Posts for May, 2026

The Academy of Fine Art Germany opens its doors to art enthusiasts, prospective students, and the public for their annual Open House on Saturday, May 30,  2026.

Nestled in the historic city of Bad Homburg, the academy is dedicated to the revival and teaching of traditional, realistic drawing, painting, and sculpting techniques. This event offers a rare behind-the-scenes look at our academic programs, vibrant studio spaces, and the rigorous training of our international talents.

Experience firsthand how traditional craftsmanship meets contemporary fine art. Explore the studios, meet the talented students and international faculty, view the student exhibition, and participate in free live workshops. Admission is free.

For more details, click here.  

This retrospective – the first major European exhibition of Whistler’s work in 30 years – brings together the artist’s world-famous paintings alongside rarely, or never seen, works. It includes exquisite portraits, drawings, prints, and designs, from as early as his teens in St. Petersburg to the enigmatic late self-portraits.

The exhibition presents both a boldly experimental artist and cosmopolitan celebrity, disrupting the conventions of Victorian society in pursuit of truth, beauty, and progress.

Taking place at Tate Britian, Millbank, London SW1P 4RG from May 21 – September 27, 2026.

Click here for more information.  

Visit the ARC Calendar for more events and exhibitions.

Michelangelo and Rodin, two unrivalled masters of Western sculpture, engage in a dialogue across the centuries. Their works, emblematic of the strength of the body and the depth of the soul, are here brought together for the first time, revealing a continuum between the two artists, marked by clear divisions. 

The exhibition highlights the issues of form and concept that drove the same ambition in both artists: to make manifest the body’s inner energy.

The exhibition runs from April 15 – July 20, 2026 at the Musee du Louvre, Rue de Rivoli, Paris, France.

To learn more, click here.

For more events, visit the ARC Calendar.

A high-level residency and mentorship program for artists seeking serious technical development, constructive understanding of form, and deep immersion into the Florentine atelier tradition.

Designed for a limited number of participants, this residency combines intensive studio practice, individual mentorship, anatomy, composition, museum studies, and the constructive method of drawing and painting within a focused artistic environment in Florence.

This residency is not structured as a conventional art course. The emphasis of the program is placed on the constructive method — the structural understanding of form, anatomy, composition, rhythm, spatial organization, and the architectural logic of drawing and painting.

Participants work within a serious studio environment inspired by the traditions of the Russian constructive school and the classical atelier system.

The residency runs from June 29 – August 14, 2026 Florence Classical Arts Academy, via delle panche 140, Florence, 50141, Italy.

For more information, please click here.  

Mastering the Mood: Atmospheric Emotion brings together a curated selection of works by leading contemporary artists who explore the emotional resonance found in nature’s most evocative moments. From the quiet poetry of mist-covered mornings to the dramatic interplay of dusk light and shadow, the exhibition invites viewers to experience artwork not merely as places or things, but as profound emotional states.

ARC Associate Living Master MaryKay West will be among the exhibiting artists.

American Legacy Fine Arts is located in Pasadena, California just minutes from Downtown Los Angeles.  Open by private appointment, Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Please call (626) 577-7733 to make your personal appointment and to receive directions to the gallery.

To learn more, click here.  

Visit the ARC Calendar for more events.

This is an exhibition and sale of artwork by members of American Society of Marine Artists. Among the exhibiting artists are ARC Living Master Sergio Roffo and ARC Associate Living Master Bill Farnsworth.

The exhibition will coincide with America’s 250th anniversary, which will be marked unforgettably on July 4, when 50 tall ships from around the world cruise into New York Harbor as part of the America250 Parade of Sail. 

The exhibition runs from May 19 – July 10, 2026 at Cavalier Galleries, 3 w 57th Street, NY, NY.

To learn more, click here.  

For more events, visit the ARC Calendar.

See the first major UK exhibition of Spanish master Francisco de Zurbarán.

From intimate still lifes to soaring altarpieces, Zurbarán shows the intense in the ordinary. Strong light and deep shadow reveal the details of faces, figures, fruits and fabrics. His work unites stillness, focus and faith.

The exhibition takes place at the National Gallery, Trafalgar Square, London, WC2N 5DN, United Kingdom from May 2 – August 23, 2026.

