5 Artists With Shows in NYC Right Now You Should Know (May 2026)
Five artists with strong solo presentations on view in New York in May 2026 — three of them debuts or gallery debuts, two of them late-career or posthumous. Below: the work, the gallery, the dates, and what to look at when you get there. Every show on this list is bookable on the Gallop app.
1. Amorelle Jacox — Mothers of Time at Management
- Show
- Mothers of Time
- Artist
- Amorelle Jacox
- Gallery
- Management
- Address
- 39 East Broadway, Chinatown
- On view
- Apr 29, 2026 – Jun 8, 2026
Mothers of Time is Amorelle Jacox's debut solo exhibition with Management, on view April 29 – June 8, 2026 at 39 East Broadway in Chinatown. Rooted in metaphysics, Jacox's practice synthesizes color field, transcendentalist, surrealist, and symbolist languages into seven new paintings of real philosophical weight. Her feminist approach to existential inquiry is what differentiates the work from contemporaries doing related cosmological imagery. If you want to be early on an artist who's about to be everywhere, this is the show. The strongest emerging-painter debut in New York this spring.
2. John Chamberlain — Land Before Time at Amanita
- Artist
- John Chamberlain
- Gallery
- Amanita
- Address
- 313 Bowery, NoHo
- On view
- May 9, 2026 – Aug 10, 2026
Land Before Time: Three Dinosaurs and a Gondola is a posthumous Chamberlain presentation at Amanita, 313 Bowery in NoHo, on view May 9 – August 10, 2026. The premise is unusually theatrical: Chamberlain's Gondola Marianne Moore is paired with three complete Maiasaura dinosaur fossil specimens — the first time a family group of Maiasaura has been exhibited together. The fossils are presented in collaboration with Granada, a natural-history outfit handling the excavation, research, and preparation. A sculpture show that doubles as a paleontological event. Open through summer; not crowded yet.
3. Kim Dacres — Lost on a Two Way Street at Charles Moffett
- Artist
- Kim Dacres
- Gallery
- Charles Moffett
- Address
- 394 Broadway, Chinatown
- On view
- May 7, 2026 – Jun 21, 2026
Lost on a Two Way Street is Kim Dacres's second solo show with Charles Moffett, 394 Broadway in Chinatown, on view May 7 – June 21, 2026. Dacres is a first-generation American sculptor of Jamaican descent who lives in Harlem and works in the Bronx. The new busts and wall-mounted sculptures continue her signature use of reclaimed tires as material, probing the range of emotions experienced over the last 18 months in the United States. Sculpturally inventive, politically urgent. A strong follow-up to her 2025 body of work Crossroads Like This.
4. Sam Falls — Amongst the Living at 303 Gallery
- Artist
- Sam Falls
- Gallery
- 303 Gallery
- Address
- 555 West 21st Street, Chelsea
- On view
- Apr 24, 2026 – May 31, 2026
Amongst the Living is Sam Falls's fourth solo show with 303 Gallery, 555 West 21st Street in Chelsea, on view April 24 – May 31, 2026. The show brings together a new body of work across painting, ceramics, and photography — work that grew out of a long road trip through the Mojave. Falls remains one of the most quietly important painters working in New York; the practice has matured into something more rooted in landscape than any of his earlier shows. Closes May 31, so don't wait.
5. Tinmantis — Elite Fine Art at Foreign & Domestic
- Show
- Elite Fine Art
- Artist
- Tinmantis
- Gallery
- Foreign & Domestic
- Address
- 24 Rutgers Street, Lower East Side
- On view
- May 22, 2026 – Jun 29, 2026
Elite Fine Art at Foreign & Domestic, 24 Rutgers Street, Lower East Side, runs May 22 – June 29, 2026. Tinmantis is the most divisive working New York artist of the moment — slogans, weapons, hateful threats and exotic visual pleasure stacked side by side. The gallery's accompanying text bills the show as a defense of the artist and credits the work with great quantities of surprises and novelties. Difficult, polarizing, definitely worth your time and your skepticism.
How to see all five in one weekend
Three of these five shows are in Chinatown or the Lower East Side (Jacox, Dacres, Tinmantis), so build a Saturday around East Broadway and Rutgers. Add Sam Falls at 303 Gallery in Chelsea on a separate Friday or Sunday — 303 is a 25-minute subway ride from downtown. John Chamberlain at Amanita on the Bowery sits between the two neighborhoods and is a good first or last stop on a downtown loop. For the full Chelsea picture see our Chelsea gallery guide for May 2026; for the rest of the downtown shows see our 10 must-see NYC art shows roundup.
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Frequently asked
Who are the most important artists with shows in NYC in May 2026?
The standout solo shows include Amorelle Jacox at Management, Julie Mehretu at Marian Goodman, Helen Frankenthaler at Gagosian, Anselm Kiefer at Gagosian, John Chamberlain at Amanita, and Sam Falls at 303 Gallery. Each represents a different vein of contemporary practice in May 2026.
What's the best gallery debut to see in NYC right now?
Amorelle Jacox at Management in Chinatown is the strongest gallery debut in New York this spring — a serious, philosophically ambitious body of paintings by an artist who hasn't been over-exposed yet.
How do I find every solo show by a specific artist on view in NYC?
Open the Gallop app, search the artist's name, and the map will show every gallery currently exhibiting their work. The app covers 460+ NYC galleries and 12,000+ exhibitions.
Are there any posthumous shows worth seeing in NYC right now?
John Chamberlain at Amanita is the strongest posthumous presentation in New York in May 2026 — a sculpture show paired with three Maiasaura dinosaur fossils, on view through August 10.
