Zoe Leonard, a celebrated conceptual artist whose work will appear at the Venice Biennale next week, has left Hauser & Wirth—a global gallery with 14 locations—to join Maxwell Graham, a smaller New York-based gallery known for spare conceptual presentations. Leonard will continue to be represented by her longtime galleries, Cologne’s Galeria Gisela Capitain and Milan’s Raffaella Cortese. Maxwell Graham staged its first Leonard exhibition last year with “Display,” featuring photographs of historical objects in museums. Leonard is the second artist to depart Hauser & Wirth in the past year, following George Condo’s exit in November.
This move signals a shift in how established artists navigate the art market, choosing smaller, focused galleries over mega-galleries for more intimate representation. Leonard’s departure from a blue-chip powerhouse to a smaller space underscores the growing appeal of galleries that offer curatorial depth and personal relationships. It also highlights the competitive dynamics among galleries of different scales, as even top-tier artists reassess their representation strategies.