A Discussion on Art Featuring Rama Duwaji

**Weekly Newsletter**

The artist and NYC first lady in an exclusive interview, LACMA’s stunning new building, Trump plays Christ, and much more.

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Last week, I visited Gracie Mansion in Manhattan for a conversation with artist and New York First Lady Rama Duwaji. It was her first interview with a journalist since her husband, Zohran Mamdani, took office on January 1.

I didn’t know what to expect as I had never met Duwaji before or heard her speak in public. In what became a standard studio visit, I discovered a humble and thoughtful artist who refuses to use her celebrity for easy career gains.

Though we spoke primarily about her practice, the interview got picked up by dozens of publications worldwide because of Duwaji’s apology for foolish teenage tweets that a far-right rag dug up from the depths of the internet in an attempt to hurt her skyrocketing popularity.

I hope this interview will help you get a better sense of who she truly is as a person and artist.

As always, there’s much more below. Thanks for reading and have a great weekend.

—Hakim Bishara, editor-in-chief

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**In the Studio With Rama Duwaji**
Surrounded by her drawings and ceramics, we discussed her evolving art practice and new life as NYC first lady. | Hakim Bishara

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**News**

– The Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s (LACMA) [new building opens](https://hyperallergic.com/lacmas-new-building-invites-you-to-chart-your-own-path/) after years of planning, construction, ballooning budgets, and design changes.
– A British political activism campaign [created “Boycott the Bezos Met Gala” posters](https://hyperallergic.com/boycott-the-bezos-met-gala-posters-emerge-across-nyc/) to protest Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez as the lead sponsors and honorary co-chairs of the annual event.
– The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation has [announced 223 recipients of its annual fellowship](https://hyperallergic.com/these-are-the-winners-of-the-2026-guggenheim-fellowship/), including 76 artists, fine arts researchers, architects, designers, and photographers.
– Social Practice City University of New York (SPCUNY), a five-year-old project that provides fellowships and support to social justice-minded artists across the public university system, [will shutter next February](https://hyperallergic.com/beloved-cuny-social-practice-art-program-to-shut-down/).

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**Jeremy Frey: The Generational Impact of a New Artistic Path**
Join us on April 29 for a conversation with artist and recent MacArthur Fellowship winner Jeremy Frey and Hyperallergic Editor-at-Large Hrag Vartanian.

[Learn more](https://hyperallergic.com/jeremy-frey-the-generational-impact-of-a-new-artistic-path/)

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**Opinion**

**Trump Plays Christ and Gets the Wound Wrong**
The president’s latest attempt to fashion himself as an American messiah is costing him some of his most loyal Catholic supporters. | Emma Cieslik

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**Interviews**

– **Marcel Duchamp Was the Messenger of History**
“The art world changed,” scholar Thierry de Duve told us on the occasion of MoMA’s new show. “Duchamp’s ‘Fountain’ is the message that brings us the news.” | Lisa Yin Zhang
– **Nikyle Begay Resurrects Century-Old Diné Weavings**
As an artist and shepherd, Begay facilitates their own creative process, from breeding and shearing to weaving long-undervalued twill patterns. | Moonoka Begay and Zach Feuer

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**From Our Critics**

– **MoMA PS1’s “Greater New York” Is Gritty, Stunning, and Gutting**
The survey, which happens every five years, rejects the out-of-towner’s glossy surfaces in favor of the view from inside. | Hrag Vartanian, Lisa Yin Zhang, Rhea Nayyar
– **Michaelina Wautier Finally Known by Her Name**
For centuries, her masterpieces were misattributed to male painters. A new exhibition at London’s Royal Academy corrects the record. | Olivia McEwan
– **Steve DiBenedetto’s Cosmic Sense of the Absurd**
He conceives of a painting as a search for a functional structure, a talisman that can aid viewers amid our collective sense of traumatic crisis. | John Yau

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**Books**

– **Ai Weiwei and the Art of Keeping Your Mouth Shut**
“On Censorship” offers timely reflections from the dissident artist, whose entire life and career have been marked by state persecution. | Hakim Bishara
– **Inside a