Click here to learn more.  

For more events and exhibitions, please visit the ARC Calendar.

Grand Central Atelier is holding their Spring Student Exhibition.

Enjoy the school’s best core student drawing, painting and sculpture displayed salon-style in the Salmagundi Club Parlor. Enjoy a glass of wine, meet the artists and celebrate the year of dedicated effort!

Expect to encounter a high degree of naturalism, observational acuity and masterful dedication to the craft. Select works are for sale.

Opening Reception: May 14, 2026 6 -8 pm

The exhibition runs from May 12 – 20, 2026 at the Salmagundi Club, 47 5th Ave, New York, NY 10003.

To learn more, click here.  

For more events and exhibitions, please visit the ARC Calendar.

Rehs Contemporary will present their award winners from the 17th International ARC Salon Competition in "We Walk This Road Alone," a new art exhibition that challenges artists to examine the many dimensions of solitude. Rather than presenting solitude as a single emotional state, the works on view reveal it as an experience that can be reflective, unsettling, restorative, and transformative.

An opening reception on May 15th from 4-8 PM will provide an opportunity to engage with some of the artists and experience the exhibit in person. "We Walk This Road Alone" will be on display through June 19th.

The Rehs Gallery is located on 20 West 55th Street, Floor 5, New York, NY 10019.

To learn more, click here. 

For more events, visit the ARC Calendar.

Image shown:  Transfigured Night by Nanci France-Vaz

Highlighting the richness and diversity of American art, "A Nation of Artists" will trace the evolving story of American creativity across three centuries, featuring works of art from the Philadelphia Museum of Art collected over the past 150 years and the Middleton Family Collection, one of the country’s most significant private holdings of American art. Presented chronologically around distinctive themes, the exhibition explores art making of all types, from ceramics to wood carving and painting to fashion, and includes works by Indigenous, African American, and historically underrepresented artists who have shaped the nation’s visual culture.

The exhibition runs until July 5, 2026 at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2600 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia PA 19130.

To learn more, click here.  

Visit the ARC Calendar for more exhibits and events.

Congratulations to ARC Living Master Vicki Sullivan for being a finalist for her work titled “Peace Actually” in the Archibald Prize competition. 

In the Archibald Prize, Australian and New Zealand artists use portraiture to share the beauty and complexity of our times.

About the portrait, Sullivan states “Jan is a compelling and thoughtful voice in Australian media, and I wanted to capture both her strength and her humanity in this work.”

The exhibition runs from May 9 – August 16, 2026 at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Art Gallery Rd, Naala Nura building, Lower level 2, Sydney. NWS, 2000, Australia.

To learn more, please click here. 

Visit the ARC Calendar for more events.

Timothy James Standring, former director of the Denver Art Museum and a board member of the Portrait Society of America will join The REAL Academy of Art to speak about the history of the museum and present a live watercolor demonstration. He will also share insights from his experience serving on committees that review and evaluate artworks—offering a rare perspective from within the institutional art world.

This is a rare chance to meet him directly, to learn how artists can engage with institutions, and to begin building meaningful professional relationships. Encounters like this can quietly shape artistic paths—sometimes a single thoughtful conversation opens doors that years of solitary work cannot.

This event is free and open to all artists and art enthusiasts. Seats are limited, so early attendance is encouraged.

Friday, May 8, 2026 from 12 – 1 pm at the REAL Academy of Art Colorado, 6000 E Evans Ave, Building 2, Suite 221, Denver, CO 80222.

To learn more about events at the Academy, click here. 

For more events and exhibitions, click here.

The ARC Scholarship Competition is one of the most important programs offered by the Art Renewal Center. At our ARC Approved™ atelier schools, we know students will be passed down the accumulated artistic knowledge and methods developed over several centuries, which enable great works of art to be created today and in the future. The ARC Scholarship Competition is open to all students who are attending or enrolled in ARC Approved® Ateliers and Academy Schools.

Entries will be accepted from May 1 – May 31, 2026.

To access the full prospectus and to start the entry process, please visit our Scholarship Application Page.

Image shown:
Priscilla by Jude Dutton
2025 Brian Yoder Memorial Scholarship Winner