leonora carrington les distractions de dagobert 2718627

In September 1945, exiled Surrealist painter Leonora Carrington completed her masterpiece *Les Distractions de Dagobert* (also known as *The Pleasures of Dagobert*), a densely layered canvas teeming with mythical figures, ritual fires, and medieval references. The painting, loosely inspired by the 7th-century Merovingian king Dagobert, depicts the monarch in a red robe on a cow-headed cart surrounded by enigmatic scenes. After a fierce 10-minute bidding war at Sotheby’s New York in May 2024, the work sold for $28.5 million to Argentine collector Eduardo F. Costantini, shattering Carrington’s previous auction record of $3.3 million. The painting is now on view at the Philadelphia Museum of Art as part of the exhibition “Dreamworld: Surrealism at 100,” the show’s only North American stop.

Remembering Desmond Morris, James Hayward, and Flo Oy Wong

This week's obituaries mark the passing of several significant figures in the visual arts. They include British surrealist painter and zoologist Desmond Morris, known for his 'biomorph' paintings and experiments with chimpanzee art; West Coast monochrome abstractionist James Hayward, who developed a cult following for his thickly painted canvases; and Chinese American artist Flo Oy Wong, a foundational storyteller of Oakland's Chinatown and the Asian American experience. Also remembered are assemblage artist Aldwyth, Ethiopian painter and educator Behailu Bezabih, Anglo-Irish conservator and designer Alec Cobbe, Bangladeshi art director Tarun Ghosh, and New Mexico painter Michael Hurd.

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The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) has opened a major retrospective of Afro-Cuban Surrealist painter Wifredo Lam, featuring over 200 works. The exhibition highlights Lam's masterpiece *Grande Composition* (1949), a 14-foot-wide painting recently acquired by MoMA after years of negotiation with a Paris collector. Curated by MoMA's new director Christophe Cherix and Beverly Adams, the show reexamines Lam's career, emphasizing his Afro-Cuban heritage and his use of hybrid figures like the femme-cheval, which reference Lucumí spiritual traditions.

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The Museum of Modern Art in New York is presenting the exhibition "Wifredo Lam: When I Don't Sleep, I Dream," featuring the iconic Cuban Surrealist painter. The show includes his seminal work *The Jungle*, acquired by MoMA in 1946, and explores his complex artistic identity.

Salvador Dalí painting behind Schiaparelli’s “Tears Dress” to make London debut.

Salvador Dalí's 1936 painting 'Necrophiliac Spring' will be exhibited in the UK for the first time as part of the 'Schiaparelli: Fashion Becomes Art' exhibition at London's Victoria and Albert Museum. The show, dedicated to designer Elsa Schiaparelli, runs from March 28th to November 8th.

Desmond Morris, zoologist, presenter and surrealist painter, 1928–2026

Desmond Morris, the zoologist, author, television presenter, and surrealist painter, has died at the age of 98. He was best known for his 1967 book *The Naked Ape* and the television program *Zoo Time*, but maintained a parallel, influential career in the visual arts as a painter and curator.

Shirley Gorelick: Figuring It Out

The National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA) is presenting "Shirley Gorelick: Figuring It Out," an exhibition running from March 27 to June 28, 2026, that centers on three large-scale paintings by the American realist artist Shirley Gorelick (1924–2000). The show brings together these works from NMWA’s collection for the first time, including the first canvas in her "Three Graces" series, a triple portrait of activist Libby Ourlicht, and a depiction of longtime friends Gunny and Lee Benson. More than 30 additional paintings, drawings, and prints further illuminate Gorelick’s practice and her subjects. Gorelick, who was active in New York artist-run women’s cooperative galleries in the 1970s, developed a bold realist style that combined vigorous brushwork, heightened shadows, and vivid patterns, yet she was largely omitted from art historical narratives that focused on Pop art, Minimalism, and conceptual art.

The Bennett Prize Opens Fifth Call for Entries

The Bennett Prize has launched its fifth call for entries, inviting women figurative realist painters to compete for a newly increased grand prize of $75,000. The award, established by collectors Steven Alan Bennett and Dr. Elaine Melotti Schmidt, includes a two-year stipend and a traveling solo exhibition that debuts at the Muskegon Museum of Art. Applications are open through September 19, 2026, with a jury featuring prominent figures like curator Miranda Lash and artist Julie Heffernan.

The Bennett Prize Just Raised Its Award to $75,000. These Artists Think You Should Apply.

The Bennett Prize, a biennial award dedicated to women figurative realist painters, has increased its grand prize from $50,000 to $75,000 for its fifth cycle. Founded by collectors Steven Alan Bennett and Dr. Elaine Melotti Schmidt, the prize aims to bridge the gender gap in the art world by providing substantial financial support and institutional recognition. The current call for entries is open to artists who have not yet reached a specific commercial price ceiling, culminating in a 2027 exhibition at the Muskegon Museum of Art.

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.

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A painting long attributed to Polish Realist painter Józef Pankiewicz and held by the National Museum in Poznań has been revealed as a forgery. The work, titled 'Vegetable Market at Żelaznej Bramy Square in Warsaw' and dated 1888, was awarded a silver medal at the 1889 Universal Exposition in Paris and acquired by the museum in 1948. In 2017, scholar Michał Haake noticed discrepancies between the museum's version and historical reproductions, prompting an investigation. Conservators removed overpainting and found that the canvas, pigments, and composition differed from the original, with Pankiewicz's signature added after completion. The forgery, now attributed to an unidentified early 20th-century artist, is back on display alongside a photo of the original in the exhibition 'Succumb to Illusion.' The original painting has been missing since 1890.