Latest
British Museum acquires £3.5m golden pendant linked to Henry VIII after high-profile campaign
The museum raised the money to buy the Tudor Heart following a celebrity-endorsed fundraising campaign launched in October
France’s ex-culture minister Jack Lang resigns from L’Institut du Monde Arabe amid Epstein revelations
Lang, 86, who has led the Parisian institution since 2013, has vigorously denied any wrongdoing after his name was found nearly 700 times within the Epstein files
Dangling sculpture—‘evacuated’ from Russian frontline—will be focus of Ukraine's pavilion at Venice Biennale
Suspended from a crane, the work is meant as a metaphor for the country's ongoing precarious situation during the war
‘These are dirty funds’: Indigenous Brazilian leader slams Science Museum for oil sponsorship ahead of climate show
Ninawa Huni Kui has spoken out ahead of a show focused on the threatened Brazilian ecosystem of the Pantanal
‘I'm going to miss the quiet life we had’: Greenlander artist Inuuteq Storch on Trump, travel and his ambitions to build a photography museum
As his latest exhibition opens in Hasselblad, Storch discusses his love and hope for his home country
Art market
Artemisia Gentileschi, Michelangelo and Rembrandt bring new energy and records to New York’s Old Masters sales
The week's sales also saw a near-record for a Canaletto painting and a seven-figure result for a 15th-century Hebrew illuminated manuscript
At Mexico City’s Material and Salón Acme fairs, artists find hope in nature
The two foremost satellite fairs of Mexico City Art Week are drawing record crowds and feature strong presentations by artists and galleries from across Mexico and throughout the Americas
Stephen Friedman Gallery goes into administration after 30 years
Both London and New York spaces are now shut
India Art Fair strengthens its role as launchpad for South Asian talent
The New Delhi stalwart, which has raised the profile of many artists, increasingly reflects the growing interest in Indigenous art
Thaddaeus Ropac expands to New York, with Emilio Steinberger at the helm
The Austrian gallery has hired a permanent senior director for its new project space in Manhattan
Museums & Heritage
UK’s Hepworth Wakefield announces new co-directors
Hepworth insiders Laura Smith and Olivia Colling have been appointed into new roles as the gallery celebrates its 15th anniversary this year
Renowned Mexican art collection to be managed by Spanish bank
Banco Santander will take charge of 160 iconic works, including 18 by Frida Kahlo, from the Gelman Collection of 20th-century Mexican art
Saudi Arabia looks to its Modern art history as the art world eyes up the Gulf
With the inaugural Art Basel opening in Qatar, and with Frieze in Abu Dhabi later this year, the Kingdom is looking to the past with its exhibitions and auctions
'Still young and going strong': Berlin's pioneering contemporary art space Hamburger Bahnhof turns 30
Born out of the merger of East and West Germany's collections, the institution, which propelled the careers of Anne Imhof and Tomás Saraceno among many others, is celebrating its birthday with a year-long programme of events and a star-studded gala
What the US’s removal of Nicolás Maduro means for Venezuela’s heritage
Longstanding preservation challenges are likely to be exacerbated by the current political instability
Exhibitions
Fourth Lahore Biennale, to take place during 80th anniversary of Partition, will explore cross-border connectivity
The Pakistan-based festival has announced the curator of its next edition, opening in January 2027
World Cup art initiatives go for goal in Mexico City
Ambitious cultural programme will accompany the 2026 Fifa World Cup tournament
Afghanistan’s heritage comes to the fore in acclaimed Doha show
The exhibition showcases 5,000 years of Afghan art and craft
Five artists announced for India's Venice Biennale pavilion
Organised by curator Amin Jaffer, the selected artists all use organic materials traditional to India in their work
Vancouver Art Gallery show celebrates Emily Carr's affinity with nature
The Canadian painter is the subject of a major exhibition of her landscapes, inspired by British Columbia
The Week in Art
A podcast bringing you the latest news from the art world, every week
Art Basel Qatar, Dürer portrait debate, Paula Modersohn-Becker and Edvard Munch—podcast
Ben Luke talks to art market editor Kabir Jhala about the inaugural fair in Doha, explores the debate surrounding a painting of Dürer’s father, and we hear about the synergies between two 20th-century painters
Books
How Martin Parr’s defining photobook made a splash 40 years ago
‘The Last Resort’, which will be republished later this year, is the subject of a new show at the late photographer’s foundation
‘The good, the bad and the ugly’: a short history of how artists depict the female body
The author Amy Dempsey talks about her new book exploring the tension between overexposure and invisibility
