Munson Community Arts is hosting an exhibition that highlights the work of adult students enrolled in its programs. The show features a range of visual art created by these students, celebrating their creative achievements and the skills they have developed through the organization's classes.
Veteran Korean artist Lee Jong-gu, a key figure in the 1980s minjung art movement, has opened a solo exhibition titled "Pensive" at Hakgojae Gallery in Seoul. The show features 38 paintings that mark a shift from his decades-long focus on social realism toward a more contemplative approach, centering on the bangasayusang (contemplative bodhisattva figures) from the National Museum of Korea. Lee blends these sacred images with nude bodies, flames, and crowd scenes, drawing on the Buddhist concept of non-duality to explore themes of life, death, and the sacred versus the profane. The exhibition runs through June 20.
A satirical workout video titled "20 minute workout" created by the Hawaiʻi-based artist initiative kekahi wahi is featured at the Whitney Biennial in New York. The video shows dancers in spandex stretching in front of the Captain Cook Monument at Kealakekua Bay on Hawaiʻi Island, set to electronic music. The project was part of a larger effort to reimagine public space and challenge commemorative monuments in Hawaiʻi, drawing on the energy of debates over Confederate statues in the continental U.S.
An exhibition titled "Docents on the Wall" was held at the Present Day Club in Princeton, NJ, featuring artwork created by docents from the Princeton University Art Museum. The show included paintings, photographs, weaving, and collage by participating artists Laura Berlik, Hetty Baiz, Dee Gozonsky, Judy Langille, Denise McDaniel, Elizabeth Quatrano, Ellen Rogers, Connie Shaffer, and Adria Sherman. Notable works included Denise McDaniel's "Nassau Hall" and Hetty Baiz's richly textured piece.
A screenprint titled "May (1969)" by German Abstract artist Winfred Gaul is being offered for sale through RoGallery Auctions on Artsy. The work, edition 6/100, was originally featured as the image for May in the 1969 Domberger calendar, which included screenprints by 12 prominent artists. The print is signed and numbered in pencil, with an estimated value of $600–$900 and a starting bid of $250. The listing includes a biography of Gaul, noting his studies at the University of Cologne and the Academy of Fine Arts in Stuttgart, his first solo exhibition in 1956 at Gurlitt Gallery in Munich, and his participation in Documenta 2 in 1959. His work is held in major museum collections including MoMA, the National Gallery of Art, and the Art Institute of Chicago.
The Art Museum of Southeast Texas (AMSET) will host a Free Family Arts Day titled "The Art of H2O" on Saturday, May 16, 2026, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Beaumont, Texas. The event features hands-on art activities inspired by the museum's current exhibitions, "Julius Stockfleth: Dawn of a Century" and "Bill Pangburn: Printed Traces - A Neches River Journal," both celebrating water. Visitors can explore galleries, create art, and enjoy live entertainment from Sonny “The Birdman” Carlin, with treats from the IScream Ice Cream Truck available for purchase.
On May 16, 2026, Museum Night celebrations will take place across Belarus and beyond, with cultural institutions offering extended hours and special programs. Highlights include the National Centre for Contemporary Arts in Minsk hosting lectures, artist talks, and exhibitions such as “Forms and Shadows: Feminine” and “Difficulties of Translation,” while the National Art Museum explores the color blue through its program “Blue of Blue.” Literary museums dedicated to Maksim Bahdanovich, Yakub Kolas, and Yanka Kupala will feature space-themed activities, reenactments, and fashion shows, and the “Sula” History Park will offer an interactive journey called “Hunting the Dragon.”
Sue Johnson, professor of art at St. Mary's College, is presenting her second solo exhibition at gallery neptune & brown in Washington, D.C., titled “Blueprint for Happiness.” The show runs from May 16 through June 20, with an opening reception on May 16. Johnson debuts a new series, “My Teenage Years,” which builds on her earlier “Symmetrical Bodies” work and examines the pressures on women to conform to ideals of happiness and perfection in body image and domestic spaces, drawing on 1960s-70s material and commercial culture.
An immersive art experience centered on Paul Cézanne has drawn attention after visitors were photographed wearing bikinis while interacting with the installation, as reported by the Caledonian Record. The exhibition allows museum-goers to physically engage with Cézanne's works in a pool-like setting, blending digital projections with water elements.
