Greece Introduces New Law to Combat Art Forgery and Vandalism

Greece has enacted a landmark legislative framework specifically designed to combat art forgery, vandalism, and the trade of counterfeit cultural property. The new law introduces stringent criminal penalties, including prison sentences of up to ten years and fines reaching €300,000, while mandating the destruction of works confirmed as fakes. Key provisions include the creation of an independent registry of forgery experts under the culture ministry and the expansion of legal protections to include historically significant cinemas.

The Biennale releases the rules for voting on the Visitors' Lions while many artists and pavilions renounce competing for the prizes

La Biennale diffonde il regolamento per votare i Leoni dei Visitatori mentre molti artisti e padiglioni rinunciano a concorrere ai premi

The 61st Venice Biennale has opened to the public, introducing a controversial new voting system for the Golden Lions. After the entire jury resigned en masse on April 30, the Biennale decided to let the public decide the winners of the so-called "Leoni dei Visitatori" (Visitors' Lions). Voting is open from May 9 to November 22, 2026, and requires ticket holders to visit both main venues (Giardini and Arsenale) to receive a voting link. One vote per person is allowed for each of two categories: an artist in the main international exhibition "In Minor Keys" curated by Koyo Kouoh, and a national pavilion.

The 2026 Venice Biennale is light and conscious

Quella del 2026 è una Biennale di Venezia leggera e consapevole

The 2026 Venice Biennale, titled "In Minor Keys" and curated by the late Koyo Kouoh, has opened with a focus on ecology and humanity's relationship with nature. The central pavilion at the Giardini presents a festive, craft-heavy exhibition that emphasizes connections with plants and animals, while the Arsenale offers a more spacious, symphonic experience featuring standout works such as Alfredo Jaar's "End of the World" (2023-2024) and Kader Attia's "Whisper of Traces" (2026). National pavilions, including those of Austria, Denmark, France, Germany, and Spain, explore themes of the body, memory, and ruin with notable installations.

Since 1968, Protests Have Revealed the Real Impact of the Venice Biennale

The article recounts the 1968 protests at the Venice Biennale, where artists, students, and activists clashed with police over the event's perceived ties to bourgeois power and capitalist commodification. It draws parallels to the 2024 Biennale, where groups like Art Not Genocide Alliance, Pussy Riot, and Femen demonstrated against the participation of Russia and Israel, while artists staged strikes and performances like the Solidarity Drone Chorus to highlight the Gaza conflict.

A Rococo Snuffbox for Cleveland

Une tabatière rocaille pour Cleveland

The Cleveland Museum of Art has acquired a rare gold and lapis-lazuli snuffbox (tabatière) by the Rococo master Juste-Aurèle Meissonnier, dated 1728-1729. The box, which bears Meissonnier's hallmark and the coat of arms of Marie-Anne de Neubourg (widow of King Charles II of Spain), was likely made for her during her long exile in Bayonne. It will be a centerpiece of the museum's upcoming exhibition "Juste-Aurèle Meissonnier: Rococo Goldsmith in Focus," opening in October.

Deux sculptures de la Roldana préemptées par l'Espagne

Spain has preempted two polychrome terracotta sculptures by Luisa Roldán, known as La Roldana, at an Abalarte auction on December 5, 2025. The works, *La Fuite en Égypte* and *L’Éducation de la Vierge*, each sold for €335,500 including fees. *La Fuite en Égypte* has been acquired by the Museo del Prado in Madrid, while *L’Éducation de la Vierge* has gone to the Museo Nacional de Escultura in Valladolid.

Between Ritual and Institution: Andrea Canepa's Interventions in Spain

ENTRE EL RITO Y LA INSTITUCIÓN: LAS INTERVENCIONES DE ANDREA CANEPA EN ESPAÑA

Andrea Canepa, a Peruvian artist born in 1980, has installed "Fardo" at the Palacio de Cristal in Madrid's Parque del Retiro, running from January 13, 2026 to January 1, 2027. The work wraps the building's perimeter in a printed fabric bearing patterns from Paracas funerary textiles, a pre-Columbian culture from southern Peru. Created during the palace's ongoing restoration (which began in 2023), the installation challenges the building's colonial history—it was built for the 1887 Exhibition of the Philippine Islands—by introducing indigenous visual and ritual references. Canepa also presented "Entre lo profundo y lo distante" at the IVAM in Valencia until April 12, 2026, which uses Andean huacas (sacred spaces) to propose a non-linear relationship between time, body, and space. Both works transform passive contemplation into active, bodily participation, using ritual as a means to reorganize the exhibition experience.

