Frieze, one of the world’s leading art fairs, has announced that it is acquiring the Armory Show and Expo Chicago. This move will give Frieze a significant presence in the two most important art markets in the United States.
The Armory Show is one of the world’s oldest and largest art fairs, attracting over 40,000 visitors annually to New York City in September. Expo Chicago is a biennial fair that takes place in Chicago in April. It is the largest art fair in the Midwest, attracting over 30,000 visitors each year.
The Armory Show and Expo Chicago acquisitions are a major coup for Frieze. They will give the fair a larger audience and a stronger presence in the United States. This will likely make Frieze even more competitive with other major art fairs, such as Art Basel.
The acquisitions are also likely to be welcomed by art collectors and dealers. They will now have a single platform to reach collectors in Chicago and have a broader reach in New York.
The acquisitions signify the growing consolidation in art fairs, an inevitable need. Pre-covid, the number of art fairs flourished beyond what the market could handle, which led to many art galleries nfailing to breakeven from participation and diluting many art fairs’ quality.
