An East Asian woman in dark hair and dark shirt on the left and an East Asian woman in bleached blonde hair and yellow sleeveless dress on the right.
David Zwirner Hong Kong's new directors, Laura Shao (left), photo by Zacchaeus Zhao, and Yao Ma (right). Courtesy of David Zwirner.

David Zwirner has hired two up-and-coming players in the Asian art market, Yao Ma and Laura Shao, as directors of its Hong Kong outpost.

The appointments come after the recent departure of Leo Xu, as reported by The Asia Pivot, Artnet Pro’s members-only newsletter. Last week, Xu left his position as senior director, after seven years, to “pursue new ventures including independent research, writing, and editorial projects,” he said. Xu joined the Zwirner in 2017, after closing his own Shanghai gallery to co-direct its Hong Kong branch, which it opened in 2018 as its first outpost in Asia.

Shao had a five-year stint with Christie’s in Hong Kong, focusing on 20th- and 21st-century art, before joining Beijing’s Hive Center for Contemporary Art as its director of international business development in 2022.

Ma was most recently a director of the Lévy Gorvy Dayan gallery. Prior to that, she was a director at Salon 94, before its 2021 merger with other firms to found the short-lived LGDR consortium. Lévy Gorvy Dayan will close its Hong Kong space when its lease runs out end of the year, after five years.

Ma and Shao will work closely with Patricia Crockett, who joined the Zwirner’s Hong Kong location in 2022 as senior director. She will continue to lead the operation, which has solo shows planned for Ruth Asawa (1926-2013), Scott Kahn, and Emma McIntyre.

“It is hard to believe that our Hong Kong gallery is only six years old, since so much has happened for us and our artists during this period,” David Zwirner said in a statement. “Both Yao and Laura, given their extensive background working with private clients and important institutions in the region, will greatly strengthen our artists’ presence and visibility across the Asian art market and landscape.”

“As Asian collectors grow increasingly discerning and sophisticated,” Shao said. “I am confident that the gallery’s visionary program, artist-centric approach, and profound commitment to the region will inspire greater artistic exchange and create ripples across the ecosystem.”

Ma said that Zwirner has been “integral to the evolving Asian art market in recent years, consistently setting the standard in the art world.”