Sotheby's auction house and Sotheby's Institute of Art, through their parent company Edconic, have launched a formalized, paid fellowship program. The initiative places 20 master's students from the Institute's New York program into 12-week paid internships at the auction house, with plans to expand to London and eventually involve 60 students. The program aims to provide practical, credit-earning work experience directly within the art market.
The article is a photographic roundup of notable wildlife encounters and animal behaviors from around the world. It features images of wild boar piglets in Germany, a wild boar that wandered into a Berlin supermarket, a camouflaged snow leopard in Ladakh, Konik ponies sparring in a UK fenland reserve, a banana slug with unusual reproductive anatomy in California, a seagull with a sea star in Seattle, a Palestine sunbird in Israel, and rhinos reintroduced to a Ugandan national park.
The Museum of Fine Arts St. Petersburg has launched two major exhibitions: a career-spanning survey of Iranian-born artist Ali Banisadr and a site-specific installation by Ward Shelley and Douglas Paulson. Banisadr’s exhibition, "The Alchemist," features nearly 20 years of work including large-scale paintings that blend abstraction with intricate, emerging figures. Accompanying this is "The Last Library IV: Written in Water," a life-sized library constructed from corrugated cardboard that explores the fragility of the written word and the impact of censorship and AI on language.
Aktivistin klebt sich an Museumsvitrine
A protester from the activist group Neue Generation glued herself to a display case in the Coin Cabinet of the Bode-Museum on Berlin's Museum Island. Dressed as Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Katherina Reiche, the activist targeted the museum to protest the minister's perceived lack of independence from corporate interests. Police were called to the scene to remove the woman, and the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation confirmed that while the glass case was targeted, no historical artifacts were damaged.
“Tohé Commaret: Mala Onda” at ZOLLAMT MMK, Frankfurt
Chilean artist Tohé Commaret has opened her first institutional solo exhibition in Germany, "Mala Onda," at the ZOLLAMT MMK, a project space of the Museum für Moderne Kunst in Frankfurt. The exhibition features a new body of work, including large-scale paintings and a site-specific installation, that explores themes of memory, cultural displacement, and the lingering psychological effects of political violence.
Beijing-based artist Hu Yinping is presenting three major works in Hong Kong this March, including the installation 'Potatoes Grow on Trees' in the Encounters sector of Art Basel Hong Kong. The works stem from her long-running project 'Hu Xiaofang,' a semi-fictional company that employs women in rural China to create crocheted artworks, redistributing income and visibility to this often-overlooked demographic.
Zurich’s urban landscape is defined by functionalist structures from the 1990s and early 2000s that serve as the 'understated backdrop' to daily life. These buildings, including the Signal Box by Gigon Guyer and the Telecap 2000 by Hans Ulrich Imesch, act as navigational markers at the city’s geographic choke points. Despite their significance in shaping the city's rhythm and internal choreography, many of these structures are now reaching the end of their first lifecycle and face the threat of demolition due to real estate speculation.
The St. Tammany Art Association (STAA) has launched its call for entries for the 56th National Juried Artists Exhibition, titled "The Summer Show." Open to artists across the United States, the competition offers $3,500 in total cash prizes, including a $2,000 Best of Show award. The exhibition will run from July 11 to September 12, 2026, at the STAA Art House in Covington, Louisiana, with New Orleans-based ceramicist and educator MaPó Kinnord serving as the guest juror.
The Pence Gallery has been named the "Best Art Gallery" in the Readers’ Choice 2026 awards, celebrating its 50-year legacy as a regional arts leader in Davis, California. The gallery hosts between 15 and 20 contemporary exhibitions annually across various media, attracting over 20,000 visitors with its commitment to free admission and community-focused programming.
An exhibition by Israeli artist Amir Fattal at König gallery in Mexico City was forced to close a week early after a campaign of antisemitic harassment escalated from online abuse to physical protests and vandalism. Vandals spray-painted swastikas, Stars of David, and the phrase "here there are terrorists" on the gallery's facade, and protesters gathered outside calling the artist a murderer and Mossad agent.
