Today's Art Pulse
Arthur Jafa and Richard Prince’s ‘Helter Skelter’ debuts at Fondazione Prada in Venice
The joint exhibition “Helter Skelter” opens at Fondazione Prada’s Ca’ Corner della Regina in Venice, running through November 23, 2026. Curated by former Guggenheim chief Nancy Spector, the show pairs Jafa and Prince, artists noted for aggressive appropriation of cinema, music and American iconography. Critics describe the work as lawless image scavenging that confronts viewers.
Paula Rego Drawings Exploring The Female Psyche – Sue Hubbard
Paula Rego’s new exhibition "Story Line" at Victoria Miro London showcases a chronological sweep of her drawings, from a nine‑year‑old portrait of her grandmother in 1944 to a self‑portrait of her granddaughter made at age eighty. Rego, who identified herself as a ‘drawrer’ rather than a painter, used pencil, conte and pastel to explore narrative, folklore and the female psyche. The show highlights politically charged works such as her 1988 abortion‑referendum series and feminist reinterpretations of literary figures like Jane Eyre. A companion book by her son Nick Willing adds further insight into her artistic journey.
Watch: Khaled Sabsabi and Michael Dagostino in Conversation
Artist Khaled Sabsabi and curator Michael Dagostino discuss their dual project, *conference of one’s self*, presented in both the Australia Pavilion and the International Art Exhibition at the 61st Venice Biennale. The work intertwines Sufi poetry, personal memory of the Lebanese civil...
Carl Cox Honoured with Mural in Cardiff Ahead of The Prodigy Tour Leg
Legendary DJ Carl Cox was honored with a large‑scale mural on Cardiff’s boardwalk ahead of his Utilita Arena performance on April 19, where he opened for The Prodigy. Welsh street artist Steve Jenkins painted Cox’s likeness, the band’s logo and...
From the World Cup and the Olympics to Two New Museums: Upcoming Cultural Attractions in Los Angeles
Los Angeles is gearing up for a wave of high‑profile events and cultural projects. SoFi Stadium will host World Cup matches, the 2027 Super Bowl and the opening ceremony of the 2028 Summer Olympics. The city also welcomes the $1 bn...
An Installation in Nature Has Climate Lessons for Humans
Finland’s Oulu, the 2026 European Capital of Culture, will debut “Climate Clock,” a sprawling outdoor installation that stretches from the city center into the surrounding Koiteli forest. Ten artists, including Antti Laitinen, will showcase mechanical art, a barrel of snowflakes,...
New Biography of Chaïm Soutine Pieces Together Illusive Artist's Life and Works
Celeste Marcus’s new biography, "Chaïm Soutine: Genius, Obsession, and a Dramatic Life in Art," reexamines the elusive expressionist painter’s turbulent career, from his 1913 arrival in Paris to his death in 1943. Drawing on testimonies from contemporaries, the book highlights...
Caravaggio and Rubens Works Destroyed by Fire in Second World War Are Brought Back to (Digital) Life
The Gemäldegalerie in Berlin has digitised its high‑resolution glass‑negative archive of paintings destroyed in a 1945 fire, including works by Caravaggio, Rubens, Veronese and van Dyck. Around 430 large‑format pieces were lost, leaving a major gap in art‑historical records. The project...
Celebrating Bicentenary Through Scotland’s Top Exhibitions
To mark an important bicentenary I've toured some great exhibitions in Scotland and have written all about it for @worldofFAD https://t.co/bGU7Qy4dJ8
Ruth Leon Recommends…. Sidney Nolan – Australian Artist
Sidney Nolan, born 22 April 1917, is hailed as one of Australia’s most influential modern artists. After deserting the army in 1944, he joined the avant‑garde Angry Penguins, editing its magazine and creating the iconic Ern Malley cover. Nolan’s Ned Kelly series, with its...
James Turrell’s House of Light Is a Surreal Art Stay in Japan’s 760-Square-Kilometre, Open-Air Gallery
James Turrell’s House of Light, a meditation house in Niigata’s Echigo‑Tsumari Art Field, lets guests experience curated light shows at sunrise and sunset. The 200‑year‑old timber structure, raised 2.7 m to handle heavy snow, retracts its roof to reveal color‑filled skies...
