7 Art Exhibitions Opening This April

Ohio’s great spring thaw tends to bring a renewed sense of exploration and creativity to residents ready to say goodbye to sweater weather. From a merging of the minds between local artists Bobby Rosenstock and Logan Schmitt to a fashion-meets-nature collaboration between Kent State University and the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, these seven museum exhibitions opening across the Buckeye State provide interesting pit stops or all-day affairs.

American Folk Art: Self-Told Stories, Self-Taught Artists | Apr. 1-June 13
This collection of whirlygigs, face jugs, painted furniture, carvings and other media honor two centuries of our nation’s ingenuity. Visit Lebanon’s Armstrong Conference Center to view an array of pieces from the Harmon Museum and K. Richard B. Niehoff collections, which feature over 36 self-taught American masters. Fittingly, the exhibition opens in conjunction with America 250-Ohio celebrations. wchsmuseum.org

Ink in the Valley | Apr. 11-June 7
Don’t miss out on this special collection at Athens’ Dairy Barn Arts Center featuring work from artists Bobby Rosenstock and Logan Schmitt. Rosenstock heads up Marietta’s JustAJar Design Press and is known for creating localized letterpress posters, while Schmitt is a celebrated screenprinter and illustrator based in Wheeling, West Virginia. Together, they’ve created a series of pieces highlighting day-to-day life, landscapes and Appalachian wildlife. dairybarn.org

Beyond the Picturesque: The American Landscape as a Site of Memory, Identity and Continuity | Apr. 11-July 26
See seven beautiful figure paintings by Ayana Ross, the 2026 Duncanson Artist-in-Residence at the Taft Museum of Art in Cincinnati. On display until mid-summer, Ross’ quiet, emotional portraiture tells stories of day-to-day Black life, exploring themes of current events, cultural conversations and intergenerational relationships. taftmuseum.org

East of the Pacific: Making Histories of Asian American Art | Apr. 15-Aug. 16
View this exhibition organized by important moments in Asian American history, spanning the mid-19th century to the present day. On display at the Columbus Museum of Art, “East of the Pacific” reframes the geography of the United States as west of the Atlantic, working to shift viewers’ perception of ceramics, paintings, drawings, photographs and prints from Asian American artisans. columbusmuseum.org

Fashion & Feather: A Collaboration Between Kent State University and the Cleveland Museum of Natural History | Apr. 22-Oct. 16
Spend a day at the Kent State University Museum, which plays host to a collection of fashion, decorative arts and fashion pieces. While there, make sure to check out this cross-disciplinary effort that spotlights the complexity and beauty of feathers. The exhibition uses cultural objects, student concepts, ornithological specimens and historical garments to show the link between design and the natural world. kent.edu/museum

Elizabeth Hawes: Radical American Fashion | Apr. 24-Aug. 2
Explore the life of Elizabeth Hawes, a designer, author and social commentator who operated her own fashion house from 1928 to 1940. A radical couturier, Hawes did her best work when diving into the psyche of the client and often forecasted styles not popularized by others until the 1960s. This expansive Cincinnati Art Museum exhibit features more than 50 of these radical garments, as well as original illustrations and sketches. cincinnatiartmuseum.org

On the Threshold of the Great Lakes | Apr. 28-July 26
Visit the Canton Museum of Art to see prints, artist’s books and large-scale mixed-media by artist and educator Geo Rutherford. Her pieces, made through etching, lithography and block and screen printing, explore themes of impermanence, invasiveness and unseen elements of the Great Lakes ecosystem. Rutherford also collects lake detritus to include in her works, and the resulting collages tell a deeper truth about what is happening just beneath the waters. cantonart.org

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