Jupiter Contemporary surrenders Manhattan location

Jupiter Contemporary, the art gallery owned by Gabriel Kilongo, has settled the New York eviction case brought by its landlord, agreeing to surrender its Manhattan space and pay $25,000, according to court documents.

The settlement, approved by Civil Court Judge Lauren L. Esposito on May 27, ends the nonpayment case BCD Delancey filed in September 2025 over the gallery's Delancey Street storefront. Urgent Matter previously reported on the dispute.

It is one of two recent developments in the cluster of lawsuits facing the gallery and Kilongo. In a separate federal case brought by Brooklyn artist Stephanie Pierce in Manhattan, a clerk entered a default against Jupiter Contemporary on April 30.

Under the stipulation for the BCD Delancey settlement, the parties agreed to a final judgment of possession in favor of the landlord with a warrant to be issued immediately. Execution of the warrant was stayed until May 29 to allow the gallery to remove its property.

The agreement gave Jupiter limited access to the space on May 28 and May 29 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to clear out. Any possessions left after 2 p.m. on May 29 would be deemed abandoned and could be removed by the landlord without liability, the stipulation said. It was unclear whether any artworks remained in the gallery space for return to the artists.

Paid subscribers can read the stipulation.

Court documents: Jupiter Contemporary eviction settlement

Court records New York County Civil Court.

Urgent MatterAdam Schrader

The gallery agreed to pay $25,000 by bank check or money order within 30 days. Any security deposit on account is forfeited to the landlord and applied to the arrears, documents show.

The payment is "without prejudice" to the landlord's rights and the gallery's defenses in a companion case in the state Supreme Court involving the lease guarantor, the stipulation said.

If the gallery defaults on the payment, the landlord may restore the case to seek a money judgment against Jupiter Contemporary, the stipulation said. If the gallery failed to vacate as agreed, it would be subject to eviction upon service of a marshal's notice.

A new attorney, Michael Nacmias, filed a notice of appearance for the gallery on May 27, the same day the settlement was reached, according to court documents. A judgment of possession was entered that day.

Jupiter's earlier attorney had asked to withdraw, citing "difficulties which have inhibited my ability to vigorously represent" the gallery, Urgent Matter previously reported. The court issued a decision on that motion May 4, records show.

Urgent Matter previously reported that a judge ruled for the landlord in November 2025, awarding $48,150 and possession, and that the gallery was evicted around March 2, 2026, when New York City Marshals took over the storefront.

After the eviction, the gallery moved to vacate the judgment, arguing it had not been properly served, and asked to be restored to the space or given time to remove its property. Court records show that motion remained pending through April before the parties resolved the entire matter via the May 27 settlement.

In Pierce’s federal case, the artist sued the gallery and Kilongo in March, accusing them of failing to pay her for two works sold during a 2023 exhibition and of failing to return other pieces. She is seeking at least $100,000 in damages.

The default entered on April 30 applies to the corporate entity. Kilongo, who is representing himself, answered the complaint, but Jupiter Contemporary did not appear through a lawyer. Corporations generally cannot represent themselves in federal court without counsel.

Court records show U.S. District Judge Lewis J. Liman granted the defendants two extensions to hire an attorney, the second of which he described as final, giving them until April 24 to respond. On April 27, the judge endorsed a request from Pierce's lawyers to proceed with a default against the corporate entity, and the clerk entered the certificate of default three days later.

A certificate of default is a clerk's notation that a party has failed to appear or respond as required. It is a step that can precede a default judgment, which Pierce would need to seek separately.

Kilongo has denied the claims, writing in an answer that payment for the works had been made and that the return of the remaining pieces was in progress.

The documents reviewed for this story do not update the other matters. Artist Jade Thacker has sued the gallery and Burchard Galleries, a St. Petersburg, Florida, auction house, over an unpaid sale and works she said were listed for auction without her permission, and that case was ongoing as last reported.

A federal lawsuit over a damaged sculpture valued at $1.6 million, filed by a New York company tied to the artist who created the work, was settled and dismissed in March.

Follow along with other lawsuits at Urgent Matter's art lawsuit tracker.