À Nîmes, la peinture sans entrave de Tursic & Mille envahit le Carré d’art

The article covers the retrospective exhibition of French artist duo Ida Tursic and Wilfried Mille at the Carré d'art in Nîmes. Titled "Dissonances à géométries variables," the show traces their career from student works at the École nationale supérieure d'art de Dijon to recent paintings, featuring a critical, humorous, and materially rich approach to figurative painting. The duo draws from press images, internet sources, art history, and archives, disrupting reproductions with paint splatters and odd details, and the exhibition is organized thematically from "happiness" to "melancholy."

First Indigenous Representative of Peru at the Venice Biennale, Sara Flores Opens the Doors of Her Studio in the Heart of the Amazon

Première représentante autochtone du Pérou à la Biennale de Venise, Sara Flores ouvre les portes de son atelier au cœur de l’Amazonie

Sara Flores, a 76-year-old artist from the Shipibo-Konibo Indigenous community in the Peruvian Amazon, has been selected as the first Indigenous artist to represent Peru at the Venice Biennale. In her open-air studio deep in the rainforest, she creates large-scale geometric compositions in the kené ("true drawing") tradition, using natural dyes from local plants. She is also co-founder of the Bakish Mai Multiversity, an educational institution dedicated to Indigenous knowledge and artist residencies, alongside Matteo Norzi, one of the two curators of the Peruvian pavilion. The article offers an intimate portrait of her life, her matriarchal family, and her creative process.

Parliamentary Report Outlines Major Issues In French Museums After The Louvre Heist

A French parliamentary commission released a report on May 13 detailing severe security deficiencies in French museums, following a December 2025 heist at the Louvre where French Crown Jewels worth $100 million were stolen. The report, overseen by MPs Alexis Corbière and Alexandre Portier, draws on over 20 hearings and highlights that only 25% of surveyed museums have a finalized security plan, with the Louvre itself criticized for dilapidated conditions and ignored audit warnings from 2017 and 2019 that predicted the thieves' modus operandi. Former Louvre director Laurence des Cars, who resigned in February, faced criticism for delays in implementing a security master plan.

Photographer Giles Duley brings images of historic and current wars into dialogue in Manhattan pop-up show

British photographer Giles Duley has opened a pop-up exhibition titled "Distortion/Memory/Resilience" in a 77th-floor penthouse at Sutton Tower in Manhattan, running from 12 to 24 May. The show features haunting war photography alongside installations—Youth, Childhood, and Memory—that draw parallels between historic and current conflicts. Duley, who lost both legs and an arm after stepping on a landmine in Afghanistan, uses a camera obscura, children's art from war zones, and side-by-side images of injured children from the London Blitz and Beirut to create an immersive experience. The exhibition is presented by the luxury tower's developer and includes benefit dinners hosted by Duley.

Venice Biennale’s Russian Pavilion and Pussy Riot Spar Over Usage of Protest Footage

The Russian Pavilion at the 2026 Venice Biennale has become embroiled in a new controversy after accusing the anti-Putin art collective Pussy Riot of censorship. The pavilion posted on Instagram that Pussy Riot demanded the removal of footage featuring them from a documentary film about the pavilion's project, labeling the request as self-censorship. Pussy Riot responded sarcastically, questioning the pavilion's use of Instagram given Russia's 2022 ban of the platform. The dispute follows earlier protests at the pavilion's opening, led by Pussy Riot and FEMEN, against Russia's participation in the Biennale amid its ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

Political Fallout Rocks Venice Biennale Prize System

Dozens of artists participating in the 2026 Venice Biennale have withdrawn from consideration for the newly created Visitor Lion awards, replacing the traditional Gold and Silver Lion prizes. A total of 57 artists from the main exhibition and 22 national pavilions signed a statement published on e-flux on May 9, acting in solidarity with the five-person prize jury that resigned on April 30 over the continued participation of Russia and Israel. The jury had objected to awarding prizes to artists from countries whose leaders face International Criminal Court charges, including Russian president Vladimir Putin and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In response, the Biennale organizers postponed the awards ceremony to November 22 and introduced visitor voting, a move they described as consistent with openness and dialogue. Meanwhile, the Russian Pavilion, which returned after lending its space to Bolivia in 2024, faced protests, closure after previews, and a €2 million funding pull by the European Union for the 2028 Biennale.

