SEATTLE, WA.- With a toast to the city led by Paul Allen and The Honorable Ed Murray, Mayor of Seattle, the inaugural Seattle Art Fair roared into action on Thursday evening. The Seattle Art Fair opened to an animated, engaged crowd of 4,000 collectors, curators, museum directors, and art lovers as a unique moment focused entirely on the city itself​. The people of Seattle responded with a powerful enthusiasm reflected in strong sales and sizable attendance. Visitors to the fair's acclaimed first edition were met with an intriguing exhibition​ ​of ​sixty-two local, regional, and national galleries alongside a program of public installations, performances, and special exhibitions.

Sales were robust across the board, with acquisitions of important work reported ​in all price ranges. Gagosian Gallery enjoyed an active Preview and noted the enthusiasm of the crowd, which included prominent collectors as well as museum directors and curators from across the region. New York City's Allan Stone Projects​ sold​ a Dan Basen mixed media piece and a Wayne Thiebaud early work on paper in the fair's opening moments. Paul Kasmin Gallery sold ​Revolution #2, by Ivan Navarro, Pace Gallery placed two of their stunning teamLab interactive digital installations, and David Zwirner Gallery sold work by Oscar Murillo and Christopher Williams in the fair's first hours​. Seattle's Greg Kucera Gallery also saw sales across their program's presented price points including the placement of Sherry Markovitz's Poodle Head, two Margie Livingston paint pieces, and a William Kentridge. ​​James Cohan Gallery saw significant interest in the works of Spencer Finch and and sold several pieces by Elias Sime. Adelson Galleries sold Jamie Wyeth's Sisters - Six in a Suite of Untoward Occurrences on Monhegan Island. Other highlights include Catharine Clark Gallery's sale of sculpture by Wanxin Zhang and Jonathan Ferrara Gallery​'s​ placement​ of work by Skylar Fein and Nikki Rosato. ​Seattle's Roq La Rue sold work on paper by local artist Amanda Manitach as well as acrylics on panel by Travis Louie and Camille Rose Garcia. Samsøn Projects sold work by Mark Cooper to a prominent New York City collector, ​New York's Maxwell Davidson Gallery sold ​several works by Thomas Witte, and Seattle galley Winston Wächter Fine Art sold four mixed media and sculpture by Dustin Yellin.

The first two hours of the Seattle Art Fair opening night Preview raised over $85,000 for Artist Trust. Dedicated to supporting Washington State artists working across all disciplines by providing professional development through training programs like Edge and I Am An Artist, Artist Trust funds upwards of 85 artist grants, totaling over $300,000 each year. Seattle Art Fair's support of this important institution enlivens the fair's vision to support innovative, creative thinkers and makers within the region.

Seattle Art Fair visitors filled the wide aisles of the CenturyLink Field Event Center and flocked to Basecamp, Olson Kundig's site-specific Collectors Lounge. Acting as a conduit between outside and in, the space serves as a gathering point and place for conversation and contemplation. Olson Kundig's design celebrates the pioneering spirit of the Pacific Northwest, using wood, ​fabric, and native plantings to evoke the simple elegance of nature and bridge the fair with the surrounding landscape. The design for Basecamp is led by Olson Kundig owner and principal Jim Olson and associate architect Jerry Garcia