Museum diplomacy in action at ICOM UK 2026: museums in a changing world

ICOM UK hosted its 2026 annual conference in Oxford, bringing together delegates from over 20 countries to explore the theme of 'Museum Diplomacy.' Keynote speaker Dr. Sascha Priewe of the Aga Khan Museum and ICOM Canada framed the current geopolitical moment as a 'GZERO World,' where no country is willing or able to lead globally, and discussed how sanctions, export controls, and shifting alliances are straining international museum collaborations. Sessions featured case studies from the Science Museum Group and International Arts & Artists, emphasizing that trust and networks, not grand gestures, are essential for enduring partnerships.

5 Artists to See at Converge 45

New York curator Lumi Tan has organized the 2026 Converge 45 triennial in Portland, Oregon, titled "Here, To You, Now." Running from August 27 across more than 15 venues, the triennial prioritizes performances and time-based artworks over traditional gallery exhibitions, featuring both local and visiting artists. Tan, whose background includes stints at the Kitchen, Luna Luna, and Frieze New York, selected five standout artists: Lex Brown (presenting an operatic video and installation), Trisha Baga (a 3D video installation about AI and parenting), Rose Salane (archival works involving Princess Diana’s shoes), and Linda K. Johnson (a choreographer mapping Portland’s dance network).

Art Top 5: May 2026

The article presents a curated list of five notable art exhibitions in the Chicago area for May 2026. Highlights include a solo show of monumental sculptures by Dr. Charles Smith at the Intuit Art Museum, exploring anti-monumentalism and African American historical representation; a 50th-anniversary group exhibition at Zolla/Lieberman Gallery featuring over 140 artists; and a two-part cosmic-themed group show at the Renaissance Society. Other featured shows include drawings by late Imagist Suellen Rocca at Corbett vs. Dempsey and a waterscape-themed group exhibition at Grove Gallery in Evanston.

Bridges of Belonging: Cinco de Mayo Art Reception

A free reception for the exhibition “Bridges of Belonging: Cinco de Mayo, Bi-National Identity, and the Spirit of Chignahuapan” will be held on May 1 at the Clark County Government Center Rotunda Gallery in Las Vegas. The event, themed “Puentes de Pertenencia,” features live music, cultural performances, visual arts, and food, with the exhibit on display through May 28.

Exhibition | Lee Mingwei, 'Lorsque la Beauté Paraît' at Perrotin, Paris Marais, France

Perrotin gallery in Paris is presenting 'When Beauty Appears', the second solo exhibition by Taiwanese artist Lee Mingwei and his first at the gallery's Paris location. The show features seven interactive works created between 1995 and 2025, including 'La fleur en chemin (The Moving Garden)', 'The Mending Project', and 'The Copyist’s Paradox', which invite visitors to engage directly with the art through simple gestures like offering a flower or mending an object.

Bones in the Canal and Other Photographs

David Kordansky Gallery in New York is presenting 'Bones in the Canal and Other Photographs,' a solo exhibition of new work by Norwegian artist Torbjørn Rødland. This marks his first New York gallery show in nearly a decade. The exhibition features two distinct series, including a significant new body of smaller-format 35mm photographs that represent a major shift in his 30-year practice. The show runs from March 12 to April 25, 2026, at the gallery's West 20th Street location.

Mojave Shadows: Reception and Curator's Talk

The Nevada Humanities Program Gallery is hosting a reception and curator's talk for the exhibition "Mojave Shadows." The event, scheduled for Tuesday, April 14, offers the public an opportunity to engage directly with the curatorial vision behind the show, which explores regional themes through a specific lens of light and landscape.

At the Venice Biennale, the Cuba Pavilion presents "Hombres Libres" by Roberto Diago

The Republic of Cuba has announced its participation in the 61st Venice Biennale with a solo exhibition by artist Roberto Diago titled "Hombres Libres" (Free Man). Curated by Nelson Ramirez de Arellano Conde and located at Il Giardino Bianco, the installation features a series of sculptural heads crafted from salvaged materials like oxidized metal, wood, and plastic. These works, characterized by prominent surface scars, are designed to confront viewers and provoke a dialogue about the enduring nature of memory and dignity.

