The Pulitzer Arts Foundation in St. Louis is hosting its monthly First Fridays event on May 1, 2026, from 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM. During this time, museums and galleries in the Grand Center Arts District offer free admission and extended hours, with the Pulitzer featuring its current exhibition "Dialogues & Conversations" and a cash bar on the Mezzanine. The event is free and open to the public, with accommodations available upon request.
Twenty-six Nepali abstract artists are exhibiting together for the first time at Taragaon Next in Kathmandu in a group show titled 'Forms of Abstraction'. The exhibition, curated by Roshan Mishra, features works by artists including Kiran Manandhar, Sangee Shrestha, Sushma Rajbhandari, Bidhata KC, NB Gurung, Jeevan Rajopadhyay, Laya Mainali, and Nabendra Limbu, among others. Supported by the Saraf Foundation for Himalayan Traditions and Culture, the show explores themes of motion, emotion, nature, architecture, geometry, and culture, emphasizing how Nepali abstraction transforms rather than abandons tradition.
Yu-Chi Lyra Kuo, an entrepreneur, investor, Harvard-educated lawyer, former Princeton academic, and board member of the Shed, shares her vision for integrating frontier technologies like artificial intelligence and robotics into the art world. She argues that these tools can enhance human creativity rather than replace it, drawing on her early experiences with Asian antiquities and her pioneering work in blockchain, including co-founding OpenSea 2.0. The article, based on an interview with CULTURED, traces her journey from collecting a jade gourd as a child to advising tech companies and joining the board of the Shed, a Bloomberg-backed cultural center in Hudson Yards.
The Smithsonian's National Museum of African Art has opened "Here: Pride and Belonging in African Art," its first major exhibition dedicated to African LGBTQ+ artists. The show, which was abruptly postponed earlier, features works that celebrate queer life through themes of joy, family, and belonging, while also addressing the darkness and loss faced by LGBTQ+ communities globally.
The Albertina Museum in Vienna is hosting a major retrospective titled "Honoré Daumier – Mirror of Society," dedicated to the French artist Honoré Daumier (1808–1879). The exhibition features lithographs, drawings, paintings, and sculptures, with significant loans from the Städel Museum in Frankfurt. Daumier, known for his sharp satire and acute social observation, critiqued political abuses and social injustices of 19th-century European society. The show also recalls a previous Daumier exhibition held at the Albertina in 1936, which served as a political statement against Nazi oppression.
Lévy Gorvy Dayan has launched LGD Hammer, a new sales platform that blends gallery exhibition with auction-style urgency. The first work offered is Willem de Kooning's *Milkmaid* (1984), estimated at $10–$15 million, which will be on view by appointment from May 2 until the sale on May 16. Gallery cofounder Dominique Lévy will serve as auctioneer, drawing on her Christie's experience, while bidding occurs by phone with online observation. Cofounder Brett Gorvy emphasized the platform is not a market overhaul but a response to slowed private sales and cautious collectors who still respond to competitive pressure.