Old Master Grandeur and Modern Patronage Converge at the 2026 Norton Museum of Art Gala

The Norton Museum of Art's 2026 annual gala drew nearly 700 guests and raised nearly $5 million for the museum's programs. The event featured a live auction hosted by Sotheby's Oliver Barker, selling works by contemporary artists like Julie Curtiss, Jeffrey Gibson, Jessie Henson, and Marilyn Minter, and honored trustee Ronnie Heyman and artist Loie Hollowell. The evening's design was inspired by the concurrent exhibition "Art and Life in Rembrandt's Time: Masterpieces from the Leiden Collection."

Here’s Your Guide to the 13 Must-See Gallery and Museum Shows in Miami This Week

CULTURED magazine has published a guide to 13 must-see gallery and museum shows in Miami this week, highlighting exhibitions across the city during Art Basel Miami Beach. Featured shows include Studio Lenca's first solo show in Miami at David Castillo Gallery, Jeffrey Deitch's pop-up exhibition in the Miami Design District, Aneta Grzeszykowska's "DISORDER" at Voloshyn Gallery, a posthumous survey of Richard Hunt at the Institute of Contemporary Art Miami, Woody De Othello's hometown museum solo at Pérez Art Museum Miami, Shayla Marshall's installation at a Walgreens storefront organized by the Bass and Bakehouse Art Complex, and Lawrence Lek's "NOX Pavilion" at the Bass, among others.

Sculptor Alma Allen officially selected to represent US at 2026 Venice Biennale

The US State Department has officially confirmed that sculptor Alma Allen will represent the United States at the 2026 Venice Biennale, following earlier delays caused by a 43-day government shutdown. Allen's exhibition, titled "Alma Allen: Call the Breeze," will run from May 9 to November 22, 2026, at the US Pavilion, organized by commissioner Jenni Parido of the American Arts Conservancy and independent curator Jeffrey Uslip. The show will feature around 30 sculptures, including new site-specific works, and the state department announcement explicitly aligns the presentation with President Donald Trump's "America first" ideology, framing the artworks as symbols of collective optimism and American excellence.

These 16 Artists Are the Biggest at U.S. Museums Right Now

This article presents a quarterly analysis of which living artists are most featured in temporary exhibitions across U.S. museums during September 2025. The author ranks artists based on the number and type of shows they appear in, prioritizing career retrospectives, dedicated exhibitions, and special commissions. The list is dominated by Black and Indigenous artists whose work addresses racism, colonialism, and nature, with Jeffrey Gibson topping the chart due to his Met facade commission, Broad show, and Venice Biennale U.S. Pavilion recreation. Other prominent artists include Firelei Báez, Rashid Johnson, Anila Quayyum Agha, and Ai Weiwei, the only non-U.S.-based artist on the list.

20 Fall Art Excursions Outside New York City

This article is a guide to 20 fall art excursions outside New York City, highlighting exhibitions in Upstate New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. Featured shows include the 'Trees Never End and Houses Never End Biennial Exhibition' at Sky High Farm in Germantown, Nancy Friedemann-Sánchez's 'Dream Map and Cornucopia' at the Everson Museum of Art in Syracuse, and 'All Manner of Experiments: Legacies of the Baghdad Modern Art Group' at the Hessel Museum of Art at Bard College. Other notable stops include Jeffrey Gibson's exhibition at MASS MoCA, Kiyan Williams's installations at Art Omi, and 'Human Marks: Tattooing in Contemporary Art' at the Joseloff Gallery in Connecticut.

Rising dealer Sebastian Gladstone expands in LA—what’s behind his success?

Sebastian Gladstone, a rising art dealer, is expanding his namesake gallery in Los Angeles with a new 3,200-square-foot space in Hollywood, opening on 13 September. The move comes despite a broader trend of gallery downsizing, and follows a successful showing at Frieze Los Angeles, where he placed a work with the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Gladstone, who launched the gallery in 2020, now operates bicoastally with a Tribeca outpost and plans to focus on quality over quantity, including representing the estate of abstract painter Herman Cherry.

