April 23, 2026
Your morning brew of art world media
Welcome to Art Spell, a daily, comprehensive roundup of art news and reviews for the visual arts community. Today’s Editor’s Pick is Venice Biennale Jury Says It Won’t Consider Countries Charged with Crimes Against Humanity, Including Israel and Russia by Alex Greenberger for ARTnews. In the ongoing Venice Biennale participant controversy, the jury has suggested it may withhold recognition from countries like Israel and Russia over war-related concerns.
The Art Newspaper
José da Silva, Nominees for the Turner Prize 2026 announced by Tate
Dale Berning Sawa, ‘The museum is not a space for the elite’: Portuguese building firm’s new museum puts workers first
Osman Can Yerebakan, The Photography Show fair’s 45th edition explores medium’s full history from its origins to AI
Carlie Porterfield, Claude Lalanne’s set of bronze mirrors shatters artist’s auction record at Sotheby’s
Louisa Buck, Slags, bings and pipelines: Edinburgh landscape offers fitting backdrop for exhibition on fossil fuel extraction
Caroline Roux, Latest collection of luxury jewellery house Boucheron inspired by pioneering founder
Artforum
Theo Belci, Making Rent: New York’s New Apartment Galleries and Artist-Run Spaces
Horace D. Ballard, Bronze Carnivores: How Confederate Monuments Disfigure the Present
From the Editors, Institutions Across the US to Benefit from Transformative $116 Million Gift to National Gallery
From the Editors, Closely Watched Curator Raphael Fonseca Joins Lisbon’s Culturgest
From the Editors, EU Cuts Venice Biennale Funding Over Russia Involvement
From the Editors, Barbara Chase-Riboud Speaks Out on Declining US Pavilion Spot
Artnet
From the Editors, 14 Must-See Museum Shows in New York This Spring
Jo Lawson-Tancred, Alma Allen Speaks Out on Backlash Over U.S. Pavilion Commission: ‘A Little Stressful’
Vittoria Benzine, Historic Watch Recovered From Titanic’s Wealthiest Passenger Nets $1 Million
Richard Whiddington, Edvard Munch’s Paintings for a Chocolate Factory Get a Rare Museum Outing
Vittoria Benzine, Centuries-Old Love Letter Deciphered With Help From A.I.
Richard Whiddington, Yves Saint Laurent’s Lalanne Mirrors Sell for Record-Shattering $33.5 Million
ARTnews
EDITOR’S PICK - Alex Greenberger, Venice Biennale Jury Says It Won’t Consider Countries Charged with Crimes Against Humanity, Including Israel and Russia: The jury said its “defense of human rights” was in keeping with Koyo Kouoh’s main exhibition.
George Nelson, Private Sales Are Surging as Auction Houses Lean into Exclusive, Experience-Led Selling
Harrison Jacobs, Top Collector John Phelan Fired as Navy Secretary, After Reports of Pentagon Infighting
Daniel Cassady, An Auction Without Bidding: Loïc Gouzer’s Latest Bet on How to Sell Art
Tessa Solomon, Architectural Competition for Louvre ‘New Renaissance’ Project Reportedly Set to Relaunch in May
Daniel Cassady, Trump White House Ballroom Contract Allowed Anonymous Donors, Limited Oversight
Anne Doran, Dutch Commission Recommends New Guardianship for ‘Orphaned’ Nazi-Looted Art
Maximilíano Durón, Venice Biennale’s 2026 Golden Lion Jury to Be Led by Videobrasil Founder
Leigh Anne Miller, Top 200 Collector Mitchell Rales Gifts $116 M. to National Gallery of Art for Lending Program
Tessa Solomon, Claude Lalanne Mirror Ensemble Sells for $33.5 M., Breaking Design Auction Records
Andy Battaglia, Berlin Museum Oversees Digital Resurrection of Hundreds of Paintings Destroyed During World War II
Leigh Anne Miller, Pittsburgh Shows Off New Public Art Projects in Advance of NFL Draft
