Project a Black Planet review: spits out dreary academic theory where it should sing

The Guardian reviews the Barbican's exhibition "Project a Black Planet," which explores Panafricanism and Négritude in art and culture. The show features works by artists including Lynette Yiadom-Boakye, El Anatsui, Abdias Nascimento, and Marlene Dumas, with Yiadom-Boakye's new paintings of fictional figures and ancestral elders singled out as a highlight. The exhibition is organized around theoretical concepts from figures like Aimé Césaire and Stuart Hall, aiming to conjure a utopian "Panafrica."

MoMA to Present the First Survey of Piet Mondrian’s New York Paintings

The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) has announced "Mondrian Boogie Woogie," the first survey exhibition focused on Piet Mondrian's New York paintings. Opening March 21 through July 31, 2027, the show will bring together 30 works made or completed between his 1940 move to New York and his death in 1944. It highlights the influence of the city's boogie-woogie music scene on his late style, including iconic pieces like Broadway Boogie Woogie (1942–43) from MoMA's collection and Victory Boogie Woogie (1942–44) on loan from the Kunstmuseum Den Haag. The exhibition also traces the history of boogie-woogie from its roots in the American South to its migration north.

Boy Punctures Magritte’s ‘The Castle of the Pyrenees’ With a Pinecone at the Israel Museum

A young boy visiting the Israel Museum in Jerusalem accidentally punctured René Magritte's painting 'The Castle of the Pyrenees' (1959) with a pinecone before a guard could intervene. The canvas has been sent to the museum's conservation lab, where head conservator Sharon Tager expects repairs to take several weeks, involving stitching and treating the oil paint layers. The work was not behind glass or alarmed to enhance visitor experience.

Wallace Chan exhibitions pair intricate sculptures with Venetian heritage

Wallace Chan, a Hong Kong-based jeweler and sculptor, has mounted a dual exhibition across two historic Venetian sites timed to the Venice Biennale. At Palazzo Contarini del Bovolo, he presents "Mythos," a site-specific installation of suspended titanium sculptures that reimagine figures from Tintoretto's paintings, including the Three Graces and Mercury, as abstract, dissolving faces. Inside the palazzo, three sculptures hang beneath Tintoretto's "Paradise," accompanied by a soundscape from Chan's Shanghai workshop. The exhibition is curated by James Putnam, who has long specialized in placing contemporary art in dialogue with historical collections.

Win a Tate membership, Tracey Emin merch and more

The Guardian is running a competition in partnership with Tate to promote the exhibition "Tracey Emin: A Second Life" at Tate Modern. The prize includes a special-edition one-year Tate Membership for the winner and a friend, lunch for two at Tate Modern, a Tracey Emin Teacup and Pancake blanket (worth £200), an exhibition catalogue, a tote bag, and a cap. Entrants must answer a question before 11:59pm on Sunday 5 July 2026, and the competition is open to UK residents aged 18 and over.

Eine andere Schönheit, die bleibt

Elfie Semotan, the internationally renowned Austrian photographer who began her career as a model, has died at the age of 84. The article recounts her life and work, including a 2024 visit to her exhibition "Inspiration Comes from Everyday Life" at the Austrian Cultural Forum New York, where her photographs were shown alongside designs by Nina Hollein. Semotan was born in Wels in 1941, studied at the Modeschule Hetzendorf in Vienna, and worked as a model in Paris before turning to photography in the late 1960s. Her images appeared in magazines such as Vogue, Elle, Esquire, Marie Claire, Harper’s Bazaar, and The New Yorker. She was married to artist Martin Kippenberger and moved between New York, Vienna, and a farmhouse in Jennersdorf, Austria.

‘Central to human identity’: exhibition at the Met connects bodies with musical instruments

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York has opened a new exhibition titled 'Musical Bodies,' which explores 4,000 years of musical history by examining the relationship between human bodies and musical instruments. Curated by Bradley Strauchen-Scherer, the show features over 600 instruments from the Met's collection, including African drums, ancient Egyptian clappers, Prince's symbol guitar, Renaissance violins, a Tibetan kangling, and MiMu Midi gloves. The exhibition traces common threads across six continents and highlights how instruments serve as extensions of human identity and creativity.

