UK National Gallery to recoup £2m a year after completing voluntary redundancy process

The National Gallery in London has successfully reached a target of £2 million in annual savings following a voluntary redundancy program and a recruitment freeze. Initiated in February to address a projected £8.2 million deficit, the voluntary exit scheme allowed the institution to avoid compulsory redundancies among its nearly 500 employees. While the gallery has met its initial savings goal, it must still find ways to bridge a remaining multi-million pound shortfall through non-staff cost reductions.

The Show the Art World Loves to Hate Gets a Soul

The 60th Venice Biennale, titled "Stranieri Ovunque – Foreigners Everywhere," has opened to a polarized reception. Curated by Adriano Pedrosa, it is the first Biennale led by a Latin American curator and heavily features artists from the Global South, Indigenous creators, and queer artists, marking a significant departure from the Eurocentric focus of past editions.

Nat Faulkner: The Stuff of Photography

Artist Nat Faulkner has opened a new exhibition at Camden Art Centre featuring works that explore the physical and chemical foundations of photography. The show includes large-scale photographic pieces like 'Aqua Fortis' and sculptural works such as 'Aperture (Iodine)', which uses iodine solution in skylight panels to bathe the space in amber light, alongside silver-plated 'Analogue' reliefs created through electroplating.

Rare Rauschenberg Experimental Dance Revived at Brooklyn Roller Rink

The Trisha Brown Dance Company is reviving Robert Rauschenberg's first choreographed dance, 'Pelican,' for the first time in 60 years. The single-night performance will take place at the vintage Xanadu roller rink in Brooklyn as part of a 'Pelican Gala,' which also features two long-unseen dances by Trisha Brown. The event coincides with the centennial of Rauschenberg's birth.

Miart Turns 30 With a Bigger, Bolder Edition in Milan

Miart, Milan's international modern and contemporary art fair, is launching its 30th-anniversary edition in a new, larger venue, the Allianz MiCo South Wing. The 2026 edition, themed "New Directions: Miart, but different," will host 160 galleries from 24 countries across three levels, featuring sections like Emergent for new voices, Established for historical dialogue, and a special film project called Movements.

€1m Picasso painting to be won for €100 in charity raffle

A charity raffle in France is offering participants the chance to win a 1941 Pablo Picasso portrait, 'Tête de Femme', for the price of a €100 ticket. The initiative aims to sell up to 120,000 tickets to raise funds for the Alzheimer’s Research Foundation in Paris, with the painting's current owner, Opera Gallery, receiving €1m from the proceeds. The artwork will be displayed at Christie’s in Paris ahead of the drawing.

Made in Fire Island: how artists were at the heart of the LGBTQ+ mecca

A new book titled 'Fire Island Art: 100 Years' chronicles the century-long, integral relationship between artists and the LGBTQ+ community on Fire Island. The book, edited by John Dempsey, traces the creative legacy from pre-war artists like Paul Cadmus to modern figures, highlighting how the island's unique environment fostered both sexual and artistic freedom.

Michael Armitage in Venice, monumental and disturbing. What the exhibition at Palazzo Grassi looks like

Michael Armitage is the subject of a major solo retrospective at Palazzo Grassi in Venice, marking his largest exhibition in Europe to date. Organized by the Pinault Collection, the show features monumental paintings that blend African identity, local Kenyan chronicles, and mythological narratives. Armitage’s work is noted for its physical scale and its ability to transform the chaos of human affairs into a syncretic epic, utilizing traditional materials like Lubugo bark cloth to ground his contemporary subjects.

A Century of Esoteric and Occult Artistry in “A Queer Arcana” at Palm Springs Art Museum

The Palm Springs Art Museum has unveiled "A Queer Arcana," an ambitious exhibition exploring the intersection of LGBTQ+ culture, occultism, and esoteric spirituality. Spanning the 20th and 21st centuries, the show features a diverse array of media—including a major four-banner commission by the collective Hilma’s Ghost—and is organized into thematic sections such as Tarot, Sex Magick, and healing. The project emerged from the museum’s Q+Art initiative, a unique program dedicated to queer art histories within a general art museum context.

Artist and Filmmaker Steve McQueen Wins $172,000 Erasmus Prize

British artist and filmmaker Steve McQueen has been awarded the 2024 Erasmus Prize by the Dutch Praemium Erasmianum Foundation. The prize includes a cash award of 150,000 euros (approximately $172,000) and a specially designed booklet featuring the script of the 16th-century scholar Desiderius Erasmus.

