April 2026 marks a significant month for global art exhibitions, featuring major retrospectives and site-specific installations across Rome, Seoul, London, and Paris. Highlights include Gagosian Rome’s exploration of Francesca Woodman’s surrealist photography, a homecoming retrospective for video-art pioneer Nam June Paik in Seoul, and Senga Nengudi’s performance-based sculptures at London’s Whitechapel Gallery. Additionally, Isaac Julien will debut a new moving-image work at The Cosmic House, while the Fondation Louis Vuitton prepares a large-scale exhibition dedicated to Alexander Calder’s kinetic sculptures.
These exhibitions underscore a continued institutional focus on mid-to-late 20th-century pioneers whose work bridged the gap between traditional media and experimental performance or technology. By showcasing never-before-seen prints from Woodman and seminal electronic works from Paik, these galleries are re-evaluating the legacies of artists who defined the avant-garde. The diverse geographical spread of these shows—from Paris to Seoul—reflects the interconnected nature of the contemporary art world and the enduring influence of surrealism, Fluxus, and the Black experimental art movement.