Paul Poiret: Fashion is a Feast
The Musée des Arts Décoratifs draws on its considerable holdings to demonstrate why the couturier was known as ‘Le magnifique’
Kiefer/Van Gogh
Van Gogh’s compositional style and intensity of vision were a formative influence on Anselm Kiefer, as this show at the Royal Academy makes clear
Cézanne at Jas de Bouffan
The Post-Impressionist’s home in Aix-en-Provence is the subject of this exhibition at the Musée Granet
Amy Sillman: Alternate Side (Permutations #1–32)
The artist transforms the ground-floor of Dia Bridgehampton with prints and hand-painted designs that blend figuration and abstraction
Four things to see: Celestial observation
As the Royal Observatory in Greenwich celebrates its 350th anniversary, we look at four artworks that embody our age-old fascination with the heavens
Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery director resigns after pressure from Trump
Plus: Plus: French duo convicted of faking 18th-century furniture, and ZERO Group artist Günther Uecker has died at the age of 95
Four things to see: The expressive body
Painters have long distorted the human body to convey the anguish, confusion and melancholy that can lie beneath the skin
In the studio with… Helene Appel
The artist works in near silence on her hyperreal paintings in her Berlin studio, which she keeps as empty as possible
Vija Celmins
The Fondation Beyeler presents paintings, sculptures and hyper-realistic drawings by the Latvian American artist
Vermeer’s Love Letters
At the Frick, three enigmatic works by the Old Master depict women of status and their maids
Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2025
The public and Royal Academicians alike can submit work to the world’s longest-running open exhibition
Jenny Saville: The Anatomy of Painting
A survey at the National Portrait Gallery in London explores the artist’s bracingly conceptual approach to painting
Whitney Museum suspends Independent Study Program after cancelled Gaza event
Plus: UK cultural institutions defend corporate sponsors, Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery director still in post after Trump’s firing by social media
Edward Burra – Ithell Colquhoun
Tate Britain’s pairing of two very different painters reveals that the artists have more in common than is usually thought
Wolfgang Tillmans
The Pompidou’s last show before it closes for five years is a wide-ranging retrospective of the photographer’s work
Patterns of Luxury: Islamic Textiles, 11th–17th Centuries
The Saint Louis Art Museum presents textiles from or inspired by the Islamic world feature in a free exhibition
The Honest Eye: Camille Pissarro’s Impressionism
This dazzling exhibition at the Barberini brings together some 100 works to demonstrate the variety of the Impressionist master’s art
Acquisitions of the month: May 2025
Chardin’s luscious still life of fruit and Guercino’s commanding King David are among last month’s most significant museum acquisitions
Four things to see: Oceans
To celebrate World Oceans Day, we dive into four artworks that celebrate the blue planet’s beauty, biodiversity and bottomless capacity for artistic inspiration
How Jenny Saville turns paint into flesh
In her depictions of the human form, the artist pushes paint to its limits, explains Sarah Howgate of the National Portrait Gallery in London
Venice Biennale to follow Koyo Kouoh’s vision
Plus: lost Mayan city discovered in Guatemala, and investment company set to buy Artnet and take it private
Design and Disability
The V&A tells the story of how disabled, deaf and neurodivergent people have shaped and inspired modern design over the last 80 years
Camille Claudel and Bernhard Hoetger: Emancipation from Rodin
In Berlin, the Alte Nationalgalerie’s restaging of a 1905 exhibition in Paris shows how both artists were developing their own sculptural languages
Face to Face: 19th-century Austrian portrait painting
Salzburg’s DomQuartier presents portraits by painters who were forced to get more creative after the advent of photography
Sitting pretty: the world’s best museum benches