NYC’s Lower Manhattan art and design scene is set for a major May weekend takeover, with SoHo, Tribeca, and the Lower East Side hosting immersive gallery walks, open studios, design activations, and new exhibitions across downtown Manhattan. From Friday night’s highly anticipated SoHo Design Night to the massive neighborhood-wide art walks spanning Tribeca and LES, this weekend’s listings spotlight the creative energy defining New York’s contemporary culture scene.
A standout event this Friday is SoHo Design Night, taking place May 15 from 6–9 PM as part of NYCxDESIGN Festival programming. The evening transforms SoHo into an open-air showcase of contemporary interiors, furniture, art, and experiential installations, with participating galleries and design showrooms across Greene Street, Mercer Street, Howard Street, and Broadway opening their doors for special exhibitions, launches, and live programming. RSVP and event details are available through the official SoHo Design District and NYCxDESIGN event pages. (sohodesigndistrict.org)
Beyond SoHo, downtown Manhattan’s art circuit continues all weekend with large-scale gallery walks and independent exhibitions throughout Tribeca and the Lower East Side. Visitors can expect extended gallery hours, artist receptions, public installations, and neighborhood-wide programming connecting collectors, curators, artists, and emerging creative spaces across Lower Manhattan. The weekend reflects the growing intersection of art, architecture, design, and community culture defining NYC’s downtown neighborhoods.
This week’s featured artist is Megan Baker, whose work is included in Material Memory, a new group exhibition at Hollis Taggart Downtown. The exhibition features new and recent paintings and sculptures by Megan Baker, Edward Holland, Ashanté Kindle, Hans Neleman, Cordy Ryman, Kelly Wang, and Michael Wolf. Curated by Eleanor de Ropp Flatow, Material Memory explores the idea that memory is not simply recalled, but physically embedded within surfaces, systems, materials, and structures. Through painting, assemblage, sculpture, and relief work, the exhibition examines how memory evolves through accumulation, transformation, and material presence.
The exhibition also marks the first anniversary of Hollis Taggart Downtown and reinforces the gallery’s ongoing support of emerging and mid-career contemporary artists shaping New York’s current art landscape. Material Memory will be on view from May 15 through June 20, with an opening reception Friday, May 15 from 6–8 PM, coinciding with the energy of SoHo Design Night and downtown Manhattan’s broader art weekend programming.
For anyone exploring NYC galleries, design events, and contemporary art this May weekend, Lower Manhattan remains the center of the city’s creative conversation.
All events are 6pm-8pm unless otherwise noted
Original BTC, 56 Greene St
6pm-8pm:
Flos, 152 Greene St, Store reopening,** RSVP Link**
Lemieux, 161 Grand St
Orior, 32 Mercer St**, RSVP Email**
Bang & Olufsen, 121 Spring St, RSVP Email
6pm-9pm:
Luminous, 57 Lispenard St,** RSVP Link**
Host on Howard, 21 Howard St
GreenRow, 47 Howard St, RSVP Email
Calligaris SoHo, 55 Thompson St,** RSVP Link**
Amura, 60 Grand St
Foglizzo, 429 West Broadway
Calico & Stellar Works, 304 Canal St, RSVP Email
Nordic Knots, 6 Green St, RSVP Email
Rachel Donath, 69 Mercer St
Scavolini, 429 West Broadway
Studio Zung, 41 Grand St
Uprise Art, 264 Canal St, #4W, RSVP Link
Wine Enthusiast, 27 Greene St, RSVP Email
Foscarini Spazio, 20 Greene St
Hastens, 75 Grand St,** RSVP Email**
Lower East Side | Friday
Heft, 300 Broome St, ‘Transmissions’ by Joe Doucet, 6pm-9pm
Hollis Taggart, 109 Norfolk St, ‘Material Memory’ by Megan Baker, Edward Holland, Ashanté Kindle, Hans Neleman, Cordy Ryman, Kelly Wang,and Michael Wolf
Miguel Abreu Gallery, 88 Eldridge St, ‘Blast Beat’ by Kate Mosher Hall
Turquoise, 81 Elizabeth Street, Suite 302, ‘Literature’ Organized with Keren Cytter Featuring Bernadette van Huy, John Miller, Nora Schultz, Josef Strau, Laris Maas, Justin Nalley, and Finnja Giesberts, 4pm-7pm
Uffner & Liu, 170 Suffolk Street, ‘What Remains’ by Arghavan Khosravi
McBridge / Dillman, 195 Henry St, ‘Ameyn’ by Jeffrey Melo
Blank Mag Books, 17 Eldridge St, ‘Our Daily Bread’ exhibition zine release, 6pm-9pm
Tribeca | Friday
Dimin, 406 Broadway, ‘Whims of Panspermia’ by Emily Orta
GR Gallery, 116 Chambers St, ‘MY SCREEN TESTS’ by Kohei Yamada
Grimm Gallery, 54 White Street, work by Francesca Mollett
Space ZeroOne, 371 Broadway, ‘The Late 故’ by IM Youngzoo
Theta, 184 Franklin St, ‘The candle is on the table’ by Molly Rose Lieberman
James Cohan, 48 Walker St, ‘Blooms Disrupted’ by Fred Tomaselli
James Cohan, 52 Walker St, work by Mary Sully
Marge, 4 Cortlandt Alley, work by Kian McKeown
Matthew Brown, 390 Broadway, ‘The Revenants of Our Founding Furies’ by Sedrick Chisom
Ulrik, 175 Canal Steet, Floor 3, ‘GOLDFISH’ by Taro Masushio, 6–9pm
Shrine, 368 Broadway, ‘Numerous Concerns’ by Anthony Miler
Ruttkowski;68, 46 Cortland Alley, ‘Primal Sound’ by Brittany Miller, 6–9
Tappeto Volante, 4 Cortlandt Alley, work by Angelo Vasta
Nicelle Beauchene Gallery, 7 Franklin Place, ‘I Can Hear the Grass Grow’ by Jordan Kasey, ‘Fooling Linnaeus’ by Michele Fletcher
Canada, 60 Lispenard St, ‘Peanut Butter and Jelly’ by Katherine Bernhardt
Cristin Tierney, 49 Walker St, ‘Fly in the Sugar Bowl’ by Julian V.L. Gaines
Lower East Side | Saturday
Lichtundfire, 175 Rivington St, Habitat group show walk-thru, 5pm-7pm
Gern en Regalia, 105 Henry St #5, ‘Dust’ by Bora Akinciturk
Krause Gallery, 149 Orchard St, ‘Nothing to See Here’ by E. Lee
Desnivel at Breeze Nail + Spa, 62 2nd Avenue, ‘A Moment For You’ by Alina Tenser, 5pm-7pm
David Peter Francis, 35 East Broadway #3F, ‘FLW’ by Carrie Schneider
West Village | Saturday
Eli Klein, 398 West Street, ‘Here On And After’ by Bui Thanh Tam
Tribeca | Saturday
Knickerbocker, 357 Canal St, 5 Year Anniversary, 2pm-6pm
Featured work above by Megan Baker at Hollis Taggart
