Enfilade

From the press release for the exhibition:

Microhistories of the Andes

San Antonio Museum of Art, 24 May 2026 — 23 May 2027

Curated by Kristopher Driggers

Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Peru, late 18th century, oil on canvas, 45 × 31 cm (San Antonio Museum of Art, 2003.45).

Named one of the must-see shows this spring by The New York Times, the San Antonio Museum of Art (SAMA) presents Microhistories of the Andes, an exhibition that closely examines individual objects to draw out larger stories about their culture of origin. Curated by Kristopher Driggers, Curator of Latin American Art, Microhistories of the Andes will be on view in the Golden Gallery from 24 May 2026 to 23 May 2027. The exhibition explores Andean cosmologies, cultural conceptions of agricultural practices, objects of devotion and spirituality, and the histories of materials across land and time.

Microhistories of the Andes highlights textiles, ceramic sculptures, paintings, metalwork, and feather arts from the Andean region, including recent acquisitions, such as a gift from Hank Lee in memory of Margie M. Shackelford, and gifts from prominent collectors such as Lindsay and Lucy Duff.

“Microhistories of the Andes poses a question to our visitors: How do singular objects become the starting point for telling broader stories about the past?” Driggers said. “At art museums, we are used to thinking of artworks as exemplifying broader narratives. With its framing, this exhibition brings our attention to the way we move from objects to the larger human stories behind them, with SAMA’s collection as the starting point—including recent gifts to the collection and works that have not been seen in many years.”

Featuring ancient objects from as early as the first millennium AD to more recent objects from the twentieth century, this exhibition examines the cultural context in which they were created. Additionally, highlighting objects from different countries across the Andean region provides a comprehensive look at the region’s diverse history and landscapes, including mountainous, desert, and tropical areas.

From the press release for the exhibition:

In Focus: Three Rare Treasures of Imperial China

Im Fokus: Drei seltene Schätze des Kaiserlichen China

Sponsel Room, Residenzschloss, Dresden, 1 April — 29 June 2026

Dragon Vase with Imperial Seal Mark, China, 1735–96 (Dresden: SKD).

The exhibition In Focus: Three Rare Treasures of Imperial China presents objects from different imperial dynasties from among the holdings of the Grünes Gewölbe (Green Vault) and the Porzellansammlung (Porcelain Collection) of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden. The Ru Bowl, the so-called Dragon Vase, and a tiny snuff bottle (barely five centimetres tall) exemplify the aesthetics and exceptional craftsmanship of their respective eras. The items from the Porzellansammlung have attracted a lot of media attention in recent weeks. The public will now be given the opportunity to discover what makes them so special.

The Porzellansammlung of the SKD holds the largest collection of early modern porcelain from China and Japan outside of Asia. It preserves a cross-section of that which was collected in Europe in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. From the mid-19th century onwards, the Electoral and Royal collection amassed by August the Strong and August III—the historical core of the museum—was expanded, by means of exchanges and purchases, to include ceramics from all over the world, including the Ru Bowl and the Dragon Vase.

Originally created exclusively for the Chinese imperial court, these are outstanding examples of Chinese ceramic art, the likes of which were unknown in Dresden during the Augustan period. It was only in the early 20th century that such imperial pieces became available to European collectors. The Ru bowl, in particular, is regarded as one of the most beautiful and extremely rare ceramic products of the Song Dynasty (960–1279) and the crowning glory of any collection of Chinese art. In exhibiting these two objects along with the snuff bottle from the Grünes Gewölbe, the SKD are presenting three exceptionally rare and precious Chinese imperial artefacts from different dynasties. The small snuff bottle is an original from the imperial workshops of the Chinese Qing Dynasty, where European influence led to the development of new enamelling techniques and such vessels became highly sought-after luxury objects. These outstanding pieces are exemplary of the aesthetics and exceptional craftsmanship of their time.

In a recent agreement signed with the Hong Kong Palace Museum, the SKD have committed to conducting more in-depth research into their holdings of East Asian art in collaboration with experts from the Palace Museums in Hong Kong and Beijing. The exhibition In Focus: Three Rare Treasures of Imperial China highlights how mutual respect, as well as the pursuit of precision both in art and in scholarly research, form a strong bond between China and Germany.

The Ru Bowl

Ru Bowl, Brush Washer, China, 1100–25 (Dresden: SKD).

