As Cuban crisis deepens, diaspora artists have a message of compassion

Artists Antonia Wright and Ruben Millares are showcasing a salvaged, bullet-ridden Cuban migrant vessel at Miami’s Piero Atchugarry Gallery. The exhibition, titled 'Exile', serves as a visceral focal point for the escalating humanitarian crisis in Cuba, where citizens face systemic collapse, starvation, and political imprisonment. Through the concept of 'embodiment' rather than mere empathy, the artists confront the harrowing 93-mile journey across the Straits of Florida undertaken by those desperate to escape the island's dictatorship.

Whistleblower Complaint Alleges Misconduct at Palm Springs Art Museum, Where an Ex-Trustee Describes a ‘Shattered Moral Compass’

An anonymous whistleblower has filed a complaint alleging misconduct by leadership at the Palm Springs Art Museum, including improper movement of funds between accounts to address cash shortages, the forced resignation of a former director based on fabricated staff complaints, and a failure to properly interview external candidates for the director position. The complaint, forwarded to ARTnews, also references a $3 million discrepancy in the reported endowment value and the departure of several trustees, leaving the board below its required size. The museum has formed a special committee to investigate the allegations, which were first reported by the Los Angeles Times in November 2025.

KOO JEONG A “KANGSE X” at Hauser & Wirth, Zurich

Koo Jeong A presents "KANGSE X" at Hauser & Wirth in Zurich, an exhibition that extends from her previous show "ODORAMA CITIES" at the Korean Pavilion of the 60th Venice Biennale. The title derives from the Korean term "KANGSE," meaning spatial strength, and the show encompasses her multifaceted practice across drawing, painting, sculpture, installation, film, and animation, including her earlier work "MYSTERIOUSSS" (2017).

Towering homage to Bamiyan Buddhas rises over Manhattan’s High Line

A new public sculpture by Vietnamese American artist Tuan Andrew Nguyen has been installed on the High Line Plinth at Hudson Yards in Manhattan. Titled "The Light That Shines Through the Universe" (2026), the 27-foot-tall sandstone monument pays homage to the Buddhas of Bamiyan, the 6th-century colossi destroyed by the Taliban in 2001. The work features carved sandstone forms with two monumental steel hands cast from melted-down artillery shells sourced from Afghanistan, making gestures of fearlessness and compassion. It will remain on view through autumn 2027 and is accompanied by monthly lectures and meditation sessions.

Sorolla and Valencia: an itinerary in the light of the master who captured the soul of the Mediterranean

The city of Valencia is actively promoting a cultural itinerary dedicated to Joaquín Sorolla, tracing the master painter's life from his birthplace in the historic center to the Mediterranean shores that inspired his most famous works. The route encompasses key biographical sites including the Church of Santa Caterina, the School of Craftsmen, and the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Carlos, where his early sketches and academic records are preserved.

DePaul Art Museum Bids Farewell with Barbara Nessim’s Retrospective

The DePaul Art Museum (DPAM) is hosting a career-spanning retrospective for New York-based artist Barbara Nessim titled "My Compass Is the Line" before the institution permanently closes in June. The exhibition marks Nessim’s first solo show in Chicago, featuring works from the 1960s to the present that span painting, computer art, and her iconic 1982 Time magazine cover. The show highlights Nessim’s exploration of femininity and sexuality, drawing stylistic parallels to the Chicago Imagists while showcasing her technical versatility.

The Poet of Light. Interview with Lighting Designer Davide Groppi

Il poeta della luce. Intervista al lighting designer Davide Groppi

Lighting designer Davide Groppi (born 1963 in Piacenza) is the subject of a rare retrospective exhibition titled "Un'ora di luce" (An Hour of Light), on view until May 26 at the Volumnia gallery in Piacenza, curated by Marco Sammicheli. The show, held in a deconsecrated late-16th-century church, traces Groppi's nearly 40-year career through products, prototypes, and personal artistic research, including his iconic lamp "Nulla" (2010), which won the first of his three Compasso d'Oro awards. In an interview, Groppi discusses the exhibition's themes of lightness, cosmic references, and his philosophy of subtraction in design.