The Australian puppetry company Erth is preparing for a new immersive dinosaur show at the Sydney Opera House. The article provides a behind-the-scenes look at their workshop in Marrickville, where a team of artists and designers hand-craft highly realistic, large-scale dinosaur puppets using animatronics, 3D printing, and traditional craftsmanship.
川辺ナホ「Flos Filicis：羊歯の花」@ WAITINGROOM
The Tokyo gallery WAITINGROOM is hosting "Flos Filicis: Flower of the Fern," a solo exhibition by Naho Kawabe featuring new installations, photo collages, and drawings. The exhibition centers on the paradoxical concept of the "fern flower" to explore the relationship between fossil fuels, industrial infrastructure, and the myth of progress. Kawabe utilizes materials like charcoal and electrical components alongside research-based lithographs to examine the history of Japanese migrant coal miners in Germany and the broader ecological impact of energy consumption.
La mostra della grande artista Lucy Orta in un palazzo storico recuperato a San Sepolcro
British artist Lucy Orta has unveiled a site-specific installation titled "Trame di Comunità" at CasermArcheologica in Sansepolcro, Tuscany, following an artist residency. The work features five tents constructed from hand-woven vintage linen and hemp, inspired by the protective imagery in Piero della Francesca’s "Polyptych of Mercy." These structures are embroidered with the faces of local residents and adorned with 99 terracotta amulets, incorporating oral testimonies and personal reflections gathered from the community during Orta's stay.
A Roma la grande azienda Acea lancia la sua Fondazione per l’arte e la cultura. L’intervista
The Italian multi-utility giant Acea has officially launched the Acea Foundation, signaling a shift from being a mere cultural sponsor to an active producer and curator of cultural projects. Central to this initiative is the Acea Heritage Museum, which showcases the company’s 117-year history through a massive 12km historical archive and a rediscovered art collection valued at two million euros. The foundation aims to integrate art into corporate spaces, including a dedicated contemporary art section in its foyer and a focus on site-specific works by artist Gino Marotta.
Hugo décorateur
An exhibition and accompanying book explore Victor Hugo's lesser-known role as an interior decorator, focusing on the elaborate interiors he created for his homes in Paris and during his exile on the island of Guernsey. Curator Gérard Audinet conducted extensive research to reconstruct these lost environments, which were filled with eclectic objects, artworks by friends, and prestigious gifts.
Artist Emily Drew Miller has created a series of collograph prints titled "Matzot" by running sheets of matzah through a printing press. The resulting black-and-white impressions capture the intricate textures and cracks of the unleavened bread, transforming the traditional Passover food into a medium for her grid-based painting practice. The series began as a personal ritual around the holiday and has evolved into a decade-long exploration.
OpenAI is shutting down its Sora text-to-video generation platform, discontinuing both its consumer app and its internet service for creatives. The closure, announced via a company statement on X, marks a strategic reversal after the platform's 2024 launch and the subsequent release of Sora 2 in late 2025.
Colorado legislators are considering a bipartisan bill to establish the nation's first Artist Corporation (A-Corp), a specialized limited liability company exclusively for artists. This legal framework aims to simplify incorporation, protect intellectual property rights, and allow artists to secure investors without ceding ownership of their creative output.
A federal judge in New York has approved a final settlement in a lawsuit between the two pseudonymous figures behind the record-breaking $69.3 million purchase of Beeple's NFT "Everydays: The First 5000 Days." The agreement legally prohibits Anand Venkateswaran (Twobadour) from claiming any involvement in the 2021 Christie's purchase, confirming that Vignesh Sundaresan (Metakovan) was the sole buyer. Venkateswaran must also pay an undisclosed sum, dissociate from related online profiles, and correct third-party biographical information.
"Wir mussten schwierige Entscheidungen treffen"
Investor Andrew E. Wolff has stepped down as CEO of Artnet after orchestrating a merger of the company's US operations with Artsy, another major art market platform he recently acquired. Jeffrey Yin, previously the interim head of Artsy, has been appointed as the permanent CEO of the combined entity. The restructuring involves significant layoffs, the closure of Artnet's Berlin office, and a consolidation of management teams, though both brands will continue to operate with distinct editorial voices.
