Exhibition | Kimiyo Mishima, 'FRAGILE' at Nonaka-Hill, Los Angeles, United States

This article profiles Japanese artist Kimiyo Mishima, whose ceramic sculptures meticulously replicate discarded newspapers, cans, and other trash. Mishima, who died recently, began her career with painting and collage before pioneering a technique in 1971 of silk-screening and painting thin clay sheets rolled with an udon noodle roller to create fragile, lifelike sculptures of garbage. Her work was shaped by her experience growing up in postwar Osaka and her revulsion at consumer culture's disposable nature, leading her to collect trash from the streets of New York and Paris during artist grants.

How MEGA Art Fair Became Milan Art Week’s Social Club

MEGA Art Fair held its third edition in Milan, transforming a former perfume factory into a social and exhibition hub during Milan Art Week and Design Week. The fair, which ran from midday to midnight over an extended period, positioned itself as an alternative to traditional art fairs by prioritizing relaxed social connection, community engagement, and public programming over a purely commercial atmosphere.

Artist Ha Chong-hyun's works to feature in retrospective in San Francisco

Korean artist Ha Chong-hyun, a pioneer of the dansaekhwa (monochrome painting) movement, will be the subject of a major retrospective at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco. The exhibition, "Ha Chong-hyun: Retrospective," will feature approximately 50 works spanning his 60-year career, including his signature "Conjunction" series and early informal experiments.

At Kohei Nawa’s studio, the world is seen through glass bubbles

Japanese sculptor Kohei Nawa has launched his first solo exhibition in Los Angeles at Pace Gallery, titled "Photon Camp." The show features 20 new works from his renowned "PixCell" and "Prism" series, which utilize glass beads and light refraction to transform everyday objects—ranging from taxidermied animals to consumer electronics—into pixelated, magnified sculptures. The artist operates out of Sandwich, a sprawling Kyoto-based creative hub housed in a former sandwich factory that employs a team of 50 across art, design, and architecture.

How Delilah Montoya’s art confronts ICE detention abuses

The Albuquerque Museum is hosting a retrospective of Chicana artist Delilah Montoya, titled "Delilah Montoya: Activating Chicana Resistance." The exhibition's centerpiece is "Detention Nation," an immersive installation created in collaboration with the Sin Huellas Artist Collective that simulates the conditions of ICE detention centers. The work features cyanotype images of detainees on prison cots, chain-link fencing, and displays of meager government-issued personal items alongside the official National Detainee Handbook.

The Sticky Politics of Wall Texts

A critic's visit to the 36th Bienal de São Paulo led to a pointed critique of the exhibition's didactic strategy. The show, curated by Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung, featured floor-mounted placards with QR codes, poorly placed basic labels, and extremely lengthy omnibus section texts, creating a frustrating experience that oscillated between providing too little and too much information.

Iranian galleries close amid protests and communications blackout

Iranian galleries have closed or altered their hours as nationwide protests, sparked by economic turmoil and a crashing currency, escalated into violent unrest. The protests began on 28 December among bazaar traders and spread to artists and gallerists, with many shutting their doors or canceling exhibitions, some under public pressure. A government-imposed internet and communications blackout on 8 January has severely limited information, though one gallerist speaking anonymously described the closures as a unified act of solidarity across society, not merely a response to safety concerns. The gallerist noted that the economy is in its worst condition, with basic necessities unaffordable and even bubble-wrap prices fluctuating wildly. Another gallery founder confirmed that all projects are on hold, and staging exhibitions risks public backlash. Instagram account Galleryinfo.ir faced online criticism for promoting exhibitions during the crisis, while Bavan Gallery reversed its initial stance of "resilience is an art form" and announced it would hold no exhibitions.

What's open and closed on Labour Day in Ottawa?

Labour Day in Ottawa on September 1, 2025, will see most grocery stores, malls like Bayshore and Place d'Orléans, LCBO locations, and all Ottawa Public Library branches closed. However, several national museums including the National Gallery of Canada, along with the agriculture, aviation, history, nature, science, and war museums, will remain open. Some grocery stores such as Metro on Rideau and Bank streets, Whole Foods at Lansdowne Park, and select Beer Store locations will operate, while Rideau Centre and Tanger Outlets will be open with varying store hours. Municipal services like green bin and garbage collection are suspended for the day, and city beaches will no longer have lifeguards.

