Six Free Must-See Art Shows in NYC This May
Rose Florence Anderson, writer of The Rose Period newsletter, curates a monthly column for Elephant Magazine highlighting free art exhibitions in New York City during Art Month. The six shows include: Matisse: The Pursuit of Harmony at Acquavella Galleries (through May 22), featuring rarely seen sculptures including the Back series; Domenico Gnoli at Levy Gorvy Dayan (through May 23), the largest US show of the Italian artist's work in over fifty years, known for mixing sand into paint; GaHee Park: Half-Looking, Half-Seen at Perrotin (through May 30), with surreal paintings ahead of her first US institutional show at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in August; Michael McGregor: Lunch at Dan Yoshi (through June 12, 2026), featuring drawings on collected menus; Jasper Johns: Copy/Trace at David Zwirner (May 7–June 26), exploring the artist's process of copying his own work; and Lynette Yiadom-Boakye at Jack Shainman (through July 31, 2026), her first solo show at the gallery since 2019, presenting invented figures. The column is sponsored by Showrunner and Elephant Magazine.
Key facts
- Rose Florence Anderson writes The Rose Period newsletter and contributes to Elephant Magazine.
- The column is sponsored by Showrunner and Elephant Magazine.
- Matisse: The Pursuit of Harmony runs through May 22 at Acquavella Galleries.
- The Back series of four bronze sculptures (1908–1930) is rarely shown together.
- Domenico Gnoli died at age 36 in 1970.
- Gnoli mixed sand into his paint for texture.
- GaHee Park's first US institutional show opens in August at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.
- Michael McGregor draws on collected menus, often stained with food and drink.
- Jasper Johns is 94 years old and still working.
- Johns made his first Flag painting in 1954 after dreaming about it.
- Lynette Yiadom-Boakye invents her subjects from imagination.
- Yiadom-Boakye is a Turner Prize finalist and in the MoMA collection.
Entities
Artists
- Rose Florence Anderson
- Henri Matisse
- Domenico Gnoli
- GaHee Park
- Michael McGregor
- Jasper Johns
- Lynette Yiadom-Boakye
Institutions
- Elephant Magazine
- Showrunner
- Acquavella Galleries
- Levy Gorvy Dayan
- Perrotin
- Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
- Dan Yoshi
- David Zwirner
- Jack Shainman Gallery
- MoMA
- Turner Prize
- Acne Studios
- Chanel
- Alex Mill
Locations
- New York City
- United States
- Upper East Side
- 64th Street
- San Francisco
- Milan
- London