New Gallery Openings This Week in NYC (May 2026)
7 new shows opened in NYC galleries in the past seven days. Below: the openings in order of start date, with the gallery, the address, the dates the show will be on view, and what to expect.
1. Community as Praxis Benefit at 56 Henry
- Gallery
- 56 Henry
- Address
- 105 Henry Street, Chinatown
- On view
- May 20, 2026 – Jun 1, 2026
Community as Praxis Benefit is at 56 Henry, 105 Henry Street, Chinatown, on view May 20 – Jun 1, 2026. Aria Almanzar, Chando Ao, Daniel Arnold, Sophie Barber, Nick Bierk, Jake Booth, Sascha Braunig, LaKela Brown, Jeane Cohen, Simon Cohen, Emma CC Cook, Henry Curchod, Marcel Dzama, Alec Egan, Ryan Foerster, Al Freeman, Myles Gable, Phillip Gabriel, Todd Gray, Gordon Hall, Richard Hawkins, Adam Higgins, Gwen Hollingsworth, Elizabeth Jaeger, Shaniqwa Jarvis, Calvin Kim, Clifford…
Plan thirty minutes minimum at 56 Henry — the works reward time. The gallery is closed Mondays.
2. Wade in the Water by Vaughn Davis Jr. at Superhouse
- Artist
- Vaughn Davis Jr.
- Gallery
- Superhouse
- Address
- 120 Walker Street, 6R, Chinatown
- On view
- May 20, 2026 – Jun 28, 2026
Wade in the Water is at Superhouse, 120 Walker Street, 6R, Chinatown, on view May 20 – Jun 28, 2026. Superhouse is pleased to present Wade in the Water, a solo exhibition by Vaughn Davis Jr. The exhibition brings together a group of new works alongside a site-responsive installation that approaches painting not as image, but as a condition shaped by action, material, and space.
Through June 28, 2026. Superhouse keeps standard NYC gallery hours, Tuesday through Saturday.
3. Forget Me Not by Rina Lam Goldfield at Essex Flowers
- Show
- Forget Me Not
- Artist
- Rina Lam Goldfield
- Gallery
- Essex Flowers
- Address
- 19 Monroe Street, Two Bridges
- On view
- May 22, 2026 – Jun 22, 2026
Forget Me Not is at Essex Flowers, 19 Monroe Street, Two Bridges, on view May 22 – Jun 22, 2026. Dear Rina, What is friendship? A half blank page, the bottom filled with loop-di-loops; another half page of calligraphic nonsense. Floating, cropped off the bottom right in playful cursive: An Enig. An enigma? What appears like a contemporary drawing is a spread from a 19th-century friendship album by a 17-year-old Mary Magdalene Russel.
Worth combining with the nearby galleries on the same block. Essex Flowers is closed Mondays.
4. Point and Click by Xinan Helen Ran at Essex Flowers
- Show
- Point and Click
- Artist
- Xinan Helen Ran
- Gallery
- Essex Flowers
- Address
- 19 Monroe Street, Two Bridges
- On view
- May 22, 2026 – Jun 22, 2026
Point and Click is at Essex Flowers, 19 Monroe Street, Two Bridges, on view May 22 – Jun 22, 2026. Essex Flowers presents Point and Click, Xinan’s fourth solo exhibition with the gallery. Presented in the back space are several material explorations that began with a slow and gradual curiosity about the egg-yolk-like form hidden inside early computer mice.
On view through June 22, 2026. Allow at least twenty minutes; the gallery is generally quietest on weekday afternoons.
5. Elite Fine Art by 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 is at Foreign & Domestic, 24 Rutgers Street, Lower East Side, on view May 22 – Jun 29, 2026. He has slogans too. Things like: No friends, no trends. Did he make it up? He also likes to pose with weapons, but we'll get to that. A Testament In Defense of the Madman Known as Tinmantis I don't remember who first told me about Tinmantis, and I don't have time to figure it out. My memory is like a moldy Swiss cheese.
Foreign & Domestic is most easily reached by subway; check the gallery's hours before walking over, since most NYC galleries are closed Mondays.
6. Fall Line by Victoria Sambunaris at Yancey Richardson
- Show
- Fall Line
- Artist
- Victoria Sambunaris
- Gallery
- Yancey Richardson
- Address
- 525 West 22nd Street, Chelsea
- On view
- May 29, 2026 – Jul 3, 2026
Upcoming: Fall Line at Yancey Richardson, 525 West 22nd Street, Chelsea, on view May 29 – Jul 3, 2026. Yancey Richardson is pleased to present Fall Line, an exhibition of new work by Victoria Sambunaris that continues her ongoing examination of the intersection of human civilization and nature in the American West.
Plan thirty minutes minimum at Yancey Richardson — the works reward time. The gallery is closed Mondays.
7. Color Anthology by Mary Ellen Bartley at Yancey Richardson
- Show
- Color Anthology
- Artist
- Mary Ellen Bartley
- Gallery
- Yancey Richardson
- Address
- 525 West 22nd Street, Chelsea
- On view
- May 29, 2026 – Jul 3, 2026
Upcoming: Color Anthology at Yancey Richardson, 525 West 22nd Street, Chelsea, on view May 29 – Jul 3, 2026. Yancey Richardson is pleased to present Color Anthology, an exhibition of photographs by Mary Ellen Bartley, her fifth solo presentation with the gallery. Bringing together work from her series Reading November (2013–2021), the images in the exhibition consider the formal and poetic qualities of the book as an object itself, rather than as simply a conveyor of information.
Through July 3, 2026. Yancey Richardson keeps standard NYC gallery hours, Tuesday through Saturday.
How to plan a walk
New openings concentrate on Fridays and Saturdays. Combine them: take the F train to East Broadway for the downtown openings, then transfer to the C/E at 14th Street or West Fourth for Chelsea. Most opening receptions run 6pm to 8pm — pair gallery hopping with dinner reservations starting at 8:30pm.
On the map
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Frequently asked
What gallery shows just opened in NYC?
7 new shows opened in NYC in the past seven days, including Community as Praxis Benefit at 56 Henry (opened May 20, 2026). Full list above with opening dates and addresses.
When are gallery openings held?
Standard NYC opening receptions run Thursday or Friday evening, 6pm to 8pm. They're free, open to the public, and you don't need an invitation.
Do I need to dress up for a gallery opening?
No. Casual is fine. Most regulars dress in basic gallery uniform — black, sneakers, a tote bag.
How do I find out about upcoming openings?
The Gallop app lists every NYC gallery's upcoming openings in a calendar view, filterable by neighborhood and date.
