New York Art Week Review: Top Trends Fall 2024
As New York City buzzed with activity during September's art week, a range of influential art fairs and exhibitions, including the Armory Show, Independent, SPRING/BREAK, and Art on Paper, highlighted the evolving trends in the art market. There were too many exhibitions, fairs, and gallery openings to name or to attend. Still, they bring together a global array of galleries, gallerists, advisors, and collectors – the “art ecosystem” - that gives a snapshot view of the latest artistic developments and market dynamics. This week serves as a bellwether for the fall art market's health and fall sentiments amongst buyers and is even more relevant this fall given the much-publicized market pullback and volatility for the contemporary art market segment.
Our experience and observations, as specialists in the trenches of contemporary art, is that these market performance dynamics have been operative in the past several years. Furthermore, the emerging art market, which recently has been effectively rebranded as “ultra-contemporary,” extreme volatility that has met much press attention, is endemic to the collecting category and has been a consistent pattern for the past 20 years. In order to operate in that market, collectors need to be razor-focused on the primary market, collecting more for art’s sake than speculating, and be extremely nimble to respond to changing currents and themes that are deemed relevant.
However, to highlight the most relevant artistic trends running dominant throughout fairs, gallery shows, and collector’s buying habits – here is a round-up of recurring themes observed.
Top 10 Trends During New York Art Week (Fall 2024)
New Materiality: Artists consistently pushed the boundaries of traditional mediums and material quality by exploring their physical properties and appearance. They often challenged viewers' expectations, aiming to command attention and create a visually immersive experience.
Credit & Courtesy of: Chris Soal, The plot, 2024, WHATIFTHEWORLD Gallery [The Amory Show – Booth F7]
Artist Info: https://chrissoal.com/
WHAT IF THE WORLD Gallery: https://www.whatiftheworld.com/
Glorification of Commodity Status: A new generation of artists have a rejuvenated and newfound interest in the commodity, whether it be by elevating everyday objects and commercial products into art, challenging perceptions of value, and or questioning the issues surrounding material desire.
Credit & Courtesy of: Tschabalala Self, Bodega Run, 2024, Two Palms Gallery [The Armory Show – Booth 219]
Artist Info: https://tschabalalaself.com/
Two Palms Gallery: https://www.twopalms.us/
Body Impressions: Although the interest in human form to explore identity and physical presence has been a consistent area of interest for several years and dominant amongst emerging talents, this fall season we saw artists exploring ways in which impressions, shadows, and the traces of bodies create symbolic and historical impressions within culture and how its institutional codification impacts social constructs. We also saw a reawaking and openness to show important dialogues from artists dating back to the 1970s and 1980s, who began this important line of inquiry but had been underrepresented or overlooked by history.
Credit & Courtesy of: Emma Amos, Chorus Line, 1985, Ryan Lee Gallery [Independent]
Artist Info: https://emmaamos.com/wordpress/
Ryan Lee Gallery: https://ryanleegallery.com/
Ethereal Metaphysical: There is a newfound interest and willingness to present artists who explore the intangible realms, the paranormal, and desire to evoke otherworldliness and contemplation on spiritual and cosmic ideas. Whilst post-war politics and the art world made such inquiries verboten for future decades – perhaps the recent museum and art historian’s reconsideration of early progenitors of the spiritual in art has created a new permission structure within the art market to show and promote such creative interests.
Credit & Courtesy of: Natascha Schmitten, Tangled up II, 2019, Galerie Christian Lethert [The Amory Show – Booth 103]
Artist Info: http://www.nataschaschmitten.com/
Christian Lethert Gallery: https://www.christianlethert.com/en/
Nature as Simulacrum: Whilst most would agree that the evolution of Baudrillard's Simulacrum is now complete, artists this fall focused on interrogating his notions in our new metaverse. Many artists challenged viewers to question the authenticity of their experience and the ever-expanding inauthenticity of our physical world – in particular their relationship to nature which is largely informed by proxy. It seems that such refocus is now one that echoes the sentiments of a new generation of creatives, that are adulting with the urgency of ecological neglect and have based their practice on such a prescient demise.