Fondation Maeght to Stage Courrèges Fashion and Art Exhibition Curated by Peter Knapp
The Fondation Maeght will host its inaugural fashion‑focused exhibition, "The Era of Courrèges," from May 14 to November 1. Curated by photographer Peter Knapp, the show centers on André Courrèges' groundbreaking 1965 haute‑couture collection, featuring his signature geometric silhouettes and stark white...
OPPO Opens Photography Awards with New Video Category
OPPO announced the 2026 Photography Awards, reviving its global mobile‑photography competition with a $76,500 prize pool. The contest adds two new categories—Super Video and Super Zoom—expanding the six‑category lineup. OPPO also launches a Filmmaker Accelerator Program with Discovery Channel and...
The Met Showcases Rare Medieval Architectural Drawings in ‘Gothic by Design’
The Metropolitan Museum of Art opened "Gothic by Design: The Dawn of Architectural Draftsmanship," showcasing more than 90 rare medieval architectural drawings, including a 10½‑foot elevation by Loren Lechler acquired in 2022. Curator Femke Speelberg highlights that only four such...
Olafur Eliasson Uses Art and Sound to Raise Climate Awareness in Utah
Danish‑Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson unveiled "A symphony of disappearing sounds for the Great Salt Lake" in Salt Lake City, pairing a towering globe‑shaped screen with a soundscape of recordings from more than 150 local animal species. The installation visualizes the...
The Vienna Climate Biennale Contrasts Chaos with Hope
The Vienna Climate Biennale 2026 runs through May 10, turning the city into a climate‑focused art showcase. Ten public‑space installations and two museum shows explore resilience, sustainability, and the human‑nature relationship. Veteran artist Margot Pilz revamps her 1982 beach piece, now...
Award for US Arts Leaders Offers $100,000 to Challenge ‘Risk Averse’ Culture
Remuseum and the Doris Duke Foundation have launched The Vanguard, an annual prize that awards $100,000 to up to ten leaders of U.S. non‑profit arts institutions with operating budgets above $1 million. The grant is paired with a year‑long accelerator that...
‘Subvert, Repair, Reclaim’ Exhibition Reexamines the Nude in Contemporary Art
Curator Carmen Hermo and artists Mary Enoch Elizabeth Baxter, Joiri Minaya and Katherine Sherwood convened a Zoom conversation to discuss the ‘Subvert, Repair, Reclaim’ exhibition, which reinterprets the nude through a lens of body politics and cultural reclamation. Funded by...
US National Gallery of Art Gifted More than 1,200 Mitch Epstein Photographs
The National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. has received a gift of 1,261 photographs by acclaimed American photographer Mitch Epstein, creating the museum’s largest institutional collection of his work. The donation, made by Epstein and his wife Susan Bell, spans his...
Can Festivals Save Time-Based Art? On Mexico City’s TONO
The TONO festival in Mexico City’s March edition highlighted a hybrid curatorial model that merges museum rigor with festival accessibility, presenting a dozen time‑based works ranging from Tino Sehgal’s Mexican premiere of *This Joy* to Rafael Lozano‑Hemmer’s interactive *Pulse Garden*. Led...
Survivors: Portraits of Resilience Personal Accounts of the AIDS Crisis
The Fitzrovia Chapel in London will host "Survivors," a short‑run exhibition from 9 to 12 June 2026 that pairs 16 chiaroscuro portraits by Dutch photographer Danielle van Zedelhoff with excerpts from the National HIV Story Trust’s interview archive. The chapel, the last remnant...
Middle‑East Conflict Narratives Dominate Portugal's 'Death by a Thousand Cuts' Exhibition
The Anozero Bienal de Coimbra’s ‘Death by a Thousand Cuts’ exhibition, co‑curated by John Zeppetelli and Hans Ibelings, foregrounds Middle‑East war and displacement through more than 250 photographs of keys and evacuation leaflets from Gaza. Running until July 5, the show...
How Pussy Riot Is Challenging Russia’s Return to the Venice Biennale
Pussy Riot is campaigning to replace Russia's official pavilion at the Venice Biennale with an alternative exhibition, "Resistance Imprisoned," featuring art by roughly 30 current and former political prisoners. The show opened at Strasbourg's Ritsch‑Fisch Galerie on April 19 and runs...
David Smalling: Elizabethan Collar at Galerie Templon by Emann Odufu
David Smalling’s solo show "Elizabethan Collar" opened at Galerie Templon, running through April 25, 2026. The exhibition presents a series of oil‑on‑panel vignettes that fuse classical European painting techniques with contemporary symbols of Black masculinity, fertility and mortality. Smalling’s process combines...
