An Ancient Ballad at Emami Art Brings Generations of Artists Together in Kolkata

A new group exhibition titled 'An Ancient Ballad' opens at Emami Art in Kolkata on 22 May 2026, bringing together 12 artists across generations. The show examines recurring motifs of nature, the human body, and animal forms in modern and contemporary art through photography, painting, printmaking, textile, ceramics, and sculpture. Historical works by L. M. Sen and K. C. Pyne are displayed alongside contemporary artists including Arunima Choudhury, Ajit Kumar Das, Alakananda Sengupta, Raja Boro, and Rahul Sarkar, creating an intergenerational dialogue on memory, mythology, and lived experience.

La tour Perret, premier gratte-ciel en béton armé d’Europe, renaît à Grenoble après 60 ans de fermeture

The Tour Perret in Grenoble, Europe's first reinforced concrete skyscraper, will reopen to the public on July 11, 2026, after being closed since the 1960s. Designed by Auguste Perret in 1925 for the International Exhibition of White Coal and Tourism, the 95-meter tower has undergone a complex restoration led by heritage architect François Botton, addressing water infiltration and corrosion while preserving its original character.

Art Collectors Bet on Known Quantities Amid Market Reset

The Impressionist and Modern art category became the most lucrative market segment in 2025, generating $4.7 billion in sales—a 29.5% increase from 2024—as collectors favored established names amid a cautious market. The $10-million-plus bracket surged 68.6% to $1.5 billion, while the number of lots sold hit a decade high of 122,213. Postwar and contemporary art ranked second with $4.1 billion, but its average price per lot dropped to a decade low of $23,027. Old Masters saw a 41.2% rise to $708.6 million, partly driven by the Thomas A. Saunders III collection at Sotheby’s, though that sale fell short of estimates. Ultra-contemporary art continued its four-year decline, falling 26.5% to $229.9 million, with average prices tumbling 72.4% from their 2021 peak.

Fashion in all its majesty: the Haute Couture exhibition at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs unfolds — our photos

The Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris opens "Fashion in Majesty: Haute Couture and Tradition at the Thai Court" from May 13 to November 1, 2026. The exhibition features over a hundred garments, accessories, and textile pieces from the Thai royal family's collections, focusing on how Queen Sirikit modernized Thai ceremonial dress while preserving traditional codes through her collaboration with Pierre Balmain and Maison Lesage. The show also highlights the work of the SUPPORT Foundation, established by Queen Sirikit to safeguard traditional crafts, and the ongoing legacy carried by Queen Suthida and Princess Sirivannavari.

Spotlighting the Woman Who Brought European Modernism to California

The article spotlights Galka Scheyer, a largely overlooked figure who introduced European modernism to California in the early 20th century. A new exhibition in Pasadena brings her story to the foreground, highlighting her role in championing artists who later became famous.

A Genova riapre dopo un lungo restauro la Torre Grimaldina. La visita al belvedere di Palazzo Ducale

The Torre Grimaldina, a medieval tower in Genoa's Palazzo Ducale, has reopened after extensive restoration and safety upgrades funded by Italy's PNRR (National Recovery and Resilience Plan). Built in the late 13th century as a symbol of municipal power, the tower later served as a prison for political dissidents, including Risorgimento patriots and anti-fascist activists, as well as the violinist Niccolò Paganini. The restoration has preserved historic graffiti and inscriptions left by inmates, while reopening the tower's belvedere offering panoramic views of the city.

Photographer Valerio Minato strikes again. The extraordinary shot of the red moon aligned with the Milan skyline: 'I waited for 5 years'

Il fotografo Valerio Minato colpisce ancora. Lo straordinario scatto della luna rossa allineata con lo skyline di Milano: “ho atteso per 5 anni”

Italian photographer Valerio Minato captured a striking image on May 2, 2026, showing a giant red moon aligned with Milan's skyline, including the Porta Garibaldi skyscrapers and the Duomo with its Madonnina. The photograph, which went viral, was the result of a five-year pursuit involving astronomical calculations, multiple location scouting across northwestern Italy, and precise timing to align the moon with the city's landmarks. A Ryanair Boeing 737-800 crossing the lunar disk added an unexpected cinematic element.

