Business Finance Media Technology Policy Wealth Insights Interviews

Art Art Fairs Art Market Art Reviews Auctions Galleries Museums Interviews

Lifestyle Nightlife & Dining Style Travel Interviews

Power Index Nightlife & Dining Art A.I. PR

About About Observer Advertise With Us Reprints

The Exhibitions Not to Miss During EXPO CHICAGO

From Reggaetón to Matisse, Maurizio Cattelan and more, here’s everything worth seeing during Chicago’s biggest art week.

Anchored by major institutions and sustained by a gallery ecosystem that has steadily expanded over the years, Chicago asserts itself as one of America's most vital cultural capitals each spring with the arrival of EXPO CHICAGO, now in its 13th edition (and its second as a star in the Frieze galaxy). Led this year by Kate Sierzputowski, who succeeded founder Tony Karman after he stepped down last May, the fair is placing even greater emphasis on its institutional role and network. "EXPO CHICAGO wants to be the fair that curators and directors come to first. That's the priority," she told Observer, framing a future built through storytelling in collaboration with partner institutions. For the 2026 edition, that narrative inevitably centers on the much-anticipated opening of the Obama Presidential Center, a project more than a decade in the making, now set to open June 19. But even before and beyond that milestone, Chicago's tight-knit art scene presents, as usual, a wealth of exhibitions and happenings timed to the week. We've selected six shows and one artist-led event you won't want to miss during this year's art week in the Windy City.

Chicago's must-see art shows

"Dancing the Revolution: From Dancehall to Reggaetón"

"Ornament & Information"

Dabin Ahn's "Nocturne"

Leah Ke Yi Zheng's "Change, I Ching"

"Matisse’s Jazz: Rhythms in Color"

Cheryl Pope's "ALL THERE IS"

A Maurizio Cattelan-Designed Gala

"Dancing the Revolution: From Dancehall to Reggaetón"

MCA Chicago, April 14 - September 20, 2026

Arguably one of the most anticipated and thought-provoking exhibitions in American museums this year, a major presentation at MCA Chicago positions dancehall and reggaetón as powerful visual and political frameworks within contemporary art. The exhibition's title riffs on the idea of RPMs (revolutions per minute)—a metaphor for musical tempo, cultural transformation and political protest—and references historic events such as Puerto Rico's "Verano del 19," during which reggaetón's iconic dance forms became acts of political defiance on the steps of the San Juan Cathedral, where LGBTQ and feminist activists led perreo combativo, or "combative twerking." Curated by Carla Acevedo-Yates, the exhibition brings together more than 40 international artists—including Isaac Julien, Edra Soto,........

© Observer