An Abandoned Shipyard in Venice Is Getting a New Life Thanks to This Congolese Choreographer

Congolese choreographer Faustin Linyekula is staging "The Galeazze Project," a performance in a 16th-century shipyard complex in Venice that has been inaccessible since World War II and never open to the public. Commissioned by the nonprofit Scuola Piccola Zattere, the work will bring up to 500 people into the 32,291-square-foot open-air ruin for two nights during the 2026 Venice Biennale preview week. The rental fee from the performance will help stabilize and restore the floors of the historic Galeazze site.

tschabalala self painting sculpture trafalgar square

Tschabalala Self, the Harlem-born artist known for vibrant paintings and sculptures of everyday life, discusses her upcoming public commission "Lady in Blue" for the Fourth Plinth in London's Trafalgar Square. In an interview with Cultured, she reflects on her childhood, her love of storytelling, and her recent move to upstate New York, while also citing influences like Oliver Stone and Quentin Tarantino.

art diya vij commissioner zohran mamdani new york

Diya Vij has been appointed as the new commissioner of New York City's Department of Cultural Affairs, the largest municipal funder of culture in the United States. Vij, a 40-year-old arts administrator with experience at Powerhouse Arts, the High Line, Creative Time, and the Queens Museum, previously worked for the department from 2014 to 2018 under former commissioner Tom Finkelpearl. She now oversees a $300 million annual budget and a 50-person staff, tasked with sustaining artistic communities across the five boroughs amid federal funding cuts to the NEA and NEH.

art 2026 whitney biennial review artists

The 2026 Whitney Biennial, curated by Marcela Guerrero and Drew Sawyer, features 56 artists and collectives without a unifying theme or title. The review describes the exhibition as intentionally incoherent, reflecting America's current state of irrationality and violence. Notable works include Oswaldo Maciá's scent-based 'Requiem for the Insects', Zach Blas's apocalyptic AI installation, Emilie Louise Gossiaux's sculptures honoring her guide dog, Ash Arder's multimedia works exploring ecology and infrastructure, and Enzo Camacho and Ami Lien's politically charged diorama 'For a Just War Against America'. The show's atmosphere is dominated by clanging percussion, ominous drones, and discordant sounds, with a general tenor of unease.

art abortion warsaw artists feminism

Art critic and writer Jarrett Earnest travels to Warsaw for the opening of "The Woman Question 1550–2025," a major survey of women artists curated by Alison M. Gingeras at the Museum of Modern Art (MSN Warsaw). The exhibition features nearly 200 works spanning from Renaissance to contemporary art, including pieces by Artemisia Gentileschi, Frida Kahlo, Lisa Yuskavage, and many Eastern European artists. Earnest reflects on the enduring theme of the female nude and the political context of Poland, where far-right policies have restricted women's rights.

art ali eyal young artist

Ali Eyal, a 31-year-old artist based in Los Angeles, was featured in CULTURED's 2025 Young Artists list. His multidisciplinary practice addresses the violence he and his family experienced from the U.S. military during his upbringing in Baghdad in the 1990s and 2000s, as well as what he calls 'the after war.' His work uses grotesque, cartoonish figures to depict state violence, and he cites pieces like his video installation *Tonight's Programme* and a planned reconstruction of his father's burned car as central to his practice. Eyal was a standout in the latest Istanbul Biennial and the Hammer Museum's 2025 'Made in L.A.' exhibition.

parties lacma art film gala photos

The 14th LACMA Art+Film Gala took place this weekend, co-chaired by LACMA trustee Eva Chow and actor Leonardo DiCaprio. The event honored artist Mary Corse and filmmaker Ryan Coogler for their contributions to art and cinema, and raised a record $6.5 million to support LACMA's mission and film initiatives. The gala was held beneath Chris Burden's Urban Light and Michael Heizer's Levitated Mass, with dinner by chef David Shim of COTE, and featured a performance by Doja Cat introduced by SZA. Attendees included a constellation of Hollywood stars, models, musicians, and designers.

dorchester frieze london breakfast cultured magazine

CULTURED magazine hosted its third annual Frieze London breakfast at the Dorchester hotel, co-hosted by Editor-in-Chief Sarah Harrelson, European Contributor Georgina Cohen, and photographer Mary McCartney. The event drew a mix of art-world figures, celebrities, and cultural tastemakers, including actor Richard E. Grant, Tate director Maria Balshaw, musicians Jess Glynne and Sophie Ellis-Bextor, gallerists Lucy Chadwick and Pilar Corrias, and collectors Laura de Gunzburg and George Wells. Guests enjoyed a plant-based breakfast and copies of CULTURED's September issue amid the buzz of Frieze London.

