, in 2028.

Yalda Afsah “Surge” at Kunsthal Thy, Hurup Thy

Yalda Afsah presents her first exhibition in Denmark, titled "Surge," at Kunsthal Thy. The show features two video works: "Curro" (2023), which explores human relationships with animals, and "Jarramplas" (2025), which initiates a new series centered on rituals and communal social dynamics.

How Native American Artists Redefined Contemporary Art in the United States

A generation of Native American artists, emerging from the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) in Santa Fe from the 1960s onward, reclaimed Indigenous representation in American art. Figures like Fritz Scholder, T.C. Cannon, Kevin Red Star, and Earl Biss used modernism, irony, and cultural specificity to dismantle colonial stereotypes of Native peoples as romanticized relics, instead portraying them as contemporary individuals with agency and living traditions.

World’s first museum of AI arts, Dataland, to open in June

Dataland, the world's first museum dedicated to AI arts, will open to the public on June 20 at The Grand LA complex in Los Angeles. Designed by Gensler, the museum's inaugural exhibition, 'Machine Dreams: Rainforest' by Refik Anadol Studio, runs through January 31, 2027, and uses a Large Nature Model (LNM) processing ecological and biofeedback data in real time to create an immersive, evolving sensory experience.

Running from one image to another, from one time to another, from one hope to another: at Circolo, in Milan, an exhibition on the contemporary Lebanese scene

The article reviews "Shifting Crossroads. Beirut Contemporary," an exhibition at Circolo in Milan that surveys the contemporary Lebanese art scene. It features internationally recognized artists like Mona Hatoum and Simone Fattal alongside emerging talents, including works from the Saikalis Bay Foundation, founded in 2024 by Nicole Saikalis and Matteo Bay. The show spans historical-archival investigation, photography, installation, painting, and sculpture, with pieces such as Stéphanie Saadé's "Stage of Life" (2021), Catherine Cattaruzza's "I am Folding the Land" (2022), and Joana Hadjithomas & Khalil Joreige's "Waiting for the Barbarians" (2013) exploring themes of memory, fragility, and geopolitical instability.

Art House Productions Unveils "In The Wind" Public Art Installation

Art House Productions has unveiled "In The Wind," a large-scale public art installation in Lincoln Park, Jersey City, featuring artist-designed flags with original works by Hudson County artists. Curated by Tina Maneca, the exhibition celebrates the organization's 25th anniversary and includes over 80 artists who live, work, or maintain studios in Hudson County. The flags are installed around Edgewood Lake, moving with the wind to create a dynamic, ever-changing exhibition. All flags are priced at $500 and available for purchase. The installation runs from June through November 2026, with an opening reception on June 5, 2026, during ACCESS JC Fridays.

Between here and home

Carrie Haddad Gallery in Hudson, NY, presents "Between here and home," a group exhibition running from May 22 through July 12, with an opening reception on May 23. The show features works by Fred Cohen, Frank DePietro, Deb Lawrence, Olan Quattro, and ransome, exploring the concept of home as an evolving construct shaped by memory, material, and experience. The exhibition draws on the Welsh idea of hiraeth—a longing for a lost or imagined home—and includes paintings, collages, and mixed media works that reflect each artist's personal engagement with place, interior space, and inherited histories.

Q&A: Laura Pass Barry

Laura Pass Barry has been appointed the Carlisle H. Humelsine chief curator at Colonial Williamsburg, a role that expands her responsibilities to include leadership of Collections, Conservation and Museums as vice president. Barry began her career at Colonial Williamsburg over 30 years ago as a curatorial intern in folk art, later working as assistant curator to Margaret Pritchard and eventually overseeing the graphics, paintings, and folk art collections. She holds degrees from the College of Wooster and the College of William & Mary.

iris van herpen's colossal body of intricate work on view at the brooklyn museum

Iris van Herpen's exhibition "Iris Van Herpen: Sculpting the Senses" opens at the Brooklyn Museum from May 16 to December 6, 2026, featuring over 140 haute couture creations alongside contemporary art, design objects, and natural history specimens. The show, previewed by designboom, is organized around natural themes from water to planetary scale, with the Dutch designer leading a walkthrough that emphasized her inspirations from micro and macro worlds and her process of turning material experiments into wearable sculptures.

Step into Hyderabad’s art scene through two group exhibitions—Prakriti: A Quiet Continuum and Living Lineages

Two group exhibitions, *Prakriti: A Quiet Continuum* and *Living Lineages*, have opened in Hyderabad, showcasing a mix of contemporary and folk artists. *Prakriti* features artists like Lal Bahadur Singh, Sumanto Chowdhury, Roy K John, and K. Sudheesh, each exploring nature as both external landscape and inner state through personal lenses. *Living Lineages* brings together indigenous and folk artists including Bhuri Bai, Balu Jivya Mashe, Saroj Venkat Shyam, and Venkat Raman Shyam, highlighting traditions such as Warli, Bhil, Gond art, and Cheriyal scrolls from Telangana. Gallerist Rekha Lahoti notes the exhibitions are designed to create a dialogue between contemporary and living traditions, addressing collector curiosity about their differences.