February Book Bag: from Tracey Emin’s conversations about painting to a catalogue of Lucian Freud’s drawings
Our round-up of the latest art publications
In loco parentis: new study tells the story of Florence’s ‘thrown-away’ children
Europe’s first foundling hospital, the Ospedale degli Innocenti, is examined afresh in a new book
‘I had all kinds of altercations’: the photographer who captures humanity at close quarters
A book celebrating the intimate street photography of Mark Cohen
The Year Ahead
Our pick of the shows to see in the world's great art cities in 2026
The exhibitions to visit in London, New York, Tokyo, Paris and Madrid
Fair behemoths bet on Gulf plus new, bigger venues for Independent—a quick look at art fairs in 2026
Art Basel and Frieze are expanding in the Middle East while Art Cologne is reinstating its Mallorca edition
Venice, Sydney, Gwangju: the most interesting biennials to visit in 2026
Plus, full listings of the biennials, triennials and festivals taking place throughout the year
Art market 2026 predictions: underwhelming rebound and another Frieze fair
Our columnist gazes into her crystal ball to spot the major trends—from London regaining its lustre to AI fatigue—that are set to dominate the trade over the coming 12 months
Adventures with Van Gogh
Adventures with Van Gogh is a weekly blog by Martin Bailey, our long-standing correspondent and expert on the artist. Published every Friday, his stories range from newsy items about this most intriguing artist to scholarly pieces based on his own meticulous investigations and discoveries.
Van Gogh and café culture: 'The absinthes and brandies would follow each other in quick succession'
A touring exhibition on Parisian cafés is opening in Denmark and then goes to America
Diary
David Beckham dutifully does the art rounds in Doha
Meanwhile film star Angelina Jolie also put in an appearance at Art Basel Qatar
Get your skates on: artist puts ice rink in Venice palazzo
Olaf Nicolai's "Eisfeld II" has taken up residence in an 18th-century banqueting hall
Want to win a €1m Picasso? Buy a €100 raffle ticket in painting prize draw
The draw is due to take place at Christie's Paris next April
Sweet Jesus—Trump auctions off a Christ painting made in ten minutes
Work was created live by Vanessa Horabuena at Mar-a-Lago New Year’s eve bash
Spirited art—Sharon Stone looks to the afterlife for her latest paintings
For her new Rogues Gallery series, the film star says she channelled spirits from across the centuries
Opinion
Museum wall texts are an art in their own right—but will they survive the digital age?
With shortened attention spans and constant technological distractions, some museums are getting rid of labels altogether
Comment | Tate Britain’s Turner and Constable show got me thinking about Marxist art history
On a recent trip to London, Bendor Grosvenor enjoyed the buzz of the Old Masters auctions but bemoaned Tate’s exhibition labels
In the age of AI, can art expertise be digitised?
Artificial intelligence attempts to offer objectivity in the inherently subjective field of authentication
Comment | We are living in an age of bad painting—the medium must be challenged to stay interesting
Painting may not be dead, but it may have become too comfortable
Let’s celebrate the new arrivals in the public domain, for auld lang syne
Copyright changes bring New Year cheer for fans of Léger, de Staël and Hepworth
Obituaries
Renowned gallerist Marian Goodman has died, aged 97
The dealer was known for her support of conceptually challenging artistic practices, and credited with bringing key European figures like Gerhard Richter and Marcel Broodthaers to the US
Remembering Gathie Falk, Canadian artist whose singular practice sparked comparisons to Surrealism and Pop art
Shaped by the austerity of her Mennonite upbringing and the bustling Vancouver art scene of the 1960s and 70s, she developed a playful, poignant and exacting visual language
Beatriz González, indefatigable force in Colombian art, has died, aged 93
One of the most important Latin American artists of the 20th century, she influenced the direction of post-war painting and helped shape Colombia’s museums as a curator, educator and mentor
Kathleen Goncharov, influential curator who helped many artists ‘realise their dreams’, has died aged 73
Alongside her work at organisations such as New York’s Just Above Midtown gallery and the Boca Raton Museum of Art in Florida, Goncharov was also an artist
Remembering Erik Bulatov, the Soviet artist who reframed propaganda
The pioneering painter was known for his luminous skies and loaded slogans on power, space and freedom
A brush with... podcast
A podcast that asks artists the questions you've always wanted to
A brush with… Luc Tuymans—podcast
Luc Tuymans talks to Ben Luke about his influences—from writers to musicians, film-makers and, of course, other artists—and the cultural experiences that have shaped his life and work














