art cady noland thomas eggerer jochen klein

Cultured magazine reviews Cady Noland's 2025 exhibition at Gagosian Gallery's 24th Street location in New York, running through October 18. The show features the artist's signature objects—Budweiser cans, shotgun shells, barricades, and images of Patty Hearst and Lee Harvey Oswald—arranged in a fragmented, almost sale-like display. The review notes the inclusion of Steven Parrino's works alongside Noland's, referencing their collaboration at White Columns in 1988, and highlights new elements like "SALE" signs with manicule illustrations. The critic describes the exhibition as a "fascinating mess" rather than a straightforward success.

art hew locke interview studio yale

The Yale Center for British Art opens "Passages," the most comprehensive exhibition of Hew Locke's work to date, featuring nearly 50 works spanning three decades. Central to the show is a site-specific installation of Locke's ship sculptures, three of which are suspended in the foyer of the museum's Louis I. Kahn building. The exhibition will travel to the Wexner Center for the Arts and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. In an interview, Locke discusses his studio practice, his ongoing exploration of imperialism's symbolism, and his plans for new bronzes and prints.

art collector francis j greenburger omi awards

Francis J. Greenburger, a real estate developer, philanthropist, and literary agent, discusses his lifelong art collection and philanthropic initiatives in an interview with CULTURED. He recounts buying his first painting at age 14 for $25, navigating the 1970s SoHo art scene at Max's Kansas City, and founding the Francis J. Greenburger Awards in 1985 to honor under-recognized artists with a $12,500 prize. Greenburger also details his role at Art Omi, a nonprofit arts center in the Hudson Valley with a sculpture park, residency programs, and the upcoming Art Omi Pavilions project, which will offer 18 artists and collectors individual sites across 190 acres. He is also releasing a book, *Autobiography of a Skyscraper*, about Chicago's 1000M tower.

art raul de nieves pioneer works

Raúl de Nieves, a queer Mexico-born artist based in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, is preparing for his latest institutional exhibition, “In Light of Innocence,” opening September 12 at Pioneer Works in Red Hook. The show features 40 new stained glass assemblages made from tape, acetate, and inexpensive materials, installed above a single floor-bound work—a departure from his typically maximalist style. De Nieves, who has exhibited at the ICA Boston, the Baltimore Museum of Art, and the Cleveland Museum of Art, and gained prominence after the 2017 Whitney Biennial, describes the exhibition as a valediction, stating it will be the last time he creates this kind of work.

art studio museum harlem reopening

The Studio Museum in Harlem will reopen on November 15 after a seven-year closure, unveiling a new seven-floor, 82,000-square-foot building designed by Adjaye Associates and executed by Cooper Robertson. To mark the occasion, Cultured magazine convened three conceptual artists—Nikita Gale, Camille Norment, and Sable Elyse Smith—who received early support from the museum, each reflecting on how the institution shaped their careers. Norment, featured in the 2001 exhibition "Freestyle," is creating a new installation for the reopening; Gale and Smith both participated in the 2017 show "Fictions."

art pat steir khajistan hc westermann

Pat Steir's early installation "Mirage 1975" has been restaged at Hauser & Wirth's Soho location, marking the 50th anniversary of her first-ever installation originally at the State University of New York in Oneonta. The exhibition runs through August 15, 2025, and coincides with the publication of the monograph "Pat Steir Paintings 2018–2025." Separately, the exhibition "Spasial Program by Khajistan" is on view at SculptureCenter in Long Island City through July 28, 2025, presenting a vast archive of rare, illicit, and suppressed media artifacts from the Islamicate world, curated by Lahore-born filmmaker Saad Khan.

real estate investor carl gambino young collectors

Real estate investor Carl Gambino, who splits his time between New York, Los Angeles, and Miami, discusses his art collection and approach to collecting in an interview with Cultured. Gambino, who once considered flipping art but resolved to buy for keeps, shares his early mistake of buying under social pressure at a dinner in France, a decision that left him feeling sick. He credits Kim Hastreiter of Paper magazine and Marsea Goldberg of New Image Art for teaching him to buy only what he loves. His collection features emerging painters such as Alejandro Piñeiro Bello, Cynthia Talmadge, Tianyue Zhong, and Dennis Miranda Zamorano, and he supports exhibitions including a showing of LaKela Brown at the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit.

