This month the art circuit marks a transition from quiet winter reflection to a high-energy exploration of identity, materiality, and the archives of our personal and collective histories. We have curated a selection of five essential exhibitions across the US, each hosted by a different powerhouse gallery. From the final, ethereal paintings of a minimalist legend to the visceral, socially-charged canvases of rising stars, these shows represent a broad spectrum of contemporary practice. Whether you are drawn to the architectural precision of Tribeca’s gallery spaces or the sprawling, light-filled institutions of the West Coast, these exhibitions offer a roadmap to the most vital conversations happening in art today. By bringing together legacy collections and cutting-edge solo presentations, this list captures the current “pulse” of the market and the enduring power of the physical art object in an increasingly digital world.
Hauser & Wirth, Los Angeles
February 24 – August 16, 2026
Kerry James Marshall, Destiny Is a Rose, 1990. Courtesy of Hauser & Wirth
Renowned for her deep-seated generosity to both artists and institutions, Eileen Harris Norton has spent five decades building a collection that champions women and artists of color. Marking the fiftieth anniversary of her first acquisition, Destiny Is a Rose presents over 80 works that highlight her perceptive vision and commitment to social justice. Titled after a painting by Kerry James Marshall, the exhibition features a “who’s who” of contemporary titans, including Mark Bradford, Felix Gonzalez-Torres, David Hammons, and Kara Walker. The show is more than a display of objects; it is a reflection of a life dedicated to cultural growth and agency. Accompanied by an Education Lab and a new publication, the exhibition allows visitors to trace the evolution of a collector who has acted as a vital catalyst for change in the Los Angeles art scene and beyond.
Jack Shainman Gallery, New York
February 20 – April 04, 2026
Elizabeth Neel, November Not Here, 78 x 58 x 1 1/2 inches, Acrylic on canvas, 2025. Courtesy of Jack Shainman Gallery
In her first solo presentation with Jack Shainman Gallery, Elizabeth Neel presents a series of new paintings and works on paper that grapple with the tension between control and chaos. Titled after a line from W.H. Auden’s poem “In Memory of W. B. Yeats,” the exhibition explores how the ideas and forms of our predecessors are constantly remade to make sense of the present. Neel utilizes an extensive lexicon of gestures – employing brushes, rags, and rollers – to transmute a wide array of images, from biological x-rays to architectural plans, into emotive structures. A recurring element in these new works is the use of bilateral symmetry, which anchors her compositions while preserving the unrepeatable chance of a singular mark. Set against the Beaux-Arts architecture of the gallery’s Tribeca space, Neel’s work creates a dramatic, stage-like atmosphere that asks the viewer to consider abstraction as a language of both history and the immediate, physical moment.
