This year, The Armory Show\u2019s traditional sections\u2014Galleries, Solo, Focus, Presents\u2014were joined by Function, a new strand exploring the intersection of art and design, and a reimagined Platform, spotlighting nonprofit curatorial vision. Of these, Presents\u2014the section featuring galleries ten years old or younger\u2014surprisingly emerged as the fair\u2019s emotional core, offering a strong presence of up-and-coming voices and marked by palpable energy and oozing originality. More than a simple area survey, Focus, curated by Jessica Bell Brown, placed the Southern United States front and centre as a site of memory, counter-history, and myth-making. Works by RF. Alvarez, Aineki Traverso, and Baldwin Lee, as well as the iconic Gee\u2019s Bend quilts (a joy to see them displayed at the heart of the fair), conveyed the complexity and urgency of often-overlooked Southern narratives with clarity and poignancy. Platform, curated this year by Raina Lampkins-Fielder and the Souls Grown Deep Foundation, further expanded this emphasis through powerful installations by Thornton Dial, Mary T. Smith, and other artists whose work crystallizes freedom as lived practice. Function, meanwhile, dissolved the traditional divide between utility and expression with a selection of design-driven works that extended the fair\u2019s scope in thoughtful and innovative ways. These categorizations, rather than serving as simple marketing devices, conferred clarity and structure upon the sprawling display, helping visitors to perceive underlying currents and underscoring the fair\u2019s renewed sense of cultural purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Armory Show, New York, 2025.
Photo: Casey Kelbaugh, courtesy of The Armory Show & CKA, New York<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
A broader shift, perhaps influenced by current political polarizations, was also perceptible in the representation of BIPOC identities across the fair\u2019s sections. Compared to earlier editions, which often leaned toward boldly political declarations, this year the register was more nuanced: works that suggested rather than proclaimed, that unfolded through metaphor, subtle layering, and introspection, seemed more prominent. The result was no less political, but somewhat deeper; maybe also a sign that the urgency of representation has entered a new phase of sophistication. Only time will tell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As is to be expected, paintings dominated the fair. New York\u2019s Berry Campbell and Public and London\u2019s Saatchi Yates stood out for originality and consistency, breaking the formulaic tide. But it was textile works that provided some of the most arresting moments. In this field, Chicago galleries excelled. Secrist | Beach presented Jacqueline Surdell\u2019s monumental woven sculptures. A fourteen-foot reinterpretation of Giotto\u2019s Last Judgment<\/em> (1303\u201305), radically reinterpreted in rope and printed fabrics, accumulated layers of art-historical resonance and raw, gestural materiality. Surdell\u2019s weaving transformed the booth into a site of excess and rupture, where the weight of tradition was woven into contemporary poetics straddling the biographical and the political. Povos, likewise risk-taking and materially daring, extended this textile emphasis with works by experimental artist Leopoldo Gout, who redefines tactility as a critical language through which the representation of distant celestial bodies can be re-envisioned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
$\"\"$
Jacqueline Surdell<\/strong>
Suddenly she was hell-bent and ravenous (after Giotto)<\/em>, installation view, The Armory Show, New York, 2025.
Photo: Ben Davis<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
Among the many strong showings, two galleries deserve particular mention. Bar\u00f3 Galeria mounted a selection of work by Joana Vasconcelos. Her sculptural exuberance was here tempered with refined restraint, allowing the play of ornament and scale to shine in dialogue with a carefully curated booth. Retro Africa challenged conventional expectations by presenting an original and intriguing selection that pointed toward new trajectories in Black aesthetics: forward-leaning, surprising, and refreshingly unconstrained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
$\"\"$
\u00c9lise Lafontaine<\/strong>
Pang\u00e9e’s Booth, The Armory Show, New York, 2025.
