Art

In an upcoming exhibition at the Margot Samel Gallery, a body of mixed media houses by the late Leroy Johnson will be displayed at the start of 2025. Johnson's works embodied Philadelphia's spirit through evocative mixed-media sculptures crafted from collaged and painted found materials, photography and ceramics.The houses in Johnson’s work transcend their architectural forms, serving as profound symbols of family, culture and resilience. His creations document Philadelphia’s transformation, addressing pressing issues such as racism, poverty and gentrification. As described by the gallery, Johnson brought “a documentarian’s eye but a poet’s gaze” to his art, weaving intricate narratives of shared memory and collective experience through photographs, depictions of gatherings and graffiti-in...

Vincent Valdez’s Just a Dream... is a landmark museum survey showcasing over two decades of his work, running through March 23, 2025 at Contemporary Arts Museum Houston before traveling to MASS MoCA. Spanning early career drawings to contemporary allegorical portraits, the exhibition cements Valdez as one of the most significant American painters who explores the nation’s political, social and cultural landscapes. Valdez’s practice, which encompasses painting, video, sculpture, lithography nd multimedia installation, delves into collective memory and overlooked political histories, confronting the brutal realities of American history.The exhibition includes works from across Valdez’s career, including his critically acclaimed The "Strangest Fruit series" (2013), which addresses the lynchi...

Avant Arte and Artspace tapped seven contemporary artists for their latest collection of hand-painted ceramic amphorae. The ancient Greek vessels serve as canvases for a gamut of styles, as each artist reimagines the classical form with a unique suite of aesthetic codes and symbolic signatures.Highlights include the infinite, aquatic study of Hilary Pecis’ “Lily Pond” and Jordan Casteel’s “Peak Summer,” a lush celebration of the quiet act of gardening, while Derek Fordjour expands on his HBCU Marching Band series in “Horn Trot Round,” which captures the endless rhythm of shared rituals and collective spirit. In works like Harland Miller’s “R U OK?” and Jenny Holzer’s “Full” striking statements encircle the amphorae, infusing terracotta-like textures with poignant political resonance.Each a...

Tang Contemporary Art in Hong Kong welcomes the new year with Oracle, a solo exhibition by Japanese artist and fashion designer Ryunosuke Okazaki. With a focus on prayer, peace and spirituality, Okazaki presents a profound meditation on humanity’s relationship with the sacred through his signature of intricate forms, winding lines and infinite spirals.Drawing from ancient texts like the Nihon Shoki and Kojiki, the exhibition reimagines oracles as living entities imbued with spiritual significance. In this space, they are less an absolute truth and more an unresolved mystery, reflecting humanity’s ongoing dialogue with the divine.This influence is echoed in Okazaki’s artistic exploration which emphasizes materiality as an active participant in creating meaning. Blending the simplicity of Jo...

For the re-edition of the seminal Louis Vuitton x Takashi Murakami collection, the French luxury house is celebrating with remastered versions of Murakami’s anime short films, Superflat Monogram (2003) and Superflat First Love (2009). The 20th anniversary projects takes a look back on two works that helped define their creative partnership, highlighting the artist’s surrealist signature and the playful visual world that emerged from the collaboration.In Monogram, a young girl is swallowed by a whimsical panda and transported into a vibrant LV universe as she searches for her lost cellphone –  similar to the pink flip phone featured in a recent Zendaya promo. Six years later, First Love revisits the protagonist as she re-enters this fantastical world, this time, encountering Louis Vuitton a...

Philippe Parreno’s latest exhibition is transforming Munich’s Haus der Kunst into an intricate dance of space, time and life. Entitled Voices, the immersive exhibition unfolds in a series of interconnected yet expected events where reality and imagination become one.Central to the exhibition is ∂A, a language born out of machine learning and brought to life by German newscaster Susanne Daubner. Merging the gravitas of news with the artist's expansive imagination, her voice infuses the space with an "uncanny sense of truth."In collaboration with artist Tino Sehgal, Parreno invites visitors to engage directly with his works. From guttural tones to melodic phrases, vocalizations trigger a symphony of reactions: flickering lights, humming objects and ripping surfaces. The museum itself becomes...