The Bell Gallery at Brown University is presenting "Prisoners of Love: Until the Sun of Freedom," a new exhibition by internationally renowned sound, video, and installation artists Basel Abbas and Ruanne Abou-Rahme. The show is co-curated by Kate Kraczon, Director of Exhibitions and Chief Curator of the Brown Arts Institute (BAI) / The Bell, and Thea Quiray.
This article highlights a series of art exhibitions and events taking place in Kenosha and Racine counties this week. The Anderson Arts Center in Kenosha is hosting a watercolor exhibition in collaboration with the Watercolor USA Honor Society through May 24. Additionally, the Kenosha Art Association is offering a Tatakizome (hammering plants) Flower Printing class with instructor Jill Montgomery. In Racine, an exhibition titled "Flying Kites in a Windless World" featuring works by Vanessa Filley continues.
Farsettiarte in Prato will hold two auctions at the end of May 2026, featuring modern and contemporary art. The Contemporary Art sale takes place on May 29, followed by the Modern Art sale on May 30, with highlights including works by Giorgio Morandi, Carlo Carrà, Giorgio de Chirico, Afro, Giuseppe Capogrossi, Piero Dorazio, and Hans Hartung. A rare Morandi still life from 1921 is estimated at €1.3-1.6 million, while de Chirico's 'Piazza d'Italia' (1963) carries an estimate of €220,000-320,000.
Dalla criminalità alla cultura. A Ville Couëlle apre il primo museo della Costa Smeralda
The former Ville Couëlle complex in Sardinia's Costa Smeralda, an iconic example of organic architecture designed by French visionary Jacques Couëlle, has been officially transferred to the municipality of Arzachena after being seized from organized crime by Italy's National Agency for Seized and Confiscated Assets. The 37-million-euro property, spanning 30,000 square meters in the Abbiadori district, will be transformed into the first museum of the Costa Smeralda, featuring exhibition spaces, conference halls, educational labs, a bookshop, and a café.
I dimenticati dell’arte. La storia dell’artista Valeria Alberti
Valeria Alberti (1930-2011), a courageous, rebellious, and nonconformist Italian artist, had a brief but intense career before disappearing from the art world. Recent research by scholar Manuel Barrese reconstructs her trajectory as the only woman in a circle of artists and intellectuals around poet Emilio Villa and the Galleria Appia Antica. Alberti debuted in 1957 alongside Alberto Sartoris, collaborated with ceramist Mario Molli, and created painted panels for the transatlantic liners Leonardo Da Vinci and Michelangelo. She exhibited at Galleria Ferro di Cavallo and Galleria Azimuth, and received Piero Manzoni's Certificate of Authenticity No. 26 in 1961. Her later work included geometric metal sculptures, but she ultimately vanished from the art scene.
The Galleria d'Arte Moderna (GAM) in Turin has launched "Quarta Risonanza," an exhibition program running from May 21 through November 1, 2026. The program comprises four distinct projects: a major survey of works on paper from the museum's collections titled "Un altro Novecento," curated by Fabio Cafagna and Elena Volpato; an intervention by artist Pesce Khete as the program's "Intruso"; a photographic series by Lisetta Carmi exploring eroticism and authority at the Staglieno cemetery, presented in dialogue with sculptures; and a centenary exhibition for conceptual artist Vincenzo Agnetti, "Oggi è un secolo," curated by Chiara Bertola and Virginia Lupo, focusing on his Photo-graffi works from 1979–1981.
The new episode of Artbox on Sky Arte, airing May 26, focuses on the exhibition "Luigi Ghirri. A series of dreams. Paesaggi visivi e paesaggi sonori" at the Musei Civici and Teatro Valli in Reggio Emilia, which explores the unique relationship between Luigi Ghirri's photography and music. The episode features curator Ilaria Campioli and Adele Ghirri, president of the Fondazione Luigi Ghirri and the artist's daughter. Additionally, Maria Vittoria Baravelli's segment "Invito al viaggio" examines female royalty through art, cinema, and fashion, and the program visits the Galleria d’Arte Moderna Ricci Oddi in Piacenza to discuss recent renovations by architect Piero Lissoni. The episode also includes a book review of "Histoire des galeries d’art en France" by Alice Ensabella.
Parte la rigenerazione delle ex caserme di Roma, dove sorgerà anche il Museo della Scienza. Obiettivi e tempi del cantiere
The Italian government, through Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP) and COIMA Sgr, has launched the regeneration of the former Guido Reni military barracks in Rome's Flaminio district. The 5-hectare site, abandoned since 2019 and located opposite the MAXXI museum, will be transformed into a mixed-use urban district including housing, retail, a hotel, green spaces, and a new Museum of Science. Demolitions are set to begin in October 2026, with the project expected to be completed by 2029. The museum will be designed by Rome-based studio ADAT, which won an international competition in 2023.
