The Art Institute of Chicago is presenting an exhibition focused on the drawings of Willem de Kooning, marking a rare departure from the typical painting-centric blockbuster shows dedicated to the artist. The exhibition highlights de Kooning's mastery in drawing, offering a focused look at this often-overlooked aspect of his practice.
Dale Chihuly returns to Venice with "Chihuly: Venice 2026," a public exhibition marking the 30th anniversary of his landmark 1996 project "Chihuly Over Venice." The new show features three large-scale glass sculptures installed along the Grand Canal, viewable from the Accademia Bridge, at Palazzo Franchetti, Palazzo Querini alla Carità, and Palazzo Balbi-Valier Sammartini. The article also recounts Chihuly's 1968 Fulbright-funded study at Venini, where he learned Murano glassblowing and embraced glass as his primary medium, and reveals that his son Jackson Chihuly was conceived in Venice after a party hosted by the late Paul Allen.
Pakistani-born, Brooklyn-based tailor and community leader Hafeez Raza was honored by Mayor Zohran Mamdani as one of six garment workers photographed by Kara McCurdy, highlighting the real faces behind the fashion industry. Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Times's Image Editor-in-Chief Elisa Wouk Almino recounts a peculiar correspondence with artist Sophie Calle, who orchestrated a fake but real exchange using pre-written texts. In other news, Ai Weiwei discusses his new exhibition in Italy, censorship in Europe, and the Venice Biennale in an interview with El País. Additionally, Jacci Gresham, the first professional Black tattoo artist in the United States, reflects on her career since 1976, including tattooing Klan members and innovating with brown paper for Black and Brown clients.
Bruno Bischofberger, the influential Swiss gallerist and collector, has died at age 86. A pivotal figure in the contemporary art market, he opened his first gallery in Zurich in 1963 and was instrumental in introducing American Pop Art to Europe, exhibiting Warhol, Lichtenstein, and Rauschenberg. He later championed Minimalism, Land Art, and Neo-Expressionism, representing artists like Sol LeWitt, Donald Judd, and Francesco Clemente. Most famously, Bischofberger discovered Jean-Michel Basquiat in 1981 and orchestrated the legendary collaboration between Warhol, Basquiat, and Clemente. His close relationship with Warhol included a first-refusal agreement on future works and the suggestion of standardized portrait commissions that became Warhol's primary income source.
Matthias Grolier, former chief of staff to Laurence des Cars at the Louvre, has been appointed director general of France Muséums, succeeding Hervé Barbaret after two consecutive three-year terms. The agency, created in 2007 from a Franco-Emirati agreement, oversees the Louvre Abu Dhabi partnership and coordinates contributions from 21 partner institutions including the Louvre, Centre Pompidou, Musée d'Orsay, BNF, and Quai Branly. Grolier brings a background in international business law and government advisory roles, though he has never led a heritage institution or museum.
The Institute for Primary Facts has transformed New York's Mriya Gallery into the Donald J. Trump and Jeffrey Epstein Reading Room, a pop-up exhibition displaying all 3.5 million pages of the released Epstein files in 3,437 bound volumes. Open from May 8 to May 21 in Tribeca, the installation is the group's first live project, requiring visitors aged 16 and over to book appointments via a platform called Trumpsonian. Only accredited press, Congress, law enforcement, and victims' advocates may open the volumes, due to the Department of Justice's failure to properly redact victims' names.
The article previews an upcoming exhibition titled "Sorcières !" at the Château des ducs de Bretagne – Musée d'histoire de Nantes, running from February 7 to June 28, 2026. It traces the historical debate around witchcraft in 16th-century Europe, focusing on key figures such as Heinrich Kramer, author of the *Malleus maleficarum* (1486), who argued that witchcraft was a female-specific evil requiring extermination, and Jean Bodin, who supported this view. In contrast, Johann Weyer and Michel de Montaigne challenged the persecution, suggesting accused women were mentally ill or elderly and deserved humane treatment rather than execution.
Spalding artist Joey Lowe organized the fourth edition of a local art exhibition at The Sessions House, attracting over 1,000 visitors and gallery owners from Norfolk and Gainsborough. The event featured 50 artists, including local MP Sir John Hayes, and introduced a new 'mini youth exhibition' with artwork from five area schools.