alison saar david c driskell prize 2

Alison Saar has been named the 2025 recipient of the David C. Driskell Prize by Atlanta’s High Museum of Art, recognizing her significant contributions to the African American art canon. The announcement was made in New York at a celebration held at the Fifth Avenue Hotel in partnership with CULTURED, with a formal gala planned for September featuring a performance by John Legend. Saar, a Los Angeles native known for her commanding sculptures and mixed-media works exploring race, gender, and spiritual identity, joins past honorees including Naomi Beckwith, Ebony G. Patterson, Amy Sherald, and Rashid Johnson.

Marian Goodman’s personal collection of Gerhard Richters

Christie's will auction seven paintings by Gerhard Richter from the personal collection of legendary gallerist Marian Goodman in May 2026, headlining a series of sales titled "Breaking Ground: The Private Collection of Marian Goodman." The group includes the iconic 1982 work *Kerze (Candle)*, estimated at $35–50 million, and spans Richter's career from 1982 to 2009. Goodman, who died in 2024, began representing Richter in 1985 after writing him a letter, and her collection reflects their decades-long professional and personal relationship.

New York gallery Kasmin will close this autumn as leadership launches new venture, Olney Gleason

The Chelsea gallery Kasmin will close this autumn after 35 years of operation, transitioning into a new venture called Olney Gleason. The new gallery will be led by Kasmin president Nick Olney and senior director Eric Gleason, both longtime employees who say the move aligns with the wishes of the late founder Paul Kasmin. Olney Gleason will continue working with an unspecified number of artists and estates from Kasmin's roster, including François-Xavier and Claude Lalanne, Lee Krasner, and Jackson Pollock's estate, and will open a flagship space in Chelsea with an inaugural show this autumn.

With more than 40 galleries represented, Germany is a major player at Art Basel this year

Germany is the second-most represented country at Art Basel in Switzerland this year, with over 40 galleries participating, trailing only the United States. The fair is led by German-born director Maike Cruse, and features prominent German artists including Katharina Grosse, Martin Kippenberger, Tim Eitel, and Jana Schröder. Despite lacking mega-galleries, Germany boasts respected spaces like Galerie Max Hetzler and renowned collectors such as Reinhard Ernst, Julia Stoschek, and the Plattner family. Dealer Gerd Harry Lybke notes Germany's art market is 'very stable' compared to other locations.

Chelsea Exhibition Reviews: Rosebud Contemporary, Paula Cooper, Fredericks & Freiser, Berry Campbell and more

This article reviews several Chelsea gallery exhibitions, focusing on Mary Ann Unger's monumental sculpture show 'Across the Bering Strait' at Berry Campbell, which features her hydrocal-over-steel works exploring themes of feminism, anthropology, and the natural world. It also covers 'En Route' at Rosebud Contemporary, a group exhibition of abstract painters Rifka Milder, Meg Hitchcock, and Ketta Ioannidou, each reflecting on artistic journeys through their work.

Prize commemorates Henrike Naumann – MMK takes over estate

Preis erinnert an Henrike Naumann – MMK übernimmt Nachlass

A new prize named after the late artist Henrike Naumann has been established by the Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen (ifa) and the Zeit Stiftung Bucerius, coinciding with her posthumous presentation at the German Pavilion of the Venice Biennale. The €15,000 Henrike-Naumann-Preis für Bildende Kunst, plus €5,000 in production funds, will be awarded regularly starting this year to early- to mid-career artists whose work engages with social transformation, political fault lines, or transnational contexts. Meanwhile, the Museum für Moderne Kunst Frankfurt (MMK) has acquired Naumann's estate, which will be catalogued and made publicly accessible to ensure her work receives long-term scholarly and curatorial attention.

Deutscher Pavillon wird zum Plattenbau

The German Pavilion at the Venice Art Biennale has been transformed into a prefabricated concrete slab building (Plattenbau) for this year's edition, designed by artists Sung Tieu and the late Henrike Naumann, who died suddenly in February at age 41 from cancer. Curator Kathleen Reinhardt described the pavilion as part of a highly political Biennale, with Tieu covering the 1938 fascist-era building with a mosaic of over three million tiles depicting a Berlin apartment block that once housed Vietnamese contract workers. Naumann's interior installation features mint-green references to Soviet barracks in East Germany, a cartography of war, and works including a relief of chairs, a curtain of chainmail, and the performance "Trümmerfrau."

