Elvira Dyangani Ose to Step Down Early from MACBA

Following her appointment as director of the forthcoming Public Art Abu Dhabi Biennial, Elvira Dyangani Ose, director of Museu d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona (MACBA), will end her tenure at the institution four months ahead of schedule. According to a report by El País, Dyangani Ose sent a letter to the MACBA Consortium on February 23, informing them of her new role and asking to hold both positions concurrently. After this request was denied, she opted to step down from MACBA at the beginning of April. Her departure will coincide with the closing of “Projecting a Black Planet: The Art and Culture of Pan-Africa,” a major international exhibition that she co-curated. Dyangani Ose joined MACBA in 2021, becoming the first woman and the first person of color to helm the Spanish institution. In a statement, she noted that “it has been an honor and a great responsibility to lead the MACBA, although not always easy,” further thanking the museum staff and all those “who had made it possible to develop a project committed to art, critical thinking, and contemporary issues.” She will assume her project in the UAE this October. The second edition of the Public Art Abu Dhabi Biennial is slated to open in late 2026.

Michael Joo Sculpture Collapses at Opening, Injuring Four

A sculpture by Korean American artist Michael Joo collapsed during the February 20 opening of his exhibition “Sweat Models 1991–2006” at Space ZeroOne in New York, injuring four visitors who were later taken to the emergency room. The work, titled Saltiness of Greatness (1992), features approximately four-meter-tall stacks of compressed salt blocks. According to a report by Seoul Economic Daily, the collapse occurred due to visitor carelessness. The injured included a Korean artist, a gallerist, a curator, and a Hanwha Foundation board member. The injuries ranged from a hairline fracture to abrasions. Space ZeroOne, operated by the Hanwha Foundation of Culture, closed temporarily following the incident. The exhibition, curated by Christopher Y. Lew, is scheduled to run through April 18 upon reopening.

Sixth Tokyo Contemporary Art Award Announces Winners

Tokyo Arts and Space (TOKAS) has named Tokyo-based Han Ishu and Kanagawa-based yang02 as recipients of the sixth Tokyo Contemporary Art Award (TCAA). Both artists work across mixed media: Han’s practice probes the complex relations between the self and society through photography, video, and painting, forging new forms of connection grounded in diasporic experiences; while yang02 is known for installations that address the social issues embedded in technology, foregrounding the politics, violence, and privileges that underpin its structures. They will each receive a prize of JPY 3 million (USD 19,000), additional funding up to JPY 2 million (USD 12,700) for overseas activities, and a solo exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo (MOT), followed by the publication of a monograph. The award ceremony and symposium will take place on March 4 at MOT.

Shirley Tse Among Recipients of 2026 Foundation for Contemporary Arts Grants

The Foundation for Contemporary Arts (FCA) has awarded its 2026 Grants to Artists to 24 practitioners across five domains: dance, music/sound, performance art/theater, poetry, and visual arts. Each artist will receive an unrestricted USD 45,000 award. Among the eight recipients in visual arts is Hong Kong-born, Lompoc-based artist Shirley Tse, this year’s Dorothea Tanning Award winner. Over a three-decade career, Tse has explored sociopolitical issues such as sustainability, global mobility, and social negotiation through installations, sculptures, photographs, and videos. In a press release, FCA board member Jennie C. Jones noted that by “help[ing] to create the conditions needed for artistic freedom,” the grants can “open new realms of possibility in [the artists’] lives and practices.”