a cleveland artist is transforming a trashed greyhound bus into a museum of migration 1234747377

Cleveland-based artist, historian, and preservationist Robert Louis Brandon Edwards is transforming a 1947 Greyhound bus he rescued from a Pennsylvania junkyard into a traveling Museum of the Great Migration. The bus, designed by Raymond Loewy and originally operating in the Great Lakes region, will feature virtual reality exhibitions highlighting the experiences of African Americans who moved from the rural South to the North, Midwest, and West between 1910 and 1970. Edwards, who is pursuing doctoral studies in historic preservation at Columbia University, is partnering with Cleveland nonprofit Playhouse Square and hopes to have the bus on the road within a year.

Nymphs, mermaids and rosy cherubs: mansion filled with hidden wall paintings makes Victorian Society’s endangered buildings list

A derelict mansion called Parndon Hall, located within the grounds of Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow, Essex, has been named to the Victorian Society’s annual list of the top ten at-risk buildings in England and Wales. The house, built in 1867, contains a hidden trove of wall paintings by the almost-forgotten Victorian artist Elizabeth Arkwright, who covered walls, ceilings, and doors with nymphs, mermaids, and cherubs—many still concealed under Edwardian whitewash. The building has been used for storage and has sat unoccupied since flood repairs in 2024.

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Astronaut Scott Kelly is utilizing his record-breaking year-long mission aboard the International Space Station to capture high-altitude photography of Earth's surface. Dubbing his work #EarthArt, Kelly shares abstract, vividly colorful images of terrestrial landscapes—ranging from the Australian outback to the Himalayas—with his massive social media following. His approach favors formal abstraction over traditional documentation, highlighting the planet's diverse topography through a lens that blurs the line between science and fine art.

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Anonymous floral artist Mr. Flower Fantastic has created this year's Orchid Show at the New York Botanical Garden, titled "Mr. Flower Fantastic's Concrete Jungle." The exhibition transforms the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory with approximately 7,000 orchids arranged in installations that pay homage to New York City's urban landscape, including a subway station, a pizzeria, a newsstand, a dumpster, and a brownstone.

Rafał Zajko Is Hatching a Plan

Rafał Zajko's exhibition 'The Egg Egg' at Arsenal Gallery in Białystok, Poland, brings together 50 works from the past decade across two floors of a former power station, organized into nine 'acts'. The show features modular installations like 'Funny Games' (2025), a set of pastel-colored platforms on wheels with ceramic reliefs, and monumental sculptures such as 'Sisyphus' (2025), a suspended ceramic bobbin evoking textile factory tools. Performances by Agnieszka Szczotka, including 'Song to the Siren' (2026), activate works like 'Amber Chamber III Echo' (2025), blending archaism, futurism, and themes of labor and technology.

Exhibition | Naomi Rincón Gallardo, 'Sonnet of Vermin' at Hayward Gallery, London, United Kingdom

Naomi Rincón Gallardo presents her first solo exhibition in London, 'Sonnet of Vermin,' at the Hayward Gallery. The show features her 2022 film following a group of animals from Mesoamerican myths—Bat, Snake, Scorpion, and a choir of frogs—as they navigate dystopian landscapes in Oaxaca, communicating via radio signals and calling for solidarity amid social and ecological devastation. Rincón Gallardo works across video, performance, drawing, and sculpture, weaving cuir/queer resistance, pre-colonial folklore, DIY aesthetics, music, and dance into surreal narratives that critique colonialism and exploitation.

Cleveland Museum of Art reunites rare Himalayan paintings of the divine hero Rama

The Cleveland Museum of Art has opened "Epic of the Northwest Himalayas: Pahari Paintings from the ‘Shangri’ Ramayana," an exhibition featuring 40 rare paintings from a 1700s royal commission. These works, which depict the life of the Hindu deity Rama, have been reunited from 12 different lenders after being dispersed globally for centuries. The display is augmented by digital stations that animate over 100 additional paintings to illustrate the narrative's themes of virtue and heroism.

Santa Monicas 1st Municipal Art Gallery To Open Soon

The City of Santa Monica is launching its first municipal art gallery, the Santa Monica City Gallery, located within the Bergamot Station Arts Center. The space will debut on April 10 with an inaugural exhibition titled “Case Study: Adapt,” which features architectural models developed by USC Architecture students in collaboration with professional firms. The opening event will include remarks from California for the Arts Executive Director Julie Baker and a commendation for State Senator Ben Allen.