Arch Hades Turns a Venetian Palazzo Into an Emotional Landscape

British artist Arch Hades has transformed the Scoletta Battioro e Tiraoro di Venezia, a historic palazzo on Venice's Grand Canal, into an immersive solo exhibition titled “Arch Hades: Return | Ritorno,” timed to the 61st Venice Biennale. The show features site-specific paintings, sculptures, and a soundscape, anchored by the monumental 22-panel painting *Return* (2025), which draws on Greco-Roman sculpture, Symbolism, Surrealism, and Romanticism, and echoes Gustav Klimt's lost “Faculty Paintings.” New works from Hades's “Confessions” series and the mirrored chrome piece *Sphinx* (2026) further explore themes of memory, connection, and existentialism.

In Protest of Israeli Pavilion, Activists and Unions Plan Strike on Venice Biennale’s Opening Day

The Art Not Genocide Alliance (ANGA) has announced a 24-hour strike and rally on May 8, the day before the 2026 Venice Biennale opens to the public, in protest of the Israeli Pavilion. ANGA, formed in opposition to Israel's inclusion in the 2024 Biennale, refers to the current Israeli presentation—featuring Haifa-based artist Belu-Simion Fainaru—as the "Genocide Pavilion." Over 200 artists, curators, and culture workers have signed an open letter demanding Israel's exclusion, and a separate action called Solidarity Drone Chorus involved 60 artists. ANGA is collaborating with local labor and culture organizations including Biennalocene, Vogliamo Tutt'altro, S.a.L.E. Docks, and Mi Riconosci.

‘We are complicit’: Austrian artist Florentina Holzinger’s immersive Venice Biennale pavilion brings apocalypse to the city

Austrian artist Florentina Holzinger has created 'Seaworld Venice,' an immersive and confrontational installation for the Austrian Pavilion at the 2024 Venice Biennale. The work explores climate change, technology, and a dystopian flooded future, drawing comparisons to the 1995 film 'Waterworld'—though neither Holzinger nor curator Nora-Swantje Almes had seen it. Known for extreme performance art involving nudity, blood, live piercing, and heavy machinery, Holzinger's previous works have caused audience members to faint or require medical treatment. The pavilion marks a significant platform for her radical, hybrid practice that blends theatre, dance, opera, and performance art.

Lucas Museum Aims to Tell the History of Storytelling via 1,200 Objects

The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in Los Angeles has announced details of its inaugural exhibitions, set to open on September 22, 2026. Founded by filmmaker George Lucas and his wife Mellody Hobson, the museum will feature over 1,200 objects across 30 galleries, tracing the history of visual storytelling from ancient sculptures to Renaissance paintings, photography, comics, and manga. The collection draws from Lucas's personal trove of more than 40,000 works of illustrator art, including pieces by N.C. Wyeth, Norman Rockwell, Frank Frazetta, Beatrix Potter, and Jack Kirby, as well as large-scale murals and photography by artists like Judy Baca and Dorothea Lange. The museum, designed by Ma Yansong of MAD Architects, also includes archives of Lucas's film sets, props, and costumes.

Online Auctions Continue to Draw in First-Time Art Buyers as Sales Grow

Online-only sales of fine art at Christie’s, Sotheby’s, Phillips, Bonhams, and Artnet Auctions reached $423.9 million in 2025, an 8 percent increase from 2024. The number of lots sold remained steady at 29,623, but the average price per work rose 8.6 percent to $14,309. Sales were 270 percent higher than in 2019, before the pandemic accelerated the shift to digital auctions. Christie’s reported that 63 percent of new buyers in 2025 made their first purchase online.

Newsmakers: Nalini Malani Lets the Walls Speak with a New Installation in Venice

Nalini Malani's latest installation, *Of Woman Born*, opens at the Magazzini del Sale in Venice during the Venice Biennale. Commissioned by the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art, the work projects hand-drawn animations onto the crumbling brick walls of a 15th-century salt warehouse, creating a cave-like environment where images flicker like ancient cave paintings. The installation draws on tens of thousands of drawings and incorporates mythology, literature, and sound, with a central focus on the myth of Orestes to explore themes of violence, displacement, and gender politics. Malani has also extended her recurring 'Skipping Girl' figure across Venice via posters and public signage to guide viewers to the exhibition.

