This year’s Frieze New York art fair closed yesterday evening after a four-day run on Randall’s Island, New York. The blockbuster art fair in its current iteration came under attack for its perceived inhospitality to smaller and mid-sized galleries, and for compelling gallerists  to show only conformist, saleable work by the high cost of attendance. That temperatures on Thursday reached upwards of ninety degrees certainly did little to quash fair-goer discontent. Nevertheless, The New Criterion’s Executive Editor James Panero and I visited the fair on Friday. Here are a few items of interest, chosen from the 180-plus participating galleries.

Emma Amos, Seated Figure and Nude, 1966, Oil on canvas, Ryan Lee Gallery, New York.
Photo: Andrew Shea
Paintings by Peter Dreher at the Koenig & Clinton Gallery booth. Photo: Andrew Shea
Aluminum and copper wire wall sculpture by El Anatsui at the Jack Shainman Gallery booth. Photo: Andrew Shea

 

David Hockney, Self Portrait II, 14 March 2012, 2012, iPad drawing printed on paper, Pace Gallery.
Oil painting by Enrique Martinez Celaya at the Jack Shainman Gallery booth. Photo: Andrew Shea
Porcelain works by Aneta Regal at the Jason Jacques Gallery booth. Photo: Andrew Shea
James views Robert Therrien’s No title (folding table and chairs, green), 2008, at the Gagosian booth. Photo: Andrew Shea
Paintings on paper by Milton Resnik at the Miguel Abreu Gallery booth. Photo: Andrew Shea

Anoka Faruqee, 2018P-15 and 2018P-01, 2018, Acrylic on linen on Panel, Koenig & Clinton

Andrew L. Shea is Associate Editor of  The New Criterion.