Never-Before-Seen Calder Sculpture Emerges on the Auction Block in Paris
American sculptor Alexander Calder’s newly discovered “Stabile‑mobile,” a five‑and‑a‑half‑inch kinetic piece blending his signature stabiles and mobiles, will be offered at Oger‑Blanchet’s live auction in Paris on May 22. The work, created in 1974 two years before Calder’s death, is expected to...
Pots and Paintings: An Interview with Jake Clark by Sara Cemin
Brooklyn artist Jake Clark is debuting a mixed‑media show at A Hug From the Art World, pairing his signature hand‑crafted ceramic pots with large‑scale paintings. The works reinterpret 1950s‑60s American advertising icons—Brillo soap pads, vintage billboards, and cartoonish brand mascots—using oil‑acrylic layers that echo the...
David Bowie: You’re Not Alone Reviewed – a Dazzling Collage of Sound, Film and Images
The Lightroom in King’s Cross has opened “You’re Not Alone,” an immersive, hour‑long installation that chronicles David Bowie’s career through a kaleidoscopic mix of film, animation, and more than 40 songs. Visitors are surrounded by 360‑degree projections on walls, floor...
The Sovereign Artist Does Not Stand Alone
The article introduces FASO’s Marketing Circle, a community‑centric platform that helps visual artists navigate the tension between their creative "soul economy" and the commercial "market economy." It argues that traditional marketing feels alien to artists because it prioritizes reach over...
Creator Economy Thrives: Artists Earn More, Stay Independent
The @contra team published compelling research that disproves all of the AI doommaxxing being sold to creatives. Artists are making more art, earning more money, and staying independent. I’d argue the Creator Economy is stronger now than it was 5...
Fashion Photographer Paolo Roversi Will Be the Centrepiece of the MOP Foundation’s Summer Exhibition
Renowned fashion photographer Paolo Roversi will headline the MOP Foundation’s summer exhibition in A Coruña from June 20 to September 20, 2026. The show, titled “Doubts,” is organized into nine thematic rooms that reflect his distinctive visual language. It follows the foundation’s recent...
Hong Kong Art Basel 2026 Draws 240 Galleries, Hits 91,500 Visitors
Art Basel Hong Kong 2026 featured 240 galleries from 41 countries and welcomed more than 91,500 visitors, marking a record turnout. The fair highlighted new large‑scale and digital sections, signaling a shift toward immersive and tech‑driven art in Asia.
How America’s Museums Are Celebrating The 250th
As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary, museums nationwide are curating exhibitions that blend traditional artifacts with immersive multimedia to explore the nation’s complex heritage. At the Virginia Museum of History & Culture, the "We the People: The World...
Which Auction House Led the Pack in 2025?
Christie’s reclaimed the lead in 2025 fine‑art auctions, posting $3.5 billion in sales, a 10.1 percent increase over 2024 but still 9.8 percent shy of its 2023 peak. The house’s marquee sale was Mark Rothko’s _No. 31 (Yellow Stripe)_, which fetched $62.1 million. Sotheby’s followed with...
Pioneering 90s NYC Pop‑Up Shows Launched Today’s Top Artists
Throughout the entire decade of the 90s I curated a series of pop-up exhibits before the term existed, in downtown NYC. We referred to them as hit & run or guerrilla shows, often trading art for spaces. During that time...
James Hayward, Leading Figure Among California’s Abstract Painters, Has Died At 82
James Hayward, a San Francisco‑born painter known for heavily textured monochrome abstractions, died peacefully at 82, as announced by his studio on Instagram on April 16. Over a four‑decade career he evolved from 1970s automatic paintings to ridged, meditative surfaces that explored...
Paul’s Gallery of the Month: Arcadia Missa
Arcadia Missa, founded by Rózsa Farkas in 2011 as a nonprofit project space in Peckham, has evolved into a commercial gallery with two floors near Bond Street. The gallery’s programming critiques traditional white‑cube conventions, emphasizing social change, gender politics, and...
Andrew Cranston’s Paintings of Dreamlike Domesticity
British painter Andrew Cranston reveals how a round of golf sparked a fresh take on landscape, echoing the depth of Bruegel while grounding his work in contemporary domesticity. His latest series, titled “I’m Going in a Field,” showcases six dreamlike...