Lake Effect: Cleveland Museum of Art invites artists to mark 11 decades of art in University Circle

The Cleveland Museum of Art (CMA) has opened a call for artists for "Lake Effect: Artists from Cleveland Now," a juried group exhibition celebrating the museum's 110th anniversary in 2026. The exhibition will be held from July 9 to November 22 at CMA's Transformer Station in Ohio City's Hingetown neighborhood, and is open to artists living or working in Northeast Ohio counties. Submissions are due by April 24, with selections announced May 1, and three $1,000 micro-grants will be awarded.

Exhibition review: the New Art Exchange Open Exhibition

The New Art Exchange (NAE) in Nottingham, UK, is hosting its fifth Open Exhibition, a competitive open-call showcase for contemporary artists from the Global Ethnic Majority and all artists based in Nottinghamshire. The exhibition features a wide range of mixed-media works—including painting, video, live art, photography, textiles, and sculpture—selected by a diverse panel of neighbors, artists, and curators. Standout pieces include Broken Glass's 'Deforestation (Desmatamento),' a critique of environmental destruction in Brazil; Mamu Umu's 'Capitalist Champion,' exploring the tension between artistic passion and economic survival; Emily Catherine's photorealistic charcoal portrait 'Phuong'; and Aida Wilde's 'BUTCHERED.'

Remembering Sebastião Salgado, world builder, photographer of collective humanity and prophet of possibility

Sebastião Salgado, the legendary Brazilian photographer known for his monumental documentary projects capturing collective humanity and environmental activism, has died. Born in 1944 in Aimorés, Brazil, Salgado studied economics at the University of São Paulo and was exiled to France for political activism before turning to photography in the 1970s. He joined Magnum Photos in 1979 and went on to create epic, multi-year projects such as "Workers" (1986-93), "Migrations" (1993-99), "Genesis" (2005-13), and "Amazônia" (2011-19), which redefined documentary practice through total immersion and scale. His work earned him the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade, a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador role, and numerous awards including the W. Eugene Smith Grant and the Royal Photographic Society’s Centenary Medal.

Summer Guide 2025: Gallery Openings

The Summer Guide 2025 highlights a diverse array of gallery openings in Santa Fe, New Mexico, focusing on both established and emerging art spaces. Notable exhibitions include Gerald Peters Contemporary's "Material Girl: Pop Culture and the Female Gaze" (June 13), featuring six female artists examining gender and commodification through Pop Art; Daniel Cooney Fine Art's "George Dureau, Photographs" (May 31), showcasing intimate portraits of New Orleans' counterculture; and Station 5 Micro-Gallery's two shows—"ACCUMULATION" (June 7) by Michael Sumner and Melody Sumner Carnahan, and "THE NARROW LINE TO THE INTERIOR" (August 2) inspired by poet Bashō. Other highlights include ELECTR∆ Gallery's queer mysticism group show "The Third Way" (July 11), new works by Tim Jag (June 12), and Pie Projects' "MOMENTUM" (June 14) featuring Florence Miller Pierce's rediscovered resin reliefs.

israeli attacks on palestinian heritage sites constitute war crimes un report 1234745459

A United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry has concluded that Israeli attacks on cultural and religious sites in occupied Palestinian territory constitute war crimes and the crime against humanity of extermination. The report focuses on ten specific sites in Gaza, including the Greek Orthodox Church of St. Porphyrius, the Great Omari mosque, Al Mat'haf Museum, and the Pasha Palace Museum, which were destroyed, looted, or severely damaged between October and December 2023. The commission found that Israeli security forces should have known the locations and significance of these sites and that their attacks violated international law, including intentionally directing attacks against religious and historic monuments and causing excessive damage to civilian objects.

Seeing God in nature: US National Gallery exhibition celebrates art from the dawn of European natural history

The National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, is presenting "Little Beasts: Art, Wonder and the Natural World," an exhibition of 16th- and 17th-century European paintings and prints by artists including Jan van Kessel, Joris Hoefnagel, and Teodoro Filippo di Liagno. The works, drawn from the dawn of European natural history, depict insects, animals, and natural specimens with extraordinary detail, reflecting the era's expanding trade routes and fascination with the natural world.

Grapeshot. Nancy Lupo by Maya Tounta

Artist Nancy Lupo is preparing a new exhibition titled "Meow Meow Real Estate" at the Nicoletta Fiorucci Foundation in London. The show shares its name with a novel she is writing, both projects emerging from a period of personal displacement and a fixation on finding a home. The exhibition continues a trajectory of shows that serve as interconnected, physical manifestations of her literary and emotional exploration of place.

