Comment | Catherine Opie shows us that in dark times, looking for joy can be radical

The artist Catherine Opie is currently the subject of a major three-decade portrait survey, 'To Be Seen', at the National Portrait Gallery in London. The exhibition highlights Opie’s career-long commitment to representing the LGBTQ+ community, specifically the leather dyke scene in Los Angeles, through a lens that balances defiance with playfulness. Even her most provocative works, such as the 1993 self-portrait featuring a domestic scene carved into her back, are revealed to contain elements of humor and historical allusion that counter the despair of the AIDS crisis and personal heartbreak.

American Artist, Penny Arcade Among 2026 Guggenheim Fellowship Cohort

The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation has announced its 101st class of fellows for 2026, awarding 223 individuals across 55 disciplines. This year’s cohort includes a significant number of visual artists and art professionals, such as American Artist, John Ahearn, Sonya Clark, and Fia Backström, alongside scientists, writers, and scholars. The fellowships provide varying monetary awards, typically ranging from $30,000 to $45,000, to support the recipients' ongoing creative and intellectual projects.

‘We refuse_d’: rehearsing refusal as method, memory, and possibility.

Marking the fifteenth anniversary of Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art, the traveling exhibition ‘we refuse_d’ has opened at M HKA in Antwerp. Curated by Nadia Radwan and Vasif Kortun, the project draws on the intellectual lineage of Hannah Arendt’s reflections on displacement and the historical precedent of the Salon des Refusés. The exhibition features a constellation of works by artists including Khalil Rabah, Barış Doğrusöz, and Nour Shantout, exploring refusal not as a simple negation, but as a complex strategy for survival, dignity, and the preservation of memory.

Exhibition | Hiroshi Sugimoto, 'Form Is Emptiness' at Singapore Art Museum, Singapore

The Singapore Art Museum is hosting "Form Is Emptiness," the first major Southeast Asian exhibition dedicated to the acclaimed Japanese artist Hiroshi Sugimoto. The showcase features 63 works spanning five decades of his career, including 11 distinct series and 14 fossils from his personal collection, all arranged within a mandala-inspired layout designed by the artist himself.

Shaniqwa Jarvis: Only Love Can Break Your Heart

Artist Shaniqwa Jarvis is set to debut her first UK solo exhibition, "Only Love Can Break Your Heart," at London’s Public Gallery on April 30, 2026. The show features twelve new works that blend photography with silk, mirrored surfaces, aluminum, and collage to explore themes of grief, memory, and renewal. Central to the exhibition are immersive silk installations that create live double exposures and a new film work that weaves together personal archival footage with intimate conversations on motherhood, labor, and identity.

'Steven Shearer' at David Zwirner, London, United Kingdom on From 5 Jun 2026

Canadian artist Steven Shearer will present a major exhibition of new figurative oil paintings, drawings, and significant loans at David Zwirner’s London gallery in June 2026. The showcase marks Shearer’s first solo presentation in the city since 2007, highlighting his unique ability to blend canonical art history with contemporary subcultures. His work frequently explores classical subjects like the artist’s studio and the Rückenfigur through a modern, often visceral lens.

Dvaita (द्वैत) or Dualities Exhibition Explores Philosophical Contrasts at The Lexicon Art

The Lexicon Art in New Delhi is set to host "Dvaita (द्वैत): Dualities," a group exhibition curated by architect and artist Ankon Mitra opening on April 18, 2026. Featuring the work of 11 contemporary artists, the show explores the philosophical concept of dualism through contrasting elements such as light and shadow, geometric and amorphous forms, and gold and silver. The exhibition design moves away from the traditional white cube format, instead utilizing the gallery space to create a physical "dance of dualities" that reflects India’s layered cultural realities.

In the Tech Heart of Texas, an Art Show Built on Data, Code and A.I.

The Austin Museum of Art is hosting a landmark exhibition focused on the intersection of technology and creativity, featuring works driven by real-time data, complex algorithms, and artificial intelligence. The showcase highlights interactive installations that evolve throughout the day, challenging traditional notions of static art and inviting viewers to participate in the creative process through digital engagement.

Industrial Dreams of the GDR

Industrieträume der DDR

The exhibition "Robotron – Arbeiterklasse und Intelligenz" has opened at the Hartware Medienkunstverein (HMKV) in Dortmund, following its initial run in Leipzig. Centered on the history of the GDR’s largest computer manufacturer, the show features 20 artistic positions including photography, film, and sculpture, alongside a significant five-meter oil sketch by Socialist Realist painter Werner Tübke. The presentation bridges East and West German industrial histories by juxtaposing state-commissioned propaganda with progressive, unofficial works by artists like Ruth Wolf-Rehfeldt and A.R. Penck.