Paris gallery directors join forces to launch ‘open-ended’ advisory

Two Paris-based art dealers, Samy Ghiyati and Nicolas Nahab, have launched NG, a new multi-pronged art advisory business. The venture combines traditional advisory services with a roving exhibition programme, collection management, and foundation management. Nahab previously led Mendes Wood DM’s Paris gallery and worked at Marian Goodman and Yvon Lambert; Ghiyati was a director at David Zwirner’s Paris gallery after a stint at Kamel Mennour. Their first public project will be a selling exhibition of videos by Meriem Bennani in Essaouira, Morocco, opening in December.

In Seine-Saint-Denis, the clever housing for migrants by architect Patrick Rubin

En Seine-Saint-Denis, les logements futés pour les migrants de l’architecte Patrick Rubin

Architect Patrick Rubin of the firm Canal has transformed the former National Road Information Center, known as Bison Futé, in Rosny-sous-Bois (Seine-Saint-Denis) into a housing complex for 169 migrants. The project, commissioned by social landlord Batigere Habitats Solidaires, preserves the original 1986 half-moon building by Ludwik Peretz and Gilbert Delecourt, adding a new floor and a rear half-crown structure. Rubin used 79 prefabricated modules (17–25 m² each), built in workshops near Lyon, each equipped with a bed, kitchenette, bathroom, and window. Inspired by ship cabin manufacturing in Dunkirk and traditions of tiny houses and capsule hotels by Charlotte Perriand, Herman Hertzberger, and Shigeru Ban, the modules were craned into place. The project faced delays due to differing tolerances between concrete and wood construction, pushing delivery from early 2026 to late 2026.

Post-War to Present

On 26 June, a live auction at a London saleroom achieved £9,284,310, led by Victor Man's 'The Chandler' at £705,600 and David Hockney's iPad painting at £504,000. Other top lots included works by KAWS, Lynette Yiadom-Boakye, Tracey Emin, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and Raymond Pettibon. An online auction closed on 3 July with a total of £1,247,904, featuring Manolo Valdés's 'Amélie II' as the top lot at £56,700, along with works by George Condo, Sylvie Fleury, and Gilbert & George.

THE REINA SOFIA REVIVES ALBERTO GRECO S LIVING ART

The Reina Sofía Museum in Madrid is presenting a major retrospective, 'Viva el arte vivo,' dedicated to Argentine-Spanish artist Alberto Greco. The exhibition traces his evolution from early Informalist paintings to his radical conceptual practice, showcasing works from 1949 until his death in 1965, including photographs, drawings, collages, and literary pieces.

The artist who blocked an Ice projectile with her drawing board during protests

Artist Isabelle “Izzy” Brourman narrowly escaped serious injury while documenting protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Minneapolis. While sketching the scene for her project Starring America News, a masked federal agent fired pepper balls at her at point-blank range; Brourman managed to block the projectile with her wooden drawing board, which was left with a jagged hole. The incident, captured on video by her collaborators Peter Hambrecht and Jeannette Berlin, occurred on the same day a nurse was killed by federal agents during the unrest.

In her Venice exhibition, Hanna Rochereau wants to archive the archive

Nella sua mostra a Venezia, Hanna Rochereau vuole archiviare l’archivio

Hanna Rochereau (Paris, 1995) presents her first solo exhibition in Italy, titled "Data Divas," at Mare Karina gallery in Venice. The show explores archival systems through a dialogue between painting and sculpture: canvases depict orderly shelves and filing cabinets filled with impenetrable boxes, while sculptural elements—tailor's mannequins, scattered papers, open drawers—introduce disorder. Rochereau uses a restrained palette of white and wood tones, referencing early 20th-century cubist and metaphysical art, particularly Morandi. The exhibition runs until July 18, 2026.

C’è un artista che ha deciso di vivere in povertà come un monaco francescano. La storia

Miltos Manetas, a Greek-born artist, has adopted a life of Franciscan poverty as both a personal practice and an artistic project called "Francesco_2026." His work is featured in the exhibition "Vita minore. San Francesco e la santità dell’arte contemporanea" at Palazzo Collicola in Spoleto, curated by Gianni and Giuseppe Garrera. Manetas has also launched the tenth Internet Pavilion at the Venice Biennale, inviting Saint Francis as the artist, using AI conversations and a monastery in the Venetian lagoon to create an informal community of "Fratelli e Sorelle" who follow a shared rule based on poverty, absence of preparation, and divine providence.