A Buddha Is Reborn on the High Line

Tuan Andrew Nguyen's sandstone and brass sculpture "The Light That Shines Through the Universe" (2026) has been installed on the High Line in Manhattan as the park's fifth site-specific commission. The 27-foot-tall work, selected from nearly 60 proposals, resurrects the destroyed Bamiyan Buddhas of Afghanistan, which were demolished by the Taliban in 2001. Nguyen sourced artillery brass from Afghanistan to cast the sculpture's mudra hand gestures, symbolizing fearlessness and compassion, and had the sandstone carved in Vietnam. The piece is on view through Spring 2027.

Kazakhstan Presents “Qoñyr: Archive of Silence” at Venice Biennale

Kazakhstan has unveiled details for its national pavilion at the 61st Venice Biennale, titled “Qoñyr: Archive of Silence.” Curated by Syrlybek Bekbota, the exhibition features nine artists including Smail Bayaliyev, Asel Kadyrkhanova, and Ardak Mukanova, and will be hosted at the Museo Storico Navale. The presentation utilizes the Kazakh concept of "Qoñyr"—a term encompassing specific colors, sounds, and scents—to explore themes of Soviet domesticity, nuclear trauma, and cultural heritage through sound installations, video, and archival assemblages.

What Future for Art Centers?

Quel avenir pour les centres d’art ?

The article examines the uncertain future of contemporary art centers in France, a category that encompasses vastly different institutions from major venues like the Palais de Tokyo to smaller regional spaces. These non-collecting institutions, dedicated to exhibiting emerging artists and experimentation, face fragility due to heavy reliance on local government funding and difficulty proving their utility to elected officials. Their core mission is further challenged by more robust regional contemporary art funds (Fracs), which have greater resources for similar goals of exhibiting ultra-contemporary art and cultural democratization.

Vantaa Art Museum Artsi's exhibition Empathy explores the multilayered nature of emotion, power, and connection

The Vantaa Art Museum Artsi has launched "Empathy," a multifaceted exhibition exploring the psychological, social, and technological dimensions of emotional connection. The show features diverse works that examine how facial expressions and gestures communicate feelings, while also addressing the power dynamics of who is allowed to tell their story. A central highlight is Ali Akbar Mehta’s immersive installation, which utilizes an archive of 30,000 video clips and XR technology to analyze how digital algorithms and visual overexposure to violence affect human compassion.

'Echoes of Home' at Christopher Moller Gallery, Cape Town, South Africa on 28 May–2 Jul 2026

Christopher Moller Gallery in Cape Town is set to host "Echoes of Home," a group exhibition featuring the works of Mpho Feni, Lionel Mbayiwa, and Olamide Ogunade. The show explores the evolving concept of identity and heritage across the African continent, contrasting traditional ancestral knowledge with contemporary lived experiences. Each artist provides a unique lens: Mbayiwa focuses on Shona cosmology, Ogunade utilizes introspective symbolism to capture the fragility of memory, and Feni documents the communal rituals of everyday family life.

British artist Stuart Robertson to unveil “Through The Artist’s Eye” at Bikaner House

British artist Stuart Robertson is set to debut a comprehensive new body of work at Bikaner House in New Delhi in April 2026. The exhibition, titled “Through The Artist’s Eye,” is the culmination of an 18-month residency at Dr Shroff’s Charity Eye Hospital in Daryaganj. Spanning photography, drawing, bronze sculpture, and cyanotypes, the collection documents the daily life, medical precision, and quiet compassion within one of India’s most prominent charitable medical institutions.

"Adorata: The Path of Enlovement" art exhibition and book debut in Phoenix

Rogue Valley artist and spiritual teacher Tiziana DellaRovere has launched a multi-media exhibition and book debut titled "Adorata: The Path of Enlovement" at the Langford Art Gallery in Phoenix, Oregon. The project features a collection of sculptures, paintings, and an illustrated book that explores the divine feminine through the figure of Mother Mary, focusing on themes of compassion and introspection.

In a Piacenza church, the light of designer Davide Groppi becomes a whisper suspended in time

In una chiesa di Piacenza la luce del designer Davide Groppi diventa un sussurro sospeso nel tempo

Renowned lighting designer Davide Groppi has unveiled a major anthological exhibition titled "Un’ora di luce" (An Hour of Light) at Volumnia, a gallery housed within the deconsecrated Church of Sant’Agostino in Piacenza. Curated by Marco Sammicheli, the retrospective spans forty years of Groppi’s career, featuring iconic works like Sampei and Moon alongside new site-specific debuts. The exhibition is structured in two parts: a series of enclosed "utopias" that create intimate light environments, followed by a dialogue between his minimalist fixtures and the soaring, historic architecture of the church.