12 art exhibitions to check out this spring in L.A.

Los Angeles is preparing for a robust spring arts season with a diverse lineup of exhibitions across the city's major institutions. Highlights include the long-awaited opening of the David Geffen Galleries at LACMA, a retrospective of the band Sublime at the Grammy Museum, and Yoko Ono’s first solo exhibition in Los Angeles. The season also features multidisciplinary showcases such as Guillermo Bert’s tech-integrated textiles at the Museum of Latin American Art and a sensory-focused group show at the Hammer Museum.

Insight: Conserving Across Exhibitions

The Denver Art Museum is hosting a public insight session focused on the specialized work of its conservation department. Conservators will present behind-the-scenes details regarding the treatment of artworks and objects prepared for several major exhibitions, including the mid-century modern showcase "Space Is the Place" at The Kirkland and the textile-focused "Conversation Pieces."

Important private collections feature in Strauss & Co March sales of modern and contemporary

Strauss & Co has announced its upcoming Evening Sale of Modern and Contemporary Art scheduled for March 24, 2026. The auction features 96 lots, headlined by significant private consignments including the Stan and Li Boiskin Art Collection and the Patricia Fine Art Collection. High-value works from South African masters such as Irma Stern, J. H. Pierneef, and Gerard Sekoto will lead the sale alongside a robust selection of contemporary pieces by artists like William Kentridge and Mary Sibande.

Ruth Asawa: Retrospective

A major retrospective of the Japanese-American artist Ruth Asawa is touring internationally, organized through a partnership between SFMOMA and MoMA. The exhibition spans six decades of her career, featuring her iconic suspended looped-wire sculptures alongside tied-wire pieces, bronze casts, drawings, and archival materials. The show traces her journey from her formative years at Black Mountain College to her influential role as an arts advocate and educator in San Francisco.

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An anonymous graffiti artist known as Acer 444 successfully tagged the third-story facade of the New Museum on New York’s Bowery. The large-scale piece, featuring black lettering against a red background, was placed in a precarious, high-visibility location directly above Glenn Ligon’s neon installation. Despite the museum's security measures and its specialized aluminum mesh exterior, the artist managed to complete the work undetected before maintenance crews began removal efforts the following morning.

La Jolla art museum to host party for Alicia Keys, Swizz Beatz art exhibit

The Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego (MCASD) in La Jolla is preparing to host a major celebratory event for the opening of "Giants: Art from the Dean Collection of Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz." The exhibition showcases a significant selection of works from the world-class private collection of the musical power couple, featuring monumental pieces by influential Black artists.

Thriving Together Atlanta will transform Old Fourth Ward site into open-air art gallery

The Thriving Together Atlanta initiative is set to transform the former Atlanta Medical Center site in the Old Fourth Ward into a vibrant open-air gallery. On March 28, the project will unveil the BLVDNEXT construction art wrap, a large-scale visual installation designed to turn a construction perimeter into a public art space. The event will feature live mural painting, a Mobile Art Experience curated by NEXT and the National Black Arts Festival, and various artistic performances.

NRV gallery exhibition showcases local artists

The YMCA at Virginia Tech is hosting a community-focused exhibition titled 'Exploring Art in the NRV' in Blacksburg, Virginia. Running through April 10, the showcase features a diverse range of works from local artists and regional institutions, including the Montgomery Museum of Art and History and the Fine Arts Center of the NRV. A public reception is scheduled for March 15 to celebrate the region's creative output.

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The Yams Collective, a group of African American artists, has withdrawn from the 2014 Whitney Biennial in protest. Their departure centers on the inclusion of Joe Scanlan, a white artist whose long-running project involves hiring Black women to portray a fictional artist named Donelle Woolford. The collective argues that Scanlan’s work, which is listed in the biennial under the fictional artist's name rather than his own, is a form of racial drag that is particularly offensive within an exhibition already criticized for its lack of diversity.

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Former Museum of Modern Art director Glenn Lowry has publicly defended billionaire collector Leon Black regarding his continued presence on the museum's board despite his past ties to Jeffrey Epstein. Lowry emphasized Black's financial commitment to the institution, specifically citing his role in preventing staff layoffs during the COVID-19 pandemic and his decision to step down as board chair in 2021 to protect the museum from further controversy.

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Brooklyn-based photographer Keisha Scarville has been named the 2026 winner of the Brooklyn Museum’s Uovo Prize. The award includes a $25,000 cash prize, a solo exhibition at the museum, and a public art commission featured on the facade of Uovo’s Bushwick facility. Her upcoming presentation, titled "Where Salt Meets Black Water," will debut in May 2026 and features vinyl reproductions from her "Mama’s Clothes" series, which explores Guyanese heritage and maternal legacy through textiles.