Within the walls of the former Dominican monastery at Kunsthalle Osnabrück, Steve Bishop’s latest exhibition traces the tenuous threads between childhood and adulthood. Through a trio of installations, On the Street Where You Live unearths the emotions, memories and fleeting moments that shape our sense of self, weaving nostalgia with surreal reflections on the passage of time.The titular work, “On the Street Where You Live,” conjures the intimacy of suburban life, recreating a walk-in garage complete with a car parked in the driveway. As soulful jazz spills from the speakers, viewers are guided into a shadowed space, lit only by the fluorescent hum of an ice cream freezer. Elsewhere, “Admission” magnifies a sense of childlike play, presenting a life-sized replica of a tiny “Sweet Street” ...

Robert Smithson’s iconic earthwork Spiral Jetty has been added to the National Park Service's Register of Historic Places. Regarded as one of the most significant land art works in the world, the designation will aid the piece’s long-term preservation, underscoring its cultural and environmental importance.The piece was constructed in 1970, just three years before Smithson’s death on the Rozel Point peninsula along the northeastern shore of Utah’s Great Salt Lake. Constructed using over 6,000 tons of black basalt rock and local earth, the 1,500-foot-long coil spirals counterclockwise from the shoreline into the water.In its over five-decade history, the piece's themes of entropy, permanence and the delicate interplay between human intervention and natural forces as remain as relevant as ev...

This year, the art world was filled with dramatic, boundary-pushing moments that captured global attention. From environmental activists making bold statements on historic landmarks to record-breaking auction sales, the cultural landscape has been anything but quiet. High-profile art thefts, street art surprises and provocative installations stirred debate and fascination, reflecting both the power of art and its volatile place in society. Whether challenging traditions, breaking records or sparking controversy, these moments shaped 2024’s art scene in unforgettable ways.Keep reading to dive deeper into these events.Stonehenge VandalizedJust Stop OilJust Stop Oil activists sprayed orange powdered paint on Stonehenge, defacing the historic site near Salisbury, Wiltshire, on June 19, just be...

Zaha Hadid Architects has been chosen to design the Shaoxing Cao’e River Culture and Art Centre in China’s Zhejiang Province. Nestled on the banks of the historic river, the center envisions a dialogue of history and innovation, shaped by the region’s cultural heritage and the lush surrounding landscape.The center unfolds as a composition of interconnected forms. Designed to host an array of opera, dance, drama and symphonic performances, the structure features a 1,400-seat Grand Theater and 500-seat Black-Box Multifunctional Hall, alongside an Arts and Education Center, Heritage Museum, Digital Art Gallery and Conference Center.The space takes cues from the flowing landscapes of the river and the glazed roofs pitched atop surrounding architecture. The jade-green facades pay homage to Cela...

In 1966, Stanley Kubrick sought out to create “the world’s scariest movie.” A decade later, Stephen King’s The Shining landed on his desk, setting the stage for his 1980 adaptation which stands as one of cinema’s most iconic horror films, continuing to chill audiences even four decades later.Taschen is celebrating this cinematic masterpiece with a newly released edition of Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining, just in time for the holidays. Across 1,396 pages and ten years in the making, the two-volume collection offers an unparalleled behind-the-scenes look at the film featuring exclusive interviews with cast and crew, rare production photographs from the Stanley Kubrick Archive, conceptual art and more.Edited by Academy Award winning, Toy Story 3 director Lee Unkrich, with text by J.W. Rinzler ...

In 1985, visionary land art duo Christo and Jeanne-Claude unveiled The Pont Neuf Wrapped, a striking, large-scale installation that cloaked Paris’ oldest bridge in 41,800 square meters of golden fabric, fastened with 13 kilometers of rope and 12 tons of steel cables.“I wanted it to become a sculpture for the first time, but an ephemeral one,” Christo explained. Marking the efforts of over 300 specialists across ten years, the installation saw three million visitors over its two-week exhibition period.Forty years later, French artist JR is set to honor the duo’s legacy with an equally ambitious reimagination. Slated for September 2025, Projet Pont Neuf will once again transform the bridge, this time, into a cavernous delight.Created in collaboration with the Christo and Jeanne-Claude Founda...