Overview
- VIP preview day delivered swift, high-value deals, including David Zwirner’s $2.8 million sale of a Njideka Akunyili Crosby work and seven-figure tallies reported by David Kordansky, Pace, Gladstone and other blue-chip galleries.
- Local institutions were active buyers, with the California African American Museum acquiring a Jessica Taylor Bellamy piece, the Santa Monica Art Bank purchasing from Make Room, and works by Zenobia Lee placed with CAAM and through the Hammer–LACMA–MOCA MAC3 collaboration.
- Frieze owner Ari Emanuel bought three Yvonne Wells quilts at Fort Gansevoort and was also reported to have picked up works by Sam Gilliam, William H. Johnson and Keith Haring during the VIP preview.
- Frieze Projects foregrounded social issues through Amanda Ross‑Ho’s daily globe‑pushing performance and Patrick Martinez’s neon messages on immigration, while nonprofit AMBOS said it was abruptly relocated during setup as the fair cited operational layout changes.
- Satellite fairs broadened the week’s footprint, with Felix at the Hollywood Roosevelt reporting a convivial atmosphere and steady sales for smaller galleries, including near sell‑outs of Raina Lee’s ceramic works.