Southern Guild Sets Sights on Tribeca with New Gallery Opening

Southern Guild, South Africa’s acclaimed contemporary art gallery, is making its mark in the U.S. again. The gallery has announced plans to open a new Tribeca space at 75 Leonard Street in March 2026, transitioning from its Los Angeles location. The move coincides with Southern Guild’s debut at Art Basel Miami Beach, a key moment in its global expansion.

The 4,000-square-foot ground-floor gallery, set within a restored cast-iron building, will feature two exhibition galleries, a viewing room, and offices. The Tribeca location strengthens Southern Guild’s mission to provide deeper opportunities for its artists within one of the world’s most dynamic cultural hubs.

“We see Southern Guild not only as a gallery, but as a cultural anchor in a global ecosystem – a platform where artists pass on knowledge systems, sustain their practices on their own terms, and join together to articulate a movement,” said co-founder Trevyn McGowan. “Our new Tribeca space is a physical affirmation of that mission, reinforcing that what we build must be reciprocal, respectful, and rooted in the long game.”

LA-based Director Andréa Delph, who will relocate to New York to lead the gallery, added: “California gave us the space to listen, to gather, and to understand how Southern Guild’s South African foundation could meaningfully enter the American cultural landscape… I’m excited to return to the city that raised me, and to bring this work forward in New York, where the community we cultivated in LA can evolve in a new context.”

Since its founding in 2008 by Trevyn and Julian McGowan, Southern Guild has championed over 30 international artists, combining conceptual rigour, material experimentation, and cultural perspective. Its works have entered prestigious institutional collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Brooklyn Museum, Pérez Art Museum Miami, Princeton University Art Museum, and the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art.

The Tribeca opening follows a successful period in Los Angeles, which included the 2024 launch of the gallery’s first U.S. space and presentations at Frieze Los Angeles, Frieze New York, Frieze London, FOG, Expo Chicago, The Armory Show, and Aspen Art Fair. Southern Guild will begin relocating its Los Angeles operations in January 2026 after the Driftwork exhibition, curated by Essence Harden, while continuing to nurture its established West Coast relationships.

Defined by experimentation, technical mastery, and a collaborative approach, Southern Guild remains grounded in its artist-driven ethos. The Tribeca gallery will host a robust public programme of talks, panels, artist walkabouts, and gatherings, furthering dialogue across cultures, disciplines, and generations.

Southern Guild’s Tribeca gallery opens March 2026 — a landmark moment for South African contemporary art on the global stage.

Credits

Images: George Etheredge and Southern Guild