Blockbuster show on ancient Egyptian pharaoh Ramses II opens in London

The blockbuster exhibition "Ramses the Great and the Gold of the Pharaohs" has opened in London near Battersea Power Station, featuring over 180 ancient Egyptian treasures. Produced by Neon Global in collaboration with Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, the show includes the coffin of Ramses II, animal mummies, and a VR experience. The tour has already visited cities like Paris and Sydney, serving as a major international cultural ambassador for Egypt.

Waiting for the 2026 Venice Biennale, on Sky Arte Artbox tells the story of the Turin festival EXPOSED

Aspettando la Biennale Arte 2026, su Sky Arte Artbox racconta il festival torinese EXPOSED

The 24th episode of Sky Arte's program "Artbox" airs on May 5, 2026, coinciding with the official start of the Venice Biennale Arte 2026. The episode focuses on the third edition of EXPOSED Torino Photo Festival, themed "Mettersi a nudo" (Stripping Bare), inspired by Baudelaire. Artistic director Walter Guadagnini, photographers Toni Thorimbert and Paola Agosti, and curator Giangavino Pazzola discuss the festival's exhibitions, including Paola Agosti's feminist photography at the Museo Nazionale del Risorgimento and Yorgos Lanthimos's photographs at the Cripta di San Michele Arcangelo. The episode also covers a Max Bill retrospective at the m.a.x. museo in Chiasso, Switzerland, and features segments on art and truth, a book on Milan's Central Station, and a project from Milan Design Week 2026 by Spanish artist Pau Aguilò.

Studio Sessions: Lauren Boilini

Seattle-based artist Lauren Boilini has reached a significant career milestone with the simultaneous opening of her first museum exhibition at the San Juan Islands Museum of Art and her first solo gallery show, "The Good Death," at J. Rinehart Gallery. Boilini’s practice is rooted in deep scientific research, including residencies at biological stations and insectariums, which she translates into large-scale, frenetic paintings of animals and ecosystems. Her current work explores the intersection of animal behavior and the human condition through dense, layered compositions that blur the lines between struggle and pattern.

Detroit’s first fair, Season, revs up for inaugural edition

Detroit will host its first contemporary art fair, Season, from 25-28 September at Michigan Central, the city's renovated former train station. The fair debuts with 11 galleries and a special exhibition featuring ten local artists, evolving from Detroit Art Week, which was launched in 2018 by curator and entrepreneur Amani Olu. Olu, a collector himself, reimagined the festival as Season to fill a gap in the local cultural landscape, offering affordable booth costs of $2,500 and an online viewing room. Participating galleries include four from Michigan, four from New York City, and one each from Buffalo, Pittsburgh, and Toronto, alongside talks, studio visits, and large-scale installations.

Artist to Watch: Erin M. Riley’s Tapestries Examine Hard-Hitting Themes While Breaking Down Barriers

Brooklyn-based artist Erin M. Riley is preparing to unveil her latest and largest weavings in a solo exhibition at New York's P.P.O.W gallery in September 2025. Her tapestries tackle hard-hitting themes such as family trauma and domestic abuse, drawing on memory, photographs, and everyday iconography. Riley, who studied at Massachusetts College of Art and Design and Tyler School of Art and Architecture, initially faced pushback from both galleries and traditional weavers but has since become a leading figure in the blurring of fine art and craft. Her new works incorporate embroidery for the first time and include pieces like "Road Reverberations" (2024), which uses crowdsourced quotes from survivors of abusive relationships.

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Rome has opened two new subway stations on Line C—Colosseo/Fori Imperiali and Porta Metronia—that double as mini museums, showcasing over 500,000 artifacts unearthed during two decades of excavation. The stations, located 100 feet underground, feature displays of ancient ceramics, frescoes, mosaic floors, and the remains of a Roman military compound and thermal baths, curated by the Colosseum Archaeological Park and Sapienza University. Commuters can view the artifacts without a ticket in the station atriums, and future stations on the line will incorporate additional archaeological finds.

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Rome's new Colosseo-Fori Imperiali metro station opened on Tuesday after 11 years of construction, featuring archaeological treasures uncovered during excavation, including ceramic fragments, statues, oil lamps, stone vessels, and 28 ancient wells. The station, part of Metro Line C, also revealed a nearly 260-foot early second-century military barracks and a home with frescoes and mosaics at the nearby Porta Metronia station. Mayor Roberto Gualtieri attended the opening ceremony, and the city plans to open a museum in the station.