Cello belonging to artist John Constable to be played for first time in 100 years

John Constable's personal cello, commissioned by the artist in 1802, will be played in public for the first time in a century after a restoration funded by the Friends of Ipswich Museum. The instrument, made by Constable's neighbor and mentor John Dunthorne Sr., had been unplayable since a botched repair in 1926. Restorers James and Sylvie Fawcett, along with cellist Melanie Woodcock, have revived the cello, which is believed to have been played by Constable in a local band in East Bergholt, Suffolk.

Thomas Rom, Art Adviser and Performance Space Chair, On His Top Exhibitions in Venice This Year

Art adviser and Performance Space New York board chair Thomas Rom shares his personal reflections on the 2026 Venice Biennale vernissage week, highlighting the main exhibition "In Minor Keys" curated by the late Koyo Kouoh, as well as collateral shows and national pavilions. Rom describes the main exhibition as deeply compelling and essential for understanding a global cultural landscape outside traditional frameworks, and he offers observations on works by artists including Maja Malou Lyse, Abbas Akhavan, Bogna Burska, Daniel Kotowski, Tori Wrånes, and Miet Warlop.

Templon Gallery Shutters New York Branch

Templon Gallery has closed its New York branch in Chelsea, becoming the latest international dealer to downsize its presence in the city amid a prolonged art market downturn. The Paris-based gallery, founded in 1966 by Daniel Templon, opened its 6,500-square-foot space in 2022 but decided to leave after the landlord demanded a substantial rent hike as the lease neared renewal. Mathieu Templon, who oversaw the New York operation, said the gallery was paying $55,000 a month and that the increase was unsustainable. The closure follows similar moves by London-based galleries Stephen Friedman and Timothy Taylor, which also shuttered New York locations after expanding during the post-pandemic boom.

New photography museum in Cincinnati foregrounds the medium’s democratic power

The FotoFocus Center, a new museum dedicated to photography, has opened in Cincinnati after over three years of construction. Designed by local architect Jose Garcia, the building's three-tone palette of black, white, and sepia references the medium's origins, while its materials blend regional elements (black iron bricks, indigenous woods) with foreign stone from Argentina. The inaugural exhibition, "Big Tent," curated by Kevin Moore, features works by dozens of artists including Gordon Parks, Catherine Opie, and Robert Mapplethorpe, and reflects on American diversity through photography. The 14,700-square-foot museum occupies a former gas station lot and gives the non-profit organization FotoFocus a permanent home for year-round programming.

Mexico City museum with world's richest collection of Kahlo and Rivera works reopens after years of controversy

The Museo Dolores Olmedo in Xochimilco, Mexico City, reopened on May 30 after six years of closure and controversy over a planned relocation. The museum, housed in a former 16th-century hacienda, showcases the world's richest collection of works by Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera, along with founder Dolores Olmedo's pre-Hispanic and popular arts. New galleries highlight Olmedo's private spaces and her decades-long bond with Rivera, including 98 of his works arranged chronologically and Kahlo's iconic painting *The Broken Column* (1944).

Jarvis Cocker’s ‘hodge podge’: Pulp frontman to curate art exhibition

Britpop musician Jarvis Cocker, frontman of the band Pulp, is co-curating an exhibition titled 'The Hodge Podge' at the Hepworth Wakefield in West Yorkshire, opening in May 2027. Working with his wife, creative consultant Kim Sion, Cocker has assembled an eclectic mix of artists including Jeremy Deller, Peter Doig, Barbara Hepworth, and Klara Kristalova, with the show aiming to prompt 'unlikely conversations' between works. The couple have written a manifesto explaining the term 'hodge podge,' which originated in the 15th century, and the exhibition will conclude with a piece called Dreamachine.