A new contemporary sculpture park, Parco Sculture Todini, is set to open on May 23 within the Tenuta Todini estate in Collevalenza, near Todi, Umbria. The debut features two site-specific works: "VITE" by Matteo Attruia, which plays on the double meaning of vine and lives, and "Tempus Mirabilis" by Silvia Ranchicchio, a reflective environmental sculpture that changes with light and seasons. The park is curated by Massimo Mattioli and supported by the Arvedi steelworks of Terni and entrepreneur Luisa Todini.
Storia di Max Peiffer Watenphul, il pittore del Bauhaus che trovò in Italia la sua nuova patria
A major retrospective titled "Max Peiffer Watenphul. Pittore del Bauhaus" has opened at the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea (GNAMC) in Rome, curated by Gregor H. Lersch, director of the Museo Casa di Goethe. The exhibition explores the complex artistic journey of Max Peiffer Watenphul (1896–1976), a German Bauhaus-trained painter who found a second home in Italy. It highlights his multidisciplinary approach, his troubled painting style marked by unusual materials and scratched surfaces, and his deep connection to Italy, where he fled after Nazi persecution and where he lived until his death.
A Venezia due nuove realtà culturali nel circuito dei Musei Civici: nasce un centro d’arte contemporanea a Mestre e entra nella rete il Museo Wagner
The Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia (MUVE) has opened a new contemporary art museum called MUVEC (Casa delle Contemporaneità) at the Centro Candiani in Mestre, inaugurated on April 24. Simultaneously, MUVE has signed an agreement with the Casinò di Venezia and the Associazione Richard Wagner to bring the Museo Wagner in Ca' Vendramin Calergi into its network starting in 2027, expanding the MUVE circuit to 14 museums (excluding MUVEC). MUVEC features a permanent collection spanning from 1948 to the present, drawn from the Galleria d'Arte Moderna di Venezia Ca' Pesaro, and will host temporary exhibitions including a 2026 show on Klimt, Schiele, Kokoschka and the body.
Si può ripercorrere tutta la carriera del mitico designer Alessandro Mendini in questa mostra a Verbania
A new exhibition titled "Alessandro Mendini. COSE. Stanze come mondi" has opened at Villa Giulia in Verbania, Italy, running until September 27. Curated by art historian Loredana Parmesani, the show condenses the career of legendary designer Alessandro Mendini (1931–2019) into seven rooms, each centered on one of his iconic objects—such as the Poltrona di Paglia (1974) and the Poltrona di Proust (1978)—alongside 130 total pieces including drawings, paintings, and texts. The selection was made with Mendini's daughters Elisa and Fulvia, and the layout follows the villa's 19th-century plan, turning each space into a distinct chapter of his creative journey.
Riscoprire Jorge Luis Borges come critico d’architettura. A 40 anni dalla morte
The article commemorates the 40th anniversary of Jorge Luis Borges's death, reflecting on his legacy as a writer and his lesser-known role as an architectural critic. It highlights a 2025 book by Estela Canto, a close friend, which reveals Borges's personal fragility and contradictions, such as his love for popular cinema over classical music. The piece also explores Borges's fictional architectural criticism, particularly his 1967 work *Cronache di Bustos Domecq* co-written with Adolfo Bioy Casares, where he satirized functional architecture through invented pioneers like Adam Quincey and Alessandro Piranesi.
Michelangelo Pistoletto has opened Hotel Cittadellarte in Biella, Italy, within his Cittadellarte Fondazione Pistoletto. The 31-room hotel houses the exhibition "L'ospite inatteso" by Giuseppe Stampone, curated by Ilaria Bernardi, with each room containing a unique artwork designed to be lived with rather than quickly viewed. The exhibition includes Stampone's "Fotocopie intelligenti" and large tapestries from the Brioni manufactory, addressing themes of migration, belonging, memory, and coexistence. The building was sustainably renovated with PNRR funds.
