The Art Dealers Association of America (ADAA) has announced the programming schedule for its 36th annual iteration of The Art Show, a fair that brings together galleries from across the U.S.
Over the last three and a half decades, The Art Show has raised over $37 million for the nonprofit Henry Street Settlement, a New York-based social service and cultural organization. This year’s fair will showcase 75 galleries, debut a new program presented in collaboration with the Association of Art Museum Curators (AAMC), and mark the launch of a new initiative to highlight ADAA member galleries in a specific city.
In partnership with the AAMC Foundation, ADAA is hosting its inaugural Curatorial Vision Convening on Friday, November 1, 2024. The initiative centers curatorial voices that speak to the challenges within the nonprofit curatorial sector. For its first iteration, the convening theme will be Leadership Today, and includes two invitation-only private panels and a public program moderated by Courtney J. Martin, the Executive Director of the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation, and bringing together museum leaders: Asma Naeem, the Dorothy Wagner Wallis Director at the Baltimore Museum of Art; Alejandra Peña Gutiérrez, the Director of the Weisman Art Museum; and Mónica Ramírez-Montagut, the Executive Director of the Parrish Art Museum.
The inaugural “Spotlight On…” program will focus on Houston, serving as a platform for an exploration of the city’s art scene. A series of panel discussions featuring Houston artists, curators, museum directors, art dealers, cultural advocates, and collectors, will be held on Wednesday, October 30, 2024. Speakers include John Guess, Jr., the Chief Executive Officer of the Houston Museum of African American Culture; Hesse McGraw, the Executive Director of Contemporary Arts Museum Houston; Alison Weaver, Founding Executive Director of the Moody Center for the Arts at Rice University; and Michelle White, Senior Curator of The Menil Collection; Paola Creixell, Founder of PAC Art Residency; Xandra Eden, the Executive Director of DiverseWorks; Pete Gershon, Curator of Programs at the Orange Show Center for Visionary Art; Danielle Burns Wilson, the Executive Director/Art Director at Project Row Houses; and others.
Additionally, ADAA has worked with Walley Films, a Texas-based independent filmmaking group, to create a short documentary featuring Houston ADAA members, including Inman Gallery, McClain Gallery, Josh Pazda Hiram Butler, Sicardi | Ayers | Bacino, and Texas Gallery. The film will be on view during The Art Show, see the trailer below.
In a press release, Kinsey Robb, the Executive Director of the ADAA, commented, “The establishment of ‘Spotlight On…’ creates a powerful new platform to explore the vibrant artistic communities that define the strength and national scope of the ADAA. We are thrilled to launch this initiative with ‘Spotlight On…Houston’ which provides us the opportunity to deepen our understanding of the city’s dynamic arts community while attracting new audiences and fostering new relationships at the fair.”
The Art Show will take place from Wednesday, October 30 through Saturday, November 2 at the Park Avenue Armory in New York City. Learn more about The Art Show via the fair’s website.