100 anni fa nasceva Nuvolo. Ecco chi era l’artista partigiano che firmava col nome di battaglia

Giorgio Ascani, known by his partisan nickname Nuvolo, was born 100 years ago in Città di Castello, Italy. He adopted the name during the Resistance at age 17, inspired by his ability to appear and disappear like a cloud. Nuvolo became a painter and taught at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Perugia, serving as director from 1979 to 1984. His works are held in museums and collections worldwide. In 2025, a major exhibition curated by Bruno Corà, Aldo Iori, and Paolo Ascani was held at Palazzo Collicola in Spoleto, and in 2018, New York's Galleria Di Donna mounted a retrospective curated by Germano Celant. Now, the fair AMAB in Assisi joins centenary celebrations with 15 works spanning his career, including pieces from the Genesi cycle, Serotipie, and OIGROIG series.

Exhibition | Jens FÄNGE, 'Antechamber' at Perrotin, New York, United States

Perrotin New York presents 'Antechamber,' an exhibition of over twenty new paintings by Swedish artist Jens Fänge. The works feature distorted, labyrinthine interiors populated by people, animals, and mannequins, using layered materials like oil, vinyl, linen, and burlap to create compositions that blur the line between figuration and abstraction. Recurring motifs such as doors, windows, halos, and locusts shift meaning across the show, which draws inspiration from Hans Christian Andersen's fairytales and Nathanael West's surrealist novels.

London gallery Project Native Informant closes after 12 years, citing 'volatile and unsustainable environment'

Project Native Informant, an east London gallery known for its adventurous program featuring artists like DIS, Sin Wai Kin, Juliana Huxtable, and Hal Fischer, is closing after 12 years. Founder Stephan Tanbin Sastrawidjaja announced the decision on Instagram on October 31, citing a volatile and unsustainable global economic, political, and social environment, along with personal factors. The gallery had not staged an exhibition since July 2024 and had previously lost commercially viable artist Joseph Yaeger, who signed with Modern Art and Gladstone in 2023.

Investor Says Artnet Layoffs Were Necessary for ‘Financial Strength’

Investor and owner Andrew E. Wolff has publicly explained the recent layoffs at Artnet and Artsy as a necessary step for the companies' financial restructuring and future growth. He framed the cuts as part of a broader consolidation strategy, merging the US businesses and organizational structures of the two digital art platforms while keeping their brands separate.

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The curator of an exhibition at the Bangkok Arts and Cultural Centre (BACC) fled Thailand two days after its opening, fearing arrest and deportation. The show, titled “Constellation of Complicity: Visualising the Global Machine of Authoritarian Solidarity,” featured exiled artists from China, Russia, Iran, and Myanmar and was curated by an artist from Myanmar known as Sai. After receiving warnings from BACC directors that Thai police were seeking his contact information, Sai learned that the Chinese embassy, Thai Foreign Ministry, and Bangkok city officials had pressured the museum over potential diplomatic tensions. The exhibition was censored: black paint covered artists' names and descriptions of Tibet, Hong Kong, and Xinjiang; a multimedia piece by Tibetan artist Tenzin Mingyur Paldron was nearly entirely removed; and flags representing Tibet and the Uyghur people were taken down. Sai immediately flew to London and plans to restage the exhibition elsewhere without censorship.

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Sotheby's Institute of Art (SIA), a for-profit graduate school in London and New York, has been under the U.S. Department of Education's 'Heightened Cash Monitoring 2' (HCM2) designation since December 2023, a status reserved for institutions with serious financial or compliance concerns. The designation bars the school from receiving federal financial aid in advance, requiring it to front its own funds and seek reimbursement. Public records and financial filings reveal that SIA has fallen below federal 'financial responsibility' baselines, and its UK auditors noted 'material uncertainty' about the school's ability to continue as a going concern, though management asserts it has adequate resources.

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Peru's Culture Ministry has reduced the protected area surrounding the Nazca Lines by nearly half, from approximately 2,162 square miles to 1,235 square miles. The move shrinks the Nazca Archaeological Reserve, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and archaeologists warn it could expose the ancient geoglyphs to exploitation by informal miners seeking to legitimize their operations amid a global surge in precious metal prices.

