This fall, a diverse array of art exhibitions are opening across the United States and Europe, offering visitors an opportunity to engage with works spanning several centuries, continents, and media.
In New York, the Museum of Modern Art will unveil “Brancusi: The Artist and His Studio” on October 25. The exhibition focuses on the Romanian sculptor Constantin Brancusi’s innovative approach to sculpture, highlighting his refined bronzes and limestones such as the iconic “Bird in Space” and “Fish.” Brancusi’s technique, known as taille directe, involved working directly on the final materials rather than relying on preparatory models, emphasizing the essence of form over representational detail. Due to renovations at the Centre Pompidou, which now holds the contents of Brancusi’s atelier, this is a rare chance for New Yorkers to experience the artist’s studio environment alongside MoMA’s collection.
The Frick Collection, also in New York, will present “Siena: The Art of Bronze, 1450-1500” starting October 15. This exhibition assembles over three dozen bronze sculptures from Renaissance Tuscany, showcasing how artists of the era reinterpreted classical Roman bronze works to express emerging humanist ideals in both religious and secular contexts.
Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Museum of Art continues its display of “A King’s Carpet: Louis XIV and the Savonnerie,” featuring segments of the largest carpet ever woven commissioned under the French Sun King, Louis XIV. The exhibit remains open through March 2028 in the Wrightsman Galleries.
On the West Coast and beyond, several exhibitions highlight Korean contemporary art, reflecting Seoul’s growing status as a cultural hub. The Asian Art Museum in San Francisco will open a show of Ha Chong-Hyun’s paintings on October 6. The Aspen Art Museum will present a new installation by Koo Jeong-a beginning December 11, known for her enigmatic and poetic works. At Dia Beacon in upstate New York, a major commission by Haegue Yang featuring customized Venetian blinds will be unveiled on October 10.
San Francisco’s Museum of Modern Art will host “RM x SFMOMA: Between You and Me” starting October 3, an innovative exhibition combining the museum’s collection with that of RM, the leader of the internationally acclaimed band BTS, emphasizing the intersection of popular culture and fine art.
Two exhibitions in the United States examine British painting in relation to the Industrial Revolution. The Getty Museum in Los Angeles will present works by Joseph Wright of Derby starting November 24, highlighting his dramatic nocturnal scenes of industrial forges and laboratories. Concurrently, the Yale Center for British Art is hosting a John Constable retrospective through July 25, exploring the Romantic landscape painter’s nuanced response to industrialization.
Photography also takes center stage with powerful large-scale photo essays revisited this season. The Wallach Art Gallery at Columbia University will feature Allan Sekula’s “Fish Story,” a global examination of the industrial shipping industry, beginning October 2. Additionally, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston will present Kikuji Kawada’s “The Map (Chizu)” from October 24, a stark visual investigation of Hiroshima’s Atomic Bomb Dome and its historical context. The Metropolitan Museum of Art follows with a photographic exploration of postwar Japan starting November 12.
New York City will welcome two new arts spaces dedicated respectively to photography and video-based media. Aperture, a foundation and magazine established in 1952, inaugurated galleries on the Upper West Side this month, showcasing historical figures such as Diane Arbus alongside contemporary artists. Early next year, the Lower East Side will open Canyon, a 40,000-square-foot center focused on video art, sound, and performance, signaling a broader engagement with evolving media formats.
Across the Atlantic, Paris hosts numerous exhibitions involving American and Canadian artists, coinciding with the Art Basel Paris fair. Highlights include a Mary Cassatt retrospective at the Musée d’Orsay starting October 6, projected light installations by Jenny Holzer on the museum’s facade, and shows by Kerry James Marshall at the Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris and Vija Celmins at the Orangerie. Additional exhibitions feature Irving Penn at the Maison Européenne de la Photographie and Barbara Kruger’s work at the Bourse du Commerce. The Château de Versailles will host an exhibition linked to filmmaker Sofia Coppola, marking two decades since her “Marie Antoinette” film.
Elsewhere in Europe, London’s National Gallery will open “Van Eyck: The Portraits” on November 21, assembling the surviving nine portraits by the Flemish painter Jan van Eyck. The Städel Museum in Frankfurt debuted “Mary Magdalene: Sin, Pray, Love,” an exhibition combining historical and contemporary depictions of the biblical figure. The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam will present “Willem de Kooning at Work,” a retrospective marking the artist’s Dutch roots, opening October 9.
In a long-anticipated development, the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi is scheduled to open on December 11, concluding a project initiated two decades ago but marred by delays and controversy, including labor rights concerns and the death of architect Frank Gehry in late 2023. The museum’s launch coincides with heightened geopolitical tensions in the Persian Gulf region, adding complexity to its cultural and political significance.
Together, these exhibitions reflect a global artistic dialogue bridging historical traditions and contemporary innovations amid rapidly changing technological and geopolitical landscapes.