At this year’s Art Basel, only the spectacular will do

Financial Times
Galleries are conscious of the need to be seen and heard in an increasingly high-octane environment
 
For the 290 galleries going into Art Basel, it has been a while since price levels have been so visibly high. At the same time, the industry remains volatile and an increased appetite for spectacle presents new challenges for exhibitors this year…Galleries are conscious of the need to be seen and heard in an increasingly high-octane environment and are shifting their approaches accordingly…The heightened churn offers opportunities for new exhibitors (there are 18 new names in the main fair this year). Plus, [Noah] Horowitz says, the fair has put into place a 25 percent discount on booths for first-timers…Other measures include a price freeze at the Basel fair, with fees held at last year’s levels, he says.
 
“Everything helps,” says Christine Berry, co-founder of New York’s Berry Campbell, one of the new entrants this year. For them, business has been good lately, largely because of their specialism in female abstract expressionists, they say. “Female artists have been undervalued for so long that their works are holding up as their prices go up,” says fellow founder Martha Campbell. For Art Basel, their works include a vibrant, large-scale painting by Mary Abbott, “Lucy” (c. 1956-58), pre-sold before the fair, priced at $500,000.
 
— Melanie Gerlis, Financial Times
 
 
 
June 8, 2026