Foreign Office Reprimands Goethe-Institut for Exhibition

Auswärtiges Amt rügt Goethe-Institut für Ausstellung

The German Foreign Office has formally reprimanded the Goethe-Institut for its involvement in an exhibition in Vilnius, Lithuania, featuring Palestinian-American artist Basma al-Sharif. The ministry stated that events organized by German cultural intermediaries must leave no doubt about the government's firm rejection of antisemitism and hatred of Israel, and demanded greater care in planning and conceptualizing such events with partners. The exhibition, "Bells and Cannons - Contemporary Art in Times of Militarization," was a collaboration between the Goethe-Institut Vilnius, the Contemporary Art Centre Vilnius, and the Berlin Academy of Arts.

What Has the American Inquisition Done to Art?

An exhibition titled "American Inquisition" opened in mid-March at No Place Gallery, an artist-run space in Columbus, Ohio. Featuring paintings by Shiva Addanki and Nikholis Planck, the show draws its name from a statement by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine supporting detained activist Mahmoud Khalil, and its critical framework from Mike Davis's book "Buda's Wagon." Addanki's works depict scenes of US imperial violence, including downed drones and counterinsurgents at detention centers, while Planck's paintings map extractive infrastructure, subverting traditional landscape painting with industrial detritus and petroleum tankers.

EU confirms Venice Biennale funding cut over Russia feud

The European Union has confirmed it will cut its funding to the Venice Biennale following the event's decision to allow Russia's return to the exhibition. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas announced the move, which was previously threatened, during a press conference focused on supporting Ukraine. Latvia and Finland have also stated they will not send government representatives if Russia's participation is maintained.

Morad Montazami appointed artistic director of 2026 Dakar Biennale

Morad Montazami has been named the artistic director for the 16th edition of the Dakar Biennale, scheduled to run from November 19 to December 19, 2026. Titled "(Anti)Fragility: Arts of Repair and Counter-Shock Strategies," the exhibition will explore themes of community-led restoration and the transformation of vulnerability into collective strength. Montazami, a former Tate Modern curator and founder of the platform Zamân Books & Curating, brings an extensive background in postcolonial art histories and global modernisms to the prestigious African forum.

Settlement allows Institute of Museum and Library Services to continue operations

The American Library Association (ALA) and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) have reached a settlement with the Trump administration to restore the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). The agreement follows a year-long legal battle sparked by an executive order that placed the agency's entire staff on administrative leave and attempted to dismantle the federal body. The settlement ensures the IMLS can resume awarding grants, conducting research, and operating programs while reversing previous staff terminations and grant cancellations.

Au Louvre, des directeurs de département entre responsabilités internes et rôle national

Maximilien Durand has been reappointed as head of the Department of Byzantine and Eastern Christian Arts at the Louvre Museum, a role that carries both internal museum responsibilities and national duties on behalf of the French state. Two decrees signed by Culture Minister Catherine Pégard formalize his renewal: one as head of the museum department, and another as head of the corresponding major heritage department, a status held by only nine of the Louvre's departments.

Gilles Bloch: "The Museum needs 1.1 billion euros"

Gilles Bloch : « Le Muséum a besoin de 1,1 milliard d’euros »

Gilles Bloch, president of the Muséum national d’histoire naturelle in Paris, has issued an urgent call for €1.1 billion in funding to address the critical state of the institution's infrastructure. Ahead of its 400th anniversary in 2026, a diagnostic report reveals that 74% of the museum's 120 buildings are in poor condition, with several galleries currently closed to the public or suffering from inadequate climate control. The requested funds would cover €500 million in emergency repairs to stabilize decaying structures and a further €600 million for long-term modernization and energy efficiency upgrades.

V&A Museum Has Acquiesced to Censorship Requests from Chinese Printer: Report

London’s Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) reportedly complied with censorship demands from its Chinese printing firm, C&C Offset Printing, to alter exhibition catalogues. Internal emails revealed that the museum removed a photograph of Lenin from a Fabergé exhibition book and altered historical maps to align with Chinese government standards after the printers flagged them as "sensitive." Staff noted that while they were aware of contemporary geopolitical sensitivities, the restrictions had expanded to include historical imagery, forcing last-minute editorial changes to avoid production delays.