The Broad invites art lovers to Jeffrey Gibson exhibition

The Broad museum in Los Angeles has announced free Thursday evening tickets for "Jeffrey Gibson: the space in which to place me," an exhibition on view through September 28. The show features over 30 works including paintings, sculptures, flags, murals, and a video installation, adapted from Gibson's 2024 U.S. Pavilion presentation at the 60th Venice Biennale, where he became the first Indigenous artist to represent the United States with a solo exhibition. This is Gibson's first single-artist museum exhibition in Southern California.

Bauhaus thread weaves through expansive textile show at MoMA

The traveling exhibition "Woven Histories: Textiles and Modern Abstraction" has made its final stop at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York. Organized by Lynne Cooke, senior curator at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, in collaboration with MoMA, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the National Gallery of Canada, the show features around 150 works that explore weaving through the lens of abstraction. At MoMA, the exhibition responds to the museum's historical ties to the Bauhaus, including works by Anni Albers and Gunta Stölzl, and highlights lesser-known figures like Ed Rossbach. The show also includes contemporary artists such as Jeffrey Gibson, with several having concurrent solo exhibitions in New York.

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Newly released emails from Jeffrey Epstein, published by House Republicans, show the disgraced financier discussing Leonardo da Vinci's *Salvator Mundi* with journalist Michael Wolff. In a May 2019 exchange, Epstein referenced the $450.3 million painting—the most expensive artwork ever sold at auction—and suggested its sale was linked to a real estate deal involving a Russian billionaire and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Epstein also mentioned that his "art guy" thought the painting wasn't very good.

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The School of Visual Arts (SVA) in New York has announced the closure of its MA in Curatorial Practice program, effective upon the retirement of its founding chair, Steven Henry Madoff, in May 2027. The decision to "teach out" the program comes despite recent recruitment efforts and follows a period of financial instability for the institution. The announcement also coincides with the recent abrupt resignation of David A. Ross, chair of SVA’s MFA Art Practice program, following revelations regarding his past ties to Jeffrey Epstein.

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Turner Prize-winning artist Tai Shani has officially terminated her book contract with Phaidon, the prominent arts publisher owned by billionaire collector Leon Black. Shani cited Black’s extensive financial ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and the "horrific allegations" of sexual assault leveled against Black as the primary reasons for her withdrawal. Describing the move as a "feminist practice" of refusal, Shani walked away from a planned monograph despite praising the publisher's editorial team.

Art Collector and ‘Galerie’ Magazine Founder Lisa Fayne Cohen Fawned Over Jeffrey Epstein in Emails: ‘There Is No One Else Like You’

Newly released documents from the Justice Department's Epstein files reveal that New York art collector and Galerie magazine founder Lisa Fayne Cohen and her husband, real estate developer Jimmy Cohen, were in close contact with financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein in 2015 and 2016. The emails show Cohen seeking Epstein's advice and arranging to photograph his Paris apartment for her magazine, which later featured the residence anonymously in its second issue.

A sturdy soldier in a sequin dress

"Eine kräftige Soldatin im Paillettenkleid"

Media reviews of the Venice Biennale's opening week offer contrasting takes on the German and US pavilions. Critics describe the German pavilion, curated by Sung Tieu and Henrike Naumann, as a dense, ironic East-West narrative that layers Nazi architecture with DDR prefab construction, creating what Jörg Häntzschel calls a "shockingly seamless symbiosis." The US pavilion, featuring sculptures by Alma Allen, is panned by Maximilíano Durón in ArtNews as politically timid and empty, lacking the clear colonial critiques of previous editions by Simone Leigh and Jeffrey Gibson.

Obama Presidential Center announces new work by Jeffrey Gibson, Rashid Johnson, Lorna Simpson.

The Obama Foundation has unveiled the final group of artists commissioned to create site-specific works for the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago. This prestigious roster includes Jeffrey Gibson, Rashid Johnson, Lorna Simpson, and Njideka Akunyili Crosby, whose works will be integrated into the 19.3-acre campus. The announcement completes the artistic vision for the center, which aims to blend public space with high-caliber contemporary art when it opens on June 19th.

