The first major museum retrospective devoted to Elizabeth Hawes brings together more than fifty garments spanning the 1920s to 1960s, alongside original sketches and illustrations. Working from her New York fashion house between 1928 and 1940, Hawes championed gender-neutral design, accessible quality, and clothing as a direct expression of the self—ideas that anticipated contemporary conversations about identity and dress by decades.
On view through June 7 in the Vance Waddell and Mayerson Galleries, this presentation of more than forty colorful court paintings from the northwest Himalayan foothills spans the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries. Scenes of leisure, spiritual devotion, and dynastic authority illuminate the diplomatic and cultural exchanges that shaped artistic production among these mountain kingdoms.
Complimentary docent-led tours of the Elizabeth Hawes retrospective are offered every Thursday evening from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. through August 2. Tours are free and open to all visitors without advance registration.
A public panel discussion examines the legacy and contemporary relevance of Elizabeth Hawes’s design philosophy. The conversation follows the Members Opening and is free to all museum visitors.
Opening July 17, this immersive installation by Yayoi Kusama brings her characteristic infinity environments and signature pumpkin motifs to Cincinnati, exploring themes of the infinite, the sublime, and obsessive repetition. On view through October 18.
A comprehensive survey of Cincinnati native Charley Harper’s mid-century modern vision opens October 16. The exhibition examines Harper’s lifelong work as designer, illustrator, and advocate for the natural world—from boldly graphic wildlife prints to celebrated commercial commissions.
The Cincinnati Art Museum invites applications for its volunteer Docent Corps. Accepted candidates receive comprehensive training in the museum’s collection and programs before leading public and school tours. Applications close Wednesday, May 20, 2026.
