Los Angeles’ biggest annual art event is starting off 2026 with a burst of star power. When the LA Art Show returns to the Los Angeles Convention Center January 7–11, 2026, one of the most talked-about booths is likely to be Palm Beach’s Provident Fine Art, making its debut with a solo exhibition of Sylvester Stallone’s abstract canvas paintings.
The Rocky and Rambo star may be best known for his brawn, but Stallone has been painting since his teens, often using art to help develop characters while writing the scripts that would make him famous. This will be his first major showcase in years, offering fans and art lovers a glimpse into another aspect of his creative life.
Stallone’s presence is just one part of a wide-ranging international lineup curated by fair director Kassandra Voyagis for the LA Art Show's 31st year. The 2026 installment includes more than 90 exhibitors, from powerhouse contemporary galleries to new global arrivals. Dublin’s Oliver Sears Gallery becomes the show’s first-ever participant from Ireland, while London’s Pontone Gallery brings self-taught drummer-turned-painter Chris Rivers. Switzerland’s LICHT FELD Gallery contributes one of the fair’s most compelling historical rediscoveries: Karl A. Meyer's woodcut prints, unseen for more than 40 years. The fair will also feature Israeli artist Yigal Ozeri’s lush, cinematic portraits, presented by Corridor Contemporary, and 15 Korean galleries.
But the fair’s most ambitious development is the launch of its Latin American pavilion. Curated by Marisa Caichiolo (who oversees DIVERSEartLA and is newly appointed co-curator of Chile’s pavilion at the 2026 Venice Biennale), the pavilion centers on memory, migration and identity. With artists examining ancestral mythology, power structures and the politics of belonging, the pavilion is designed to shift how Latin American art is shown and valued at major fairs.
"At a moment when immigration issues continue to disproportionately impact Latin American communities, it is especially important to provide a platform for these artists," Caichiolo said in an official statement.
With global debuts, historic rediscoveries, a groundbreaking new pavilion and a rare look at Stallone’s art, the 2026 LA Art Show is setting itself up as the year’s first essential art event—and one of its most surprising.