Julie Hamisky's garden, the artist who fixes the ephemeral in time, is on show in a Milan auction house

Il giardino di Julie Hamisky, l’artista che fissa l’effimero nel tempo è in mostra in una casa d’aste di Milano

French artist and designer Julie Hamisky presents 'Giardino Alchemico' (Alchemical Garden) at Pandolfini Auction House in Milan during Fuorisalone 2025. The exhibition, organized in collaboration with Galerie Mitterrand of Paris, features around twenty works including monumental sculptures like 'La Géante' (a giant poppy), jewelry, and a chandelier titled 'Aqua'. Hamisky uses electroplating—a 19th-century technique she learned from her father-in-law—to preserve fresh flowers and botanical forms by coating them in metal, freezing them at the peak of their beauty before decay begins.

Julie Hamisky's garden, the artist who fixes the ephemeral in time, is on show in a Milan auction house

Il giardino di Julie Hamisky, l’artista che fissa l’effimero nel tempo è in mostra in una casa d’aste di Milano

French artist and designer Julie Hamisky presents 'Giardino Alchemico' (Alchemical Garden) at Pandolfini Auction House in Milan during Fuorisalone. The exhibition, organized in collaboration with Galerie Mitterrand of Paris, features around twenty works including monumental sculptures like 'La Géante' (a giant poppy), jewelry, and a chandelier titled 'Aqua'. Hamisky uses electroplating—a 19th-century technique she learned from her father-in-law—to preserve fresh plants and flowers by coating them in metal, freezing them at their peak of beauty before decay. The process involves immersing botanicals in a galvanic bath with electric current, creating unpredictable color variations from deep greens and electric blues to lilacs and warm copper tones.

Hidden Detroit: Art Galleries You May Have Overlooked

This Detroit City Guide article highlights ten overlooked art galleries and cultural spaces across the city, including Wasserman Projects in Eastern Market, the Elaine L. Jacob Gallery at Wayne State University, Center Galleries at the College for Creative Studies, Galerie Camille, the historic Scarab Club, Detroit Artists Market, Ellen Kayrod Gallery, Schinkel Fine Art, and the N'Namdi Center for Contemporary Art. Each venue is described with its unique focus, from diaspora-inspired ceramics and student showcases to artist residencies and senior artist platforms, with several exhibitions closing in April 2025.

Mondialisation and Mondialité: For a Museum of Errantry with Édouard Glissant

The Center for Art, Research and Alliances (CARA) in New York is hosting "The Earth, the Fire, the Water, and the Winds: For a Museum of Errantry with Édouard Glissant," an exhibition traveling from the Instituto Tomie Ohtake in São Paulo. The show eschews traditional curatorial hierarchies, instead utilizing the theories of Martinican philosopher Édouard Glissant to present works by artists such as Gerardo Chávez and Eduardo Zamora. Rather than providing didactic labels, the installation encourages "errantry" and "relationality," allowing visitors to discover visual resonances and meanings through their own active engagement with the landscape of the gallery.

Master metalsmith David Secrest featured in new exhibit

The Wanda Hollensteiner Art Gallery in Kalispell is hosting a new exhibition titled "David Secrest: The Unprejudiced Silence of Things that Are," running through May 23. The show features the work of the Somers-based master metalsmith, whose four-decade career spans forged iron, fabricated steel, bronze, and woodworking. Secrest, who was named a "Master Metalsmith" by the Metal Museum in 2017, is recognized for a visual language that blends natural forms with rigorous material manipulation.

Burning Man Art: It’s Closer Than You Think

Burning Man art is increasingly appearing in museums, cities, and regional events worldwide, moving beyond the temporary desert environment of Black Rock City. Artists like Miki Masuhara-Page and Walker Babington have brought their interactive sculptures—such as 'Cosmic Messenger' and 'Burden of the Beast'—to venues including the Portland Winter Light Festival and The Hermitage Museum and Gardens in Norfolk, Virginia. The Black Rock City Honoraria Program, funded by the nonprofit Burning Man Project, supports approximately 75 artworks annually, while the Art department assists nearly 400 pieces destined for the playa.

