Hauser & Wirth New York will present Qiu Xiaofei: The Theater of Wither and Thrive from 12 February – 18 April 2026 at its 22nd Street location. Showcasing the artist’s latest body of work, the exhibition brings together new oil paintings and works on paper.
The exhibition takes as its starting point the discovery of previously unknown family photographs following the death of the artist’s father. From this intimate material, Xiaofei develops a broader meditation on memory and transformation, moving between personal recollection and wider historical and psychological states. Rendered in vivid, dreamlike imagery, his works stage a quiet tension between presence and absence, growth and decline.
Born in Harbin and currently based in Beijing, Qiu Xiaofei is known for his psychologically charged paintings rooted in family memories and an attachment to his hometown. His practice draws on personal history, literature and psychoanalytic thought, producing layered compositions in which past and present collapse into theatrical spaces.
The exhibition will be available to view at Hauser & Wirth, 542 West 22nd Street, New York, NY 10011.