‘I don’t take advice on collecting. If I don’t like, I don’t buy’: Tariq Al Jaidah on his approach to acquiring art

Qatari patron and dealer Tariq Al Jaidah is a pivotal figure in building a grassroots commercial art market in Qatar. He opened the country's first commercial gallery, Waqif Art Centre, in 2007, later established the non-profit Katara Art Centre, and most recently founded the commercial gallery Wusum in 2023 to showcase emerging Qatari artists and cultivate young local collectors. He advocates for more private museums, foundations, and corporate collecting to create a self-sustaining ecosystem beyond the state-run institutions.

Humid Traces

Humid Traces, curated by Federico Pérez Villoro, is an exhibition at an unnamed New York venue that examines how bodies of water are weaponized as borders amid climate change and extreme weather. The show features international artists—including Dele Adeyemo, Natalia Lassalle-Morillo, Zishaan A Latif, Caio Reisewitz, Susan Schuppli, Marisa Srijunpleang, Studio Folder, and Leonel Vásquez—whose works in installation, sound, photography, video, and data visualization reveal the violent effects of migration-control technologies and water's material memory.

'We can imagine alternatives to the present': Cannupa Hanska Luger on his exhibition at the Joslyn Art Museum

Cannupa Hanska Luger's exhibition 'Dripping Earth' at the Joslyn Art Museum in Omaha, Nebraska, runs until March 8, 2026. The show explores Indigenous futurity through material and conceptual responses to 19th-century watercolors by Swiss artist Karl Bodmer, who documented Luger's ancestral Mandan, Hidatsa, Arikara, and Lakota communities during an 1832-1834 expedition. Luger's works include speculative lithographs, a giant buffalo-shaped abacus, and hand-woven bison regalia, addressing colonization's violent legacy and the unreliability of colonial archives.

Conduit Gallery Announces Move to New Dallas Design District Location

Conduit Gallery, a contemporary art gallery in Dallas, announced it will move to a new location at 1845 East Levee Street in the Dallas Design District in January 2026, after 25 years at its current space on Hi Line Drive. The gallery will share a building with Cris Worley Fine Art, in the former home of Holly Johnson Gallery, which closed earlier this year. The move comes as the gallery celebrates its 40th anniversary, having been founded in 1984 with a focus on emerging and nationally recognized artists, particularly those working in Texas.

At Frieze London, a new section explores the flow of cultural influence between Africa and Brazil

Frieze London 2025 introduces a new curated section titled "Echoes in the Present," organized by Nigerian art historian Jareh Das. The section features eight galleries and ten artists, exploring the bidirectional cultural influences between Africa and Brazil, rooted in the history of the transatlantic slave trade. Artists such as Bunmi Agusto present works that delve into personal and collective histories, including Agusto's paintings about her great-great-grandfather, a Nigerian man sold into slavery who later returned home. The section builds on recent exhibitions like "Afro-Atlantic Histories" and "Brazil and Africa: a shared history," which have similarly examined the African diaspora's impact on Brazilian culture.

At the Atlanta Art Fair's second edition, the city showed its strengths

The Atlanta Art Fair returned for its second edition from September 25-28, 2024, at Pullman Yards in the Kirkwood neighborhood, produced by events firm AMP. The fair hosted 75 local, national, and international galleries and arts organizations, drawing around 3,500 attendees to its VIP preview and opening night. Exhibitors and organizers were more acclimated to the space than in the debut year, with a more relaxed and confident atmosphere. The fair highlighted Atlanta's unique cultural identity, emphasizing friendliness, community engagement, and a slower, less pretentious pace compared to art fairs in New York or Los Angeles.

ETAMU’s University Gallery Hosting International Artist Exhibition

East Texas A&M University's University Gallery is hosting an exhibition titled “Dan Jian: Library of Partial Things,” featuring collage-based drawings by artist Dan Jian. The show runs from August 25 to October 24, with an opening reception on September 2. Jian, an associate professor at Texas Christian University, explores fragmentation, multiplicity, and paradoxes through monochromatic compositions on paper and wall drawings.