NEXT in the Gallery: Pittsburgh in December is a sprawling winter carnival of art

Pittsburgh's visual artists are transforming the city into a sprawling winter carnival throughout December 2025, with a packed calendar of exhibitions and events. Highlights include Sharmistha Ray's three-channel animation "Emergent Realities" at Wood Street Galleries (Dec. 12–July 5, 2026), featuring a commissioned soundtrack by Grammy-winning composer Arooj Aftab; Mary Mazziotti's satirical textile series "Thank You for Your Attention to This Matter" at BE Galleries (Dec. 6–Jan. 31, 2026); and Offroute Art's "Crisis of Empathy // Limit of Empathy" showcasing eight young artists. Wood Street Galleries also partners with Visual AIDS for Day With(out) Art 2025 on Dec. 3, presenting videos exploring drug users and HIV crisis. The month kicks off with holiday markets and arcades, and includes a Neapolitan nativity scene exhibit and an art battle in Sharpsburg.

Yvette Mayorga & MASS Gallery Announce Open Call for Austin Artists

Chicago-based multidisciplinary artist Yvette Mayorga, in collaboration with Austin’s nonprofit MASS Gallery, has announced an open call for artists living in the Greater Austin area to submit existing works for an exhibition titled *Lost and Found*, scheduled for January 17 through February 14, 2026, at MASS Gallery. The open call is part of the community engagement phase of Mayorga’s major public art project for the new concourse at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (ABIA), set to open in 2030. Her project draws on her ancestral ties to the Bracero Program, exploring the emotional resonance of personal objects carried across borders and generations. The exhibition aims to give visibility to local artists while building community around themes of migration, ecology, and the flora and fauna of Texas and Mexico.

California nonprofits keep losing funding in what new study calls ‘the shadow of the pandemic cliff’

A new Otis College Report on the Creative Economy, titled "In the Shadow of the Pandemic Cliff," was presented at the Getty Center in Los Angeles. The report, prepared by Westwood Economics and Planning Associates, analyzes financial data from 2011 to 2023 for nonprofit cultural organizations in Los Angeles County, including museums, art schools, and performing-arts groups. It reveals that while revenues for these nonprofits surged by 47% during the early pandemic years due to special relief funding, that support has since faded. By 2023, 60% of surveyed organizations reported less public funding and 51% saw declines in private donations, a trend the report calls the "Covid cliff."

Pepperdine Closes Exhibit Featuring “Overtly Political” Art

Pepperdine University in Malibu, California, closed the exhibition “Hold My Hand In Yours” at the Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art on October 6, after artists discovered their works had been removed or altered for being “overtly political.” The show, curated by museum director Andrea Gyorody, explored hands as symbols of labor and care. One artist found her video turned off, and a sculpture was modified to hide text reading “Save the Children” and “Abolish ICE.” The affected artists requested their pieces be removed, and others withdrew in solidarity. University officials cited a policy to avoid overtly political content consistent with its nonprofit status, and offered apologies while honoring compensation agreements.

Political censorship of art exhibition at California’s Pepperdine University

Pepperdine University, a private Christian institution in Malibu, California, censored and closed an art exhibition titled "Hold My Hand in Yours" at its Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art. The exhibition, curated by museum director Andrea Gyorody, featured works centered on hands as symbols of labor, identity, care, and connection. On October 1, administrators Lauren Cosentino and Nicole Singer visited the museum, leading to the shutdown of artist Elena Mann's video "Call to Arms 2015-2022," which included references to Donald Trump's policies, the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the Brett Kavanaugh hearings, and the George Floyd protests. Another work, "Con Nuestras Manos Construimos Deidades" by Natalie Godinez and the nonprofit AMBOS, was also censored after officials objected to text reading "Save the Children" and "Abolish ICE."

California School Shutters Exhibition After Altering "Political" Art

Pepperdine University, a private Christian university in Malibu, abruptly closed the exhibition "Hold My Hand in Yours" at its Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art six months early after school administrators removed or altered artworks deemed "political." The show, curated by museum director Andrea Gyorody, featured works centered on hands as symbols of labor and identity. At least a dozen artists requested to withdraw after the university turned off Elana Mann's video "Call to Arms 2015-2025" (2025), which documented performances including a 2017 May Day March in Los Angeles with chants supporting immigrants and opposing racism. Administrators also turned a fabric swatch reading "Save the Children" and "Abolish ICE" on a collaborative sculpture by Art Made Between Opposite Sides (AMBOS) so the text was hidden, and removed a sign inviting visitors to touch the work.

California School Shutters Exhibition After Altering "Political" Art

Pepperdine University, a private Christian university in Malibu, abruptly closed the exhibition "Hold My Hand in Yours" at its Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art six months early, after at least a dozen artists requested to withdraw their works in protest. The school had removed or altered artworks it deemed "political," including Elana Mann's video "Call to Arms 2015-2025" (2025), which documented performances using megaphone-like sculptural instruments and included footage from a 2017 May Day March with chants supporting immigrants and racial justice. Another work by the group AMBOS, a collaborative sculpture featuring an embroidery reading "Save the Children" and "Abolish ICE," was altered by turning the fabric swatch to hide the text and removing a sign inviting visitor interaction. The school did not explain its decisions to the artists.