Sinners, Maurizio Cattelan Is Taking Confession

Maurizio Cattelan has launched a participatory artwork and sales campaign titled 'The Confessional,' where people can call a hotline to submit their sins for his consideration. Selected participants will be invited to a livestreamed event on April 23 where Cattelan, acting as a priest, will absolve them. The project is tied to the re-release of his controversial 1999 sculpture 'La Nona Ora,' a miniature wax figure of Pope John Paul II struck by a meteorite.

Christie’s to hold its first South Asian Modern art sale in London in seven years

Christie's auction house is launching a major sale titled 'Sublime Shadows' in London on June 11, featuring 93 works of South Asian Modern and contemporary art from an anonymous private collection. This marks the auction house's first dedicated South Asian Modern art sale in London since 2019, highlighting a surge in market activity and curatorial interest for the category.

Marcel Duchamp & Sturtevant | Dialogues are mostly fried snowballs

Thaddaeus Ropac Milan is hosting a landmark exhibition titled "Dialogues are mostly fried snowballs," marking the first-ever joint presentation of Marcel Duchamp and Sturtevant. The show stages a cerebral confrontation between Duchamp’s original readymades, such as "Porte-bouteilles" and "Trébuchet," and Sturtevant’s radical repetitions of his work. By showcasing these pieces alongside archival materials and films, the exhibition traces how Sturtevant used Duchamp’s style as a medium to investigate the canonization and "understructure" of conceptual art.

Pioneering Modernist Fahrelnissa Zeid Returns to the Spotlight in London

The Turkish-Jordanian modernist Fahrelnissa Zeid is the subject of a new solo exhibition titled "Immersion" at Dirimart London, curated by art historian Adila Laïdi-Hanieh. This marks the artist's first gallery solo show in the United Kingdom this century, featuring several works from her estate that have never been publicly exhibited. The selection spans various periods of her career, highlighting her transition from monumental geometric abstractions to her late-career expressionist portraits.

Why Beatriz González’s Haunting Paintings Are More Relevant Than Ever

Why Beatriz González’s Haunting Paintings Are More Relevant Than Ever

A major retrospective of Colombian artist Beatriz González, "Beatriz González: A Retrospective," is touring internationally, with recent stops at the Pérez Art Museum Miami and the Museo de Arte Miguel Urrutia in Bogotá. The exhibition, the largest of her 60-year career, showcases over 150 works, including her iconic paintings that appropriate and rework images from art history and mass media to critique political violence, social inequality, and cultural memory in Colombia.

Opportunities in April 2026

Hyperallergic has published its monthly list of opportunities for artists, writers, and art workers, featuring a curated selection of upcoming deadlines for residencies, fellowships, grants, and open calls. The list includes programs from institutions like the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, the Center for Craft, the Tulsa Artist Fellowship, and Light Work, offering financial support, studio space, and community.

Artists Set Islamic Futurism Into Motion

A growing movement of artists is exploring Islamic Futurism, a framework that draws from Islamic philosophy, visual traditions, and speculative practices to imagine Muslim futures. Artists like Zarah Hussain, Ibrahim El-Salahi, and Soraya Syed are working across mediums—including light installation, digital animation, painting, and classical calligraphy—to reinterpret historical forms for contemporary and future contexts.

Brian Eno and 200+ Artists Urge British Museum to “Stop Erasing Palestine”

Brian Eno and 200+ Artists Urge British Museum to “Stop Erasing Palestine”

Over 200 artists and cultural groups, led by musician Brian Eno, have published an open letter demanding the British Museum stop what they call the "erasure of Palestine." The letter accuses the museum of altering wall texts in its Middle East Galleries, such as replacing "Palestinian descent" with "Canaanite descent," following pressure from the pro-Israel group UK Lawyers for Israel. The signatories also criticize the institution's past ties to the Israeli embassy and sponsor BP, issuing demands for an expert review of labels and an apology for hosting an Israeli embassy gala.

Hauser & Wirth Partner Cristopher Canizares Departs to Start Artist Agency

Cristopher Canizares, a longtime partner at mega-gallery Hauser & Wirth, is departing after 16 years to launch his own venture, the Artist Legacy Bureau. This new agency will function as an artist management firm, with Canizares working directly for and being paid by a select group of five or six artists to advise on long-term career strategy across their gallery, institutional, and collector relationships.