Julio Le Parc review – as if Bridget Riley had opened a riotous funfair

Julio Le Parc's retrospective at Tate Modern immerses visitors in the playful, politically charged atmosphere of 1960s Paris. The exhibition features interactive works from Le Parc and his collective GRAV (Groupe de Recherche d'Art Visuel), including spinning discs, mirrored screens, and button-activated kinetic sculptures that invite physical engagement. Le Parc, who died in May 2025 at age 97, sought to subvert the silence and deadness of traditional museums by filling them with noise, action, and democratic play.

New digital archive reconstructs Leonardo da Vinci manuscripts for the first time in four centuries

A new digital archive called Leonardotheka has launched, reuniting thousands of pages from Leonardo da Vinci's manuscripts that were cut apart and separated over 400 years ago. The project merges the Codex Atlanticus, held at the Veneranda Biblioteca Ambrosiana in Milan, with around 550 sheets from the Royal Collection at Windsor, UK. Overseen by Museo Galileo in Florence over ten years, it includes 50 confirmed page reconstructions, such as reuniting a drawing of a horse with text about the Regisole monument. The initiative involved the Royal Collection Trust, the Veneranda Biblioteca Ambrosiana, and the Biblioteca Leonardiana.

AI cultural companion Artlas expands pilots as founder argues institutions need trusted AI tools

Artlas, an AI-powered cultural companion launched in 2025 by former Google engineer Grace Yao, is expanding its pilot programs at institutions including the Mori Art Museum in Tokyo, Dib Bangkok, and the Institute of Contemporary Art Miami. The platform generates personalized audio guides, artwork recognition, navigation, and conversational tools that adapt to visitors' interests, language, time, and knowledge level, supporting over 20 languages. Since December 2025, it has produced more than 25,000 personalized audio guides, offering tailored interpretations of artworks—such as Georges Seurat's *A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte*—for different audiences, from children to specialists.

The Art World’s Quiet Embrace of A.I. Is Not Gender Neutral

Artnet News, in partnership with the Association of Women in the Arts (AWITA), published a series examining gender equity in the art world, including a second annual Hardwiring Change survey. The article reports that 62 percent of over 2,000 arts workers surveyed already use AI tools at work, with ChatGPT the most common entry point. However, research shows AI-driven automation disproportionately threatens women, who are more likely to hold jobs vulnerable to disruption and less likely to be early adopters. The piece highlights how commercial AI startups, like Caroline Taylor's Appraisal Bureau, are entering the art market, but warns that AI models trained on historically biased data risk perpetuating gender discrimination—for example, male artists' works are appraised at 45 percent higher values than female artists'.

Leonardo’s ‘Codex Atlanticus’ Is Complete for the First Time in 400 Years

Florence's Galileo Museum has digitally reunited Leonardo da Vinci's Codex Atlanticus with over 500 pages that were cut from it in the late 16th century, completing the full manuscript for the first time in 400 years. The museum launched Leonardotheka 2.0, adding pages excised by sculptor Pompeo Leoni—now held by the U.K.'s Royal Collection Trust—to the 1,119-page tome owned by Milan's Veneranda Biblioteca Ambrosiana. The reconstruction, which matches dimensions, materials, and watermarks, includes notable reunions such as a drawing of a horse returned to Leonardo's notes on the Regisole monument.

Death of David Hockney

Décès de David Hockney

David Hockney, the influential British artist, has died, as announced on June 12. Born in Bradford in 1937, Hockney studied at the Bradford School of Art and the Royal College of Art, emerging as a key figure in British pop art in the early 1960s. His career defied easy categorization, spanning painting, photography, printmaking, and digital art on the iPhone and iPad. Known for iconic works like "A Bigger Splash" (1967) and "Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures)", he explored themes of desire, friendship, and perception, often challenging traditional perspective through photocollages and composite images. In his later years, he focused on landscapes in Yorkshire and Normandy, culminating in the digital frieze "A Year in Normandie" shown at the Musée de l'Orangerie in 2021.