'I want the colour to talk' Artist Sarah Spackman celebrates 20 years at Sarah Wiseman Gallery in Summertown with new exhibition Continuum

Artist Sarah Spackman is preparing for a new exhibition titled "Continuum" at the Sarah Wiseman Gallery in Summertown, celebrating 20 years of collaboration with the gallery. The show features 30 new still lifes, reflecting Spackman's evolving style toward greater simplicity and focus on single objects, color, and quiet intensity. Spackman, an Oxford-based artist and elected member of the Royal Society of British Artists and Royal Institute of Oil Painters, describes her process as organic, often sketching first thing in the morning and working primarily with color to let it "talk" on the canvas.

L’architecte du Musée Gandur

The article covers several art news items from the May 2, 2026 issue of Le Journal des Arts, including the Whitney Biennial's perceived neutrality, the increasing complexity of art taxation in 2025, an interview with Bourges mayor Yann Galut about the resized Bourges 2028 project, the unveiling of a contemporary gallery at Angers Cathedral, the abandonment of the Frigos artist site in Paris, and a profile of auctioneer Hubert L'Huillier.

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.

Landscape and Imagery Help MOWA Celebrate the Country’s 250th Birthday

The Museum of Wisconsin Art (MOWA) in West Bend has opened a new exhibition titled "The American Landscape: Beyond the Horizon," celebrating the role of Wisconsin artists in capturing the state's contributions to the United States ahead of the country's 250th birthday. The show features over 60 works, 60% from the museum's permanent collection and 40% borrowed from artists and collectors, including pieces by John Stuart Curry, Lois Ireland, Georgia O'Keeffe, Native American artists like Helen Lonetree and Lila Greengrass Blackdeer, and contemporary works by incarcerated artist M. Winston. Guest curator Rafael Salas, a professor at Ripon College, also includes three of his own works.

PRESS RELEASE: OK Arts Council announces historic gift of artworks for the Oklahoma State Art Collection

The Oklahoma Arts Council has announced a historic gift of artworks for the Oklahoma State Art Collection. The donation, described as one of the largest in the collection's history, includes a significant number of works by Oklahoma artists and will be formally added to the state's holdings.

Haiti goes to Venice: Artist Duval-Carrié selected to represent nation at Biennale expo | PHOTOS

Internationally acclaimed Miami-based artist Edouard Duval-Carrié has been selected to represent Haiti at the 2026 Venice Biennale, the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia. Ahead of the May 9 opening, Duval-Carrié hosted a behind-the-scenes preview event at his Little Haiti studio in Miami on April 24, 2026, where he discussed his conceptual approach. His installation draws on themes of history, politics, and spirituality in Haiti and the Caribbean, reflecting evolving perspectives on the nation's past and present. Duval-Carrié collaborated with Vanessa Selk, founding artistic director of the Tout-Monde Art Foundation, to frame Haiti's presence as both a national showcase and a reflection of diasporic influence and Caribbean identity. The exhibition runs through November 22, 2026.

In Antwerp, as photography show asks 'What is a normal family?'

The FOMU photography museum in Antwerp has opened a new exhibition titled 'Families', curated by Anne Ruygt. The show explores the evolving concept of family through historical and contemporary photography, featuring works by artists such as Mous Lamrabat, Cecil Beaton, Omar Victor Diop, Mayara Ferrão, Peter Hujar, Carmen Winant, and Seiichi Furuya. It includes diverse perspectives, from 'hidden mother portraits' and post-mortem photography to AI-generated images of queer Black and Indigenous women, questioning traditional notions of kinship and representation.

And the (Senior Show and URECA Art Exhibition) Winners Are …

The Paul W. Zuccaire Gallery at Stony Brook University hosted the opening reception of the ninth annual combined Senior Show and URECA Arts Exhibition on April 29, drawing about 300 attendees including students, faculty, staff, university leaders, and local museum curators. The Senior Show, a nearly 50-year tradition, features works by senior studio art majors and minors, while the URECA exhibition highlights undergraduate research-based art selected by faculty. This year's exhibition is noted for its diversity in subject matter and materials, from chalk painting to digital media, and runs through May 22.

Building Through Change, Jean-David Malat, Founder of JD Malat Gallery on resilience, risk and the evolving art scene in Dubai

Jean-David Malat, founder of JD Malat Gallery, opened a new outpost in Downtown Dubai in early 2025, expanding from his established Mayfair space in London. The gallery launched with a group show, *Carte Blanche*, and has since hosted solo exhibitions, with plans for a *Made in UAE* initiative that received over 1,000 applications. Malat cites the slowing London market and growing momentum in the UAE as key factors in his decision to invest in Dubai, where he spent a month building relationships with collectors and the local community before opening.

Artribune Podcast: l’artista Vincenzo Schillaci parla nel suo Monologhi al Telefono

The latest episode of the Artribune Podcast features artist Vincenzo Schillaci (born 1984 in Palermo), recorded via telephone. Schillaci discusses his evolving artistic practice, where painting is an ongoing process of layering and erasure. His work spans painted surfaces, works on paper, and bronze interventions, forming an open system in which the artwork continuously transforms, challenging the boundaries between gesture, material, and form. The episode highlights his recent series inspired by Aristotle's concept of phantasma, and his exploration of materials like electrodeposited copper and bronze to capture different states of the image.

