Cities captured by master strokes

''The Old Town Hall of Amsterdam,'' a 1657 work by Pieter Jansz Saenredam, known for his renderings of buildings.

THROUGH MAY 3

WASHINGTON

"Pride of Place: Dutch Cityscapes of the Golden Age": In few places has painting flourished as it did in the Netherlands during the 17th century. The Golden Age of Dutch painting included such masters as Rembrandt and Vermeer and the coming to the fore of new or previously undervalued genres such as the still life and domestic scenes. It also saw the emergence of the cityscape in art. The National Gallery has assembled a small but choice gathering of paintings from an impressive array of artists of the period: Jacob van Ruisdael, Pieter de Hooch, Aelbert Cuyp, Jan van Goyen, and Jan Steen. In addition to the nearly 50 canvases, there are two dozen maps, atlases, and prints. All testify not just to the growing prominence of urban life in the Dutch Republic but also how well city scenes lent themselves to artistic expression. "Pride of Place" demonstrates a new idea of place: the dawning of a cultural moment, with the realization that cities were not just crowded, noisy, and dirty but also surprisingly picturesque. 4th Street and Constitution Avenue NW, 202-737-4215, www.nga.gov.

THROUGH APRIL 19

CHICAGO

"The Aztec World": The Field Museum is the sole venue for this comprehensive survey of Aztec culture, which for more than two centuries held sway over some 10 million people in what is now Mexico. The exhibition, which includes more than 300 objects, highlights Aztec achievements in art, agriculture, trade, and cosmology. 1400 South Lake Shore Drive, 312- 922-9410, www.fieldmuseum.org.

THROUGH MAY 17

MADRID

"Shadows": Light is the necessary condition for all visual art - and, except at noon, you cannot have light without shadow. This exhibition at the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum examines this most basic of pictorial elements. The survey takes in not just painting, from the Renaissance to the present, but also such photographers as Man Ray and Andre Kertesz and such filmmakers as F.W. Murnau and Orson Welles. Paseo del Prado 8, 011-34-91-369-01-51, www.museothyssen.org/thyssen.

THROUGH MAY 24

LONDON

"Le Corbusier - The Art of Architecture": The Barbican Art Gallery has brought together a wide range of works by or related to the renowned Swiss architect who helped transform 20th-century design. They include drawings, models, photographs, films, tapestries, sculpture, and books. Also on display are works by both contemporaries and collaborators of Le Corbusier, such as Fernand Léger and Amédée Ozenfant. Barbican Centre, Silk Street, 011-44-20-7638-4141, www.barbican.org.uk/art gallery.

MARCH 21-MAY 25

WINTERTHUR, DEL.

"Harbor & Home: Furniture of Southeastern Massachusetts, 1710-1850": The Winterthur Museum and Country Estate has drawn on both private and public collections for this exhibition of antiques from Cape Cod and the Islands. More than just a gathering of clocks, chairs, desks, and tables, the show examines how cultural identity can spring from the making of objects - and vice versa. Route 52 (5105 Kennett Pike), 800-448-3883, www.winter thur.org.

MARCH 21-JULY 19

DENVER

"The Psychedelic Experience: Rock Posters from the San Francisco Bay Area, 1965-1971": Rocky Mountain high + Summer of Love head trip = this Denver Museum of Art exhibition, which gathers 300 rock posters from when San Francisco and environs were at their Haight-Ashbury height. Also on display are album covers, alternative newspapers, and other youth-culture artifacts of the day. 100 West 14th Ave. Pkwy., 720-865-5000, www.denverart museum.org.

PLAN AHEAD

MAY 13-24

Cannes Film Festival: For 10 days each May, this resort town on the French Riviera becomes the movie capital of the world. The 62d festival will have as its jury president actress Isabelle Huppert. Last year, nearly 1,100 feature films were screened and more than 200,000 people attended. www.festival-cannes .com/en.html.

MARK FEENEY

Events are sometimes canceled, rescheduled, or sold out; check online to confirm. Mark Feeney can be reached at mfeeney@globe.com.