SMC’s Museum of Art opens new exhibit featuring three Bay Area artists

The Saint Mary’s College Museum of Art has launched a new exhibition season featuring three distinct Bay Area artists: Hilda Robinson, Zach Clark, and Beth Van Hoesen. The showcase includes a retrospective of Robinson’s vibrant oil pastels documenting Black communal joy, a collaborative landscape project by Clark involving student research, and a survey of Van Hoesen’s minimalist line work and intaglio prints.

Black Art Takes Center Stage at Art of the African Diaspora at Studio 23

The Art of the African Diaspora (AOTAD) celebrates its 29th year with a series of satellite exhibitions across the Bay Area, including a dual-gallery showcase at Studio 23 and Resistance Press 510 in Alameda. Curated by Eric Murphy and Yolanda Cotton Turner, the exhibitions feature works by artists such as George Bernard, Sonia Roberts, and Darrin Westmore. The program is supplemented by artist interviews hosted by the Tradition Café Podcast, providing deeper insight into the personal histories and cultural memories behind the contemporary Black art on display.

Milwaukee Art Museum to Present Widline Cadet’s First U.S. Museum Solo Exhibition

The Milwaukee Art Museum has announced "Currents 40: Widline Cadet," the first U.S. museum solo exhibition for the Haitian-born artist. Running from May 8 through August 9, 2026, the show features the debut of her decade-long project, "Seremoni Disparisyon (Ritual [Dis]Appearance)." The exhibition utilizes photography, video, and installation to explore themes of Black diasporic life, migration, and the creation of a "living archive" through staged imagery and autobiographical details.

Two New Orleans Artists Selected for the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia

New Orleans artists Dawn DeDeaux and Big Chief Demond Melancon have been selected to participate in the 61st Venice Biennale, titled "In Minor Keys." This marks the first time since 2015 that artists from New Orleans have been included in the prestigious international exhibition, and they are the only representatives from the American Gulf South selected for this edition. DeDeaux is recognized for her pioneering multidisciplinary work, while Melancon is celebrated for his intricate beadwork and craftsmanship rooted in the Black Masking Indian tradition.

Art, Beats + Lyrics Makes Anticipated Return to Charlotte

The traveling exhibition Art, Beats + Lyrics (AB+L) is returning to Charlotte for the first time in seven years, scheduled for March 28 at Blume Studios. Founded in Atlanta over two decades ago, the event merges visual art with hip-hop culture, featuring a curated selection of contemporary works alongside live musical performances and immersive installations. This year’s stop features headliner Premo Rice and is curated by Dwayne “Dubelyoo” Wright, marking a significant homecoming for a tour that considers Charlotte one of its foundational markets.

Slawn Releases ‘Not An Artist’ Album After Live Studio Exhibition at Saatchi Yates

London-based artist Slawn has released a collaborative album titled 'Not An Artist' following a month-long residency at Saatchi Yates gallery. From January to February, the gallery was transformed into a live studio environment where Slawn created paintings and recorded music simultaneously. The project featured a wide array of musical collaborators, including Unknown T and Blackhaine, and was executive produced by Arthur Bean.

"Glory! Glory!" exhibit showcases Black artists' perspectives on American flag

The Zhou B Art Center in Chicago is currently hosting "Glory! Glory!", an exhibition presented by Pigment International that explores the American flag through the lens of Black artists. Featuring works by figures such as Robert Lewis Clark, Reggie McFly, and Nate Austin, the collection includes provocative pieces like an 11-foot flag composed of Obama-era newspaper clippings and various deconstructed flags that signal protest and complex patriotism.

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Ludovic Nkoth is the latest artist featured in the FLAG Art Foundation’s “Spotlight” series, which showcases a single, previously unexhibited work paired with a commissioned text. The featured painting, "Stars under the border" (2026), depicts figures in a quiet, mundane moment of rest or labor, exploring the tension between aspiration and systemic limitation. Nkoth’s practice, rooted in his Cameroonian heritage and New York base, utilizes nuanced brushwork and color to investigate the psychological complexities of the Black diasporic experience.

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A painting by David Salle titled "Hatchet" (2025) was removed from his solo exhibition at Sprüth Magers in Los Angeles following allegations of plagiarism. Critics and social media users pointed out that the work's central figure—a woman in a black-and-white dress holding a sledgehammer—bore a striking resemblance to the 2021 painting "Impact" by artist Kelly Reemtsen. While Salle is a pioneer of the Pictures Generation known for appropriation, the gallery stated the work was withdrawn out of respect for both artists and to acknowledge the ongoing dialogue regarding authorship.

