The art exhibitions and events not to be missed this summer

The exhibition “Matisse: The Red Studio” is on view until 10 September at the MoMA in New York. This project will present Monet’s famous “The Red Studio” (1911) together with paintings and drawings historically related to the work itself, which will help enlighten the troubled history of the painting. It is the first time that these objects, once part of Matisse’s atelier, are exhibited together. After its presentation at MoMA, the exhibition will be shown at SMK, the National Gallery of Denmark, in Copenhagen from 13 October 2022 to 26 February 2023.

Until 20 June, the Centre Pompidou in Paris presents an exhibition on Charles Ray, a leading figure in contemporary American sculpture. The exhibition displays a representative collection and has been designed in dialogue with the artist. A journey that engages mind and body, inspired by a profound knowledge of the history of sculptural art and the artistic practices of his contemporaries. The Bourse de Commerce – Pinault Collection is simultaneously dedicating a second exhibition to the artist, designed in collaboration with the Centre Pompidou. 

Until 31 July 2022 Pirelli Hangar Bicocca in collaboration with Tate Modern presents “STEVE MCQUEEN. Sunshine State”, curated by Vicente Todolì, an immersive experience in the iconic visual language of Turner Prize winner Steve McQueen. The exhibition, a site-specific project taking place in the Navate and Cubo spaces and outside the building, presents six film works and one sculpture, some of the most important works of the artist’s career. A radical look “at the human condition, its dramas and fragility”. 

From 22 July to 30 September, Manifesta returns, the European ‘Nomadic’ Biennial takes us on a journey of discovery in an evocative former hotel in Prishtina, Kosovo. Founded in the early 1990s, Manifesta aims to rethink the relationship between culture and civic society and stimulate social change “in response to and in close dialogue with the social sphere of the host city and its communities”. Manifesta 14 will present a 100-day programme of art, performances, events and workshops that aims to reclaim public space together with the citizens of Kosovo. All events will be free of charge. 

Until 7 October 2022, the M+ Museum in Hong Kong, a new institution dedicated to visual culture, presents “From Revolution to Globalisation”, an exhibition exploring the cultural dynamism of contemporary China from the early 1970s to the present. The exhibition presents works by the revolutionary generation of artists who have redefined the contemporary Chinese experience, challenging traditional ideas and practices and experimenting with new unconventional mediums and styles.

Until 16 October 2022, Tate Britain in London presents an exhibition dedicated to Cornelia Parker, one of Britain’s best loved and most acclaimed contemporary artists. Through the reconfiguration of domestic objects, Parker aims to question our relationship with the world. On display are iconic suspended works including “Thirty Pieces of Silver” (1988-9) and “Cold Dark Matter: An Exploded View” (1991), the immersive “War Room” (2015) and “Magna Carta” (2015), a monumental collective embroidery. The exhibition also features a large number of innovative drawings, prints and photographs as well as her films. 

From 18 June to 25 September 2022 Documenta returns to Kassel, this year curated by the Indonesian collective ruangrupa, founded in 2000 in Jakarta. The collective has built the project on the values and ideas of “lumbung”, which can be translated as “rice barn”, a reference to the Indonesian rural world and a reference to principles of collectivity, resource building and equity. The concept of sustainability is central to all the manifestations and articulations of the project itself, developed on alternative community-oriented models and the sharing of resources, ideas and knowledge.

From 11 June to 18 September 2022, it is time for the Berlin Biennale, which every two years moves to a different location across the city of Berlin and takes on many different meanings thanks to collaborations with internationally established curators. Founded in 1996, since then the Berlin Bienniale has been promoting experimental forms, artistic expressions and methodologies with the aim of offering the public an unprecedented view and perspective on the contemporary art scene.

The 59th International Art Exhibition entitled ‘The Milk of Dreams’, curated by Cecilia Alemani, has been in the news for weeks. 213 artists from 58 nations are displaying their works in an exhibition itinerary spread across the Central Pavilion, the Giardini and the Arsenale. 80 National Participations, including 5 countries participating for the first time: Republic of Cameroon, Namibia, Nepal, Sultanate of Oman and Uganda. Also worth mentioning is the rich calendar of collateral events organised in numerous venues in the city of Venice. 

From 19 March to 31 July, Palazzo Strozzi and Museo del Barcello in Florence present the exhibition “Donatello: The Renaissance”. Curated by Francesco Caglioti, Professor of Medieval Art History at the Scuola Normale di Pisa, this historic exhibition juxtaposes the works of the master of Italian art with masterpieces by his contemporaries, including Brunelleschi, Masaccio, Andrea Mantegna, Giovanni Bellini, Raphael and Michelangelo. “Donatello: The Renaissance” will subsequently be staged at the Gemäldegalerie in Berlin from 2 September to 8 January 2023.