Venice Biennale’s Prize Ban on Israel and Russia Falls Short for Critics

The jury of the 2026 Venice Biennale has ruled that Israel and Russia will be ineligible for the Golden and Silver Lion prizes, citing International Criminal Court charges of crimes against humanity against their leaders. The decision follows years of activism and political pressure, with the European Union withdrawing €2 million in funding from the event in protest of Russia's participation. While groups like Art Not Genocide Alliance praised the move as an unprecedented step, critics argue it falls short of a full ban on participation. Israel's artist representative, Belu-Simion Fainaru, condemned the policy as discriminatory, and an open letter signed by 70 artists and curators called for excluding all regimes committing war crimes, including the United States.

Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s Iconic California Installation Returns in a Museum Show

The Museum of Sonoma County is commemorating the 50th anniversary of Christo and Jeanne-Claude's iconic 1976 installation "Running Fence" with an exhibition featuring blueprints, original construction materials, and documentary photographs. The temporary work, which stretched nearly 25 miles across Sonoma and Marin counties in California, required four years of negotiations with ranchers, 18 public hearings, and the first-ever Environmental Impact Report for a public artwork, ultimately costing $2.25 million funded by the artists through preparatory drawing sales.

How Pussy Riot Is Challenging Russia’s Return to the Venice Biennale

The feminist art collective Pussy Riot is campaigning to replace the official Russian exhibition at the 2024 Venice Biennale with their own show, "Resistance Imprisoned." The alternative exhibition features art created by nearly 30 current and former political prisoners in Russia, using improvised materials like envelopes, bedding, and blood. The collective's founder, Nadya Tolokonnikova, aims to expose the country's repressive system, drawing from her own experience in a penal colony.

Alma Allen’s US Pavilion Heads to Venice Amid Questions Over Selection Process

The selection of Alma Allen to represent the United States at the 2026 Venice Biennale has ignited controversy over the process. The U.S. State Department abandoned its traditional selection model, which involved a panel of experts convened by the National Endowment for the Arts, and instead handed control to a new nonprofit, the American Arts Conservancy, led by individuals with little museum experience. This shift has drawn criticism from prominent figures in the art world, with some artists declining to participate due to concerns over the political context and unfamiliar leadership.

Berlin exhibition focuses in on women photographers of the Bauhaus

The Museum für Fotografie in Berlin is hosting a major exhibition titled "New Woman, New Vision," featuring approximately 300 photographs by 29 women associated with the Bauhaus. The show aims to dismantle the persistent myth that female students at the influential German school were restricted to the weaving workshop. By showcasing works from figures like Lucia Moholy, Ise Gropius, and Marianne Brandt, the exhibition highlights how women were integral to the school’s photographic documentation and its development as a standalone artistic medium.

Sotheby’s Tries Again to Sell $40 M. Picasso Painting That Didn’t Make It to Auction in 2008

Sotheby’s has announced the sale of Pablo Picasso’s 1909 Cubist masterpiece, Arlequin (Buste), which is expected to fetch approximately $40 million during the New York marquee auctions this May. The painting is the crown jewel of a collection belonging to the late Surrealist artist Enrico Donati and his wife Adele. This marks the second time Sotheby’s has attempted to sell the work; it was famously withdrawn from a 2008 auction just a week before the sale due to undisclosed private reasons.

April Book Bag: from a Matthew Wong catalogue to a history of dogs in art

The Art Newspaper’s April book roundup highlights four significant new publications spanning art history and contemporary practice. Featured titles include Thomas Laqueur’s visual history of dogs in art, a study of marble depictions in Late Gothic and Early Renaissance painting edited by Karl Kolbitz, a comprehensive overview of Antony Gormley’s drawings, and a new catalogue focusing on Matthew Wong’s interior scenes.

See Comedian Pete Davidson’s Art-Filled New York Home for Sale for $2 M.

Actor and comedian Pete Davidson has listed his four-bedroom country estate in Westchester, New York, for $2.28 million. The 2,300-square-foot property, situated on six acres, features luxury amenities such as a wine cellar, sauna, and a covered lap pool, but the real estate listing has drawn particular attention for showcasing Davidson's private art collection.

Artist Michelangelo Pistoletto sends message of 'preventive peace' on digital billboards around the world

Italian Arte Povera pioneer Michelangelo Pistoletto has launched a global public art project titled "Three Mirrors," broadcasting digital works across major cities including London, Los Angeles, Seoul, and Milan. Organized by the digital art platform Circa, the series features three filmed performances of the artist drawing on mirrors, illustrating his "Third Paradise" philosophy. The works appear daily at 20:26 local time on prominent advertising screens, transforming commercial spaces into sites for artistic reflection.

