After a vibrant art world week of protests and resistance, from the Venice Biennale to the Met Gala and the American Folk Art Museum in New York, we have now arrived at Saturday. Tomorrow we celebrate the mothers in our lives, and to mark the occasion, staff writer Isa Farfan asked fifteen artists to share the best advice they received from their mothers or mother figures. “My mother wisely told us that I would be appreciated in college, and she was right,” said Pat Oleszko, who in high school “lost the class vice presidency to some stupid pretty girl.” (Now Oleszko’s work is on view at the Whitney Biennial, so yeah.)
This week, our editor-in-chief Hakim Bishara spoke from Venice across a boring American pavilion and reported on a historic strike for Palestine and workers’ rights, while editor-in-chief Hrag Vartanian took us on a tour of moving works on display at the Giardini and Arsenale for In minor keysthe wonderful central exhibition of the Biennale. Also: Damien Davis on artists and consignment deals, Matt Stromberg on the LA Art Book Fair, and our monthly round-up of opportunities in art.
And with that, I leave you with my mother’s most memorable guidance: put down your phone, stop to smell the flowers, and steal one or two from your neighbor while you’re at it.
—Valentina Di Liscia, editor-in-chief
15 artists share the best advice they received from their mothers
“She taught me how to play, laugh until my face burns, and dance in the kitchen to ‘Believe’ by Cher.”
Venice Biennale
Historic strike disrupts Biennale as thousands march in Venice
Dozens of national pavilions were completely or partially closed during a strike for Palestine and workers’ rights. | Hakim Bishara
“In Minor Keys” hits all the right notes
The Venice Biennale International Art Exhibition is an unexpected symphony that asks us to think about what would otherwise be overlooked. | Hrag Vartanian
A lot of nothing in the US Pavilion
After the last two Biennales had explored the soul and history of this country, how did we end up with this art from the land of nonsense? | Hakim Bishara
Artists Pay Tribute to Koyo Kouoh in Poetry Caravan at the Venice Biennale
The late curator’s 1999 trip with nine African poets inspired a moving procession led by María Magdalena Campos-Pons, writers and musicians. | Greta Rainbow
Also in Venice
- The art collective Pussy Riot and the feminist group FEMEN stood up against the Russian pavilion at the Venice Biennale.
- Israeli pavilion artist Belu-Simion Fainaru made legal threats against the Venice Biennale over alleged anti-Semitism and discrimination before the show’s prize jury resigned.
- Hundreds protested against the Israeli ‘genocide pavilion’ at the Venice Biennale, demanding that it be closed immediately.
- Organizers said Iran would not participate in the Venice Biennale with a national pavilion.
News
- A small but compelling protest against Jeff Bezos, who co-chaired this year’s Met Gala, unfolded blocks from the museum as celebrities filed into the event. On Sunday, a series of projections condemning Amazon lit up the billionaire’s luxury residence in Madison Square Park.
- MoMA PS1 presents the first American survey of Mexican artist Teresa Margolles, bringing together several works at the intersection of grief and violence.
- Employees of the American Folk Art Museum in New York City and local union organizers supported the museum’s annual gala, demanding higher wages and better working conditions.
Reviews
Keith Haring before the end of the world
The artist’s spare style, seen in works at the Brant Foundation, feels prescient in light of the coming AI disaster. | Arthur Nersesian
Is this what ‘Made in America’ looks like?
Christopher Payne’s photographs at Cooper Hewitt sidestep questions of economic uncertainty and geopolitical struggle to spotlight the craftsmanship of factory workers. | Julie Schneider
I have the Post-Duchamp blues
MoMA’s Marcel Duchamp show made me long for those simpler times when “eliminating the artist’s hand” offered a path back to the true self. | Hakim Bishara
The Carnegie International looks back on itself
The 59th edition captures some of the excitement of previous exhibitions and provides essential commentary on issues of authoritarianism and militarism. | Ed Simon
Artists up close
Which artists are signing away
Long shipping times, waivers of moral rights, and opaque “standard” contracts serve the institution more than the artist. | Damien Davis
Getting messy in the archive at LA’s Art Book Fair
This year’s edition of the annual Printed Matter show exposes and remixes historical media, collapsing time and giving the past new relevance. | Matt Stromberg
At the age of 90, printmaker Mohammad Omer Khalil is getting his comeuppance
The New York-based Sudanese artist looks back on a lifetime of experimentation in a multi-city retrospective. | Jasmine Weber
Rosy Simas on creating a space for peace in Minneapolis
Hyperallergic spoke with the Minnesota-based Seneca artist to discuss her exhibition at the Walker Art Center. | Sheila Regan
Shoot the shit with Jack Kerouac
In New York, an exhibition of precious letters, photos and talismans takes us into the daily life of the reluctant Beat Generation icon. | Greta Rainbow
Guides
10 art shows to see in Los Angeles this May
Think Celeste Dupuy-Spencer, Yoko Ono’s first museum show in LA, Richard Mayhew’s ‘mindscapes’, Gordon Parks’ musical production and more. | Matt Stromberg
15 art shows to see in New York this May
Lynette Yiadom-Boakye captures the tranquility, Seydou Keïta documents a revolution, Renée Green compiles an autoethnography and much more. | Hrag Vartanian, Valentina Di Liscia, Lisa Yin Zhang, John Yau, Jasmine Weber, Isa Farfan
10 Exhibitions to See in Upstate New York in May
Irina Lotarevich’s sharp minimalism, Koyoltzintli’s exploration of a sacred object, Daniele Frazier’s explorations in cameraless photography, and more. | Taliesin Thomas
Community
A view from the easel
This week, Brenda Zlamany returns to her ancestral village near Pollino National Park in Italy, where she paints in an old sausage factory and grows her own olives. “Rome has Michelangelo. We have the mountain.”
Required reading
This week: Mamdani honors garment workers, a fake exchange with Sophie Calle, the first Black American tattoo artist, RIP Spirit Airlines, and more.
Art movements: new museum appoints the first residents of artists’ studios
Plus, Forge Project’s 2026 fellows, the Robert Therrien Estate, leave Gagosian for Zwirner, and this year’s Frieze uniform.
Steven Durland, champion of performance art, dies at 75
Durland was editor of High Performance magazine in Los Angeles for many years, maintaining his own practice while advocating for the art form.
Think of Georg Baselitz, Nicole Hollander and Doris Fisher
This week we honor a German neo-expressionist, the creator of the comic strip ‘Sylvia’ and an arts patron behind SFMOMA.
Possibilities this month
Residencies, fellowships, grants and open calls from the Bennett Prize, Oak Spring Garden Foundation and more in our May 2026 list of opportunities for artists, writers and arts workers.
