BY ANNABEL KEENAN
Becoming a breakout artist takes time. Over the years, ambitious exhibitions, prominent gallery representations, major awards, and significant art fair presentations all lay the groundwork for major attention. In 2026, such curatorial, critical, and professional achievements will finally pay off for the eleven breakout stars on our list. They include seasoned veterans who will receive major shows and public commissions, as well as figures who have steadily built momentum at the emerging stages of their careers. Keep an eye on these talents as they finally get the spotlight they deserve.
Portrait of Gabriel Chaile by Alex Krotkov. Courtesy of Marianne Boesky Gallery.
Gabriel Chaile’s sculptures draw on Indigenous knowledge systems, pre-Columbian architecture, and communal rituals. These interests often manifest in large-scale clay and adobe forms that resemble vessels, bodies, or dwellings. Chaile’s work collapses distinctions between sculpture and shelter, foregrounding ideas of care, ancestry, and collective memory.
The Argentine artist has gained steady international acclaim in recent years. In 2022, his work was included in the Venice Biennale, followed by a public commission on the High Line that opened in 2023. Last year, Chaile opened his first New York solo show at Marianne Boesky Gallery, which included a series of large-scale adobe sculptures, photographs, and drawings inspired by the artist’s experiences during a No Kings Day protest in Montana.
In April, Chaile will open his first major solo show in London at Whitechapel Gallery. Chaile is extending his interest in community and Indigenous practices, shifting his lens to the cultural and historical legacy of London’s East End, where the gallery is located.
