What to see at Canada’s largest photo festival

The Contact Photography Festival, Canada's largest photography event, opens Friday in Toronto with over 160 exhibitions across eclectic venues including artist-run centers, commercial galleries, cafes, and a laundromat. Highlights include a towering portrait by Haitian-born artist Thandiwe Muriu on Spadina Ave., and a multi-site exhibition by Turner Prize-nominee Sin Wai Kin, featuring billboards and a two-channel video titled 'The Time of Our Lives.' The festival lost its long-time lead sponsor Scotiabank in 2024, resulting in a reduced budget and less public programming, but organizers remain committed to championing lens-based art.

The Guardian view on the legacy of the Festival of Britain: look to the future | Editorial

The Guardian editorial reflects on the 75th anniversary of the Festival of Britain, launched by King George VI on 3 May 1951 as a "tonic" for a war-weary nation. It highlights the festival's most enduring legacy: the construction of the South Bank, including the Royal Festival Hall, which later became the Southbank Centre—the UK's largest arts complex. This summer, commemorations include poems from London schoolchildren projected onto its walls and a mobile poetry library visiting coastal towns, recreating the journey of the repurposed naval ship Campania. The festival, a triumph for the Labour government, faced critics like Evelyn Waugh and Noël Coward, and much of its physical infrastructure was demolished by the incoming Conservative government, save for the Royal Festival Hall.

Museum Night, Photomobiles… 10 outing ideas for the month of May

Nuit des musées, Photomobiles… 10 idées de sorties à faire au mois de mai

Beaux Arts Magazine presents a curated list of ten cultural outings across France for May 2026, highlighting events such as the Nouveau Printemps festival in Toulouse directed by Rossy de Palma, the Interstice festival in Caen focusing on emerging art and technology, the L'art est dans le pré festival in Troyes featuring contemporary art in rural villages, an immersive installation at the Musée d'Orsay tied to the Renoir exhibition, and the Cœurs-Volants kite festival in Essonne where architecture students create flying artworks. Other suggestions include outdoor art trails, heritage site sports programs, and literary festivals in Épinal and Seine-Maritime.

Exhibition | Erwin Olaf, 'Against Time' at Baró Galeria, Palma, Spain

Baró Galeria presents 'Against Time', an exhibition of Dutch photographer Erwin Olaf's still life photographs at its Next Door space in Palma, Mallorca, Spain. Opening on May 25, 2026, the show is part of the inaugural Mallorca PhotoFest, an international photography festival. The exhibition focuses on Olaf's small-format flower photographs made between 2006 and 2021, exploring themes of time, finitude, and photography as a trace of disappearance. An essay by Esmeralda Gómez Galera accompanies the show.

‘Let’s Go Fly A Kite’ Show Opens Friday, May 1 At Fuller Lodge Art Center Gallery

The Los Alamos Arts Council and the Plein Air Painters of New Mexico present 'Let’s Go Fly A Kite', a paint-out and exhibition opening Friday, May 1 at the Fuller Lodge Art Center Gallery. The show features works created by 28 local and regional artists who painted outdoors at the 30th Annual Kite Festival and around the community, with many pieces depicting kites and their fliers at Overlook Park. A reception for LAAC members runs from 4:30-5:30 PM, followed by a public reception from 5:30-7 PM; the exhibition continues through May 29th.

Cultural institutions tap power of art to heal national fractures

More than 300 museums and art institutions across South Korea will participate in the 2026 Museum and Gallery Week, a nationwide cultural festival organized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, running from May 1 to May 31. The event adopts the theme "Museums Uniting a Divided World" from the International Council of Museums, and features three main programs: "Museum × Meet" highlighting 50 signature objects, "Museum × Enjoy" with exhibitions and performances at 18 institutions, and "Museum × Wander" offering guided tours connecting galleries with historic sites.