Credit & Courtesy of: Tamara Kostianovsky, Installation view, 2024, RX&SLAG Gallery [The Amory Show – Booth S3]
Artist Info: https://tamarakostianovsky.com/home.html
RX & SLAG Gallery: https://galerierx.com/en
Brave New Forms: It was a welcome shift within the art week to witness a powerful resurgence of sculpture, with artists embracing bold, large-scale, and experimental forms that push the boundaries of three-dimensional art, reasserting it as a dominant medium. The unsteady market conditions of the past several years made many dealers, somewhat uneasy about bringing anything but “flat art” to fairs due to economic risks, and it was a noticeable improvement over the past several years.
Credit & Courtesy of: Hector Dionicio Mendoza, Installation view, 2024, Luis De Jesus Gallery [The Armory Show – Booth F4]
Artist Info: https://www.luisdejesus.com/index.php/artists/hector-dionicio-mendoza1
Luis De Jesus Gallery: https://www.luisdejesus.com/index.php/
Female Gaze: Artists of the Z Generation, who no longer accept that the male gaze is the predominant viewpoint regarding the body, gender, and sexuality, were plainly evident during Armory Week. Art that both reflects and challenges patriarchal perspectives, reshaping narratives and expanding the discourse on gender politics, was simply everywhere. Sitters are no longer relegated to passive object status, but rather powerful figures that engage and formulate direct relationships with their viewers, uninterrupted by the male gaze.
Credit & Courtesy of: Ángeles Agrela, Janet, 2024, Nicodim Gallery [The Armory Show – Booth 416]
Artist Info: https://www.nicodimgallery.com/artists/angeles-agrela
Gallery: https://www.nicodimgallery.com/
Ethnography in Art: Many artists have focused their practice on reinterpreting culture, and its artifacts, to ask questions surrounding the power structures that define what is considered worthy in art and “Culture” by exploring identity, heritage, systems of oppression and cross-cultural dialogues.
Credit & Courtesy of: Tim Okamura/ Wildcat Ebony Brown, The Prodigious Wildcat Ebony Brown, 2023, Christian Marx Galerie [Volta Art Fair – Booth 44]
Artist Info: https://www.tim-okamura.com/ & https://www.wildcatebonybrown.com/about
Christian Marx Galerie Gallery: https://www.christianmarx.gallery/
New Pictorialism: Blending nostalgic aesthetic and pictorial traditions with contemporary techniques and tastes, this pictoriality was ever-present in landscapes, which explores nature, idealism, and human connection.
Credit & Courtesy of: Benjamin King, Folding Space, 2021, Benjamin King [Spring/Break – Booth 17]
Artist Info: https://www.benjamin-king.com/
Apolitical – A Return to Formalism: It seemed that in the most political of times, some artists, dealers, and art fairs consciously shifted away from engaging with political themes, choosing instead to return to the assumed “universality” of formalism and the intrinsic qualities of art for art’s sake.
Credit & Courtesy of: Nando Stevoli, Plissé, 2018, Wook Gallery + Lattuada Gallery [Art on Paper New York – Booth A03]
Artist Info: https://www.lattuadagallery.com/en/lattuada-gallery-contemporary-art/nando-stevoli
Wook + Lattuada Gallery: https://www.wooklattuada.com/
Best Gallery Opening Scene: A shout out to the incredible exhibitions at Hauser & Wirth, featuring Jason Rhoades: DRIVE II, a powerful exploration of material culture and contemporary life. Also, one show it seemed the entire NY Art world decided was not to be missed was the opening of Rashid Johnson’s conception of the exhibition, LEON GOLUB: ET IN ARCADIA EGO, that delves into themes of power, violence, and mortality through Golub's provocative works.
Credit & Courtesy of: Jason Rhoades, Installation view, Hauser & Wirth.
For additional details reporting on the museum, fairs, and noteworthy gallery openings, see the following:
HYPERALLERGIC: https://hyperallergic.com/945075/a-sneak-peek-at-the-armory-show-2024/
The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/08/arts/design/13-best-booths-art-armory-fair.html
ART FORUM: https://www.artforum.com/news/armory-show-announces-exhibitors-2024-edition-555467/
ARTSY: https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-curators-guide-armory-2024
HAUSER & WIRTH: https://www.hauserwirth.com/hauser-wirth-exhibitions/jason-rhoades-drive-ii/ & https://www.hauserwirth.com/hauser-wirth-exhibitions/et-in-arcadia-ego-conceived-by-rashid-johnson/
Reporting from the Desk of Renée Vara, Associate Edited by Valentina Scarzella
All content ©VARA ART. All images and art © Artists, Galleries & Fairs