NEW YORK, NY.- The second edition of TEFAF New York Spring opened on Friday, May 4, 2018 at the historic Park Avenue Armory, following a packed preview day on Thursday, May 3. In the first two days, the Fair saw the attendance of major collectors and international institutions, resulting in significant sales across the Fair. The opening coincided with the launch of the TEFAF Art Market Report: Art Dealer Finance written by Anders Petterson of ArtTactic. Focused on art dealer finance, the report is the first survey of its kind, and the second edition of TEFAF’s new in-depth reports that concentrate on a variety of subjects in the art market.

New to TEFAF New York this year is the installation of five monumental works in the public spaces of the Armory’s Drill Hall, utilizing the building’s unique architectural elements. These are Anselm Kiefer's (b. 1945) Merkaba (Nr. AKl-1063) (2004) from Beck & Eggeling (Germany; stand 2), acquired directly from the artist’s studio through Galerie Thaddeus Ropac; Robert Rauschenberg’s (1925 – 2008) Shuttle Buttle/ROCI USA (Wax Fire Works) (1990), and John Chamberlain’s (1927 – 2011) Karankawas Falls (2003) from Edward Tyler Nahem Fine Art (USA; stand 86); Alexander Calder's (1898 – 1976) Les Trois Barres (1970) from the Alexander Calder Foundation from Van de Weghe (USA; stand 8); and Robert Motherwell's (1915 – 1991) painting Arabesque (1989) from Galerie Gmurzynska (USA; stand 18), an homage to The Dance by Henri Matisse (1869 – 1954) at the Barnes Foundation, Philadelphia.

Among the works that sold within hours of the Fair’s opening are:

• Philip Guston’s (1913 – 1980) painting Forms on Rock Ledge (1979), sold by Hauser & Wirth (UK, USA, Hong Kong; stand 25) immediately upon the Fair’s opening for $5.5 million.

• Jean-Michel Basquiat’s (1960 – 1988) Extra Cigarette (1982), sold by newcomer Lévy Gorvy (USA, UK; stand 24), for approximately $5 million. The gallery also sold Andy Warhol’s (1928 – 1987) Brillo Soap Pads Box (1964/1969) for around $1 million; Günther Uecker’s (b. 1930) Diagonale/Vertikale Struktur (Diagonal/Vertical Structure) (1965) in the range of $1.3 million; and Yayoi Kusama’s (b. 1929) Untitled (1953) for just under $1 million—all fresh to market, placed with established American and European collections, and prime examples of each artist’s oeuvre.

• Two works by Josef Albers (1888 – 1976), were sold by David Zwirner (USA, UK, Hong Kong; stand 67); one for $1,750,000 and a second for $750,000.

• A ceiling lamp (1925) designed by Danish architect Aage Rafn (1890 – 1953), sold by Modernity (Sweden; stand 28).

• A copper urn (ca. 1902) by American architect and designer Frank Lloyd Wright (1867 – 1959); a Vautheret side table (ca. 1925) by French designer Emile-Jacques Ruhlmann (1879 – 1933); and Judy Kensley McKie’s (b. 1944) bronze Owl Vessel (2002), all sold by DeLorenzo Gallery (USA; stand 31).

• French graphic artist Georges Hugnet’s (1906 – 1974) collage La septième face du dé (1936) was sold by Galerie 1900 – 2000 (France; stand 30).

• New York-based artist Joe Bradley’s (b. 1975) Blonde (2011), sold by Thomas Gibson Fine Art Ltd (UK; stand 85).

TEFAF New York Spring is accompanied by a dynamic roster of programs, including TEFAF New York’s signature “Coffee Talks” series, panel discussions, receptions, and more. On opening day, panelists from the Asia Society, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Leon Tovar of Leon Tovar Gallery, and more came together with moderator Marc Pachter, Director Emeritus, National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution to discuss Art, Nationality and Global Modernism: Challenging a Well-Known Narrative. Later in the day, in a new series “TEFAF Afternoons”, Daniel Weiss, President, Metropolitan Museum of Art; Tom Loughman, Director, Wadsworth Atheneum; Kaywin Feldman, Director, Minneapolis Institute of Art; and Salvador Salort-Pons, Director, Detroit Institute of Art tackled Museums and the Community: When, Whether, And How Much to Charge? in a discussion moderated by Thomas Marks, Executive Editor, Apollo Magazine.

Notable attendees to the Fair have included collectors and philanthropists Ronald, Jo Carole, Aerin and Jane Lauder; art collector Patrizia Sandretto Re Rebaudengo; architect Peter Marino; fashion designer Tabitha Simmons; actresses Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen; actress Sienna Miller; From the museum community, representatives have included Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon, Cleveland Museum of Art, Detroit Institute of Arts, Georg Kolbe Museum, Berlin, Getty, Guggenheim Museum, LACMA, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Museum of Modern Art, National Gallery of Art, Washington, National Museum of Africa Art, Smithsonian Institution, Neue Gallery, Rijskmuseum, Amsterdam, Wadsworth Atheneum, and Whitney Museum of American Art.

TEFAF New York Spring opening celebrations on Thursday, May 3 also included The Society of Memorial Sloan Kettering’s third annual Opening Night Benefit, the proceeds of which will support The Society’s patient care, research, and education programs at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, as well as the acclaimed cultural programs produced by the Park Avenue Armory.

This year’s Fair, which runs through Tuesday, May 8, features 90 of the world’s preeminent dealers in modern and contemporary art and design, with 24 new participants, including Gagosian, Gladstone Gallery, Marian Goodman Gallery, Lévy Gorvy, Matthew Marks Gallery, Mnuchin Gallery, Taffin, and more. Sales were reported throughout the preview and opening day, from the opening moments until the floor closed at 8pm.