Unmissable American Gallery Shows Coming in 2026

Spanning old masters to pop artists, contemporary greats and even a renowned Mexican director, art museums and institutions across the United States have some spectacular exhibitions on the horizon for 2026.

Roy Lichtenstein

Announced all the way back in 2023, now merely a placeholder listing at a major museum's online schedule, this major retrospective of one of the central creators of the pop art movement comes with significant expectations. The institution will be drawing on its long-held holdings of nearly 500 works from Lichtenstein, in addition to, one would imagine, numerous loans 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 focus on the Floating City with two linked exhibitions: one location presents a celebration of the city as a source of high art throughout the centuries, and the latter will focus on what the Impressionist Claude Monet thought of the enchanting city of canals. Monet himself was daunted by the challenge of painting Venice – a subject that had inspired the most revered artists for hundreds of years – but he eventually met the challenge, producing approximately 37 canvases, including the masterpiece *The Grand Canal*. Winter through Summer and 21 March-26 July.

Sueño Perro: a film installation by Alejandro G Iñárritu

Celebrating the quarter-century of his massive debut film, *Amores Perros*, director Alejandro G Iñárritu returns to over 1m ft of film that was left out of the final cut, creating an immersive experience that also serves as a homage to celluloid. Accounts suggest the director delved into the vaults to create what he described as “not a tribute, but a resurrection” of one of his most beloved films. It's possible the exhibit will instil some of the hope that runs through Iñárritu’s film despite the pain he simultaneously documents. Late Winter through Summer.

The Sculptural World of Carol Bove

A major New York museum will give the multidisciplinary sculptor creator a comprehensive retrospective, starting with her early works and progressing through to a fresh series of works made from scrap metal and steel tubing. Drawing from “the 60s” and Minimalist art, Bove often takes her materials directly from the urban landscape, producing intriguing and unusual constructions that have appeared in prestigious art spots. Having had major shows in the MoMA and a Parisian institution, her thirty years of work are ready for a thorough survey. 5 March–2 August.

Matisse’s Jazz: Rhythms in Color

Those familiar with a certain publication *The Body Keeps the Score* will be familiar with French master Henri Matisse’s papercut *Icarus* – this is actually one of 20 paper compositions that he combined with text and published as a volume titled *Jazz* in 1947. In the coming season, Chicago’s Art Institute will display all 20 of Matisse’s preparatory models – the first such showing after the museum obtained the works in 1948 – as well as around 50 additional pieces by the artist. These creations represented a late stage flowering for Matisse. March through early Summer.

Raphael: Master of the Renaissance

Italian master painter and architect Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino stood alongside Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo as the celebrated masters of the Italian Renaissance – but he has rarely been honored with a major show on American soil. A premier East Coast institution seeks to change that with this landmark show. Raphael is famous for masterpieces like his *Sistine Madonna* and *The School of Athens*. With loans from all across Europe and over 200 works in all, this is poised as a major event. 29 March–28 June.

Shu Lea Cheang: Lover Love

NYC’s Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art will host a major, large-scale video installation by Taiwanese-American artist and director Shu Lea Cheang, a prominent voice in new media art. As with much of her work, Cheang here investigates the everyday realities of transgender existence. Lover Love is designed as a highly interactive piece, with audience members invited to play around with the multiple movable screens that display the core footage. 2 April–January 2027.

Leilah Babirye: Reclamation and Defiance

A Boston contemporary art center will feature new work from this artist, who was forced to flee her home country of Uganda after being outed as a lesbian in 2015. Babirye is known for deconstructing unconventional materials to make elaborate, LGBTQ+-themed sculptures. This exhibition highlights new work based on the concept of same-sex marriage. This continues her ongoing project of employing found items as a meaningful gesture 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 analyzed how men and women are socialized to inhabit space differently, this show examines how body language influences unconscious interaction. Wex’s research spanned art dating back to ancient sculptures. Here, Wex’s findings are both exhibited and put into conversation with the work of contemporary Black, queer, and feminist artists. 20 September–Spring 2027.

Additional Highlights for 2026

In February, the Seattle Art Museum showcases the haunting silhouette art of an emerging artist. Beginning 5 March, an art gallery is featuring the work of up and coming artist Kwamé Azure Gomez. In the summer months, the Crystal Bridges Museum revisits 80s graffiti artist Keith Haring through a show of his three-dimensional works. Come fall, the Detroit Institute of Arts presents a selection of Georgia O’Keefe’s architectural studies. Simultaneously, an Arizona venue displays the colorful work of South Korean painter Kim Chong Hak.