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Sotheby’s has secured the personal collection of the late financier and legendary art dealer Robert Mnuchin for its marquee May auctions in New York. The 24-work consignment is headlined by Mark Rothko’s 1957 masterpiece 'Brown and Blacks in Reds', which carries an estimate of $70 million to $100 million. The collection also features significant works by Willem de Kooning, Franz Kline, and Jeff Koons, reflecting Mnuchin's lifelong dedication to postwar abstraction and the New York School.

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Zanele Muholi has been named the winner of the 2026 Hasselblad Award, widely considered the world’s most prestigious photography prize. The South African photographer and "visual activist" will receive approximately $218,000, a solo exhibition at the Hasselblad Center in Gothenburg opening in October 2026, and a dedicated publication. Muholi’s work is celebrated for its monumental grayscale portraiture that documents and honors the Black LGBTQIA+ community, challenging historical omissions and systemic oppression.

Taína Cruz Interview

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Taína H. Cruz has emerged as a central figure in the 2024 New York art season, achieving the rare feat of being featured simultaneously in the Whitney Biennial and MoMA PS1’s "Greater New York." A 2023 Yale MFA graduate, Cruz has become the literal face of the Whitney Biennial, with her painting "I Saw the Future and It Smiled Back" displayed on a massive billboard outside the museum. Her work, which often explores Black female identity through a lens of folklore, horror, and celebrity culture, is characterized by a moody and unsettling atmospheric quality.

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The historic San Francisco Art Institute campus, which shuttered in 2023 following bankruptcy, is being revitalized as the California Academy of Studio Arts (CASA). Founded by billionaire philanthropist Laurene Powell Jobs, the new center will offer a free, unaccredited, year-long studio program for up to 30 emerging visual artists. The initiative aims to foster an experimental environment inspired by Black Mountain College, providing mentorship, workshops, and public engagement platforms.

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Liliana Angulo Cortés, the trailblazing director of the Museo Nacional de Colombia, has died at age 51. As the first Afro-Colombian artist to lead the historic institution, she was instrumental in diversifying the museum's collection and shifting its focus toward colonial remembrance and the representation of Black and Indigenous communities. Meanwhile, major art centers in Beirut, including the Sursock Museum and the Beirut Art Center, have suspended operations due to escalating regional conflict and airstrikes.

‘Shaping Community & Shifting Narratives’ art exhibit opening reception to take place March 6

The Flint Institute of Arts Museum & Art School is hosting the opening reception for 'Shaping Community & Shifting Narratives,' an exhibition featuring works by 12 women artists of African descent aged 60 and older. Representing the communities of Flint, Lansing, and Detroit, the show includes a diverse range of media such as ceramics, painting, glass, and fiber arts. A special tribute will be included for the late textile artist Ernestine Bains, whose legacy is being carried forward by her granddaughter, Camille Baines.

Art Center Sarasota's 'Rooted in Community' headlines 28 exhibitions at local art centers in March

Art Center Sarasota is launching a major suite of exhibitions this March, headlined by 'Rooted in Community,' a group show celebrating the artistic contributions of Sarasota’s historically Black neighborhoods, Newtown and Overtown. The center will also host solo presentations by Herion Park, whose fiber sculptures explore familial grief and resilience, and Kendra Frorup, a Fulbright Scholar whose work investigates cultural memory and the concept of home.

HUB-Robeson Galleries to host exhibition by Jamaican-born interdisciplinary artist

The HUB-Robeson Galleries at Penn State University will host a solo exhibition by Jamaican-born interdisciplinary artist Krystle Lemonias titled "Puss an dawg nuh ave di same luck." Running from March 5 through July 19 in Art Alley, the showcase features textile-based installations and mixed-media works that utilize repurposed materials, such as baby clothes, to explore the intersections of labor, identity, and the Black diaspora.

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Billionaire Ari Emanuel, whose company Endeavor recently acquired the Frieze art fairs, kicked off the VIP opening of Frieze Los Angeles by acquiring three works by 86-year-old Black quiltmaker Yvonne Wells. Emanuel entered the Santa Monica Airport venue ahead of the general VIP crowd, purchasing textile portraits of Michael Jackson, Marilyn Monroe, and Elvis Presley from New York gallery Fort Gansevoort. The transaction, facilitated by Emanuel's long-time advisor Jeffrey Deitch, set a high-energy tone for an opening day that saw brisk sales, including a $3.75 million Ed Ruscha painting at Gagosian.

16 artists are paying tribute to Charleston's most iconic ironworker in new exhibit

Sixteen artists have been commissioned to create original works for "Forged," a group exhibition at Drummond Studio Gallery honoring the legacy of Philip Simmons. Simmons was a master ironworker and blacksmith whose ornamental gates and balconies are definitive features of Charleston’s architectural landscape. The exhibition, which opens March 6, features local artists including Demetrius Bing, Riivo Kruuk, and Jonathan Green, and aims to highlight the cultural significance of the Simmons home and workshop.