At Frieze New York, Business Plunks Along, Leonardo Dicaprio Alights

Frieze New York opened at The Shed with a noticeably restrained atmosphere, yet the market was active from the start. In the fair's 14th year, dealers and advisors described an event that feels less urgent than it once did, even as major galleries reported brisk early sales and collectors continued to circulate through the aisles.

Thaddaeus Ropac said he closed four sales within the first few minutes of the fair, likely deals that had been taking shape before the doors opened. Among them were a large 2012 George Baselitz canvas for €1.4 million, or about $1.6 million, a semi-abstract black-and-white Alex Katz work for $400,000, and Joan Snyder's Buds & Blossoms (2025) for $150,000. Ropac said the arrival of strong material helps the entire market, a view that seemed to hold as the opening unfolded.

The fair's commercial tone was steady rather than feverish. David Zwirner's booth, anchored by new large-scale Joe Bradley paintings, drew attention with prices ranging from $550,000 to $750,000; by early afternoon, all were on hold. At Hauser & Wirth, four new Cindy Sherman photographs, each an edition of six, were priced between $175,000 and $195,000. Some had sold by the afternoon, while third editions remained available, though they will not be printed for at least five weeks. Leonardo DiCaprio made a couple of visits to the booth.

James Cohan Gallery reported a strong response to Kelly Sinnapah Mary's lush paintings, priced from $25,000 to $130,000. By afternoon, all six had sold, with the largest going to a museum. Elsewhere, Gagosian placed a collage version of Derrick Adams's mural tribute to the late curator Koyo Kouoh for under $100,000, and Almine Rech sold James Turrell's Thought as Thing (2025) for between $900,000 and $1 million. Tina Kim Gallery also sold a Ha Chong-Hyun painting for $180,000.

If the fair no longer carries the sense of inevitability it once did, it still remains a place where the market, and the conversation around it, can shift in real time. Advisors said that even when collectors arrive prepared to browse, the fair can still alter what they notice, what they reconsider, and what they decide to pursue next.

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