This small, glazed stoneware bowl from the Northern Song Dynasty (960–1127), which at first glance appears unremarkable, is one of the rarest and most precious objects of Chinese ceramic art. The vessel, which is around 900 years old, was used as a brush-washing bowl and is one of only 89 known Ru wares in the world; it is also the only specimen of its kind in Germany. It was part of a private collection acquired by the Porzellansammlung in the 1920s. These first ceramics made exclusively for the Chinese imperial court are named after their place of origin, the Ru Prefecture in the northern province of Henan. The production of imperial Ru wares went on for only a little more than 20 years, ending when the Northern Song Dynasty was driven south in 1126. The few pieces that were produced and salvaged soon became mythologised as reminders of the empire’s former grandeur and are now considered the pinnacle of any collection of Chinese ceramics. This perfectly preserved Dresden bowl is striking in its exceptionally simple elegance. With its gently shimmering, delicately crackled glaze in a particularly beautiful bluish-green hue, it is reminiscent of winter colours and brittle ice.

The Dragon Vase

The so-called Dragon Vase was commissioned for the court of Emperor Qianlong (reigned 1735–1795). Painted with nine brightly coloured dragons soaring across the sea and sky, this monumental piece is one of the rarest masterpieces of imperial porcelain art from the Qing Dynasty. Its dynamic decoration combines technical perfection with rich symbolic meaning and reflects the splendour and political ideals of the court under Emperor Qianlong. In Chinese culture, the number nine (jiu) also signifies ‘eternity,’ whilst the dragon is the most important symbol of imperial power. The motif of nine dragons therefore reflects the desire for eternal imperial rule. On this vase, the dragons appear amidst waves and clouds, two elements traditionally associated with these mythical creatures. Flying amongst the clouds are red bats. In Chinese, the word for bat (fu) sounds the same as the word for ‘luck’ or ‘blessing.’ Along the foot and beneath the rim runs a band of heart-shaped ruyi heads; these derive from the ruyi sceptre and the lingzhi mushroom. According to Daoist beliefs, these symbols represent immortality and the fulfilment of wishes. Vessels of this kind, adorned with imperial symbols, were often given as precious gifts to high-ranking dignitaries. Like the Ru Bowl, the Dragon Vase also found its way into the Porzellansammlung during the 20th century.

The Snuff Bottle

Snuff Bottle, China, 1661–1722 (Dresden: SKD).

For a long time, this delicate snuff bottle was regarded as a European piece in the chinoiserie style. It was not until 2013 that it was recognised as a rare and early example of Chinese enamel art from the Qing Dynasty. It has been possible to trace its origins to the imperial palace workshops in Beijing, where only works of the highest quality were produced for the imperial court.

Under the emperors Kangxi (r. 1661–1722) and his son Yongzheng (r. 1723–1735), the imperial workshops saw a period of significant artistic and technological innovation. Since the end of the 17th century, Jesuits had been bringing enamel objects from Europe as gifts to the imperial court, where they were greatly admired. The art-loving Emperor Kangxi subsequently took steps to recruit European artists who were familiar with the techniques, thereby promoting their further development in China.

The use of snuff, which was believed to have healing properties, had been introduced to China by European missionaries, envoys, and traders. Since the large snuff boxes commonly used in Europe proved impractical in China’s more humid climate, the use of small, tightly sealable vials soon became predominant. Particularly during the reign of Emperor Qianlong (r. 1735–1796), they were manufactured in a wide variety of shapes and designs and became sought-after collectors’ items.

From the press release for the exhibition:

WORN

Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, 27 March 2026 — 21 March 2027

Curated by Vanessa Jones

WORN at the Rijksmuseum is an intimate display of fashion garments that have been worn, altered and reused—with a focus on wear, repair and craftsmanship. On view are 24 garments and accessories dating from 1640 to 1930. All of them have been cherished for centuries, from the 17th-century mules with richly embroidered patterns to an 18th-century dress worn by multiple generations of the Six family.

WORN presents garments and accessories from the collection of the Rijksmuseum that were repeatedly re-worn and adapted. The display invites visitors to truly look—up close, slowly and with careful attention. Take time to discover the repairs, the crisscross patterns of darned stitching, the slight signs of wear on the fabric, and even traces of sweat. Every detail tells how these pieces were cherished, worn and carefully preserved for generations.

A 19th-century blue taffeta dress with a woven pattern shows how garments were altered multiple times. The dress consists of a skirt with several bodices that were swapped depending on the occasion. One of the bodices was taken apart and reassembled several times, to ensure the dress lasted even longer. Another garment that gained a second life is the citrine-yellow floral dress owned by the Six family: beneath the 18th-century exterior lies a 19th-century interior structure. Members of later generations wore the dress in 1896 and again as late as 1925, after the interior was modified with a modern corset with steel boning.

