With zero transition between the slow summer pace and a frenzy of openings and art happenings, on September 6, New York City was stormed with half a dozen art fairs around Manhattan.The main fair, the Armory Show at the Javits Center was in line with last year’s edition, even though it was recently acquired by Frieze. Revisiting histories was the theme of the large-scale installations at the center of the fair and I was in awe with the James Cohan’s installation of Yinka Shonibare CBE, RA (Man Moving Up, 2022) as well as the thematically powerful wall map of Teresita Fernandez (Island Universe 2, 2023) by Lehmann Maupin. It was physically impossible to go through the whole fair on the same day. Notable booths were Ludorff with the vibrant works of Katharina Grosse, Anat Ebgi with the thick impasto paintings of Alec Egan, Moskowitz Bayse with the Folded Fan by artist Michael Henry Hayden, Public Gallery with the unsettling sculptures by Cathrin Hoffman and Miles McEnery Gallery with the poignant work of Raffi Kalenderian. In the same mood were the gripping works of Rebecca Brodskis at Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery. I also loved Michael Kohn’s booth with the work of current Whitney Museum artist Ilana Savdie and artist Nir Hod. Last but not least, Victoria Miro stood out with their presentation of Columbian artist Maria Berrio. It was definitely a welcomed break to tour the Solo section to cut the overwhelming aspect of the fair.

The novelty was the adjacent Photo Fairs taking place under the same roof (Javits Center). At the entrance, the photographs by Thandiwe Muriu at 193 Gallery were mesmerizing. The whole Gallery selection and presentation of the fair directed by Helen Toomer was delightful and enriching to walk through. Four booths that transported me were Tern Gallery, Osmos, Unix Gallery and Huxley-Parlor.

The next day I headed to a more serene part of town, the Seaport. Independent 20th Century was hosted in the majestic ceiling building of Cipriani South Street. Every booth there had a spectacular presentation and it wasn’t possible not to stare at the ravishing Marie Laurencin paintings, hanging at Nahmad Contemporary’s booth. I was also absorbed by the structured Band Paintings by Norman Zammitt at Karma’s booth. Vito Schnabel’s Warhol Commissioned Portraits looked magnificent in this vast space and so did the booth of Venus Over Manhattan with the juxtaposition of Alexander Calder works and the giant Grade Society Figures.

I definitely had the most fun at the Spring/Break Art Show, and so did my four-year-old. Most of the booths were very amusing, introducing AI, intriguing materials and effects to the installations, a wonderful fair to discover emerging talent and trends. There, artist Stuart Lantry stole the show with the Reinvented Wheel curated by Shona McAndrew. Gallery Poulsen certainly stood out with Jingyi Wang’s cactus-faced figures. The artist Masha Merci with her uncanny body parts was a major highlight at Filo Sofi Arts. The booth curated by Jamie Dolan, We Outside, was the cherry on top to end the visit.