Yto Barrada Says France Had ‘Full Awareness’ of Her Views on Israel When It Chose Her for Venice Biennale

Artist Yto Barrada, selected to represent France at the Venice Biennale, has stated that the French government and pavilion organizers were fully aware of her political views when they chose her. This follows criticism from the Representative Council of French Jewish Institutions (CRIF), which denounced Barrada for signing an open letter calling for Israel's exclusion from the Biennale and suggested the government should force her to withdraw her signature.

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The 61st Venice Biennale is taking shape as national pavilions announce their participants and curatorial themes for the 2026 edition. Russia has confirmed its return to the Giardini with a multidisciplinary exhibition titled “The Tree is Rooted in the Sky,” following its 2022 withdrawal and the 2024 loan of its pavilion to Bolivia. The upcoming edition, themed “In Minor Keys,” will proceed under the vision of the late curator Koyo Kouoh, who passed away in 2025 after becoming the first African woman appointed to helm the prestigious event.

At 95, Artist Heinz Mack Still Believes in the Power of Art: ‘I Affirm My Commitment to Beauty’

German artist Heinz Mack, co-founder of the influential ZERO movement, is being celebrated with a solo exhibition at Beck and Eggeling gallery in Düsseldorf to mark his 95th birthday. The show features recent and rarely exhibited works, including ceramics, collages, and pastel drawings, demonstrating his continued exploration of light, color, and materiality.

The Antwerp Six at 40: A New Show Revisits Fashion’s Most Mythic Cohort

The Antwerp fashion museum MoMu is launching the first major exhibition dedicated to the Antwerp Six, the legendary group of Belgian fashion designers who rose to international fame in the 1980s. The show, titled "The Antwerp Six," marks the 40th anniversary of their pivotal debut at London Fashion Week and features never-before-seen archival material, including drawings, collages, and photographs, to trace their individual yet interconnected creative journeys.

James Murdoch and Art Basel’s Parent Company Are Working on a Big Ideas Festival to Launch in 2028

James and Kathryn Murdoch, through their respective organizations Lupa Systems and Futurific, are partnering with MCH Group, the parent company of Art Basel, to create a new major festival called the Futurific Institute. The event, set to launch in Basel, Switzerland in the summer of 2028, aims to be a cross-disciplinary gathering focused on art, culture, technology, and future-oriented problem-solving, drawing comparisons to world's fairs and events like TED Talks.

Vera Molnár: Venice Biennale 2022

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Vera Molnár, a 98-year-old pioneer of computer art, is receiving renewed international attention as her work is featured in a dedicated gallery at the Venice Biennale's main exhibition, "The Milk of Dreams." The article profiles Molnár at her Paris home, tracing her journey from childhood experiments with systematic pastel drawings in Hungary to her 1947 move to Paris, where she transitioned from classical training to geometric abstraction and co-founded the influential GRAV collective.

Lost Joan Miró Drawings Reemerge at Auction

Three previously unknown drawings by Joan Miró have been discovered among the possessions of his friend, the artist and designer Edmond Vernassa. The works include a 1972 promotional drawing for Mallorca and two large-scale designs for interior balcony railings, created for the influential art dealers Aimé and Marguerite Maeght. The drawings are now set for auction in Antibes with estimates reaching up to €400,000 each, following a public showcase during Paris Drawing Week.

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The European Union has threatened to withdraw a €2 million grant from the Venice Biennale following Russia's decision to return to the international exhibition for its 61st edition. The EU Commission warned that providing a platform for a Russian national pavilion risks legitimizing figures connected to the Kremlin and violating sanctions, while Biennale organizers have defended the move as a commitment to artistic freedom and a rejection of censorship.

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Renowned artist and activist Ai Weiwei critiques the intersection of artificial intelligence and censorship, drawing parallels between AI's algorithmic limitations and the Chinese government's systematic suppression of dissent. Using the emergence of the Chinese AI model DeepSeek as a catalyst, Ai recounts how the tool refused to discuss him, mirroring the state's long-standing strategy of erasing sensitive topics from public discourse. He argues that AI's reliance on existing data sets inherently replicates societal biases and moral codes, leading to factual inaccuracies and the homogenization of human thought.