The article previews major art exhibitions scheduled for 2026, highlighting two standout shows. At Basel's Fondation Beyeler, a Cezanne exhibition from January to May will focus on the artist's later works, featuring around 60 oil paintings and 20 watercolours, half from private collections. Highlights include a privately owned oil study of 'The Bathers' (around 1902-06) and 'The Boy in the Red Vest' (1888-90), with curator Ulf Küster emphasizing Cezanne's fragmentary, radical perspective. Separately, the traveling exhibition 'Edmonia Lewis: Said in Stone' will premiere at the Peabody Essex Museum in February, showcasing 30 sculptures by the 19th-century Black and Indigenous artist, organized after a 2016 acquisition by the Georgia Museum of Art spurred curators to track down her works.
These exhibitions matter because they offer rare access to significant artworks—Cezanne's late pieces from private collections are seldom on public view, providing fresh insight into his modernist legacy. The Edmonia Lewis show represents a long-overdue comprehensive survey of a historically marginalized sculptor, reflecting the art world's ongoing efforts to recognize and elevate underrepresented artists. Together, they underscore a trend toward deeper scholarly and public engagement with both canonical and overlooked figures in art history.