Arte e tecnologia si incontrano nella realtà aumentata dell’artista Lois He
Lois He, a Chinese-born artist now based in New York, creates immersive XR installations that blend art and technology, transforming viewers into active participants. Her works, such as "Rising River," an AI-driven virtual reality experience, and "The Silent Carnival," a digital reinterpretation of Goethe's Faust, explore identity, emotion, and the impact of external agents like technology and culture. He also collaborates with institutions like the Museo Dalí and the NYU Neuroscience Institute, merging art with literature and science.
In Romagna c’è discussione attorno all’eredità artistica del Ventennio fascista
Recent developments in Romagna, Italy, have sparked debate over the artistic legacy of the Fascist era. The 102-meter-long Flight Mosaics at the former Aeronautical College in Forlì are now open to the public, and the Conad-Città di Forlì Auditorium, converted from a former GIL cinema, will inaugurate on May 13, 2026. Regional President De Pascale has announced initial funding to secure the Colonia Varese in Cervia, a Rationalist masterpiece, while long-awaited consolidation work has begun on the Casa del Fascio in Predappio, Benito Mussolini's birthplace. A 2010 plan to turn the Casa del Fascio into a cultural center documenting Fascism has stalled due to political changes and bureaucratic hurdles.
Si chiama Casabianca il nuovo spazio per l’arte da visitare a Como
A new art space called Casabianca has opened in Como, Italy, housed in a 1930s building designed by Piero Ponci. The project is spearheaded by hoteliers Paolo and Antonella De Santis, who have transformed the former luxury villa and bank into a domestic-style exhibition venue for their contemporary art collection. The space features works by artists such as Giulio Paolini, Stefano Arienti, Alighiero Boetti, Mario Merz, Marina Abramovic, and Joseph Kosuth, with no labels or didactics to preserve the feel of a private home.
Un artista italiano fa una mostra a Tunisi ispirandosi alle architetture di Le Corbusier
Italian artist Cristian Chironi has opened the seventh chapter of his ongoing project "My house is a Le Corbusier" with an exhibition in Tunis titled "My house is a Le Corbusier (Villa Baizeau)". The project centers on Villa Baizeau, a Le Corbusier-designed house built between 1928 and 1930 for industrialist Lucien Baizeau, which is now inaccessible inside the Tunisian presidential park. Chironi, inspired by a failed attempt by artist Costantino Nivola to bring Le Corbusier's architecture to his hometown Orani, instead travels the world temporarily inhabiting Le Corbusier's buildings. For this iteration, he set up a residency at La Boîte – Centre d'Art & d'Architecture in the Medina of Tunis from January 22 to April 5, 2026, culminating in an exhibition that opened April 3, 2026, using the villa as a lens to read the city rather than a physical space to occupy.
A new exhibition titled "Dante Ferretti. Con i miei occhi" has opened at the Musei di San Salvatore in Lauro in Rome, celebrating the legendary Italian set designer and costume designer Dante Ferretti. Curated by Raffaele Curi, the show runs until July 19, 2026, and features a collection of Ferretti's sketches, charcoal drawings, and collages that served as the foundational visual ideas for films by directors including Pier Paolo Pasolini, Martin Scorsese, Federico Fellini, and Tim Burton. The exhibition presents these preparatory works not merely as production tools but as autonomous works of art, tracing Ferretti's visual genealogy from Renaissance painters like Piero della Francesca and Caravaggio to contemporary cinema.
Italian artist Davide Rivalta has installed thirteen monumental bronze sculptures of lions, buffalo, and rhinoceroses across Stockholm, Sweden, in a project titled "Blowing Figures into Space." Organized by the Italian Cultural Institute of Stockholm, the works are placed in strategic locations including Mynttorget, Gamla Stan, Ladugårdsgärdet, and Hagaparken, with installations rolling out from April 2025 through summer 2027. The first sculpture was unveiled near the Swedish Parliament during Stockholm Art Week, and additional animals will appear in public parks on August 29.
The 24th edition of Ville Aperte in Brianza returns in 2026 with the theme "Storie che restano" (Stories That Remain), highlighting the ability of Lombardy's historic villas and gardens to preserve centuries of memories. The spring edition runs from May 9–17, and the autumn edition from September 19–October 4, featuring 48 cultural sites across 35 municipalities in the provinces of Monza and Brianza, Milan, Lecco, and Como. The symbol of this year is Villa Tittoni (Villa Cusani Traversi Antona Tittoni) in Desio, designed by architect Giuseppe Piermarini and later expanded by Pelagio Palagi. Special programs include guided tours by three associations of licensed guides, children's activities, and a school contest exhibition on the 80th anniversary of the Liberation.