Photo: Dawn Blackman, courtesy of Pang\u00e9e, Montr\u00e9al<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
The fair\u2019s international breadth was also underscored by a particularly strong Canadian presence. Patel Brown impressed with a bold and graceful display of Alexa Kumiko Hatanaka\u2019s haunting works on paper: her sweeping linocuts on handmade washi evoked environmental collapse and psychic turbulence in imagery both cerebral and dreamlike. Blouin Division surprised with a booth that balanced conceptual sharpness with formal refinement, confirming its role as one of Montr\u00e9al\u2019s most dynamic platforms. Pang\u00e9e offered a vibrant and youthful counterpoint, signaling how newer Montr\u00e9al galleries are staking ground on the international stage. Patrick Mikhail Gallery, also from Montr\u00e9al, contributed a carefully curated selection that emphasized a dialogue between abstraction and material experimentation, and Dastan, with its Toronto outpost complementing its Tehran base, brought a cosmopolitan perspective that bridged Canadian and Middle Eastern sensibilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
$\"\"$
Blouin Division’s Booth, The Armory Show, New York, 2025.
Photo: courtesy of Blouin Division, Montr\u00e9al & Toronto<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
Collectively, these booths demonstrated the sophistication, diversity, and ambition of the Canadian scene, which, far from peripheral, has become a growing and defining presence at the Armory Show. What emerged overall from this year\u2019s edition was a fair that felt unusually fresh and optimistic. Under the leadership of director Kyla McMillan\u2014her first full edition since Frieze\u2019s acquisition of the event\u2014the Armory Show conveyed a confidence that was both structural and curatorial. Clear sectional logic, the centring of Southern and Black voices, a balance of emerging and established galleries, and a willingness to embrace risk without losing coherence all contributed to an atmosphere of organic renewal. In a moment when art fairs are often flattened by sameness or spectacle, this edition of the Armory Show reclaims its position as both a commercial powerhouse and a snapshot of our cultural time as seen through art.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Javits Center,<\/strong> New York
September 5\u20137, 2025<\/br><\/br>","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":270337,"template":"","categories":[884,892],"numeros":[],"disciplines":[],"statuts":[],"checklist":[],"auteurs":[932],"artistes":[3888,2667,7658],"thematiques":[],"type_compte-rendu":[],"class_list":["post-270351","compte-rendu","type-compte-rendu","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-reviews","category-webzine","auteurs-giovanni-aloi-en","artistes-alexa-kumico-hatanaka-en","artistes-elise-lafontaine-en","artistes-jacqueline-surdell-en"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/compte-rendu\/270351","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/compte-rendu"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/compte-rendu"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/270337"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=270351"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=270351"},{"taxonomy":"numeros","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/numeros?post=270351"},{"taxonomy":"disciplines","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/disciplines?post=270351"},{"taxonomy":"statuts","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/statuts?post=270351"},{"taxonomy":"checklist","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/checklist?post=270351"},{"taxonomy":"auteurs","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/auteurs?post=270351"},{"taxonomy":"artistes","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artistes?post=270351"},{"taxonomy":"thematiques","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/thematiques?post=270351"},{"taxonomy":"type_compte-rendu","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/type_compte-rendu?post=270351"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}

The Armory Show, New York, 2025.
Photo: Casey Kelbaugh, courtesy of The Armory Show & CKA, New York<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
A broader shift, perhaps influenced by current political polarizations, was also perceptible in the representation of BIPOC identities across the fair\u2019s sections. Compared to earlier editions, which often leaned toward boldly political declarations, this year the register was more nuanced: works that suggested rather than proclaimed, that unfolded through metaphor, subtle layering, and introspection, seemed more prominent. The result was no less political, but somewhat deeper; maybe also a sign that the urgency of representation has entered a new phase of sophistication. Only time will tell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As is to be expected, paintings dominated the fair. New York\u2019s Berry Campbell and Public and London\u2019s Saatchi Yates stood out for originality and consistency, breaking the formulaic tide. But it was textile works that provided some of the most arresting moments. In this field, Chicago galleries excelled. Secrist | Beach presented Jacqueline Surdell\u2019s monumental woven sculptures. A fourteen-foot reinterpretation of Giotto\u2019s Last Judgment<\/em> (1303\u201305), radically reinterpreted in rope and printed fabrics, accumulated layers of art-historical resonance and raw, gestural materiality. Surdell\u2019s weaving transformed the booth into a site of excess and rupture, where the weight of tradition was woven into contemporary poetics straddling the biographical and the political. Povos, likewise risk-taking and materially daring, extended this textile emphasis with works by experimental artist Leopoldo Gout, who redefines tactility as a critical language through which the representation of distant celestial bodies can be re-envisioned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
$\"\"$
Jacqueline Surdell<\/strong>
Suddenly she was hell-bent and ravenous (after Giotto)<\/em>, installation view, The Armory Show, New York, 2025.