Monumental Bellini Altarpiece Undergoes Major Restoration in Public View

Giovanni Bellini's monumental 15th-century altarpiece, the San Giobbe altarpiece, is undergoing its most extensive restoration in over 500 years at the Gallerie dell'Accademia in Venice. Deemed too fragile to move, the two-year, €500,000 project will stabilize the cracked wood panel and analyze pigments using advanced imaging, all performed behind glass in full public view.

Rare Letter Reveals Cash-Strapped Monet Once Put His Paintings Up as Collateral

A rare 1875 letter from Claude Monet, up for auction on March 25, reveals the artist secured a 1,000-franc loan by pledging 35 of his paintings as collateral. The document details his agreement to repay the loan from the proceeds of a future sale, listing specific works including the later-famous 'La Japonaise,' and highlights his persistent financial desperation during this period.

Dealers express concern over Singapore fair merger

During Singapore Art Week, the merger of the boutique fair S.E.A. Focus into the larger Art SG fair sparked quiet concern among some participants. Dealers worry the move is a precursor to S.E.A. Focus being absorbed entirely, potentially sidelining its regional focus and making participation more expensive for Southeast Asian galleries. The future of the Singapore Biennale was also debated after a local newspaper article called for its termination.

Tristan Unrau at David Kordansky Gallery

The article is a table of contents for Issue 43 of Contemporary Art Review LA, highlighting a feature on artist Tristan Unrau's exhibition at David Kordansky Gallery. The issue includes a range of critical essays, interviews, and reviews covering topics from olfactory art and tarot to social urgency in curation and video art, with a specific focus on the Los Angeles art scene.

Jacqueline Humphries at Aspen Art Museum

The Aspen Art Museum is presenting a solo exhibition of new and recent paintings by Jacqueline Humphries, curated by Daniel Merritt. The show runs from December 12, 2025, to April 5, 2026, and is extensively documented with 64 installation images.

Tourmaline at Australian Centre for Contemporary Art

A major solo exhibition of work by the celebrated artist and activist Tourmaline has opened at the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art in Melbourne. Titled "Transcendent," the show is curated by Sophie Prince and runs from December 12, 2025, through March 15, 2026. It features new and existing works, including film, photography, and archival installations that explore themes of Black trans history, joy, and liberation.

Toleen Touq to curate next MOMENTA Biennale

MOMENTA Biennale d’art contemporain in Montreal has appointed curator and educator Toleen Touq to organize its 20th edition, scheduled for 2027. The biennial will be titled 'The Long Now' and will focus on interrogating concepts of time and duration.

Jeamin Cha wins Hermès Foundation Missulsang

Jeamin Cha wins Hermès Foundation Missulsang

Korean media artist Jeamin Cha has been awarded the 21st Missulsang prize by the Hermès Foundation. She will receive KRW 30 million and production support for a solo exhibition at Atelier Hermès in Seoul, opening in May 2027.

Our 5 Favorite Gallery Exhibitions to See This Spring in Paris

Nos 5 expos coups de cœur à voir en galeries ce printemps à Paris

Paris is experiencing a vibrant gallery season this spring, marked by the arrival of major international players and the rediscovery of overlooked artists. Highlights include the opening of Singapore’s Cuturi Gallery at the Palais-Royal with a cross-disciplinary show on decadence, and the London-based Waddington Custot establishing a new space in Saint-Germain-des-Prés with an exhibition bridging Nabis masters and contemporary painters. Other notable shows include a first-ever public look at the surrealist collages of Roland Sig and a dialogue between neo-impressionism and contemporary art at Galerie Pavec.

Masterpieces of Art Modeled and Printed in Ultra-High Definition: The Challenge Met by LITO

Des chefs-d’œuvre de l’art modélisés et imprimés en très haute définition : le défi relevé par LITO

Beaux Arts Magazine partnered with the Austrian printing and publishing company LITO to stage a challenge at its 500th-issue launch party. Guests were asked to identify the authentic 15th-century painting by Giovanni Bellini's circle from among four seemingly identical works, three of which were ultra-high-definition reproductions created by LITO. The company's patented modeling and printing technology replicates the texture of brushstrokes, varnish sheen, canvas grain, and even craquelure with unprecedented precision.

50 Women Artists You Absolutely Should Know

50 artistes femmes que vous devriez absolument connaître

Beaux Arts Magazine is publishing a multi-part series throughout March highlighting 50 historically significant but often overlooked women artists. The series profiles figures like Impressionist painter Marie Bracquemond, whose career was curtailed by her husband, pioneering Spanish photographer Mey Rahola, and Brazilian modernist Tarsila do Amaral, who will be the subject of a major exhibition at the Musée du Luxembourg in 2024.