Met Gala Exhibit Debuts 25 Real-Body Mannequins for Greater Diversity
The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute has introduced 25 new mannequins based on real‑life models for its upcoming Met Gala exhibit, marking a decisive shift away from the traditional size‑2 standard. Curator Andrew Bolton says the move is meant...
Thomas Bangalter Launches Immersive “Warehouse Artefacts” At Art Basel 2026
Thomas Bangalter, co‑founder of Daft Punk, is co‑hosting the immersive “Warehouse Artefacts” installation at Art Basel 2026 in Basel, Switzerland. The project transforms a historic warehouse into a multi‑sensory environment, highlighting the growing blend of music, technology and large‑scale art at...
Marian Goodman Gallery to ‘Pause’ Operations in Los Angeles
Marian Goodman Gallery announced it will pause operations at its Los Angeles outpost after a two‑and‑a‑half‑year run, ending with Tacita Dean’s solo show on April 25. The four partners said they are consolidating programming in their historic homes in New York and Paris...
Twombly Foundation to Exhibit Rare Rauschenberg Works at Gagosian
The Cy Twombly Foundation is loaning six early Robert Rauschenberg works to Gagosian’s new 980 Madison Avenue gallery, opening on April 25. The group includes a 1950 twig-and‑glass assemblage, a cyanotype made with his then‑wife Susan Weil, a Black Painting from 1952, and a...
There Has Never Been an Apolitical Venice Biennale
The Venice Biennale, now in its 61st edition, continues to function as a global stage where national pavilions act as instruments of soft power rather than purely artistic showcases. Historically rooted in early‑20th‑century nation‑state competition, the event today hosts an...
Peter Hujar’s Photos Are All the Rage. He’d Be Shocked.
Peter Hujar’s photography is experiencing a renaissance nearly four decades after his death, driven by high‑profile exhibitions and new publications. The Morgan Library will display over 110 of his contact sheets in the upcoming "Hujar: Contact" show, while a dual...
A Nazi-Stolen Stradivarius Reappears in France
A 1719 Stradivarius violin, stolen by the Nazis from Warsaw in 1939, has resurfaced in France. The instrument, originally owned by Polish industrialist Henryk Grohman, was identified by music‑heritage activist Pascale Bernheim after being played at the Unterlinden Museum in...
Le Good Society Launches Global Outdoor Art Exhibition Urging Action for a Planet at Breaking Point
Le Good Society’s “Make Earth Day Every Day” exhibition has expanded globally, lighting up digital billboards in Times Square, Piccadilly Circus and the Netherlands. Curated by founder Tia Grazette, the show features artists such as David Shrigley, Lora Zombie and...
America’s Venice Biennale Artist Was Scorned by Tastemakers — He Says He’s Misunderstood
Alma Allen, a self‑taught sculptor who lives in Mexico, has been chosen to represent the United States at this year’s Venice Biennale. The appointment was made by the newly created American Arts Conservancy, a nonprofit with ties to the State...
Ha Chong-Hyun Retrospective Opens at San Francisco’s Asian Art Museum
Korean artist Ha Chong-hyun, a founding figure of the Dansaekhwa movement, will present a 50‑work retrospective at San Francisco’s Asian Art Museum from Sept. 25, 2026 to Jan. 25, 2027. The show marks his first solo museum exhibition in North America and...
Prone To Be Productive: In Praise of Writing in Bed
Megan O’Grady’s essay champions writing from bed as a productive, creative practice, citing personal experience and historic writers like Wharton and Twain. She describes how the comfort of a bed reduces distractions, supports chronic‑illness sufferers, and can spark deeper insight...
New Catalogues Reveal Royal Collection's Vast Sculpture Holdings—And Queen Victoria's Acquisition Spree
Jonathan Marsden, former royal household surveyor, has released a four‑volume catalogue documenting roughly 1,800 sculptures in the Royal Collection, spread across Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, Hampton Court, Kensington Palace and Osborne House. The work uncovers hidden gems such as a...
Back in Town, Exploring Exhibitions – Read My Newsletter
I'm back in town and back at exhibitions. Read all about it in my latest newsletter via @Londonist https://t.co/TpvnsLs9e7
Manoucher Yektai at Karma
The Karma gallery’s "Beginnings" exhibition showcases Manoucher Yektai’s early work, highlighting his thick impasto technique that prioritizes tactile perception over purely visual analysis. Curated by Negar Azimi, the show assembles paintings from the first two decades of Yektai’s career, revealing...