The Armory Show 2026 Opens in New York with Steady Sales and VIP Buzz
Despite broader art market headwinds, steady sales—led by a $2 million Joan Mitchell—and energized curated sections signaled an optimistic start to New York’s fall season
Following a flood of gallery openings in Tribeca and Chelsea at the start of the month, the fall art season in New York is officially in full swing with the opening of the annual Armory Show at the Javits Center on Thursday—marking its sixth edition on the far West side of Manhattan.
Despite continued challenges and uncertainty in the art market, the vibe was decidedly upbeat, attendance was solid if not frenzied, and reports of sales—from five to seven figures—began streaming in early on the VIP preview day. Topping the list of sale prices was a Joan Mitchell painting sold by Michael Rosenfeld Gallery for over $2 million to a private collection.
Bold-faced names including Jason Biggs, Jodie Foster, Paul Rudd, and Knicks star Karl-Anthony Towns were among those spotted strolling the aisles. Also in attendance was artist Rama Duwaji, wife of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
And the dedicated fair sections, especially “Focus,” which highlights artists of Caribbean descent, and “Presents,” which showcases galleries younger than 12 years old with solo and dual presentations, seemed particularly energetic and crowded.
“The Armory Show has been a great way to kick off the fall season,” veteran art dealer Sean Kelly told Galerie. “We’ve had an excellent turnout for the first day of the fair, with strong engagement from collectors and significant placements across our presentation. There’s been a real sense of energy and enthusiasm this week, and it’s been a wonderful way to reconnect with the community and begin the new season.”
Among the gallery’s initial sales were an oil on linen by Janaina Tschäpe, Flickering surrounding us, (2026) for $170,000, an oil on wood by Laurent Grasso, Studies into the past, for €60,000, Jose Dávila’s print, Untitled (Les Ménines) II, (2020), for $65,000, and Sam Moyer’s mixed media Magic Number (2026) for $125,000.
Perrotin’s solo-artist booth was abuzz with interest for the vibrantly colored, rough-textured prints of artist Kathia St. Hilaire, inspired by her ancestral roots in Haiti and experiences growing up in South Florida. “My work on Perrotin’s booth is inspired by the 1960s Haitian literary movement Spiralism, started by Frankétienne directly in response to the violent dictatorship by Francois Duvalier (or Papa Doc),” St. Hilaire said. The artist has developed a printmaking technique that builds up to 50 layers of paint, and “has the look of tapestries, specially resembling Vodun flags,” as she described it. Six artworks were sold at prices ranging from $5,000 to $45,000.
Meanwhile, Brazil-based Nara Roesler’s eye-catching booth—one of the first visitors encounter when entering the sprawling space—reported sales including Sheila Hicks’s linen on cotton, The soft side of my nature (2025) with an asking price of $260,000, Abraham Palatnik’s painting W-600 for $60,000, Marco A. Castillo’s Wakamba con facciones cartesianas 2 for $50,000, and two works by Manoela Medeiros, Tropical Still Life, Nymphaea, (2026) and Tropical Still Life, Leaves with Black Seeds (2026) for $22,000 and $9,000 respectively.
The show “has a particular energy,” said David Norr, who recently joined forces with veteran dealer James Cohan to form Norr Cohan. “People return to New York, reconnect, and discover what artists and galleries have been working on. . .We’ve had engaging conversations with collectors and curators, and we’re delighted to have placed works by Spencer Finch, Eamon Ore-Giron, Yinka Shonibare, and Alison Elizabeth Taylor in significant private collections.”