The Highland Center for the Arts in Greensboro is hosting "Salt, Stone & Stars," a multidisciplinary event celebrating the Vermont pastoral tradition through literature and visual art. The program highlights the connection between two books centered on shepherding, Helen Whybrow’s "The Salt Stones" and Jody Gladding’s translation of "The Serpent of Stars," alongside the opening of the exhibition "Seasons & Cycles."
The JN Long Cultural Arts Center in Cleburne is currently hosting the JN Long Youth Art Exhibit, a showcase featuring a diverse array of artworks created by students from across Johnson County. Executive Director Brittany Lewis highlighted the exceptional caliber of the submissions, noting that the technical skill displayed by these young artists often rivals that of professional works found in major museums.
The exhibition of Michaelina Wautier’s work introduces audiences to a long-overlooked master of the 17th-century Baroque period. Born in Mons around 1614, Wautier operated within the elite circles of the Spanish Netherlands, sharing a studio with her brother Charles and securing patronage from the court of the Archduke Leopold Wilhelm. Despite her technical brilliance and ability to navigate complex historical and religious subjects, her name remained largely absent from the art historical canon until this recent reappraisal.
Eastwood Park Theatre and Gallery has launched the 'Spring Art Collection,' an exhibition featuring works by individuals with learning disabilities, autism, and additional support needs. Curated by charity Cosgrove Care and led by artist Susan Kennedy, the showcase debuted on World Autism Awareness Day with a ceremony headed by East Renfrewshire Provost Mary Montague. The collection, themed around the awakening of landscapes after winter, highlights the creative output of participants from weekly art groups based in Mearns Kirk Halls.
The "From Italy With Love" exhibition recently debuted at Il Gelato di Carlotta’s gallery space in Niagara-on-the-Lake, showcasing works created during immersive painting workshops across Italy. Led by artist and instructor Sandra Iafrate, the collection features oil, acrylic, and mixed-media pieces produced on location in regions including Tuscany, Sicily, and Puglia. The show runs through June 30, with additional works displayed at Iafrate’s local Gate Street Studio.
The Ucross Art Gallery has launched "Resilience," a group exhibition showcasing the work of the 2025 Ucross Fellowship for Native American Artists recipients. Curated by Marwin Begaye, the show features a diverse array of disciplines including sculpture by Gina Herrera, literature by Annette Saunooke Clapsaddle, mixed-media by Wade Patton, and performance art by Sarah Ortegon HighWalking. The collection explores the intersection of cultural identity, heritage, and the enduring strength of Indigenous communities across the United States.
German carnival float artist Jacques Tilly has been sentenced in absentia to 8.5 years in a Russian prison. A Moscow court convicted him on charges of spreading false information about the Russian military and insulting religious feelings due to his satirical floats depicting President Vladimir Putin, including one showing Putin in a blood-filled bathtub painted like the Ukrainian flag.
China's National Cultural Heritage Administration has mandated a comprehensive, item-by-item inventory of all state-run museum collections following a major scandal at the Nanjing Museum. The audit aims to verify that objects listed in official records physically exist in storage, a direct response to the discovery that donated national treasures, including a valuable Ming dynasty painting, were improperly transferred or sold into the private market over decades.
The auction industry's middle market, generally defined as lots valued below $1 million, is experiencing intense competition and shrinking profit margins. While this segment accounts for the vast majority of transactions and a significant share of auction house earnings, rising overhead and sellers demanding complex financial deals—like enhanced hammers and guarantees—are squeezing profitability. Regional and specialized auction houses are fiercely competing for business against each other and against third-party online platforms.
A Patek Philippe pocket watch recovered from the body of John Jacob Astor IV, the wealthiest passenger aboard the RMS Titanic, is heading to auction. The watch, sold by Tiffany & Co. in 1904, will be the leading lot in a Freeman's Auction sale in Chicago on April 22, carrying an estimate of $300,000 to $500,000. A gold pencil found with it will also be sold.