Dallas Art Fair Returns For Its 17th Edition With Global and Texas Powerhouses

Texas becomes the epicenter of the contemporary art world Thursday through Sunday, April 10 through 13, when Dallas Art Fair returns to Fashion Industry Gallery for its 17th edition, with 90 international, national, and Texas galleries.

Co-founded by visionary developer John Sughrue and led by longtime director Kelly Cornell, with VIP relations director Sarah Blagden, this influential boutique fair in the heart of the Dallas Arts District has come a long way from its fledgling arrival in 2009 amid daunting financial times.

Flash forward, and Dallas Arts Month, staged annually each April, is a spinoff of the Dallas Art Fair, as is one important entity that no other place in Texas currently has in such abundance: That would be collectors. With the exception of the niche collecting group Latin American Maecenas at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Dallas has undeniably eclipsed every other Texas city as a 21st-century nexus for investigating and acquiring visual culture.

Expect big players come April, as well as those with independent vision, as Dallas Art Fair year 17 unfurls galleries that deal art in more than 50 cities and hamlets spanning five continents.

Among the highlights: global powerhouse Perrotin; unique internationals such as Mexico City dealers OMR, Galerîa Ethra, and Saenger Galerîa; London-based gallerists including Hales Gallery (home to Sir Frank Bowling’s immersive abstractions), Josh Lilley Gallery, Ronchini Gallery, TAFETA (with its topical focus on 20th-century and contemporary African art), and fresh arrivals The Sunday Painter and LBF Contemporary; Italian exports SECCI and Luce Gallery; in from Dublin, the elevated Kerlin Gallery; intriguing Japanese dealers including Osaka-based Tezukayama Gallery and Koki Arts of Tokyo; and Cape Town gallerist WHATIFTHEWORLD, bringing works addressing Africa and the African diaspora.

Among the U.S. delegation are iconic-to-cool NYC dealers including Alexander Berggruen, Canada, Hollis Taggart, Franklin Parrasch Gallery (home to West Coast pioneers such as Peter Alexander, Billy Al Bengston, and John Altoon, and the mythic Texan Forrest Bess), Yossi Milo, DIMIN, Morgan Lehman Gallery, Ulterior Gallery, and JDJ as well as Queens gallery Mrs. and newcomer Brooklyn dealer Carvalho Park; buzzy Southerners SOCO Gallery of Charlotte, Wolfgang Gallery of Atlanta, and Memphis new arrival Tops Gallery, a good bet for Outsider talents; and Detroit notable Library Street Collective, whose stable includes Dallas great Jammie Holmes.

Showcasing L.A. action (always one of the Dallas Art Fair’s calling cards) are Anat Ebgi, Louis Stern Fine Arts, Luis De Jesus Los Angeles, Make Room, SPY Projects, and Vielmetter Los Angeles.

These dealers join 14 Texas-founded galleries, including must-check-out Martha’s from Austin and new arrival Jody Klotz Fine Art of Abilene (ask to see color-field canvases by the rediscovered Alice Baber).

Stay tuned for updates, including our reveal of what top Texas galleries are planning for their booths.

Dallas Art Fair, April 10 – 13, at Fashion Industry Gallery; Dallas Art Fair Foundation Preview Benefit, Thursday, April 10, 5 to 9 pm, supporting Dallas Contemporary, Dallas Museum of Art, and Nasher Sculpture Center; fair admission from $36, Preview Benefit $260; tickets, dealer lineup, info here.