ST. LOUIS, Sept. 16, 2025—The Saint Louis Art Museum’s 2026 exhibition program includes two ticketed shows that will transport visitors to the Roman Empire and immerse them in nature imagery created by women Impressionists.
These presentations are among eight exhibitions coming to the museum next year, most of which are organized locally by members of SLAM’s curatorial department.
Ticketed exhibitions
Opening in March in SLAM’s East Building galleries, “Ancient Splendor: Roman Art in the Time of Trajan” chronicles life at the height of Rome’s empire.
Developed in partnership with the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, the exhibition will feature unprecedented loans—most of which have never before left Italy—from the renowned antiquities collections of the Vatican, Ostia Antica, the National Roman Museum, and the National Archaeological Museum of Naples.
“The art and architecture of ancient Rome continue to inspire awe and ignite curiosity,” said Min Jung Kim, the museum’s Barbara B. Taylor Director. “We are fortunate to present an exhibition that is underpinned by thoughtful scholarship and magnificent loans from many of Italy’s finest public collections.”
“Fresco Depicting a Couple in Flight,” 1st century CE; Roman, Imperial period; fresco on plaster; 28 3/4 x 26 3/4 x 2 3/4 inches; The National Archaeological Museum of Naples 2026.30
The extensive presentation features marble sculptures, frescoes, mosaics, glass vessels and bronze artifacts, speaking to the enduring power of art as a political and social tool and showcasing the extraordinary reign of Trajan. Known as the second of the so-called Five Good Emperors, Trajan commanded the Roman Empire between 98 and 117 CE.
The exhibition is curated by Lucrezia Ungaro, archaeological curator of the city of Rome. A related presentation opens in Houston in November 2025. At SLAM, “Ancient Splendor” is on view from March 14 through Aug. 16, 2026.
In the fall, the museum will open “Women Impressionists and the Land,” the first exhibition to focus on landscape and nature imagery in the work of women Impressionists. Rather than concentrating on the domestic subject matter of these artists, which has been widely discussed, the exhibition explores the less-documented outdoor spaces which were painted by the key women in the group, particularly Berthe Morisot, Mary Cassatt and Marie Bracquemond.
The SLAM-organized exhibition comprises more than 80 works in different media and examines several iconographical themes, such as the painting of forest, marine and agricultural scenes, as well as parks and gardens. Curated by Simon Kelly, SLAM’s curator of modern and contemporary art, with curatorial assistant Abigail Yoder, “Women Impressionists and the Land” is on view in SLAM’s East Building exhibition galleries from Oct. 17, 2026, through Jan. 10, 2027.
Nonticketed exhibitions
In 2026, the museum will also present a diverse range of nonticketed exhibitions.
“Aymara Weavings: The Indigenous Andes,” opening Jan. 30, showcases a selection of woven garments and related items from the Andean Highlands that were part of a 2018 gift from Elissa and Paul Cahn. Dating primarily to the 18th century, these skirts, mantles and ponchos demonstrate how Indigenous artists in Bolivia maintained and reinvented precontact artistic practices to express Indigenous identities during the colonial era. The exhibition is curated by Alexander Brier Marr, the museum’s associate curator of Native American art.
In 2026, the museum will host Peruvian sculptor Blas Isasi in “Currents 125.” Isasi is inspired by his country’s history, and the exhibition will address questions of colonial violence, imperialism and differing world views. He was the recipient of the 2024-25 Freund Fellowship, which promotes the exhibition and acquisition of contemporary art at SLAM as well as the teaching of contemporary art principles at the Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Arts at Washington University. “Currents 125: Blas Isasi” opens Feb. 6. It is curated by Simon Kelly, SLAM’s modern and contemporary art curator.
“Visions of Antiquity” explores the power and persistence of Greek and Roman antiquity in art. The exhibition opens April 10 and features works ranging from 1500 to the present that reflect a variety of techniques, materials and practices. The wide range of works testifies to the many ways that what came before can be continually worked and reworked to make sense of the present and shape a new future. It is curated by Clare Kobasa, associate curator of prints, drawings, and photographs.
In celebration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, a collections-based exhibition titled “Picturing Independence” will open in summer 2026. The artworks will be arranged into two sections. The first will present depictions of the American Revolution and military service; the second will explore national symbols of independence, including the U.S. flag, George Washington, the Liberty Bell and the Statue of Liberty. Featuring 50-60 objects, works on view will span from 1770-2018. It is curated by Amy Torbert, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Associate Curator of American Art.
Julie Mehretu’s large-scale print “Epigraph, Damascus” will be the focus of an exhibition opening in late 2026. “Unsettling the City: Julie Mehretu’s ‘Epigraph, Damascus’ ” will create space for close looking and consideration of this monumental work and the experimental processes used to make it. It will further contextualize Mehretu’s active engagement with the description and meaning of place through a selection of other works depicting cities. It is curated by Clare Kobasa, associate curator of prints, drawings, and photographs.
Opening in late 2026, a textile show will focus on 19th-century whitework pieces by American women. These textiles are characterized by embroidery done in white thread on white fabric. Accompanied by ceramics, printed fabrics and needlework, these quilts and coverlets from the museum’s collection reveal a tightly woven landscape of craft, labor and authorship. The presentation is curated by research assistant Sarah Berg.
For more information on SLAM’s exhibition schedule, visit slam.org/exhibitions.
CONTACT: Molly Morris, 314.655.5250, molly.morris@slam.org