5 Standout Shows to See at Small Galleries This August

Maxwell Rabb's article highlights five standout exhibitions at small galleries for August 2025. Featured shows include "Timeless Remnants" at Grège Gallery in Belgium, featuring artists Conrad Willems, Laura Pasquino, and Chidy Wayne exploring memory through materials; "Tropico Pasado" at Galleria Doris Ghetta in Italy, a solo show by London-based artist Lucía Pizzani inspired by the Dolomites and Venezuelan landscapes; and "rwa bhineda" at SUN.CONTEMPORARY in Bali, Indonesia. Other exhibitions are noted but not detailed in the provided text.

Amazonia Açu

Americas Society in New York will present 'Amazonia Açu,' an exhibition opening September 3, 2025, that offers a kaleidoscopic view of Amazonian aesthetic, cultural, and material diversity. Curated by Keyna Eleison and a committee of representatives from all nine Amazonian states—Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela—the show features over 50 works by 34 local artists and collectives, addressing themes such as artistic production, land rights, cultural heritage, and spirituality.

NEXT in the Gallery: July art is a ‘time capsule of medieval Pittsburgh’

NEXTpittsburgh's July gallery guide highlights a range of new exhibitions and events across Pittsburgh. Featured shows include Nathan Van Patter's 'Medieval Pittsburgh' at Irma Freeman Center for Imagination, which reimagines the city's modern figures and landmarks in a medieval fantasy style; 'Five on Five' at Spinning Plate Gallery presenting new works by five local painters; Ben Schonberger's 'Hi-NRG' at 707 Penn Gallery, drawing from gay underground visual culture and disco music; and Ashley Andrykovitch's 'LAN Party' at UnSmoke Systems Artspace, inspired by 1990s local area network gaming gatherings.

NEXT in the Gallery: June art brings John Lennon, the Fiberart International and a moral compass

NEXTpittsburgh's June gallery guide highlights a packed month of art events across Pittsburgh, including the Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival (June 5-8) with 191 artists, a Juried Visual Arts Exhibition at SPACE Gallery, and a rare photography exhibit by May Pang documenting John Lennon's "lost weekend" at Atithi Studios. Other openings include ceramicist Philip Soucy's solo show, painter Caroline Heckman's portraits at Revel, Stephanie Gonzalez's cosmic "Nebulas" at BoxHeart Gallery, the Fiberart International 2025 triennial at Contemporary Craft and Brew House Arts, and Natalie Westbrook's "Corners of My Mind" at ZYNKA Gallery.

United States

The Art Newspaper has launched a digital newsletter offering a daily digest of essential news, views, and analysis from the international art world, delivered directly to subscribers' inboxes. The announcement, published under the title "United States," invites readers to subscribe for curated coverage of the global art scene.

Quatre Moreau le Jeune pour Versailles

The French state has preempted four drawings by Jean-Michel Moreau le Jeune at a Christie's Paris auction, securing them for the Palace of Versailles. The works, sold in two lots, depict the festivities in Paris following the birth of the Dauphin Louis Joseph in autumn 1781, including the arrival of the Queen at the Hôtel de Ville and a fireworks display. The drawings were commissioned by the City of Paris and were intended to be engraved, marking a high point of public commissions under the ancien régime. The preemption was made possible through the support of the Friends of the Louvre, echoing a similar acquisition of Hubert Robert works from the same Veil-Picard sale.

Two Bouchers for the Prado

Deux Boucher pour le Prado

The Museo del Prado in Madrid has acquired two significant early pendant paintings by François Boucher, titled 'La Naissance et La Mort d'Adonis.' The works were purchased from a French private collection through the Madrid gallery Ana Chiclana, using funds from the bequest of the late department head Juan José Luna. The paintings have been restored and are currently on public display in the Goya's Majas room, awaiting the reopening of the museum's renovated 18th-century galleries.

A Degas for London

Un Degas pour Londres

The National Gallery in London has acquired a pastel by Edgar Degas through the UK's 'acceptance in lieu' scheme, which allows heirs to settle inheritance taxes by transferring important works of art to public collections. The artwork depicts ballet dancers not in performance, but in a state of exhaustion and idleness backstage, capturing a raw, unglamorous moment.