Puerto Rico’s rainforest center reborn: in pictures

Puerto Rico’s El Yunque National Forest has unveiled the reconstructed El Portal visitor’s center, a $18 million project designed by Marvel Architects to withstand future climate disasters. Following the devastation of Hurricanes Maria and Irma, the new facility features elevated structures, advanced stormwater management, and solar capabilities, serving as both a sustainable tourism hub and an emergency command post.

The new ARTE Museum at Chelsea Piers is a must-see immersive experience: How to get tickets

ARTE Museum New York has opened at Chelsea Piers, a 52,000-square-foot immersive digital art experience created by the Korean art-tech studio d’strict. The exhibition, themed 'Eternal Nature,' features multisensory rooms with lifelike digital waterfalls, blooming flowers, ocean waves, jungle animals, and a tornado, using cutting-edge projection mapping and interactive technology that responds to movement, sound, and scent. Visitors can also enjoy an interactive animal sketching station and unwind at the ARTE Tea Bar. The museum has locations in Miami, Las Vegas, and Dubai as well.

A Pioneering Exhibition at the MAC in Barranco

A PIONEERING EXHIBITION AT THE MAC IN BARRANCO

The Museum of Contemporary Art (MAC Lima) and the Lima Art Museum (MALI) have launched "Thought is a Hybrid Garden," a comprehensive exhibition spanning six decades of work by Francesco Mariotti and María Luy. The show draws from the Mariotti-Luy Archive and features light installations, acoustic works, and silkscreens that blend technology with Amazonian myths and environmental activism. Curated by Miguel A. López and José-Carlos Mariátegui, the exhibition includes never-before-seen works in Peru, such as the "Hybrid Gardens" series which uses bioluminescence as a metaphor for ecological health.

Around town: Art Garden reopens in new downtown gallery

Art Garden, a combination art gallery and plant shop in Asheville, North Carolina, reopens on May 7, 2025, at a new downtown location at 98 N. Lexington Ave. The business was displaced after its former home in Riverview Station was flooded by over 25 feet of water during Tropical Storm Helene in September 2024. The reopening includes a preview party for the ReRoot art exhibit, a fundraising gala, a theatre performance, and a Mother's Day plant sale, celebrating community support that helped rebuild the space.

When Art Meets Nature: Children’s Art Exhibition At National Gallery Singapore

National Gallery Singapore presents 'When Art Meets Nature', a children's art exhibition running from 30 April to 1 November 2026. The show features two installations: 'Peace Forest' by Singaporean artist Soh Ee Shaun, located in the Keppel Centre for Art Education, and 'Where the River Runs' by Yenting Hsu, displayed in the City Hall Alcove. The exhibition is co-curated by the Taoyuan Museum of Fine Arts and National Gallery Singapore, offering interactive experiences such as a scavenger hunt and a woodblock art station, alongside a video and audio installation exploring the Dahan River in Taiwan.

Phoebe Boswell’s ‘Art on the Underground’ dives into why the majority of Black British adults don’t swim

Artist Phoebe Boswell has unveiled a major public art commission for Art on the Underground, installed across the escalators of Bethnal Green and Notting Hill Gate stations in London. The immersive photographic series features Black subjects moving underwater, captured in a stop-motion style that responds to the physical movement of commuters. The project was inspired by the statistic that 95 per cent of Black British adults do not swim, a reality Boswell links to generational trauma and structural inequality.

Furniture gets a performative boost at Collectible design fair

Collectible design fair returned for its second edition in New York, taking over the entire 39th floor of the WSA building in Manhattan’s Financial District. The fair featured 123 exhibitors, many local, presenting limited-edition and unique design objects. Highlights included Tuleste Factory's lighting-heavy stand 'Afterglow' with ceramic lamps by Ethan Streicher, a collaborative living-room set by Streicher and Ian Love called the Kindred Collection, and a special-projects section with a performance dinner and a piercing station. Co-founder Liv Vaisberg emphasized the fair's curated, designer-centered approach and experimental spirit.

Wirral Welcomes the Independents Biennial 2025

Wirral is hosting the Independents Biennial 2025, a major contemporary art festival running concurrently with the Liverpool Biennial. Nearly 300 artists will exhibit in 120 locations across the Liverpool City Region, including landmarks such as Fort Perch Rock, Hilbre Island, and Hamilton Square. Highlights include a studio group exhibition titled 'Boom' at the Old Fire Station in Port Sunlight, featuring sculptor Emma Rodgers and collaborators, with works by Johnny Vegas. The Williamson Art Gallery and Museum will debut a commissioned piece by Jackie Haynes and Heather Mullender-Ross, and an art market at Birkenhead Market on June 28 will offer works by over 30 independent artists.