Exhibition | Erwin Olaf, 'Against Time' at Baró Galeria, Palma, Spain

Baró Galeria presents 'Against Time', an exhibition of Dutch photographer Erwin Olaf's still life photographs at its Next Door space in Palma, Mallorca, Spain. Opening on May 25, 2026, the show is part of the inaugural Mallorca PhotoFest, an international photography festival. The exhibition focuses on Olaf's small-format flower photographs made between 2006 and 2021, exploring themes of time, finitude, and photography as a trace of disappearance. An essay by Esmeralda Gómez Galera accompanies the show.

'David Macho, Juan Narowé' at Alzueta Gallery, Madrid, Spain on 7 May–8 Jun 2026

The Alzueta Gallery in Madrid will present a two-person exhibition featuring artists David Macho and Juan Narowé from May 7 to June 8, 2026. The show highlights the work of these two contemporary artists, bringing their practices to a significant gallery platform in the Spanish capital.

Spain’s galleries are protesting against high taxes—can Arco Madrid help voice their concerns?

The 45th edition of Arco Madrid, Spain’s premier contemporary art fair, is set to host 206 galleries from 36 countries at the Ifema convention centre. While the fair remains a vital commercial hub, it is currently overshadowed by a nationwide protest from Spanish galleries against the country's 21% VAT on art purchases. This tax rate is among the highest in Europe, significantly outpacing neighbors like Portugal and France, leading to concerns about international competitiveness and the classification of contemporary art as a luxury elite product.

Catalonia Sues Aragón for €791,000 for Repayment Over Restitution of 56 Artworks

The Catalan government has formally demanded €791,000 (approximately $920,000) from the Aragonese government to recoup costs related to the value and upkeep of 56 artworks from the Royal Monastery of Santa María de Sigena. The works were removed from the monastery in 1936 for safekeeping during the Spanish Civil War, and Spain's Supreme Court ruled in 2021 that they must be returned to Aragón. Of the 56 pieces, 12 were held at the National Art Museum of Catalonia and 44 at the Diocesan Museum of Lleida. The Catalan government has given Aragón 30 days to negotiate a settlement before returning to court.

Barcelona museum refuses to return Sijena murals to monastery

The Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya (MNAC) in Barcelona is refusing to comply with a Spanish Supreme Court order to return the 12th-century Sijena murals to their original monastery in Aragón. Tensions escalated after the museum hosted a listening party for pop star Rosalía in the same hall where the Romanesque masterpieces are housed, leading to accusations from the municipality of Villanueva de Sijena that the museum is endangering the fragile works. MNAC director Pepe Serra has dismissed these concerns as scientifically unfounded, sparking threats of a defamation lawsuit from local officials.

Remnants of 3,400-Year-Old Loom in Spain Sheds Light on Bronze Age Textile Production

Archaeologists in Spain have published new research on a remarkably preserved 3,450-year-old wooden loom, discovered in 2008 at the Cabezo Redondo site. The loom survived because a fire destroyed the surrounding Bronze Age village and a roof collapsed on it, charring and protecting the wood from decay. This rare find includes over 200 lightweight loom weights, suggesting the community was engaged in intensive production of delicate wool textiles.

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Cecilia Giménez Zueco, the amateur Spanish painter who became a global sensation after her botched 2012 restoration of a 1930 fresco of Christ, has died at age 94. The mural, Ecce Homo by Elías García Martínez, was housed in a church in Borja, Spain; Giménez’s unsanctioned touch turned Christ’s face into a monkey-like image, spawning the nickname "Beast Jesus" and a wave of online memes.

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Libya’s National Museum, also known as the Red Castle Museum (As-Saraya Al-Hamra), has reopened in Tripoli for the first time since the 2011 revolution that ended Muammar el-Qaddafi’s rule. The museum, the largest in North Africa, closed at the onset of Libya’s military instability during the Arab Spring. Its 10,000-square-meter gallery houses artifacts spanning prehistory through Greek, Roman, and Islamic periods, including millennia-old mummies. Renovations began in 2023, with a full public reopening scheduled for early 2026; currently admission is limited to students.

Amid Urban Spaces, Alex Senna’s Bold Murals Embrace Connection and Belonging

Brazilian artist Alex Senna creates large-scale, black-and-white murals that depict figures gathering, interacting, and connecting with their own shadows. His work, often set against colorful urban backdrops, emphasizes themes of community, emotional bonds, togetherness, and belonging.