Running for more than a century, annual juried art exhibition opens at Bendheim Gallery today

The Bendheim Gallery in Westport, Connecticut, opens its annual juried art exhibition today, a tradition that has been running for more than a century. The show features selected works from local and regional artists, chosen through a competitive jury process, and is a staple of the community's cultural calendar.

Carnegie Museums $500 million campaign will fund projects at all 4 museums

The Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh have launched a $500 million comprehensive campaign, the largest in their history, to fund capital projects across all four of their institutions: the Carnegie Museum of Art, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Carnegie Science Center, and The Andy Warhol Museum. The campaign, which has already raised $325 million, will support renovations, new exhibitions, and expanded educational programming, including a major overhaul of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History's dinosaur hall and a new wing for the Carnegie Museum of Art.

Art market trends 2025: Impressionist & Modern hit $4.7B, up 29.5%

According to the 2025 art market trends, Impressionist and Modern art generated $4.7 billion in auction sales, a 29.5% increase from 2024, overtaking Postwar and Contemporary art to become the year's largest auction segment. Meanwhile, Ultra-contemporary art continued its decline, and Old Masters gained ground, signaling a broader shift in collector behavior toward established, blue-chip works.

The Lucas Museum has finally announced its inaugural cinema exhibition, ‘Star Wars in Motion,’ ahead of its September opening

The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in Los Angeles has announced its inaugural cinema exhibition, 'Star Wars in Motion,' ahead of its September 22, 2026 opening. The exhibition will feature props, costumes, vehicles, and illustrations from the first six Star Wars films, including Luke's Landspeeder and General Grievous's Wheel Bike, showcasing the franchise's iconic designs and visual storytelling.

The Museum of the Surrender of Reims Reopens After a Year of Renovations

Le Musée de la Reddition de Reims rouvre ses portes après un an de travaux

The Musée de la Reddition de Reims (Museum of the Surrender of Reims) reopened on May 7, the 81st anniversary of the German surrender signed in its map room, after a year-long closure. The renovation, costing approximately €2 million, focused on conservation: protective glazing, improved ventilation and lighting, and anoxic treatment of collections to halt degradation of original maps, documents, and war room objects. The museum also overhauled its scenography, designed by Belgian agency Kascen, to present a clearer chronological narrative covering the occupation, Allied presence in Reims, liberation, postwar reconstruction, and reconciliation, rather than just the surrender itself. The museum now displays 17 uniforms, 130 objects and weapons, and 65 archival documents, including the act of capitulation and General McAuliffe's jacket.

Mirei Monticelli’s Hand-Woven Banana Leaf Lamps Swell Between Material and Movement

Milan-based Filipina designer Mirei Monticelli creates biomorphic lighting fixtures from hand-woven Banaca fabric, made from Abacá fiber sourced from the Philippines. Her studio collaborates with a community of weavers in the Bicol province, developing the material through a long-term relationship. The lamps, which blend sculpture and utility, were recently featured in an installation titled 'Pleasure Garden' at Milan Design Week. Monticelli’s process incorporates techniques from garment construction, learned from her mother, a fashion designer.

Stefano Boeri designs a new monastery that will be born in Milan in the district where Expo 2015 was held

Stefano Boeri progetta un nuovo monastero che nascerà a Milano nel quartiere dove si fece l’Expo2015

Stefano Boeri Architetti has designed a new monastery, the Monastero Ambrosiano, to be built by 2029 in the Mind – Milano Innovation District, the tech hub developed on the site of Expo 2015 in Milan. Presented at the Abbey of Chiaravalle, the project is commissioned by the Diocese of Milan and includes a church for 300-350 worshippers, a Cloister of Religions, a Garden of Religions, and a Library of Religions, blending contemporary architecture with monastic tradition and interfaith dialogue.