From royal visitors to extortionate eBay sales: new book offers rare behind-the-scenes glimpse of Vermeer blockbuster

The Rijksmuseum's 2023 Vermeer exhibition, widely considered the most successful show of the century, drew 650,000 visitors and assembled 28 of the artist's 37 known paintings. A new book, *Closer to Vermeer: New Research on the Painter and his Art*, published by Thames & Hudson, offers an unprecedented behind-the-scenes account of how the exhibition was organized. The book reveals that curators Pieter Roelofs and Gregor Weber initially planned a broader thematic show before deciding to focus solely on Vermeer. It details the challenges of securing loans—nine paintings were missed, including *The Concert* (stolen in 1990) and *The Astronomer* (on loan to Louvre Abu Dhabi)—and notes that the Herzog Anton Ulrich Museum declined to lend *Girl with a Wine Glass*, even rejecting an offer of buses for schoolchildren. The book also discloses that the Dutch royal family and the Queen of Belgium visited during regular hours, and that over 3,500 complaints were filed about photography. The most expensive resold ticket on eBay reached $2,724.

Historic architecture is celebrated in new Onera Foundation venue in Connecticut

The Onera Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to preserving historic American architecture, has opened a physical venue in New Canaan, Connecticut. Its inaugural exhibition, "Treaties on De-Fences" (through March 2026), features sculptures and prints by Spanish American artist Jorge Otero-Pailos, inspired by his preservation work on the Eero Saarinen-designed US Embassy in Oslo. The foundation, founded by David B. Peterson, acquired the landmark 1836 Greek Revival building in 2018 and restored it for exhibitions and public programs.

Historic architecture is celebrated in new Onera Foundation venue in Connecticut

The Onera Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to preserving historic American architecture, has opened a physical venue in New Canaan, Connecticut. Its inaugural exhibition, "Treaties on De-Fences" (through March 2026), features sculptures and prints by Spanish American artist Jorge Otero-Pailos, inspired by his work preserving the Eero Saarinen-designed US Embassy in Oslo. The foundation, founded by David B. Peterson, acquired the landmark 1836 Greek Revival building in 2018 and restored it to host exhibitions and public programs.

craft as protest 2741909

Craft-based activism is surging in the U.S. as a form of protest against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) policies and operations under President Trump's second term. Projects include the "Melt the ICE" hat, a red beanie pattern that has sold over 65,000 copies and raised over $600,000 for immigrant-support nonprofits, and origami rabbits for a detained five-year-old boy, drawing direct parallels to historical craft-as-resistance movements like the Norwegian topplue worn against Nazi occupation.

Pride of place: the rise of LGBTQ+ art in Hong Kong

Hong Kong's art scene is witnessing a significant rise in the visibility and institutional embrace of LGBTQ+ art, particularly during its annual Art Week. Exhibitions like the Sunpride Foundation's 'Myth Makers—Spectrosynthesis III' at Tai Kwun Contemporary have acted as major accelerants, moving queer discourse from semi-private contexts into prominent public institutions.

Top York artist opens his one-of-a-kind York home for new 5-day exhibition

Renowned York-based artist Mark Hearld is hosting an independent five-day exhibition at his private residence in The Mount. The showcase features twenty new collages and a series of prints, including works inspired by a recent trip to Jaipur and a collaborative screenprint with Penfold Press. The event is notable for being held outside the official York Open Studios program, a circuit Hearld has participated in for two decades but was not selected for this year.

Red Carpet Reception proves new home’s a winner for Coors Western Art Exhibit & Sale | NONPROFIT REGISTER

The 34th Coors Western Art Exhibit & Sale held its Red Carpet Reception on Thursday night, drawing over 1,000 guests to its new venue on the second floor of The Legacy, the recently completed $100 million headquarters of the National Western Stock Show. The 2026 show features 93 participating artists and 354 works, including wildlife, landscape, sculpture, and plastics, with a sales goal exceeding $1 million to benefit the National Western Scholarship Trust. Featured artist Logan Maxwell Hagege of Ojai, California, presents works such as "Springtime in the Rockies" ($85,000) and "Indigo Stripes" ($18,500), while his piece "Hopeless Dreamer" was purchased for the Stock Show's Permanent Collection.