First Zurbarán exhibition at the National Gallery

The National Gallery in London has opened the first monographic exhibition in the UK dedicated to Francisco de Zurbarán, a leading 17th-century Spanish painter. The show brings together exceptional loans from public and private collections across the UK, Europe, and the United States, including works displayed together for the first time in over a century. Highlights include life-size depictions of saints, soaring altarpieces, and contemplative still lifes, with the exhibition running until 23 August.

SOLO CSV Is a New Madrid Art Venue That Should Be On Your Radar

SOLO CSV, a new art venue in Madrid, Spain, has opened as part of the international SOLO arts project led by Ana Gervás and David Cantolla. The space, located near Parque del Oeste, was transformed from a 4,000-square-meter former printworks by Spanish architecture firm Estudio Herreros into an unconventional art labyrinth. Its inaugural exhibition at the Bowman Hal gallery featured William Mackinnon, followed by Aaron Johnson's current show 'WE ALL SHINE ON.' The venue also houses the SOLO arts incubator, including the ONKAOS digital arts initiative, a conservation lab, and the newly announced Movimiento 37 program.

Monica Rodriguez: Californiana

Monica Rodriguez's exhibition "Californiana" at the de Saisset Museum explores the colonization of California from 1542 to 1846, focusing on the missionization period (1769–1833) when Native Californians were forced into labor within the Alta California Mission system. The installation features twenty-one adobe bells planted with native California plants, architectural plans, and photorealist drawings of historical texts from the Mission Library Collection, all critiquing the colonial mindset and its enduring impact on the land and people.

Condemned by Francoism, a writer rehabilitated by the Spanish Congress

Condamné par le franquisme, un écrivain réhabilité par le Congrès espagnol

The Spanish Congress has officially rehabilitated Cipriano Salvador (1894-1975), a Republican intellectual wrongly accused by the Franco regime of stealing a Renaissance painting he actually saved. During the Spanish Civil War, Salvador hid Fernando Yáñez's "La Santa Generación" (c. 1525-1532) from destruction. After Franco's victory, a priest sold the work to the Prado Museum for 15,000 pesetas, while Salvador was arrested, sentenced to death (later commuted to 30 years), and spent seven years in prison. He died in 1975 without exoneration. The rehabilitation motion passed with 32 votes in favor, 3 against, and 1 abstention, with only far-right party Vox opposing.

‘He always had spirituality’: Spanish exhibition unpicks Picasso's religious influences

The cathedral of Burgos in Spain is hosting "Picasso: Biblical Roots," the first-ever exhibition of Pablo Picasso’s work to be held within a cathedral setting. Featuring 44 works, the show explores how the artist’s Catholic upbringing and religious iconography influenced his oeuvre, despite his self-proclaimed atheism. The exhibition includes early devotional paintings, Renaissance-inspired depictions of the Crucifixion, and secular adaptations of the Virgin and Child and the Good Shepherd.

Sotheby's auction: Works of five Bangladesh artists cross all expectations

Sotheby’s held a “Modern and Contemporary South Asian Art” auction in London, where seven works by five Bangladeshi masters—Zainul Abedin, Shahid Kabir, Mohammad Kibria, Rashid Choudhury, and Kalidas Karmakar—were sold, exceeding pre-sale estimates. A painting by Zainul Abedin fetched £50,800 against an estimate of £15,000–£20,000, while three works by Shahid Kabir sold for £53,340, far above the £7,500–£9,500 estimate. Artists Shahid Kabir and Kalidas Karmakar appeared at a Sotheby’s auction for the first time, and seven new records were set overall, including for Kabir, Karmakar, Francis Newton Souza, Ganesh Pyne, Laxman Shrestha, Laxman Pai, and Adeela Suleman.

Italy's art police seize 21 suspected forgeries from Dalí exhibition

Italian art police, the Carabinieri TPC, seized 21 suspected forgeries attributed to Salvador Dalí from the exhibition "Dalí, Between Art and Myth" at Palazzo Tarasconi in Parma. The works, including 18 lithographs and three drawings, were among 80 pieces on display. A Rome court ordered the seizure after Dalí experts in Spain and the Gala-Salvador Dalí Foundation expressed doubts about their authenticity. The investigation began with a routine check in January, and the Carabinieri waited until the show opened to confiscate the works, which were loaned by two Italian individuals. The exhibition was organized by Navigare company and had previously run at Rome's Historical Museum of the Italian Army Infantry.

