Language as Demolition Tool: Selma Selman’s Letters to Omer
On April 15, Selma Selman performed *Letters to Omer* at Brooklyn’s Amant, using spoken‑word to turn language into a demolition tool. The piece featured over forty letters addressed to a silent, affluent figure named Omer, oscillating between intimate confession and geopolitical outrage. Selman's Roma heritage and the trauma of the 1995 Srebrenica genocide permeate the performance, linking personal violence to global conflicts such as Gaza. A follow‑up show is slated for April 27 at New York’s Goethe‑Institut.
Thiago De Paula Souza Appointed Curator of Eighth Athens Biennale
The Athens Biennale, founded in 2005, has appointed Brazilian‑born curator Thiago de Paula Souza to lead its eighth edition slated for next spring. Souza, known for exploring eroticism, gender nonconformity and intimacy, brings experience from co‑curating the 2025 São Paulo Bienal...
Closely Watched Curator Raphael Fonseca Joins Lisbon’s Culturgest
Raphael Fonseca, the Denver Art Museum’s first curator of Latin American modern and contemporary art, has been appointed visual arts programmer at Lisbon’s Culturgest, a private foundation backed by state‑owned Caixa Geral de Depósito. He will relocate in June 2026,...
Barbara Chase-Riboud Speaks Out on Declining US Pavilion Spot
American sculptor Barbara Chase‑Riboud announced she will not participate in the United States Pavilion at the 61st Venice Biennale, citing the current climate of global conflicts. She joins photographer William Eggleston, who also declined the invitation, leaving the pavilion to...
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...
Lynda Roscoe Hartigan Named Director of Smithsonian American Art Museum
Lynda Roscoe Hartigan, former chief curator of the Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM), will assume the museum’s directorship on September 8, 2026. She returns from her role as executive director and CEO of the Peabody Essex Museum, where she became the...
Art Dubai to Present Significantly Smaller Event After Iran War Forces Postponement
Art Dubai cancelled its originally planned 20th‑anniversary fair after the US‑Israel attack on Iran and announced a scaled‑down "special edition" for May 14‑17. The new edition will feature just 50 exhibitors instead of the slated 120, still hosted at Madinat...
Mikala Tai Appointed Curator of 2027 TarraWarra Biennial
Sydney‑based curator Mikala Tai has been appointed to lead the tenth TarraWarra Biennial, scheduled for July 31 to November 4, 2027 at the TarraWarra Museum of Art in Healesville, Australia. Tai brings extensive experience in contemporary Australian and Asian art, having directed the...
Never Stop Stopping
Michael Krebber’s paintings are characterized by unfinished, sketch‑like surfaces that deliberately halt mid‑idea, prompting viewers to question artistic originality. A 2005 essay collection titled “Man Without Qualities,” authored by Daniel Birnbaum, John Kelsey, and Jessica Morgan, dissected his tactics of...
Toronto Biennial of Art Announces Artists and Theme for 2026 Edition
The Toronto Biennial of Art announced its fourth edition, titled “Things Fall Apart,” to run from September 26 to December 20, 2026. Curated by Allison Glenn, the show will explore water‑related rupture and syncopation, drawing on Chinua Achebe’s novel and cultural references. Seventeen newly...
Morad Montazami Named Artistic Director of 16th Dak’Art Biennial
Morad Montazami has been appointed artistic director of the 16th Dak’Art Biennial, scheduled for November 19–December 19, 2026. The edition, titled “(Anti)Fragility: Arts of Repair and Counter‑Shock Strategies,” will explore how fragility can be transformed into artistic strength through community co‑creation. Montazami, founder...
LACMA Sets May 4 Opening Date for $724 Million “Curvaceous Concrete Sandwich” As Reviews Pour In
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art will open its new David Geffen Galleries on May 4, 2026, after a twelve‑year, $724 million construction project led by Peter Zumthor. The serpentine, single‑story structure sits 30 feet above Wilshire Avenue and will debut an...
Rirkrit Tiravanija to Assemble “A Gathering of Remarkable People” For Qatar Pavilion at Venice Biennale
The National Pavilion of Qatar will present “Untitled (a gathering of remarkable people)” at the 61st Venice Biennale, opening May 9, 2026. Thai artist Rirkrit Tiravanija curates the show, assembling musicians, poets, chefs and visual artists from across the Arab world. Co‑curated...
Duchamp’s Common Sense
The Museum of Modern Art opened a sweeping Marcel Duchamp retrospective that traces the artist’s evolution from early post‑Impressionist canvases to his later readymade‑centric works. The show is anchored by Molly Nesbit’s 1994 Artforum essay, which mines Duchamp’s letters to illustrate his...
The Met Hires Star Photography Curator for the Museum’s New Wing
The Metropolitan Museum of Art has hired Oluremi C. Onabanjo, previously MoMA’s Peter Schub Curator, as the new curator of its Department of Photographs. Her primary task is to manage the 6,500‑photograph Walther Collection gift received in 2025 and to...