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Dutch police arrested two more suspects, a 20-year-old and an 18-year-old from Heerhugowaard, in connection with the January 2025 theft of Romanian gold artifacts from the Drents Museum in Assen. The stolen items include the golden helmet of Coțofenești and three gold bracelets from 450 BCE, valued at over €5.8 million. The suspects were identified via security camera footage from a hardware store where they purchased tools similar to those used in the heist. Police searched properties in Heerhugowaard and Opmeer, seizing digital evidence, but the artifacts remain missing.

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Peru’s Ministry of Culture has announced a plan to shrink the Nazca Lines and Geoglyphs Archaeological Reserve from 2,175 square miles to 1,236 square miles—a reduction of more than 40 percent. The decision, formalized in a May 28 resolution, has drawn sharp criticism from archaeologists, environmentalists, and former officials, who argue it removes protections from areas where informal mining is expanding. Vice Minister Moira Novoa Silva cited economic development and community participation as motivations, but critics say the move violates Peru’s environmental impact assessment law and could damage the UNESCO World Heritage site.

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Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) has filed an administrative lawsuit against the production company of YouTuber MrBeast (James Donaldson) over a video titled “I Explored 2000 Year Old Ancient Temples,” uploaded on May 10, 2025. The video shows MrBeast and his companions exploring Mayan sites in Yucatán, including Chichén Itzá, Calakmul, and Balamcanché, and features a scene where he promotes his snack brand Feastables as “the only Mayan-approved snack on the planet.” INAH alleges that the permit granted to Full Circle Media did not authorize commercial advertising or false information, and it demands compensation and a public retraction. The controversy escalated after Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum called for further investigation into whether the permit was violated.

Jamie Robertson’s soft heat at Houston Center for Photography, Houston

Jamie Robertson’s solo exhibition, "soft heat," at the Houston Center for Photography presents a series of infrared photographs documenting Southern wetlands, including Caddo Lake and the Great Dismal Swamp. Using archival pigment prints and a zine titled "Alligatorwatergreen," Robertson utilizes thermosensational imagery to transform dense marshlands into ethereal, snow-like landscapes. The work incorporates archival figures, such as a liberated formerly enslaved man named Osman, to highlight the historical role of swamps as sites of maroonage and Black resistance.

design literature best books of 2025

Cultured magazine has published its annual list of the best design and architecture books of 2025, featuring ten titles that span cookbooks, travelogues, political design history, photography, and architectural theory. Highlights include "Campania: Recipes & Wandering Across Italy’s Polychromatic Coast" edited by Apartamento, "Furnishing Fascism" by Ignacio G. Galán, "Synthesis" by Mari Katayama, and "Monumental" by Cat Dawson, which examines how contemporary artists are reshaping memorial landscapes.

Michael Fullerton: The Politics of Portraiture

Glasgow-based painter Michael Fullerton is presenting a two-part exhibition that critically examines the politics of portraiture. The first section features 11 oil portraits of male asylum seekers he lived alongside while working as live-in staff at the Hilltop Hotel in Carlisle. These works, painted in a traditional style, depict the men with care against ambiguous landscapes, deliberately restricting personal information to names and origins, highlighting their status within systems of power.

Faig Ahmed Weaves Mysticism, Science, Technology, and Craft into ‘The Attention’

Faig Ahmed, the Baku-based artist known for transforming traditional Azerbaijani carpets into melting, glitching textile sculptures, has opened a solo presentation at the 61st Venice Biennale, where he represents Azerbaijan. Titled 'The Attention,' the sprawling, maze-like installation curated by Gwendolyn Collaço explores science, alchemy, spirituality, and self-perception, weaving together digital processes with handcrafted techniques. Works include monumental machine-woven carpets like 'I Can Contain Both Worlds But I Do Not Fit Into This One,' a handwoven piece called 'Ancestors' that glows under black light, and 'Entropy Altar,' which uses a quantum random number generator to respond to visitors. The exhibition bridges 15th-century Hurufi mysticism with modern information theory, reflecting Ahmed's interest in consciousness, quantum physics, and the dialectic between measurable science and subjective experience.

Creative Thought Is Essential: A Letter from Our Editor

Jackie Andres, online editor of Colossal, writes an open letter to readers reflecting on Virginia Woolf's assertion that "thinking is my fighting." Andres connects this to contemporary concerns about declining literacy rates, the rise of AI tools like ChatGPT, doomscrolling, and "brain rot" that undermine critical thinking. She positions Colossal as a free, accessible resource for art education, noting that the publication has remained entirely free for 15 years, and highlights how educators and students use the site for lesson plans and learning.