The Affordable Art Fair, an organization that hosts nontraditional art fairs in 11 cities across the world, has announced that it will debut a fair in Austin in May 2024.
The Affordable Art Fair
The first edition of the Affordable Art Fair took place in 1999 at Battersea Park in London. Since then, the organization has grown to include fairs in New York, Hong Kong, Hamburg, Amsterdam, Brussels, Singapore, Shanghai, Stockholm, Melbourne, and Sydney. Along with coming to Austin this year, the Affordable Art Fair will host first-time fairs in Berlin and Brisbane.
In a press release, Cori Teague, Director of the Affordable Art Fair Austin, commented, “When looking at which U.S. city would be the best fit for our first national location outside of New York City, Austin was at the top of our list. We felt a strong connection to the city and saw the demand for contemporary art at an affordable price. The Austin community has an appetite to learn, have new cultural experiences, and connect with the local creative scene in a new and exciting way, and we’re here to do that.”
Unlike traditional fairs like Frieze and Art Basel, the Affordable Art Fair has a price cap: works ranging from $100 to $10,000 will be available for purchase. The fair engages local, national, and international galleries to present art by emerging and established artists in a range of media. Austin-based participating artists and their respective galleries include B. Shawn Cox, represented by Davis Gallery and Framing; America Martin, represented by Wally Workman Gallery; and Adrian Armstrong, represented by Flatbed Press. Other participating Texas galleries are McLennon Pen Co. and Sage Studio in Austin, and Dimmitt Gallery in Houston.
While Austin regularly hosts large-scale music and tech festivals, including Austin City Limits and South by Southwest, the city has not seen an art fair put on regular programming. Most recently, the Satellite Art Show hosted its first (and so far only) edition in the city in 2019. Before that, in 2017, Art City Austin made a run at putting together a more formalized fair, with that year’s edition hosting Houston galleries, including Cindy Lisica Gallery, Devin Borden Gallery, and Art Palace.
The Affordable Art Fair Austin will be held at the Palmer Events Center (900 Barton Springs Road) from May 16 – 19. Ticket prices range from $12 for general admission to $50 for special events. Additionally, $10 tickets are available for active military and veterans, people with accessibility needs, students, and senior citizens. Children under 16 attend the fair at no charge. Learn more and purchase tickets via the Affordable Art Fair Austin Eventbrite listing.
