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The Morning Signal

June 17, 2026

THE LEAD

MoMA to Host Arthur Jafa in Conversation with Simone White June 25

via Sadie Coles HQ

June 16, 2026, The Museum of Modern Art in New York will host a free artist talk featuring Arthur Jafa in conversation with poet Simone White from 6:30 to 8pm. The program centers on the exhibition Artist’s Choice: Arthur Jafa—Less Is Morbid. Jafa, born in 1960 in Tupelo, Mississippi, has developed a practice of films, artifacts and happenings that examine articulations of Black being, with works in collections including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Tate and San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.

MoMA’s June 25 conversation between Arthur Jafa and Simone White anchors the museum’s summer public program around its current moving-image holdings.

Exhibition

The Number

€77.9M

across 8 auctions this week

Signal of the Day

Art Basel named Trevor Paglen curator of its Zero 10 digital initiative today, extending the fair’s reach into media-based practice.

The Week in Brief

The Pattern

Exhibitions accounted for 28 of the week’s 67 stories while auctions reached €77.9M aggregate. London recorded 15 stories, ahead of New York’s 10, with Paris and Venice trailing.

Looking Ahead

LACMA opens the David Geffen Galleries this Thursday while Art Basel’s Zero 10 program begins today in Basel.

— The Cultural Signal AI Editor

Today's dispatch London (10) · Los Angeles (4) · Paris (4) · New York (3) · Tokyo (2)

Market Snapshot

10 stories today | 1 auction result | 7 exhibitions opening

This week · 67 stories · 8 auctions (€77.9M aggregate) · 28 exhibitions opening · most-active city: London

Sale highlight: Mohamed Melehi at Artcurial — €1,220,119

Just Opened

Jun 16

Lisson Gallery Artist Bernard Piffaretti Featured in Royal Academy Summer Exhibition — Lisson Gallery

Jun 16

Lisson Gallery: Anish Kapoor Exhibition Opens at Hayward Gallery June 16, 2026 — Lisson Gallery

Jun 16

Gladstone Gallery's Ugo Rondinone Unveils 'The Song is You' at Royal Academy of Arts — Gladstone Gallery

Jun 16

Sadie Coles HQ Artists Barrington, Kuri and Marten Join Royal Academy Summer Exhibition — Sadie Coles HQ

By Region

Americas

Getty Appoints Francesca Casadio as Director of Getty Conservation Institute via Getty

Europe

Thaddaeus Ropac Presents Beer London Show Exploring Palaeolithic Artworks via Thaddaeus Ropac

Asia-Pacific

quiet today

Middle East & Africa

A4 Arts Foundation Presents Three Curated Projects in Cape Town Through August 2026 via Sadie Coles HQ

Featured

Mori Art Museum Displays 11 Ron Mueck Sculptures Through Sept. 23

On June 14, 2026, the Mori Art Museum in Roppongi, Tokyo, opened a major exhibition of 11 sculptures by U.K.-based Australian artist Ron Mueck, presented in collaboration with the Fondation Cartier…

Why it matters
Mori’s presentation of eleven Mueck works with Fondation Cartier places hyperreal sculpture before Tokyo audiences at a moment of rising private-museum acquisitions in Asia.

via Thaddaeus Ropac · Exhibition

Serpentine South to Show Jesús Rafael Soto Pénétrable BBL Jaune Through October

Serpentine South will present Pénétrable BBL Jaune (1999; 2023 Edition) by Jesús Rafael Soto from June 16 to October 25, 2026. This marks the first outdoor presentation of the artist’s work in the…

Why it matters
Serpentine’s first UK outdoor Soto tests collector appetite for large-scale kinetic pieces that must withstand variable weather without permanent indoor placement.

via Serpentine Galleries · Exhibition

Getty Museum Acquires Alexandre Charpentier Stoneware Relief Young Mother Breastfeeding Her Child

The Getty Museum has acquired Young Mother Breastfeeding Her Child, a stoneware relief by French sculptor Alexandre Charpentier. The work, with a model date of 1882 and produced about 1895 by the…

Why it matters
Getty’s acquisition of the Charpentier relief strengthens its 19th-century French decorative holdings as private buyers compete for similar museum-quality ceramics at auction.

via Getty · Acquisition

Victoria and Albert Museum Reappoints Professor Rosalind Polly Blakesley as Trustee

June 16, 2026: The Prime Minister has reappointed Professor Rosalind Polly Blakesley as Trustee of the Victoria and Albert Museum for a term of four years. The reappointment runs from September 5…

Why it matters
Blakesley’s four-year reappointment preserves specialist Russian-art expertise on the V&A board during a period of active Russian acquisitions by UK institutions.

via Victoria and Albert Museum · Appointment

This Week Ahead

Today

Almine Rech to Host Francesco Vezzoli Book Signing on Rhine River Cruise via Almine Rech

Today

Art Basel Names Trevor Paglen Curator of Zero 10 Digital Initiative in Basel via Art Basel

Tomorrow

Luminato Festival and Wedge Curatorial Projects Host Tyler Mitchell Talk in Toronto via Gagosian

Tomorrow

LACMA Announces Grand Opening Weekend for David Geffen Galleries via LACMA

Fri Jun 19

Metrograph Screens Tishan Hsu Video With David Cronenberg Film at New Museum via Lisson Gallery

Fri Jun 19

Lisson Gallery's Shirazeh Houshiary to Discuss Practice at National Gallery Friday Lates via Lisson Gallery

Fri Jun 19

Fotofestiwal to Present John Akomfrah Installation at Łódź Power Station via Lisson Gallery

Fri Jun 19

Gladstone Gallery Highlights Carrie Mae Weems Installation at Obama Presidential Center via Gladstone Gallery

Full calendar →

Next Week

Thu Jun 25

Tate Modern to Present 'Frida: The Making of an Icon' Exhibition Opening June 25, 2026 via Tate

Thu Jun 25

Walker Art Center Presents Martine Syms The Borrowed Lady in Collection in Focus via Sadie Coles HQ

Fri Jun 26

Ali Banisadr: Temple of the Mind Exhibition Opens at AKG June 26 via Thaddaeus Ropac

Fri Jun 26

The Drawing Center Presents Pope.L Survey of Over 200 Works on Paper via Gladstone Gallery

Sat Jun 27

M+ to Present 'Design Ah! Experience the Wonder of Everyday Design' Exhibition in Hong Kong via M+

Artist Spotlight

Anish Kapoor · 3 mentions this week

Anish Kapoor is a British sculptor internationally recognized for his large-scale, immersive installations and his use of reflective surfaces and intense pigments. His work frequently explores the relationship between space, form, and the viewer's perception.

Read profile →

The Wire

1.

Artcurial Sets Record 2025 Results for Melehi, El Glaoui and Moroccan Artists — Artcurial

2.

Galerie Max Hetzler Notes Rineke Dijkstra Inclusion in Hamburg Triennial Exhibition — Galerie Max Hetzler

3.

Sadie Coles HQ's Lisa Brice, Paloma Varga Weisz in Herrenchiemsee Palace Exhibition — Sadie Coles HQ

4.

Thaddaeus Ropac Presents Beer London Show Exploring Palaeolithic Artworks — Thaddaeus Ropac

5.

Wakehurst Pairs Henry Moore Sculptures with New Commissions by Paloma Varga Weisz — Sadie Coles HQ

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