Maximilíano Durón, Fraenkel Gallery Partners with New York’s Metrograph for Artist-Curated Series
Alex Greenberger, What You Need to Know About the Venice Biennale’s Russian Pavilion Controversy
Brian Boucher, A Think Tank and a Foundation Team Up On $1 M. in Accelerator Grants for Museum and Performing Arts Leaders—Timothée Chalamet Be Damned
Alex Greenberger, EU Says It ‘Intends’ to Cut Funding to Venice Biennale Because of Russian Pavilion
ArtReview
Yue Ren, Chang-Ching and Rhett Tsai’s Tricks of the Light
From the Editors, Shortlist announced for the Turner Prize 2026
From the Editors, Venice Golden Lion jury won’t consider Russian and Israeli pavilions
From the Editors, Shigeo Toya, artist who looked to nature with his wood sculptures, 1947–2026
Frieze
Maddie Hampton, Emily Kraus’s Glitchy Paintings Challenge Aesthetic Authority
The Guardian
Nadia Khomami, Turner prize shortlist announced
Eddy Frankel, Playing it too safe? This year’s Turner prize nominees lack the anger – and joy – of previous years
Yassin El-Moudden, ‘We’re attached to this land like a tree is rooted in soil’: unexpectedly timely exhibition speaks up for the people of south Lebanon
Philip Oltermann, Has the world grown weary of art biennials? In search of an antidote, a Portuguese festival turns to anarchism
Jenny Waldman, Art for art’s sake, but for people’s health too
Hyperallergic
Michael Glover, Tale of a Riderless Horse
Ed Simon, Hans Holbein Painted the Human
Lisa yin Zhang, Remembering Desmond Morris, James Hayward, and Flo Oy Wong
Lisa Siraganian, Can an Artwork Have Personhood?
Isa Farfan, Historic $116M Gift Endows Lending Program at National Gallery of Art
Naomi Polonsky, Can the V&A’s New Museum Fulfill Its Democratic Promise?
The Los Angeles Times
Jessica Gelt, Dataland, the world’s first museum of AI arts, sets opening date and first exhibition
The New York Times
Alex Marshall, Turner Prize Nominees Take Viewers on ‘Extraordinary Journeys’
EDITOR’S PICK - Melena Ryzik, How a Museum Built Its Buzz: Popcorn, Puppets and Free Tickets: The Museum of the Moving Image in Queens, long a home for cinephiles, doubled attendance by repositioning itself as a community hub.
Tim F. Schneider, The Nerve Center of This Art Fair Isn’t Painting. It’s Couture.
Nina Siegal, In Central Java, an Eco-Resort Aims to Build Sustainability Through Creativity
Observer
Elisa Carollo, Diane Keaton’s Collection Heads to Bonhams, Revealing a Life Shaped by Singular Taste
Dan Duray, One Fine Show: “Modern Art and Politics in Germany 1910-1945” at the Minneapolis Institute of Art
Elisa Carollo, The Best New Discoveries of Milan Art Week 2026
Puck
Marion Maneker, Condition Report: Cara Zimmerman, Head of Outsider Art, Christie’s
Urgent Matter
Adam Schrader, Mystic Seaport Museum workers vote narrowly to unionize; result challenged
Adam Schrader, Miami tourist in $40K gallery theft case gets probation; cases closed
Adam Schrader, Dutch Silver Museum struggles to reopen after theft wiped out collection
Adam Schrader, World Art Dubai postponed to November amid regional disruptions
The Wall Street Journal
Brian P. Kelly, ‘Greater New York 2026’ Review: The City Past and Present at PS1
Whitehot
Emann Odufu, David Smalling: Elizabethan Collar at Galerie Templon
Kun Sok, “Buddha and Shiva” - When Objects Outlive Their Worlds: Asia Society, New York
Art Spell is a subscription-based daily roundup of art news and reviews to help you stay current with what’s being reported on in the visual arts community. The profits from Art Spell are donated to organizations supporting art journalists and writers.