United States Pavilion to Open at the 61st International

The United States Pavilion at the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia will open on May 6, 2026, featuring a solo presentation titled "Call Me the Breeze" by American artist Alma Allen. Curated by Jeffrey Uslip and commissioned by the American Arts Conservancy with support from the U.S. Department of State and the Guggenheim Foundation, the exhibition transforms the historic Giardini pavilion with sculptures in bronze, walnut burl, and various stones, including Colorado Yule marble used in the Lincoln Memorial.

‘You’re so close you can see how their toes grip the floor’: Wayne McGregor on his radical new immersive dance experience

Wayne McGregor, artistic director of the Biennale Danza in Venice, has created a new immersive dance installation titled 'On the Other Earth' in collaboration with artist Jeffrey Shaw and digital museologist Sarah Kenderdine. The work features a 360-degree 'nVis' environment with a massive 12K LED screen, allowing dancers from McGregor's company and the Hong Kong Ballet to perform in extreme close-up. The installation will travel to the Venice Film Festival, Stone's Nest in London as part of McGregor's exhibition 'Infinite Bodies' at Somerset House, and later to the Tai Kwun Centre for Heritage and Arts in Hong Kong.

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Jeffrey Deitch has organized a pop-up exhibition in Miami's Design District during Art Basel Miami Beach, titled "That Was Then, This Is Now." The show, running from December 2, 2025 to January 2, 2026, features about two dozen ultra-emerging artists, predominantly from the West Coast. It was organized by American Art Projects, a platform led by Deitch associate director William Croghan and Benno Tubbesing, former director of Ruttkowski;68's New York branch. The exhibition includes paintings, ceramics, clothing, and books, aiming to offer accessible price points for new collectors.

art doron langberg paintings israel

The article reviews Doron Langberg's exhibition "Landscapes" at Jeffrey Deitch in New York, featuring large-scale oil-on-linen paintings that reflect on the artist's identity as a Jewish Israeli painter after October 7, 2023, and the subsequent conflict in Gaza. The works depict three personally significant locations: Yokneam in Israel, Drohobych in Ukraine (where the artist's father survived the Holocaust), and a queer beach community on Fire Island. Langberg's accompanying statement asserts that Palestinians deserve justice and liberation, framing painting as a means to confront atrocity.

David A. Ross resigns from New York's School of Visual Arts over friendship with Jeffrey Epstein

David A. Ross, chair of the Master of Fine Arts in art practice department at New York's School of Visual Arts (SVA), resigned from his position following the release of documents revealing his long-standing friendly correspondence with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The emails, dating from 2009 to 2016, show Ross praising Epstein's ideas for controversial exhibitions and offering him personal sympathy, even after Epstein's 2008 criminal conviction.

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Documents from Jeffrey Epstein's estate, including a birthday book compiled for his 50th birthday by Ghislaine Maxwell, were released in full by the US House Oversight Committee. The book contains contributions from art collectors Leon Black and Leslie Wexner, as well as a lewd drawing by President Donald Trump. The release also includes Epstein's last will, his 2007 non-prosecution deal, and entries from his contact book. Black contributed a handwritten poem calling Epstein a "Dear Friend," while Wexner included a note with a drawing of breasts.

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Leon Black, a billionaire investor and prominent art collector, is facing renewed scrutiny over his ties to Jeffrey Epstein. Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon has called on the Internal Revenue Service to investigate what he describes as suspicious tax planning work performed by Epstein for Black, involving tens of millions of dollars paid to Epstein to help Black evade billions in taxes. Wyden submitted a letter to the IRS on July 31, demanding more information by September 1. Black has previously been investigated for his Epstein connections; a 2021 probe found he had no involvement in Epstein's criminal activities but confirmed he paid $158 million to Epstein between 2012 and 2017.

Join The Art Parade 2026 at LACMA

Jeffrey Deitch is reviving his celebrated Art Parade for a special Los Angeles edition on June 20, 2026, to mark the grand opening of the David Geffen Galleries at LACMA. Originally held in New York’s SoHo from 2005 to 2008, the large-scale public procession invites artists, performers, and students to create floats and spectacles that will transform Museum Row into a living gallery.