Italy's Soft Power in China Thanks to Two Major Exhibitions on Pompeii and Palladio

Il soft power dell’Italia in Cina grazie a due grandi mostre su Pompei e Palladio

The National Museum of China in Beijing is currently hosting two major exhibitions celebrating Italian cultural heritage: "Pompeii: An Eternal Discovery" and "Geometry, Harmony and Life: The Architecture of Andrea Palladio from Antiquity to Classicism." These exhibitions, marking the 55th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Italy and China, were inaugurated by Italian Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli. The Pompeii showcase traces 250 years of archaeological history using artifacts and multimedia, while the Palladio exhibition explores the Renaissance master’s influence on Western architecture and creates a cross-cultural dialogue with traditional Chinese building techniques.

The forest hears, the field sees: Liavon Volski presents new art project in Poland

Renowned Belarusian musician and writer Liavon Volski has debuted his first solo painting exhibition, titled "The Forest Hears, the Field Sees," at the Museum of Free Belarus in Warsaw. The exhibition features 11 conceptual works characterized by misty landscapes and surrealist elements, each inspired by traditional Belarusian proverbs. The opening event was a multi-sensory experience, incorporating fog machines and a musical performance by Volski to complement the atmospheric nature of the canvases.

Chicago Artist Brian Sykes draws huge crowd for emotional exhibit debut

Chicago-based artist Brian Sykes returned to the Beverly Arts Center for the opening of his multimedia exhibition, “I Heard the City Breathe.” The event drew a significant crowd and featured a unique blend of visual art, film, and live vocal performances, including a set by Sykes himself. The project explores the emotional and cultural realities of Chicago’s Black experience, utilizing an intergenerational approach to discuss identity and memory.

“Rooted” art exhibit explores the nature of trees with paint, camera, and heart

The Arts Garage (TAG) in Port Clinton has launched "Rooted," a group exhibition featuring six artists who explore the intersection of nature and human emotion. The show highlights the work of mixed-media artist Chad Cochran, known for his landscape-based album covers for Nashville musicians, and Susan Danko, whose abstract paintings translate the atmospheric moods of the forest into monochromatic and experimental forms.

Nikyle Begay Resurrects Century-Old Diné Weavings

Nikyle Begay, a Diné shepherd and weaver based in the Navajo Nation, is revitalizing ancestral weaving techniques that were historically marginalized by the colonial trading-post economy. By breeding Navajo Churro sheep and mastering complex twill patterns once used for functional saddle blankets, Begay bridges the gap between traditional agricultural practice and contemporary fine art. Their work involves the entire lifecycle of the medium, from shearing and processing wool to reconstructing intricate designs that fell out of favor when commercial markets prioritized specific regional styles for non-Native buyers.

Under Water, We Who Are Deaf Are Freer

"Unter Wasser sind wir Gehörlosen freier"

Artists Bogna Burska and Daniel Kotowski have been selected to represent Poland at the upcoming Venice Biennale with their collaborative project, "Liquid Tongues." The exhibition features elaborate video works that draw parallels between the ancient, complex vocalizations of whales and the visual communication of sign language. By filming underwater, the duo explores an environment where the traditional sensory advantages of hearing people are neutralized, and the gestural fluency of the Deaf community becomes a primary mode of connection.

The City of Gainesville and The Arts Council collaborated to highlight and celebrate local artists on the downtown square Thursday. @theartscouncil_nega @downtowngainesvillega Check out some of these amazing pieces! #art #gainesvillega #wdun

The City of Gainesville and The Arts Council of Northeast Georgia partnered to host a public art showcase on the downtown square. The event featured a diverse range of works from local creators, transforming the city's central hub into an open-air gallery for the evening.

REVIEW: Now is not forever, when art mimics reality

Theresa-Anne Mackintosh’s solo exhibition, "Now is not Forever," recently debuted at the Wits Art Museum (WAM), featuring a provocative blend of older paintings and new sculptures. The show centers on anthropomorphic figures and the erasure of senses, notably in the "hear no evil, see no evil, do no evil" series, where body parts are painted over to symbolize the avoidance of moral decay. These works, alongside vivid sculptures representing the artist's alter egos, challenge viewers to look past aesthetic surfaces to confront the inherent chaos and dysfunction of contemporary society.