Photo: Ben Davis<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
Among the many strong showings, two galleries deserve particular mention. Bar\u00f3 Galeria mounted a selection of work by Joana Vasconcelos. Her sculptural exuberance was here tempered with refined restraint, allowing the play of ornament and scale to shine in dialogue with a carefully curated booth. Retro Africa challenged conventional expectations by presenting an original and intriguing selection that pointed toward new trajectories in Black aesthetics: forward-leaning, surprising, and refreshingly unconstrained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
$\"\"$
\u00c9lise Lafontaine<\/strong>
Pang\u00e9e’s Booth, The Armory Show, New York, 2025.
Photo: Dawn Blackman, courtesy of Pang\u00e9e, Montr\u00e9al<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
The fair\u2019s international breadth was also underscored by a particularly strong Canadian presence. Patel Brown impressed with a bold and graceful display of Alexa Kumiko Hatanaka\u2019s haunting works on paper: her sweeping linocuts on handmade washi evoked environmental collapse and psychic turbulence in imagery both cerebral and dreamlike. Blouin Division surprised with a booth that balanced conceptual sharpness with formal refinement, confirming its role as one of Montr\u00e9al\u2019s most dynamic platforms. Pang\u00e9e offered a vibrant and youthful counterpoint, signaling how newer Montr\u00e9al galleries are staking ground on the international stage. Patrick Mikhail Gallery, also from Montr\u00e9al, contributed a carefully curated selection that emphasized a dialogue between abstraction and material experimentation, and Dastan, with its Toronto outpost complementing its Tehran base, brought a cosmopolitan perspective that bridged Canadian and Middle Eastern sensibilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
$\"\"$
Blouin Division’s Booth, The Armory Show, New York, 2025.
Photo: courtesy of Blouin Division, Montr\u00e9al & Toronto<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
Collectively, these booths demonstrated the sophistication, diversity, and ambition of the Canadian scene, which, far from peripheral, has become a growing and defining presence at the Armory Show. What emerged overall from this year\u2019s edition was a fair that felt unusually fresh and optimistic. Under the leadership of director Kyla McMillan\u2014her first full edition since Frieze\u2019s acquisition of the event\u2014the Armory Show conveyed a confidence that was both structural and curatorial. Clear sectional logic, the centring of Southern and Black voices, a balance of emerging and established galleries, and a willingness to embrace risk without losing coherence all contributed to an atmosphere of organic renewal. In a moment when art fairs are often flattened by sameness or spectacle, this edition of the Armory Show reclaims its position as both a commercial powerhouse and a snapshot of our cultural time as seen through art.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Javits Center,<\/strong> New York
September 5\u20137, 2025<\/br><\/br>","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":270337,"template":"","categories":[884,892],"numeros":[],"disciplines":[],"statuts":[],"checklist":[],"auteurs":[932],"artistes":[3888,2667,7658],"thematiques":[],"type_compte-rendu":[],"class_list":["post-270351","compte-rendu","type-compte-rendu","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-reviews","category-webzine","auteurs-giovanni-aloi-en","artistes-alexa-kumico-hatanaka-en","artistes-elise-lafontaine-en","artistes-jacqueline-surdell-en"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/compte-rendu\/270351","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/compte-rendu"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/compte-rendu"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/270337"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=270351"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=270351"},{"taxonomy":"numeros","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/numeros?post=270351"},{"taxonomy":"disciplines","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/disciplines?post=270351"},{"taxonomy":"statuts","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/statuts?post=270351"},{"taxonomy":"checklist","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/checklist?post=270351"},{"taxonomy":"auteurs","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/auteurs?post=270351"},{"taxonomy":"artistes","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artistes?post=270351"},{"taxonomy":"thematiques","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/thematiques?post=270351"},{"taxonomy":"type_compte-rendu","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/type_compte-rendu?post=270351"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}