Every 12 months, the Rijksmuseum presents a new display in the Special Collections galleries of objects from its large and varied costume collection. The display design for WORN is by the French architectural firm Wilmotte & Associés.

Fan Design with Republican Assignats (French revolutionary money), ca. 1795, etching, a small portion printed in red, sheet: 29 × 50 cm (New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 38.91.56).

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While focused on the 19th-c, the exhibition includes a handful of 18th-c. examples:

Fanmania

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 11 December 2025 — 12 May 2026

Curated by Ashley Dunn and Jane Becker

The hand-held fan was an unexpected muse for some of the most innovative artists in 19th-century Europe. Fans became hugely popular across many levels of society during this period, serving as functional and fashionable objects of adornment and communication. Well-known French Impressioniscts such as Edgar Degas and Camille Pissarro not only featured this feminine accessory in their work but also adopted it as an experimental format for their art. Fanmania investigates why avant-garde artists incorporated fans into their work and sheds light on themes of gender, courtship, consumerism, and appropriation. Artists were attracted to the semicircular form for myriad reasons, including fascination with fans from Asia and Spain, commercial ambition, and their interest in formal and technical innovation. Displaying more than 75 artworks from across The Met collection, this multimedia exhibition features painted and printed fans from Europe and Asia as well as artworks that depict women wielding fans to explore the phenomenon of ‘fanmania’.

More information is available from the press release»

Michel-François Dandré-Bardon, Figure Study of a Man with an Outstretched Arm, ca. 1725
(Staatsgalerie Stuttgart)

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Now on view at the Staatsgalerie Stuttgart:

Generation 1700: Drawing at the Royal Academy in Paris

Generation 1700: Zeichnen an der Königlichen Akademie in Paris

Graphik-Kabinett, Staatsgalerie Stuttgart, 17 April – 30 August 2026

How does one learn to draw the human body? The question is at the heart of the exhibition Generation 1700, which focuses on drawing instruction at the Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture, France’s prestigious art academy in the 18th century during a time of profound social upheaval: while the bourgeoisie emancipated itself from the absolutist court under the banner of the Enlightenment, drawing itself became a medium of liberation. At that time, young artists not only depicted the human body, but also studied anatomy with rational insight and understood it as an expression of individual ideas. Now in 2026, on the occasion of the anniversary “75 years of the Institut français Stuttgart,” the Staatsgalerie Stuttgart will highlight drawing from live models between discipline, science, and artistic development.

The exhibition, presented in the Graphic Cabinet, focuses on Michel-François Dandré-Bardon (1700–1783), one of the most important artists of the French Enlightenment. With his understanding of anatomy and a keen sense of movement and materiality, he stages the human body in dramatically composed studies—literally from head to toe. His works impressively demonstrate how the strict principles of the Academy provide fertile ground for artistic experimentation. The Staatsgalerie possesses one of the most extensive collections in Europe of Dandré-Bardon’s graphic works. Additional works by contemporaries such as Carle van Loo, Charles Joseph Natoire, and Nicolas Guibal complement the presentation. With around 70 drawings and graphic prints, most of which are being shown for the first time, Generation 1700 offers a glimpse into everyday life at the Academy.

From Historic Deerfield:

Picturing the Revolution

Historic Deerfield, 18 April 2026 — 3 January 2027

The Bloody Massacre, engraved by Paul Revere, Jr., Boston, 1770, ink on paper (Historic Deerfield, 0864).

Throughout the American War for Independence, scores of images circumnavigated the globe, fighting their own battles to establish a comprehensible narrative for the momentous events occurring in British North America. Differences in politics, disruptions in communication, and the delay of thousands of miles of distance produced competing and often contradictory accounts. Some images became enduring representations of the conflict. Others faded from memory.

Drawing from Historic Deerfield’s rich collection of Revolutionary-era materials, this exhibition explores the diverse ways that 18th-century individuals ‘pictured’ or understood the Revolution as it unfolded. Looking across prints, drawings, maps, broadsides, portraits, powder horns, ceramics, and satirical cartoons, Picturing the Revolution highlights how images shaped local and global perceptions of the war: its landscapes, its actors, its causes, and its goals. Mining these complex visual records reveals the often-overlooked importance of pictures in the shift from revolt to revolution, and in envisioning a future for the new nation.

This exhibition has been made possible with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Massachusetts Office of Travel & Tourism.