From Football to the Guggenheim Museum

Du foot au Guggenheim Museum

The article, titled 'Du foot au Guggenheim Museum' (From Football to the Guggenheim Museum), appears in Le Journal des Arts and covers a range of topics in its June 2026 issue. It highlights the Venice Biennale pavilions under tension, Barcelona as a Spanish inn of avant-gardes, the renewed Musée des Augustins, the mystical genius Hilma af Klint who painted for another century, Leonardo Cremonini's troubled light, and Monet's awakening in Le Havre. The issue also includes a subscription offer.

Musée mémoriel du Lot

The article titled 'Musée mémoriel du Lot' appears in Le Journal des Arts, issue number 796, dated June 1, 2026. It features a series of stories including tensions surrounding pavilions in Venice, Barcelona as a Spanish inn of avant-gardes, the renewed splendor of the Musée des Augustins, the mystical genius of Hilma af Klint who painted for another century, Leonardo Cremonini's troubled light, and Monet's awakening in Le Havre.

Normandie Impressionniste 2026, a contemporary escapade in the footsteps of Monet

Normandie Impressionniste 2026, une escapade contemporaine dans les pas de monet

The 6th edition of the Normandie Impressionniste festival, running until September 2026, celebrates the centenary of Claude Monet's death with 75 contemporary art projects across Normandy. For the first time since its creation in 2010, the festival focuses entirely on contemporary art as a tribute to the Impressionist master. Highlights include Ai Weiwei's monumental "Waterlilies" (2022) made from 650,000 Lego pieces each, displayed at the MuMA (Musée d'art moderne André-Malraux) in Le Havre, and the Dutch studio Drift's installation "Meadow" in Rouen's Église Sainte-Croix-des-Pelletiers. The festival spans three key locations tied to Monet's life—Le Havre, Rouen, and Giverny—with works in museums, parks, gardens, churches, and public squares across the Eure, Seine-Maritime, and Calvados departments.

A New Gaudí Museum Will Open in Barcelona

Un nouveau Musée Gaudí ouvrira à Barcelone

The Barcelona city council has announced that a new museum dedicated to Antoni Gaudí will open by 2028 in the Colegio Santa Teresa, one of the architect's earliest buildings, constructed between 1888 and 1890. The announcement comes during the centenary of Gaudí's death (June 10, 1926) and just days before Pope Leo XIV's visit to Barcelona for the inauguration of the Jesus Tower at the Sagrada Família. The museum project, led by architecture firm Arquitectura Genis Planelles and immersive technology company Ingeniería Cultural, will feature virtual reality experiences, physical models, and original documents to explore Gaudí's creative process and spirituality.

A new director in Stockholm

Une nouvelle directrice à Stockholm

The article announces the appointment of a new director at a museum in Stockholm. It is published in Le Journal des Arts, a French art news outlet, and appears in the June 2026 issue (No. 796). The brief headline signals a leadership change at a Stockholm institution, though the full article text is not provided beyond the table of contents listing other stories about the Venice Biennale, Barcelona avant-garde, Musée des Augustins, Hilma af Klint, Leonardo Cremonini, and Monet in Le Havre.

"The world is very, very beautiful if you take the time to look at it": David Hockney or the disappearance of a painter in love with life

« Le monde est très, très beau si l’on prend le temps de le regarder » : David Hockney ou la disparition d’un peintre amoureux de la vie

David Hockney, the iconic British painter known for his vibrant California pool scenes and relentless experimentation, has died at age 88 in London on June 11. The article traces his career from his birth in Bradford in 1937, through his studies at the Royal College of Art, to his breakthrough in 1960s Los Angeles where works like *A Bigger Splash* (1967) and *Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures)* (1972) became emblems of 20th-century art. It notes that the latter sold for $90.3 million at Christie's in 2018, making Hockney the most expensive living artist at auction at that time.

