60 Years an Art Dealer: Anniversary Exhibition

Gallery Henoch is pleased to present 60 Years an Art Dealer, a celebratory exhibition honoring director George Henoch Shechtman’s 60^th anniversary as an art dealer and champion of contemporary realism. The exhibition will highlight works from Mr. Shechtman’s personal collection, alongside selected paintings by past and present gallery artists. An opening reception will be held on Saturday, April 18^th, from 5-7 pm.  The exhibition runs through May 9^th, 2026.

Mr. Shechtman founded his first gallery in 1966. Housed in a modest storefront on Christopher Street in Greenwich Village, he was guided by instinct, determination, and a keen eye for talent. His path to the art world began a few years earlier, at age 19, during a formative trip to Europe, where the great museums of Madrid, Paris, and London left a lasting impression. Struck by artists’ ability to observe and render material reality, he returned to Rutgers University and switched his major from economics to art history, graduating in 1964.

At Rutgers, he encountered the work and legacy of influential alumni artists including George Segal, Lucas Samaras, Robert Watts, and Allan Kaprow. Though he himself created abstract geometric paintings, his interests increasingly turned toward objective realist painters whose technical mastery and commitment to observed reality he deeply admired.

By the mid-1970s, Mr. Shechtman had moved his gallery to Madison Avenue, renaming it Christopher Gallery while continuing to feature emerging and established realist artists. In 1982, he relocated to SoHo, opening Gallery Henoch as the neighborhood became synonymous with photorealism. He expanded his roster to include leading photorealists while maintaining a broader commitment to realist painters, sculptors, and artisans.

In 2000, as Chelsea emerged as New York’s new art center, he moved the gallery to West 25th Street, where it remains today. Through six decades of change and transformation in the art world, George Henoch Shechtman has continued to represent many of the finest contemporary American and European realists. These artists combine technical mastery with enduring vision, qualities that reflect Mr. Shechtman’s own perseverance and intuition. This exhibition stands as a tribute to his remarkable sixty years as an art dealer and to the legacy he continues to build.

Gallery Henoch, 555 West 25th Street (between 10^th and 11^th Ave).  Subway: C or E to 23^rd St.   Gallery Hours: Tuesday - Saturday, 10:30 am - 6:00 pm or by appointment.  FREE & Open to the public.  For more information, please contact Andrew Liss at 917.305.0003