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Activists from the group Everyone Hates Elon staged a protest at the Louvre by surreptitiously installing a framed photograph of Prince Andrew following his recent arrest. The image, captured by Reuters photographer Phil Noble, depicts the royal in the back of a car after being taken into custody on suspicion of misconduct in public office related to the Jeffrey Epstein investigation. Museum staff removed the unauthorized addition, which featured a gilded frame and a caption mocking the Prince's previous claims regarding his inability to sweat, within fifteen minutes.

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The Minneapolis Institute of Art (MIA) announced it would remain closed on Sunday for safety reasons after a Border Patrol agent shot and killed Alex Jeffrey Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse, during an ICE operation in Minneapolis on Saturday. The shooting occurred just blocks from the museum, and MIA had already closed early on Saturday following the news. The closure was part of a broader Day of Truth and Freedom protest against ICE operations in Minnesota, and the NBA also postponed a Timberwolves game in response to the incident.

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A bitter legal battle has erupted between prominent art advisors Barbara Guggenheim and her former partner Abigail Asher, whose firm Guggenheim Asher Associates (GAA) has collapsed. Guggenheim accused Asher of misusing firm funds for personal expenses and claiming up to $20.5 million in future commissions. Asher countersued, alleging Guggenheim stole money for personal costs including her husband's funeral, bullied her, and encouraged her to build a relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The dispute has drawn widespread attention in the art world, with collector Sylvain Levy calling it a moment of reckoning for an industry built on trust and discretion.

Dartmouth Students Renew Calls to Remove Leon Black’s Name From Arts Center

Students at Dartmouth College have intensified their campaign to remove billionaire collector Leon Black’s name from the school’s visual arts center. The renewed push follows the release of Department of Justice files detailing Black’s extensive financial ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, including $170 million in payments for tax and estate advice. While Black has denied all allegations of misconduct and his legal team maintains he was unaware of Epstein’s criminal activities, student leaders are citing the college's recent decision to strip César Chávez’s name from a fellowship as a precedent for moral accountability.

Epstein Emails and the Art Market

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A massive release of over three million documents by the U.S. Department of Justice has exposed the deep ties between the late financier Jeffrey Epstein and prominent figures in the global art world. The files reveal how Epstein utilized sophisticated financial structures to manage and enhance the value of blue-chip art collections, most notably for billionaire Leon Black. The fallout from these disclosures has already led to high-profile resignations, including Jack Lang from the Arab World Institute and David A. Ross from the School of Visual Arts, while others like collector Steve Tisch face renewed scrutiny.

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Australian-born artist Petrina Ryan-Kleid's 2012 student painting *Parsing Bill*, depicting Bill Clinton in a blue dress, went viral after the Daily Mail revealed it had been owned and prominently displayed by convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. The work, created as a satirical thesis piece at the New York Academy of Art, was intended to critique how opposition parties caricature presidents, referencing Monica Lewinsky's blue dress. Ryan-Kleid, who sold the painting for about $1,300 at the 2012 Tribeca Ball fundraiser, has since distanced herself from the political narrative, expressing discomfort and clarifying the piece's original intent.

Trustees of Renowned West Coast Artist Residency Visited Epstein’s Island

Two trustees of the prestigious Djerassi Resident Artists Program, Alexander Maxwell Djerassi and Michael Molesky, were identified in recently released Department of Justice files as visitors to Jeffrey Epstein’s private island in 2011. The pair attended the "Mindshift Conference," a gathering of academics and professionals held two years after Epstein’s first conviction. The residency program, located in California's Santa Cruz Mountains, clarified that the visit occurred years before either individual joined the board and emphasized that neither Epstein nor Ghislaine Maxwell ever had any formal ties or donor history with the institution.

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The Pritzker Architecture Prize has issued a formal statement defending its selection process following the release of legal documents detailing past ties between foundation director Tom Pritzker and Jeffrey Epstein. The Hyatt Foundation, which sponsors the prestigious award, emphasized that its jury operates with complete independence and remains focused on architectural excellence despite the controversy surrounding Pritzker’s previous association with the disgraced financier.