In Le Havre, Ai Weiwei reinvents Monet's 'Water Lilies' with 1.3 million Lego bricks

Au Havre, Ai Weiwei réinvente les « Nymphéas » de Monet en 1,3 million de briques de Lego

At the MuMa museum in Le Havre, France, the Chinese artist Ai Weiwei presents two monumental Lego brick works, "Water Lilies #1" and "Water Lilies #2" (2022), each composed of approximately 650,000 bricks and stretching fifteen meters long. The pieces are shown for the first time in France as part of the Normandie Impressionniste festival and the centenary of Claude Monet's death, directly engaging with Monet's 1904 "Nymphéas" painting in the exhibition "Monet au Havre." The works serve as a personal homage to Ai Weiwei's father, the poet Ai Qing, who discovered Impressionism while studying in France and later, during Maoist persecution, found refuge in the memory of Monet's light.

Nature, sculpture, dance, music… The 20 best summer festivals in France

Nature, sculpture, danse, musique… Les 20 meilleurs festivals de l’été en France

Beaux Arts Magazine presents a curated selection of 20 summer festivals across France for 2026, blending visual art, sculpture, dance, music, and heritage. Highlights include the sixth edition of Normandie Impressionniste, themed 'Un possible jardin' and featuring artists like Ai Weiwei and DRIFT; the 17th edition of Les Hortillonnages in Amiens with floating garden installations; the third Biennale de Bonifacio titled 'Nimu Dormi' with international artists including Pussy Riot; and Le Nouveau Printemps in Toulouse, curated by actress and artist Rossy de Palma. The list also covers dance festivals such as Extension Sauvage in Combourg and Bazouges-la-Pérouse, emphasizing outdoor and site-specific experiences.

These real art thefts that the series 'Berlin' references on Netflix

Ces véritables vols d’œuvres d’art auxquels la série « Berlin » fait référence sur Netflix

Netflix's series *Berlin*, a spin-off of *La Casa de Papel*, has returned for its second and final season, centering on a heist of Leonardo da Vinci's *Lady with an Ermine* (1488). The fictional plot involves replacing the painting with a copy for a secret collection, but the real artwork remains at the National Museum of Krakow, acquired by Poland in 2016. The show also features a fantasy collection of famously stolen masterpieces, including Vermeer's *The Concert*, Rembrandt's *Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee*, and Manet's *Chez Tortoni*—all taken in the 1990 Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum heist—along with Van Gogh's *Poppy Flowers*, Cézanne's *View of Auvers-sur-Oise*, Modigliani's *Woman with a Fan*, and Caravaggio's *Nativity*.

Warhol in Brittany: when the pope of pop art gets his retrospective in a former supermarket

Warhol en Bretagne : quand le pape du pop art fait sa rétrospective dans un ancien supermarché

Andy Warhol is receiving a comprehensive retrospective in an unexpected venue: a former supermarket in Landerneau, Brittany, France. Organized by Amber Morgan, director of collections and exhibitions at The Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, the exhibition brings a majority of works never before seen in France to the site of the first Leclerc supermarket, opened in 1949. Michel-Édouard Leclerc, president of the E.Leclerc retail group, had long dreamed of hosting such a show since opening his Fonds in 2012, which has previously featured Henry Moore, Alberto Giacometti, and Henri Cartier-Bresson. The show is designed for a broad public, opening with biographical material and tracing Warhol's journey from commercial illustration to pop art icon.

In Bangkok, an art scene in full boom

À Bangkok, une scène artistique en plein boom

Dib, Thailand's first major private contemporary art museum, has opened in Bangkok in a converted industrial warehouse. The project was initiated by late businessman and pop star Petch Osathanugrah and completed by his son Chang, a university president and guitarist. Designed by architect Kulapat Yantrasast—a protégé of Tadao Andō who has worked on the Grand Rapids Art Museum and the Met's Rockefeller Wing—the museum features a minimalist restoration with a social piazza, reflective pools, and a James Turrell light installation. Its collection highlights overlooked Thai artists such as Montien Boonma, Somboon Hormtientong, and Surasi Kusolwong, alongside international names like Louise Bourgeois and Anselm Kiefer.