🔗 Share this article

From Renaissance masters and contemporary icons, modern visionaries alongside a major Mexican director, art museums as well as galleries across the US have a series of dazzling shows coming up for 2026.

Roy Lichtenstein

Announced several years ago in 2023, and currently just a placeholder listing on a major museum's online schedule, this major retrospective of one of the pioneering figures of the Pop Art era comes with some pretty heavy anticipation. The museum plans to utilize its long-held collection of nearly 500 works by Lichtenstein, as well as, one would imagine, numerous borrowed works from collections around the world. TBD 2026.

Drawn to Venice and Monet and Venice

San Francisco partner museums, one prestigious venue along with deYoung, will be centering Venice with two interconnected shows: the former museum will offer a celebration of the city as a source of high art throughout the centuries, and the latter zooms in on what impressionist Claude Monet thought of the romantic city of canals. Monet himself felt intimidated by the challenge of depicting Venice – a theme that had captivated the world’s most esteemed artists for hundreds of years – yet he ultimately met the challenge, creating some 37 canvases, among them the masterpiece *The Grand Canal*. 6 January-2 August and Spring into Summer.

Sueño Perro: a film installation by Alejandro G Iñárritu

Celebrating the quarter-century of his groundbreaking first feature, *Amores Perros*, filmmaker Alejandro G Iñárritu revisits over 1m ft of film that was left out into the final cut, crafting an immersive experience that also serves as a homage to film. Accounts suggest Iñárritu delved into the archives to create what he described as “a rebirth, not merely a tribute” of a cherished films. It's possible the installation will evoke a sense of optimism that runs through Iñárritu’s film despite the pain he also chronicles. 22 February-26 July.

The Sculptural World of Carol Bove

The Guggenheim will give the multidisciplinary sculpture and installation creator a comprehensive retrospective, beginning with her initial pieces and moving through to a new series of pieces made from scrap metal and steel tubing. Drawing from “the 1960s” and minimalism, Bove often takes her components directly from the urban landscape, creating fascinating and strange constructions that have appeared in prestigious art spots. With major shows at Museum of Modern Art and a Parisian institution, her thirty years of work are ripe for a thorough overview. Early Spring to Summer.

Henri Matisse's *Jazz*: A Symphony of Cut Paper

Those familiar with the book *The Body Keeps the Score* may recognize French master Henri Matisse’s cut-out *Icarus* – it’s in fact one of 20 cut-paper works that he combined with text and published as a book titled *Jazz* in 1947. This spring, a Midwestern museum exhibits the complete set of Matisse’s cut-paper maquettes – an unprecedented exhibition since the museum acquired the works in 1948 – as well as around 50 additional pieces by the artist. These creations represented a late stage flowering for Matisse. 7 March-1 June.

Raphael: Sublime Poetry

Italian master painter and architect Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino stood alongside Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo as the celebrated masters of the Italian Renaissance – yet he has seldom been honored with a major show on American soil. A premier East Coast institution aims to rectify that with this massive exhibition. Raphael is famous for iconic works like his *Sistine Madonna* and *The School of Athens*. With loans from throughout Europe and over 200 works total, this promises to be a major event. Late March through June.

Shu Lea Cheang: Lover Love

NYC’s Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art will host a major, large-scale video installation by transmedia artist and film-maker Shu Lea Cheang, a major figure in new media art. As with much of her work, Cheang here investigates the daily struggles of transgender existence. The installation is designed as a highly interactive experience, with visitors encouraged to play around with the four moveable screens that show the core footage. Spring 2026 through early 2027.

Leilah Babirye: Reclamation and Defiance

A Boston contemporary art center will feature recent creations from this artist, who was forced to flee her native Uganda when her identity was revealed as a lesbian in 2015. Babirye is recognized for transforming discarded objects to make elaborate, LGBTQ+-themed assemblages. This exhibition showcases new work based on the concept of queer weddings. It extends her ongoing project of employing found items as a symbolic act of defiance. 27 August–18 January 2027.

Taking Back Our Space: Body Language and Power

Building on the pioneering work of German feminist photographer Marianne Wex, who studied how genders are conditioned to use physical space differently, this show investigates how non-verbal communication shapes unconscious interaction. Wex’s studies included art as old as 2000 BC. In this presentation, Wex’s findings are both exhibited and put into conversation with the work of modern Black, queer, and feminist artists. Fall 2026 into 2027.

Additional Highlights for 2026

In February, a Pacific Northwest institution showcases the evocative silhouette art of Samantha Yun Wall. Starting 5 March, a prominent gallery is highlighting the work of up and coming artist an innovative creator. In the summer months, the Crystal Bridges Museum revisits 80s graffiti artist Keith Haring through a show of his three-dimensional works. In September, the Detroit Institute of Arts presents a collection of the artist's architecture paintings. Simultaneously, the Phoenix Art Museum displays the colorful work of South Korean painter Kim Chong Hak.