The art world returns at full speed this August. The season begins in South Korea, where fairs, biennials and exhibitions draw the international art community to Seoul and Gwangju, before attention shifts to major museum openings in New York and Los Angeles. By October, London and Paris take over, followed by a November of landmark exhibitions, photography and new cultural institutions. These are the 12 moments worth planning around.

Installation view of Frieze Seoul 2025. Courtesy of Frieze

Frieze Seoul
2-5 September 2026 

The first major stop of the fall calendar brings more than 125 galleries from 30 countries to CEOX, with over 70% of exhibitions based in the Asia-Pacific region. Now in its fifth edition, Frieze Seoul runs alongside Kiaf SEOUL, while performances, late openings and exhibitions extend the week across the city.

Exterior view of Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, designed by Frank Gehry. Courtesy of Guggenheim Abu Dhabi

Guggenheim Abu Dabhi Opens
Abu Dhabi, from 11 December

After two decades in development, Guggenheim Abu Dhabi opens on Saadiyat Island. Designed by Frank Gehry, the new museum will present modern and contemporary art from across the world, with a particular focus on West Asia, North Africa and South Asia. Joining Louvre Abu Dhabi and wider Saadiyat Cultural District, its arrival marks one of the most significant museum openings of the year.

Mary Cassatt, The Child’s Bath, 1893. Courtesy of The Art Institute of Chicago.

Mary Cassatt: After Impressionism 
Chicago, 6 September 2026 - 3 January 2027 

Marking the centenary of Mary Cassatt’s death, the Art Institute of Chicago looks beyond her association with impressionism to explore the increasingly experimental direction of her later career. Bringing together more than 75 paintings, pastels, prints and archival materials, the exhibition reveals how Cassatt continued to challenge artistic convention while developing a distinctly modern visual language. It is the museum’s first exhibition dedicated to the artist in more than 25 years.

Taryn Simon’s Chapter VI from ‘A Living Man Declared Dead and Other Chapters I-XVIII (2011). Courtesy of Taryn Simon and Gagosian 

Taryn Simon at the Guggenheim 
New York, 18 September 2026 - 14 March 2027 

Taryn Simon takes over Frank Lloyd Wright’s Rotunda with an ambitious new body of work spanning photography, text, video and sculpture. Conceived as a single interactive installation, the exhibition continues Simon’s investigation into the systems, narratives and unseen forces that shape public life.

On 28 September, Cultivist Members can experience the exhibition before the museum opens to the public. Register your interest through the Cultivist app.

Lucas Museum of Narrative Art at Exposition Park, Los Angeles. Photo Credits: Eric Thayer

The Lucas Museum Opens 
Los Angeles, from 22 September 

After years of anticipation, the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art opens in Exposition Park. Designed by Ma Yansong of MAD, the new institution houses more than 40,000 works devoted to storytelling in art, encompassing painting, illustration and photography alongside comics and cinema. Its 35 galleries open with more than 1,200 objects, including an inaugural exhibition exploring the visual World of Star Wars.

Arthur Jafa, Self-Portrait, 2019. Courtesy of Arthur Jafa and Gladstone Gallery

Arthur Jafa at the New Museum 
New York, 24 September 2026 - 4 January 2027 

The New Museum gives Arthur Jafa his first US museum survey. Bringing together three decades of film, photography, painting and sculpture, I Am Tony traces the artist’s sustained exploration of Black visual culture and the circulation of images through music, cinema and public life. It is both Jafa’s largest survey to date and one of New York’s defining exhibitions of the season.

Es Devlin, ‘Watch’,  from the ‘Congregation’ series, 2023. Courtesy of Es Devlin and Cooper Hewitt

Es Devlin: Other Worlds 
London, 2 October 2026 - 4 April 2027 

The Design Museum presents the first European retrospective devoted to Es Devlin tracing three decades of work across sculpture, stage design, music, language and light. From monumental installations to environments created for some of the world’s most recognised performers, Other Worlds reveals how Devlin has transformed space into an artistic medium of its own.

Cecilia Vicuña, Quipu Menstrual 1 (unknotted), 2006/2024. Courtesy of Frieze

London Art Week: Sculpture, PAD, Frieze and Frieze Masters
London, 16 September–1 November

Frieze season begins before the tents open, as Frieze Sculpture transforms the English Gardens in Regent’s Park into a free outdoor exhibition featuring 11 international artists, including Conrad Shawcross, Ivana Bašić, Angel Otero and Tarini Sethi. The focus intensifies from 13 to 18 October, when PAD London brings historical and contemporary design to Berkeley Square before Frieze London and Frieze Masters welcome almost 300 galleries from 48 countries to Regent’s Park.

Cultivist families can explore Frieze Sculpture during a special Mini Cultivist tour on 3 October. Members can also join our tours of PAD London on 15 October and Frieze London on 17 October. Visit the app to reserve your place.

View of Art Basel Paris at the Grand Palais. Courtesy of Art Basel

Art Basel Paris 
Paris, 23-25 October 

Art Basel Paris returns to the Grand Palais with 211 exhibitors from 41 countries and territories. The fair has quickly become the anchor of Paris’s October art calendar, but the real attraction is the city around it: museum exhibitions, gallery openings, design presentations and private collections turn the week into something much larger than a single fair.

Bayeux Tapestry, c. 11th century (detail). Photo Credits: Hulton Archive

The Bayeux Tapestry at the British Museum
London, 10 September 2026 - 11 July 2027 

For the first time in almost 1,000 years, the Bayeux Tapestry leaves France for display at the British Museum. Stretching nearly 70 metres, the remarkable medieval embroidery unfolds the story of the Norman Conquest, from the events leading up to 1066 to the Battle of Hastings. Its historic arrival in London makes this one of the year’s most significant cultural moments.

Willem de Kooning, Untitled (Three Women), c. 1948. Courtesy of © 2026 The Willem de Kooning Foundation

Willem de Kooning at Rijksmuseum 
Amsterdam, 9 October 2026 - 17 January 2027 

A century after Willem de Kooning left Rotterdam for New York, the artist returns to the Netherlands in a major retrospective at the Rijksmuseum. Bringing together more than 120 drawings, paintings and sculptures, the exhibition places drawing at the heart of his restless creative process, tracing over 65 years of experimentation. Highlights include celebrated works such as Excavation, Pink Angels and Woman I.

Rendering of KANAL - Centre Pompidou, Brussels. Courtesy of KANAL - Centre Pompidou

KANAL – Centre Pompidou opens 
Brussels, from 28 November 

One of Europe’s most significant new cultural institutions finally opens inside a former Citroën garage in Brussels. KANAL launches with ten exhibitions devoted to art and architecture, including a Truly Immense Journey, a presentation of more than 350 works drawn predominantly from the Centre Pompidou collection. The vast industrial building also introduces spaces for performance, film, music and public life, giving Brussels the major modern and contemporary art museum it has long been missing.