The best looks from the 2026 Met Gala

The 2026 Met Gala, themed 'Costume Art,' took place at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, honoring the Costume Institute's spring exhibition on the role of the dressed body in art history. Co-chaired by Nicole Kidman, Venus Williams, Anna Wintour, and Beyoncé, the event featured A-list celebrities, pop stars, and tech titans on the museum's grand staircase, with a dress code of 'Fashion Is Art' encouraging guests to treat the body as a canvas. Notable attendees included Sabrina Carpenter, Doechii, Rosé, Gigi Hadid, Katy Perry, and Charli XCX, with many wearing custom designs from houses like Marc Jacobs, Saint Laurent, Thom Browne, and Jean Paul Gaultier.

NEW ZEALAND PHOTOGRAPHER FIONA PARDINGTON REPRESENTS AOTEAROA AT THE VENICE BIENNALE

New Zealand photographer Fiona Pardington (born 1961, Auckland) is representing Aotearoa at the 61st Venice Biennale with her exhibition *Taharaki Skyside*, on view from May 9 to November 22, 2026, at the Aotearoa New Zealand Pavilion. The show features large-scale portraits of taxidermied birds from museum collections across New Zealand and Australia, focusing on endemic species including the extinct huia and whēkau. Curated by Felicity Milburn and Chloe Cull, the exhibition is presented by the Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa (Creative New Zealand) and Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū.

Fashion figure Jordan Roth wows in collage at the Venice Biennale

Multi-disciplinary artist Jordan Roth staged a performance on May 7 at Palazzo dei Fiori in Venice during the Biennale preview week, where he tore apart vinyl prints of Renaissance painter Irene di Spilimbergo and reassembled them into collages within a gilt frame. The event, presented with Performance Space New York’s Visionaries Circle, was attended by Whitney Museum director Scott Rothkopf and dealer Kristin Hjellegjerde, following Roth's earlier appearance as a "living sculpture" at the Met Gala.

Hundreds of ‘Piss Bottles’ Left at the Met Gala in Protest of Jeff Bezos

Hundreds of bottles filled with what appeared to be urine were discovered at the Metropolitan Museum of Art during the Met Gala on May 5, 2026, according to the New York Post. The protest was claimed by the anti-billionaire group Everybody Hates Elon, which targeted the event over Jeff Bezos serving as the gala's chair. The group left the bottles with signs labeling them a "Met Gala VIP toilet" and criticizing Bezos for alleged labor practices at Amazon, where workers reportedly feel forced to urinate in bottles due to lack of bathroom breaks. The group later clarified on Instagram that the bottles did not contain real urine.

US National Gallery of Art receives $116m gift to continue nationwide lending programme

The National Gallery of Art (NGA) in Washington, DC, has received a landmark $116 million donation from the Mitchell P. Rales Family Foundation to permanently endow its Across the Nation lending programme. Launched in spring 2025, the initiative has already reached around 900,000 visitors at ten partner institutions, including the Anchorage Museum and the Mint Museum, by loaning works from the NGA's collection at no cost—covering transport, installation, insurance, and marketing. The next cycle will run from autumn 2027 to 2029, with new partners to be announced.

NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani Calls on King Charles to Return Treasured Diamond to India

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani publicly called on King Charles III to return the Koh-i-Noor Diamond to India during the British monarch's visit to New York City on Wednesday. Speaking at a press conference before a 9/11 commemoration ceremony, Mamdani said he would encourage the King to return the diamond, which was given to Queen Victoria in 1850 after Britain's colonial governor-general arranged its exchange from a deposed Indian leader. The two leaders later met at the ceremony, but Buckingham Palace declined to comment on the discussion.

From intimate still lives to shadowed saints: the many sides of Spanish painter Francisco de Zurbarán go on show at London’s National Gallery

The National Gallery in London is opening a major survey exhibition of Spanish painter Francisco de Zurbarán (1598-1664), the first on this scale since 1987. The show expands beyond his famous austere saints to include intimate still-lifes, late private devotional works, and large-scale altarpiece reconstructions. Curator Daniel Sobrino Ralston highlights two newly discovered paintings, including *Alcarraza on a Plate*, and a rare reconstruction of the second tier of the Charterhouse of Jerez de la Frontera altarpiece, reuniting works from museums in Grenoble and Poznań.