Curator Anne-Laure Lemaitre on 2026 Art

New York-based curator Anne-Laure Lemaitre has given the 2026 art world a report card grade of B-minus. She shared this assessment in the latest edition of HypeArt's 'State of Art' interview series, discussing exhibitions, artists, and industry trends.

Lemaitre specializes in large-scale, in-situ projects, consulting for clients like Fortune 500 companies while managing programs for emerging artists. Her focus is on how art can respond to and transform its surrounding space, an interest reflected in the shows she praised.

Standout Exhibitions of 2026

Lemaitre highlighted two major independent exhibitions from the first half of the year that utilized vacant urban spaces.

The first was The Gallery's WeWork (oralmoral), an evolving group show curated by Florian Meisenberg in an empty Brooklyn office. It featured site-responsive works from artists including Cato Ouyang, Craig Jun Lee, Kyle Clairmont Jacques, Shaina Tabak, Brian Oakes, Anna K.E., Fin Simonetti, and Pol Morton. The project also provided free co-working space for artists alongside extensive on-site programming.

The second was Gladwell Projects' Six Artists. Six Floors. Six Solo Exhibitions., which took over six floors of a building in Jersey City. It presented solo shows by Chunghee Yunm, Vamba Bility, Lisu Vega, Trevor Warren, Purvai Rai, and Chiffon Thomas, whom Lemaitre cited as a personal favorite. She expressed awe at organizer Christina Ine-Kimba Boyle's solo effort, noting the show's quality rivaled major institutions.

Lemaitre found both projects impressive for their scale and their use of underutilized spaces to present rigorous, visionary curatorial work. She said they felt fresh in an art world many believe is in crisis.

Impactful Artwork and Industry Trends

One artwork that deeply affected Lemaitre this year was "Amphibian Palm" by Lesley-Anne Cao. The piece features a series of "books"submerged in water tanks, with pages flipping randomly underwater."Changing. Exciting. Challenging."She expressed a desire for one trend to disappear: fewer comments and analyses about the art world's state dominating conversations."I’d love to see more concrete, direct support for endeavors, artist-led or otherwise, that are navigating new ways to exist and connect with their public within our broader current context," she stated.

A Curator's Dinner Party

Lemaitre's choice for a hypothetical dinner guest changes frequently. Last week she named Öyvind Fahlström to ask about infusing political criticism into his practice. Previously, she listed Derek Jarman, Ana Mendieta, Artemisia Gentileschi, Hélio Oiticica, or Nam June Paik. Among living artists, she mentioned David Hammons, Rossella Biscotti, Emeka Ogboh, or Francis Alÿs. For Alÿs, she would ask how he repeatedly creates powerful spaces for attention and emotion through simple gestures.

She described her own art-viewing habits as impulsive, preferring not to plan too far ahead. The curator sees 2026 as a transitional phase filled with exciting emulation, but also growing pains and confusion.