Colonia Condesa Museums and Galleries

The Cuban-born Nina Menocal is the legendary force who has propelled the careers of many contemporary Mexican and Cuban artists and curators, among them the now legendary Felix Gonzalez-Torres, who she showed in Mexico in the early 1990's. Aside from presenting the work of established international artists like Rosa Brun and Atelier Morales, Menocal also organizes small buying trips to Cuba for serious collectors. The gallery is by appointment only. Photograph by Patrick Pettersson

Monica Manzutto and her husband José Kuri's gallery is probably the first to roll off anyone's tongue when talking about the contemporary art scene in Mexico. Together with their pal Gabriel Orozco, probably Mexico's most famous contemporary artist, in the early 2000's they came up with the idea of presenting the work of their contemporaries in pop-up spaces all over the city (and the world). Of course, nowadays, those artists—among them, Daniel Guzmán, Abraham Cruzvillegas, Damián Ortega—are big names and so is Kurimanzutto, which settled into a gorgeous gallery space in 2008, with quite the roster of local and international artists. Don't miss this gallery: The exquisite Alberto Kalach-designed space is worth the visit alone—it's one of our favorite examples of contemporary architecture in the city.