F.E. McWilliam Gallery & Studio welcome new exhibition by Shore Collective

The F.E. McWilliam Gallery & Studio in Northern Ireland has opened a new exhibition titled "Threads of Time: Industry, Ecology and the River Bann," presented by Shore Collective, an artist-led group based in Lurgan. The show features work from twenty local artists across painting, textiles, photography, and performance, exploring the River Bann's historical role in Irish linen production, its agricultural significance, and its evolving environmental story. The exhibition runs until July 2026 with free admission.

Exhibition brings together 23 contemporary artists in exploration of styles across generations | Hindustan Times

An exhibition titled "The Contemporary Lore: Sojourn of Styles and Generations Unfurled" has opened at Bikaner House in New Delhi, bringing together 23 contemporary Indian artists. Curated by Kiran K Mohan with a critical essay by art historian Johny ML, the show features works by veterans like Ashok Bhowmick and emerging talents like Nilisha Phad, spanning paintings, sculptures, and mixed media. The non-chronological arrangement aims to present artistic lineages as a landscape rather than a linear progression, encouraging dialogue across generations. The exhibition runs until May 14 before moving to Shailja Art Gallery in Gurugram from May 17 to June 13.

Can we practice for crises in art?

"Können wir in der Kunst für die Krisen üben?"

Belgian theater director Miet Warlop is presenting her work "It never SSST" at the Belgian Pavilion during the Venice Biennale. The installation combines performance, sculpture, a radio show, and objects, featuring six performers, musicians, dancers, and a sculptor who periodically calls "Freeze" to capture movements in plaster reliefs. Warlop, known for her physically exhausting ritualistic performances like "One Song," discusses the piece's themes of ceaseless activity and the body as a resource, as well as the challenge of engaging visitors who often rush through the pavilion.

Anna Marzuttini and Giovanni Fredi ”SOUVENIR·SUBVENIRE” at SMDOT/Contemporary Art, Udine

SMDOT/Contemporary Art in Udine, Italy, presents a two-person exhibition titled "SOUVENIR·SUBVENIRE," featuring previously unseen works by Italian artists Anna Marzuttini and Giovanni Fredi. Marzuttini contributes large canvases and wall-hanging ceramic works, while Fredi's pieces are also on view, with both artists' research expressed through different media but converging on a shared conceptual plane.

New photo exhibit at Godfrey Dean Art Gallery focuses on storytelling

The Godfrey Dean Art Gallery in Yorkton is hosting a new photography exhibition titled 'Storied Telling: Performative & Narrative in Photography,' organized by the Organization of Saskatchewan Arts Councils (OSAC) through its Arts on the Move program. Running until May 15, the show features six Canadian artists—Catherine Blackburn, Lori Blondeau, Xiao Han, Marium Magsi, Meryl McMaster, and Laura St. Pierre—whose work uses the camera to create layered, story-driven images exploring themes of identity, cultural heritage, diaspora, and history.

DO Savannah: Ella Langley, TEDxSavannah, and more

This article is a local events calendar for Savannah, Georgia, covering the week of May 12–21, 2026. Highlights include a SCAD Jewelry Trunk Show, a Telfair Museums anniversary preview of Impressionism and Modernity: French and American Painting with a lecture by National Gallery of Art curator Mary Morton, the opening of the Seven Ladies Exhibit at the Davenport House Museum, the 15th annual TEDxSavannah, a country concert by Ella Langley, a brewery anniversary party, a jazz fundraiser, and several preservation-focused lectures including one by National Preservation Partners Network CEO Kim Trent and a talk on landscape architect Clermont Lee. The Courtyard Concert Series at SCAD MOA concludes with local bluegrass band Swamptooth.

Irina Werning Chronicles 18 Years of Photographing ‘Las Pelilargas’ in a New Book

Photographer Irina Werning has spent 18 years traveling across Latin America to document Indigenous women with exceptionally long hair for her series "Las Pelilargas." Her new book, published by GOST Books, features nearly 90 portraits taken between 2006 and 2024, starting with the Kolla community in Argentina. Werning sought subjects by posting signs in remote mountain towns and organizing hair competitions, capturing a tradition rooted in ancestral beliefs that hair connects to life, thoughts, and the land.

The papal residence of Castel Gandolfo had been opened to museum visits by Pope Francis, now Pope Leo closes it again

La residenza papale di Castel Gandolfo era stata aperta a visite museali da Papa Francesco, ora Papa Leone la chiude di nuovo

Pope Leo XIV is closing the Apostolic Palace of Castel Gandolfo to the public as of July 2026, ending nearly a decade of museum access initiated by Pope Francis. Online ticket sales stop on June 30, and the palace will revert to its original function as the pope's summer residence. The decision follows preparatory works begun in May 2025 and is partly motivated by security concerns, as the current temporary lodging at Villa Barberini has logistical and access-control issues.