Cutting and Pasting: The Art of Collage on Display at Beverly Arts Center

The Beverly Arts Center in Chicago is hosting "RE-BOP! (Obstructions & Disruptions)," a group exhibition dedicated to the art of collage. Curated by Paloma Trecka and Todd Bartel, the show features nearly 60 artists from Ireland, Spain, the Netherlands, and across the U.S., including prominent local artist Tony Fitzpatrick, who originally conceived the exhibition. The works range from traditional cut-paper pieces to digital collages, with many exploring themes of improvisation, rhythm, and disruption. The exhibition was organized with help from the Beverly Arts Alliance and the participatory magazine Cut Me Up, which issued an open call that drew 150 submissions.

Italian art convinces, international art surprises

Sotheby's and Il Ponte held Modern and Contemporary art auctions in Milan at the end of May, achieving strong results for Italian 20th-century icons and international art. Sotheby's sale on 28 May featured 93 lots, 80 of which were auction debuts, and closed at approximately €11.4 million with a 90% sell-through rate. Top lots included Lucio Fontana's 'Concetto Spaziale, Attese' (1968), which sold for €1.56 million, and works by Giorgio de Chirico, Emilio Vedova, and Alighiero Boetti that far exceeded their high estimates. International highlights included Robert Indiana's 'Decade Autoportrait' selling for €245,000 and Willis Baumeister's 'Moby Dick' setting a record for the artist in Italy.

Walt Disney Animation Studios Fêtes Female Animation Talent at Animayo

Walt Disney Animation Studios is presenting a special exhibition titled "Whimsy & Wonder" at the Animayo festival in Gran Canaria, Spain, from May 7-10, 2025. The exhibition honors female talent in animation, featuring works by trailblazing color stylist Mary Blair and six contemporary female artists from the studio: Lorelay Bové, Lisa Keene, Brittney Lee, Griselda Sastrawinata-Lemay, Josie Trinidad, and Fawn Veerasunthorn. The show includes art from films such as "Frozen," "Encanto," "Moana 2," and "The Princess and the Frog." Animayo, an Oscar-qualifying animation festival, is celebrating its 20th anniversary with Disney as an official sponsor.

At the 2026 Venice Biennale, Spain transforms its Pavilion into a museum of accumulation with artist Oriol Vilanova

Alla Biennale Arte 2026 la Spagna trasforma il suo Padiglione in museo dell’accumulo con l’artista Oriol Vilanova

Spain has announced its participation in the 61st Venice Biennale Arte 2026, selecting Catalan artist Oriol Vilanova to represent the country in its newly renovated national pavilion. The project, titled "Los restos," transforms the pavilion into a pseudo-museum of accumulation, featuring Vilanova's vast personal archive of postcards collected over twenty years from flea markets and secondhand circuits. The installation presents these ephemeral fragments as an infinite, non-narrative mural, exploring themes of accumulation and loss. Curated by Carles Guerra, the project also includes a performative intervention titled "Il fantasma della libertà" (2026), which will unfold across the Giardini and Arsenale during the Biennale.

A Baroque Too Baroque: Reflections on the Colossal Exhibition in Forlì

Un Barocco troppo barocco. Riflessioni sulla colossale mostra di Forlì

A massive exhibition titled "Barocco: il gran teatro delle idee" (Baroque: The Grand Theater of Ideas) is on view at the Museo Civico San Domenico in Forlì, Italy. The show, curated by a committee of six, ambitiously attempts to define the Baroque across the 17th and 18th centuries, extending its scope to include France and Spain, and even suggesting its echoes in the 20th century. It features approximately 300 works, including paintings, sculptures, and decorative arts.

Japanese artist Mari Ito debuts in India with bold, thought-provoking exhibition

Japanese contemporary artist Mari Ito has opened her first solo exhibition in India, titled 'Origin of Desire,' at Bikaner House in New Delhi. The show features recent paintings and a large-scale installation created between 2024 and the present, exploring themes of identity, resistance, and the human body. Ito's practice is rooted in Nihonga, a classical Japanese painting technique using mineral pigments and sumi ink on washi paper or silk, which she blends with contemporary subject matter. A highlight is the installation 'Flowers Blooming in Defiance of the Bombs,' previously shown in Spain and reimagined for the Indian context. The exhibition is supported by Galerie Geek Art, which aims to connect Asian contemporary artists with Indian audiences.

Oviedo to host the world's first philosophy museum

Oviedo accueillera le premier musée de philosophie au monde

The Gustavo Bueno Foundation has announced plans to open the world's first museum of philosophy in Oviedo, Spain, scheduled for January 2027. Housed in the historic Miñor sanatorium, the institution will serve as a physical extension of the Oviedo School of Philosophy, focusing on the "philosophical materialism" developed by the late thinker Gustavo Bueno. The museum aims to move beyond academic circles to engage the general public in critical thinking and the rigorous analysis of social structures.