This Gallery Has Championed Photography as Art for 50 Years

Blue Sky Gallery in Portland, Oregon, is celebrating its 50th anniversary as a nonprofit champion of photography as fine art. Founded in 1975 as the Oregon Center for the Photographic Arts by a collective of five co-founders—Ann Hughes, Bob DiFranco, Craig Hickman, Terry Toedtemeier, and Chris Rauschenberg—the gallery opened in a small storefront on Lovejoy Street when photography was not yet widely recognized in institutional spaces. It has never charged admission or application fees, relying on volunteer labor and a philosophy of free access. Over five decades, the gallery moved through three locations before settling in Portland's historic DeSoto Building, which it now owns.

« La Dame à la licorne » : le portrait idéal du divin Raphaël

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York is hosting the first-ever exhibition dedicated to Raphael in the United States, running until June 28. The show brings together over 200 works by the celebrated Renaissance master, including the enigmatic portrait *La Dame à la licorne* (1505–1506), which exemplifies Raphael's signature qualities of grace, light, and harmony.

Mischief’s Genius Ads for NPR Provoke Urgent Questions About the Right to Information

In mid-2025, the Trump administration rescinded $9 billion in public media funding, including $1.1 billion for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CBP), which subsequently voted to dissolve. While NPR stated its mission would continue unchanged, the cuts disproportionately impacted rural member stations that relied on CBP for about 13% of their revenue, threatening local access to public media.

Indonesia Returns to Venice Biennale for 2026 Edition

Indonesia will return to the Venice Biennale in 2026 after a six-year absence. The national pavilion, titled "Printing the Unprinted," will be curated by Aminudin TH Siregar and will feature archival materials alongside works by 14 emerging artists, aiming to explore the country's cultural identity and art history.

Once taboo, now on view: Seoul debuts major queer art exhibition

Art Sonje Center in Seoul has launched "Spectrosynthesis Seoul," the first large-scale institutional exhibition in South Korea dedicated specifically to queer art. Organized in partnership with the Sunpride Foundation, the show features 74 international and Korean artists across two major sections, exploring themes of identity, sign language bias, and the historical queer spatiality of Seoul neighborhoods like Itaewon.

THE WIND AS PROTAGONIST AT THE FINLAND PAVILION

Artist Jenna Sutela has been selected to represent Finland at the 61st Venice Biennale in 2026 with a multisensory installation titled Aeolian Suite. Curated by Stefanie Hessler and commissioned by Frame Contemporary Art Finland, the project transforms the Alvar Aalto-designed pavilion into a dynamic windscape using meteorological data, wind machines, and a children’s woodwinds orchestra. The work personifies five specific Venetian winds as protagonists in an elemental drama that blends scientific data with the theatrical traditions of Commedia dell’arte.

Austin's graffiti wall returns: HOPE Outdoor Gallery opens 18-acre site

Austin's iconic graffiti wall has returned with the grand opening of the HOPE Outdoor Gallery's new 18-acre site in Southeast Austin on December 17, 2025. The original wall near Lamar Boulevard was removed six years ago, and the new location near Austin Bergstrom International Airport features a 6,000-square-foot open-air gallery, community art park, murals by local artists, a cafe, rooftop bar, art supply shop, and spaces for programming and vendors. The space is free, open to the public, and all-ages, with a ribbon-cutting attended by District 2 City Council member Vanessa Fuentes.

Memories of South End captured on canvas in art exhibition

A nostalgic art exhibition opened at the South End Museum in Nelson Mandela Bay, featuring canvas paintings that recreate historical black-and-white images of the former South End neighborhood. The exhibition and sale, organized by local framing company Frame Art and artist/trustee Michael Barry, showcases works primarily by Vincent Olivier, based on a collection amassed by the late Frame Art founder Salie Wackie.

California Museum to Remove Cesar Chavez From Hall of Fame Following Abuse Allegations

The California Museum in Sacramento plans to remove labor leader Cesar Chavez from its California Hall of Fame. This unprecedented action follows a New York Times investigation detailing allegations that Chavez sexually abused multiple girls and engaged in misconduct with women in the United Farm Workers movement during the 1970s.

kennedy center adds trump name 1234767689

The board of trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts voted on Thursday to add President Donald Trump's name to the institution, renaming it "The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts." The vote was described as unanimous by spokeswoman Roma Daravi, but Democratic Representative Joyce Beatty, an ex-officio board member, disputed this, claiming she was muted when trying to voice opposition. The move has been met with disapproval from members of the Kennedy family and legal experts who argue it violates a federal stipulation from 1963. The name change has already been reflected on the institution's website and façade, following a year of turmoil that included Trump being booed at a performance and a Washington Post exposé on staff turmoil and declining ticket sales.