Ongoing—New York-based artist Iké Udé paid homage to Nollywood, the $3 billion film industry in his birthplace of Nigeria, by photographing its most famous celebrities. On view with garments and other items used in their creation, these portraits make bold statements about African identity. Pictured: A portrait of actress Genevieve Nnaji.
The museum shines a light on the myths and legends surrounding subjects living on the fringes of society in early modern Japan. Works on view reflect on the virtues of these misfits who rejected societal norms.
This triennial competition recognizes work that challenges traditional definitions of portraiture. Open to artists living and working in the U.S., this year’s contest received entries in a wide range of media, from painting and photography to sculpture and performance art. npg.si.edu
More than 80 pieces of couture, accessories and photographs on loan from the Palace of Monaco shed light on the glamorous wardrobe of Princess Grace and her longstanding collaboration with Marc Bohan, the one-time artistic director at House of Dior.
This exhibit displays drawings, paintings and sculptures by 43 seminal self-taught artists of the 20th century; it includes a painted work on cut-and-pieced sheet metal by David Butler (pictured). The creations—most recent or promised gifts from the Robson family—encourage viewers to see the world through the eyes of others. americanart.si.edu
Twenty works explore the evolving role of indigenous artists in the North American Arctic. The exhibit traces the transition from the ornate, ritualistic and utilitarian objects crafted for many generations to present-day model kayaks and cribbage boards created for non-Native markets. artbma.org
Through January 29, 2023 This show explores various brush techniques Japanese artists applied in their depictions of birds over several centuries. On view are hanging scroll paintings, folding screens, ceramics and printed books; a dish by Ogata Kenzan (pictured) dates back to the 1700s. asia.si.edu
More than two dozen works on paper by the French Fauvist artist celebrate the pomp and pageantry of British horse racing. Sketches of the famous Ascot course made by Dufy at a 1930 event inspired the vibrant watercolors on view.
In 2020, the museum acquired 40 works from the Souls Grown Deep Foundation—all created by Black artists who were seldom recognized for their contributions. Though many were made from recycled materials and leftover scraps of fabric, these sculptures, paintings, reliefs and quilts represent deep cultural traditions and outstanding artistic achievement. nga.gov
Rather than working in a vacuum, many artists seek feedback and criticism from their peers. Eight pairings of works on view shed light on how artists support each other outside the purview of patrons, curators and dealers. Paul Cadmus’ Night in Bologna (pictured) is part of the show.
This exhibit documents the buildings, parks and businesses that lined Washington’s historic promenade from the White House to the U.S. Capitol in the 19th century. Pictured: A depiction of President Garfield's inauguration as it appeared in Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper, 1881.
John Singer Sargent traveled extensively throughout Spain, capturing its landscapes, marine scenes, street life and architecture in his work. This exhibit assembles more than 120 of the artist’s oils, drawing and watercolors—including Camprodón, c.1892, pictured—that depict the wonders of Spain and its people. nga.gov
The museum shares the work of six winning teams that participated in a three-year, $20 million initiative to find innovative ways to close the economic gap in the affordable-housing market. Conceived by MASS Design Group, the exhibit shares the winners’ novel ideas in the areas of housing finance, construction and resident services. Pictured: Breakthrough Challenge […]
This Baltimore exhibition focuses on the joy of the here-and-now with more than 200 daring works created by self-taught artists using found or discarded materi- als. The show promotes the idea that instead of yearning for more things, people can find fulfillment by applying ingenuity and imagination to what’s already in their grasp.
Addressing themes surrounding climate change, this hour-long video features new and archival footage of disappearing landscapes from Greenland and Alaska to the Tahitian peninsula. Created by London-based artist and filmmaker John Akomfrah, the work plays across six screens, accompanied by an original score and spoken word.
Closed to visitors for renovation, the museum continues to engage patrons with online content as well as displays on its exterior. In her first U.S. installation, Austrian artist Katharina Cibulka covers the north-facing façade with a monumental net of bright-pink tulle bearing stitched messages that address gender-based inequity and social power structures.
Italian artist Giuseppe De Nittis, who was very much a part of the Paris art scene in the 1870s and ’80s, is known for his detailed realism. The Phillips unveils paintings from all periods of his career, including The Place du Carrousel: The Ruins of the Tuileries (pictured). Work by some of his comrades, including […]
This assemblage of paintings on paper and cloth created between 1700 and 1900 celebrates the palaces, lakes and mountains of Udaipur, a city in northwestern India, illustrating the region’s cultural and political evolution.
The first exhibition outside of Italy to be dedicated to this 15th-century master displays some 75 of his creations, from large-scale narrative paintings to drawings that once graced the homes of Venetian elite.
Charm City icon John Waters bequeathed 372 objects from his art collection to the Baltimore Museum of Art in 2020. This exhibit reveals about 90 of the works, including paintings, sculptures, photographs and prints by Diane Arbus, Nan Goldin, Cindy Sherman, Cy Twombly and Andy Warhol.
Matisse has long inspired contemporary artist Stanley Whitney, who was commissioned to create stained-glass windows for the BMA. This exhibit explores parallels between the artists’ work. Several Matisse prints—including The Lagoon (above)—are shown with sketches Whitney made for the commission.
The BMA shines a light on Senegal-born Omar Ba, who explores the notion of power through paintings, modular works and a site-specific mural. The artist portrays a range of people and subjects along with real and imagined creatures in his commentary on society.
During his short career, New York-based Darrel Ellis redefined Black male identity and family through his complex paintings, drawings and photography. This show presents 60 works on paper plus archival materials that chronicle the life and work of the mixed-media artist, who died in 1992 at age 33 of an AIDS-related illness.
This immersive, 10-screen film installation by Sir Isaac Julien focuses on 19th- century abolitionist Frederick Douglass and the influences of technology and images on human relations. Spanning space and time, the display interweaves Douglass’ speeches and writings with reenactments of his travels around the globe.
Charles Lang Freer, patron of the museum’s Freer Gallery, was intrigued by ancient Egypt. He visited the country three times, collecting works ranging from glass vessels to amulets and a Byzantine jewelry set, many of which will be on view for the first time in this exhibit. asia.si.edu
For centuries, some of the most ambitious and compelling art in Europe was painted on ceilings in styles ranging from Baroque to Neoclassical. The National Gallery spotlights 30 examples of remarkable ceiling decoration, from preliminary studies to large-scale models.
This immersive installation combines thousands of fine chromatic yellow and blue threads to create a color scheme that the eyes and mind cannot perceive. In what she calls an “imaginary, mysterious, unnamed space,” the multi-media artist pushes viewers to contemplate the divine—which, like these colors, she says, “is unnamable, untouchable, intangible.”
For 20 years, The Trawick Prize has recognized exceptional artists in DC, Maryland and Virginia. The Katzen celebrates 18 past prize-winners with a showing of their work in sculpture, painting, mixed media, film and more.
This ground-breaking show is not only the first major exhibition of Aboriginal Australian bark-painting in the U.S., it’s also the largest display of Aboriginal Australian art to be seen in the Western Hemisphere in 30 years. The Yolngu people in northern Australia’s Yirrkala region tell stories about the interconnectedness of man, animals and the land; […]
