Clearing, a New York-based gallery known for launching the careers of artists like Korakrit Arunanondchai, Harold Ancart, and Marguerite Humeau, has permanently closed its spaces in New York and Los Angeles after 14 years. Founder Olivier Babin cited an unsustainable path forward, stating the gallery could no longer operate at its standards. The closure follows a wave of New York gallery shutdowns, including Blum, Venus Over Manhattan, and Kasmin, which is transitioning into a new entity called Olney Gleason. Clearing’s final exhibitions were solo shows by Coco Young in New York and Henry Curchod in Los Angeles.
The closure of Clearing matters because it underscores the ongoing contraction of the mid-tier gallery sector in major art hubs like New York, where rising costs and market pressures have forced several prominent spaces to shut down or restructure. Clearing played a significant role in Bushwick’s art scene and provided early support to artists who later moved to mega-galleries like David Zwirner and Gagosian. Its demise reflects broader challenges facing galleries that operate between emerging and blue-chip levels, as well as the fragility of independent art enterprises in an increasingly consolidated market.