This 12 months’s version of The Artwork Present, an annual artwork truthful held by the Artwork Sellers Affiliation of America (ADAA) in New York since 1988, has been known as off by organisers in what was termed a “strategic pause” in an electronic mail despatched to ADAA members this week. The information was first reported by Artnews.
“It is a pause, not a cancellation of the truthful,” a spokesperson for the ADAA informed The Artwork Newspaper in a press release. “This determination was not a response to monetary stress, nor was it a mirrored image of exhibitor curiosity—our members stay deeply engaged and dedicated.”
The ADAA says it can use the time to reassess and strengthen The Artwork Present’s truthful mannequin. All exhibitors have been contacted, and organisers have outlined subsequent steps for refunding exhibitor charges, a spokesperson informed The Artwork Newspaper. The truthful will reconvene in 2026, organisers informed members of their electronic mail, including the pause “permits us to guage how finest to assist our members, companions and the broader arts neighborhood in an evolving cultural and market panorama”.
In April, the newest Artwork Basel/UBS Artwork Market Report discovered that international gross sales of artwork and antiques fell for a second consecutive 12 months in 2024, by 12% to an estimated $57.5bn. Relating to artwork festivals, particularly, the examine discovered that whereas sellers reported gross sales elevated barely year-on-year, the share of gross sales made at festivals and different stay occasions nonetheless do not match what they had been earlier than the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Artwork Present was slated to start on 28 October with a profit preview to lift cash for Henry Road Settlement, an organisation primarily based on Manhattan’s Decrease East Facet that helps social providers, arts and healthcare programmes for New Yorkers. As an alternative, the ADAA is now directing donations to a web-based fundraising marketing campaign. Having raised greater than $38m for Henry Road Settlement over three many years, The Artwork Present has been the nonprofit’s largest fundraiser.
“That chapter has come to a detailed, and we’re grateful for the affect we achieved collectively,” the ADAA spokesperson mentioned in a press release about its partnership with the Henry Road Settlement. “Because the cultural panorama shifts, the ADAA is evolving to fulfill the second—refocusing our philanthropic efforts to assist a broader, nationwide arts ecosystem.”
Final 12 months, the ADAA launched a brand new programme at The Artwork Present known as Highlight On…, supposed to spotlight member gallery stands from cities outdoors of New York.
