Lower East Side Openings This Weekend (May 2026)
The Lower East Side has seven gallery shows worth a Saturday visit this weekend — three opening fresh, four already up. The neighborhood remains the densest mid-tier gallery district in New York: small spaces, ambitious programs, walkable in about ninety minutes. Below: the shows, addresses, and what to look at when you get there.
1. Fiction/Nonfiction — Ron Isaacs at Marinaro
- Artist
- Ron Isaacs
- Gallery
- Marinaro
- Address
- 1 Rivington St, 2nd Floor, Lower East Side
- On view
- May 28, 2026 – Jul 2, 2026
Ron Isaacs's solo exhibition at Marinaro, 1 Rivington Street, 2nd Floor, opens May 28, 2026 and runs through July 2. The new sculptural wall constructions are trompe-l'œil works that blur painting and sculpture: hand-crafted relief constructions from painted birch plywood depicting garments, botanical forms, and found objects with astonishing realism. Isaacs has been refining this language for decades. The freshest opening on the list — go in the show's first week.
2. Desire for Clarification — Hwi Hahm at JJ Murphy
- Artist
- Hwi Hahm
- Gallery
- JJ Murphy
- Address
- 53 Stanton St, Lower East Side
- On view
- May 27, 2026 – Jun 28, 2026
Desire for Clarification is a solo show of recent paintings by Korean-born, Brooklyn-based artist Hwi Hahm, on view May 27 – June 28, 2026 at JJ Murphy Gallery, 53 Stanton Street. Hahm's paintings sit on the line between abstraction and representation, often produced in parallel series — "A Boy with Doubts," "Disappearing Moments" — with slightly altered imagery. He doesn't use preparatory sketches: the paintings are the artist's attempt to understand his thoughts. Quiet, careful, worth a slow look.
3. Elite Fine Art — Tinmantis 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, runs May 22 – June 29, 2026. Tinmantis is a provocateur — slogans, weapons, hateful threats and exotic visual pleasure jostling together — and the gallery frames the show as a defense of the artist. Foreign & Domestic is just south of East Broadway. Combine the visit with a walk through Two Bridges or Chinatown.
4. Material Memory at Hollis Taggart
- Show
- Material Memory
- Gallery
- Hollis Taggart
- Address
- 109 Norfolk St, Lower East Side
- On view
- May 15, 2026 – Jun 21, 2026
Material Memory is a seven-artist group show at Hollis Taggart Downtown, 109 Norfolk Street, on view May 15 – June 21, 2026. The premise: memory isn't recalled, it's physically constructed in surfaces, bodies, systems, and structures. Featured artists are Megan Baker, Edward Holland, Ashanté Kindle, Hans Neleman, Cordy Ryman, Kelly Wang, and Michael Wolf, working across painting, relief, sculpture, and assemblage. A well-curated group show in a gallery that consistently programs well.
5. Nowhere/Everywhere — Nasir Young at Uffner & Liu
- Artist
- Nasir Young
- Gallery
- Uffner & Liu
- Address
- 170 Suffolk St, Lower East Side
- On view
- May 15, 2026 – Jul 3, 2026
Nasir Young's first show with Uffner & Liu runs May 15 – July 3, 2026 on the upstairs floor at 170 Suffolk Street. Young paints gas stations, storefronts, corner stores, and parking lots — the language of his Philadelphia upbringing and of American suburbia at large. As a lifelong skateboarder, he experiences cities through shifting speeds and unexpected angles; the paintings hold that perspective. One of the strongest LES debuts in recent memory.
6. Ameyn — Jeffrey Melo at McBride / Dillman
- Show
- Ameyn
- Artist
- Jeffrey Melo
- Gallery
- McBride / Dillman
- Address
- 195 Henry Street, Lower East Side
- On view
- May 15, 2026 – Jun 29, 2026
Ameyn is a solo exhibition of new paintings by Jeffrey Melo at McBride / Dillman, 195 Henry Street, on view May 15 – June 29, 2026. Melo situates faith within a landscape of instability — the work emerges in response to U.S. military engagement in Iran, the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, and intensifying ICE enforcement domestically. The paintings consider how individuals locate steadiness within uncertainty. Direct, political, painted carefully.
7. What Remains — Arghavan Khosravi at Uffner & Liu
- Show
- What Remains
- Artist
- Arghavan Khosravi
- Gallery
- Uffner & Liu
- Address
- 170 Suffolk St, Lower East Side
- On view
- May 15, 2026 – Jul 3, 2026
What Remains is Arghavan Khosravi's third solo show at Uffner & Liu, downstairs from Nasir Young at 170 Suffolk Street. On view May 15 – July 3, 2026. Three large-scale wall works, one freestanding sculpture, and a suite of small-scale compositions inspired by altarpieces. Khosravi's work operates at the intersection of the personal and the political through hinged panels, dividing surfaces, and elements that pass between compartments. Uffner & Liu is the must-stop on this list — see both shows in one visit.
How to walk the Lower East Side in a single afternoon
A productive Saturday route: start at Uffner & Liu on Suffolk for both shows, walk three minutes to Hollis Taggart on Norfolk, then south to JJ Murphy on Stanton. From there it's six minutes south-east to McBride / Dillman on Henry Street, then five minutes south-west to Foreign & Domestic on Rutgers. End at Marinaro on Rivington. Total walking time is roughly forty minutes. Most LES galleries are open Wednesday – Saturday, with hours from noon to 6pm; weekends are the safest bet for finding everything open.
On the map
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Frequently asked
What's opening in the Lower East Side this weekend?
Three fresh openings — Ron Isaacs at Marinaro (May 28), Hwi Hahm at JJ Murphy (May 27), and Tinmantis at Foreign & Domestic (May 22) — alongside four shows that opened earlier in May and are still running through June or July.
How many art galleries are in the Lower East Side?
The Lower East Side has roughly 80 active commercial galleries, mostly concentrated between Houston, Grand, Bowery, and Allen Streets. Gallop maps every one of them.
Are LES galleries open on Sundays?
Most are. Standard hours are Wednesday – Sunday, noon to 6pm. Mondays and Tuesdays are generally closed. Always check the gallery's hours before walking over.
What's the closest subway to the LES gallery district?
The F train at Delancey/Essex is the easiest entry. The J/M/Z at Essex Street covers the same area. From either stop, the densest cluster of galleries is a 5 – 10 minute walk south or east.
