New venue, new voices, and a dynamic Caribbean spotlight at the 2025 edition
Ayogu Kingsley, Pink Anlogwu, 2024. Oil and nets on canvas, 98 x 152cm. Courtesy of The African Art Hub.
1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair is pleased to announce details for its upcoming New York edition, taking place for the first time at Halo, 28 Liberty Street in Manhattan’s Financial District. The fair will run from Friday, May 9 to Sunday, May 11, 2025, with a VIP preview on Thursday, May 8.
This year, over 30 galleries and 70 artists from across the African diaspora will be represented, continuing 1-54’s mission to showcase a global community of contemporary African art. Exhibitors span five continents and 17 countries, with 15 first-time participants and 18 galleries exhibiting in New York for the first time. Among them are TERN Gallery, the first exhibitor from The Bahamas, and KUB’ART Gallery, the fair’s first participant from the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
“We’re eager to make our return to New York as we continue to grow our annual edition,” said Touria El Glaoui, Founding Director of 1-54. “It’s been wonderful to see the positive response from our U.S. audience over the last decade, as well as a shared passion for expanding visibility for contemporary African art.”
2025 Exhibitors Include:
- 193 Gallery (Paris/Venice)
- Almine Rech (Paris/London/New York/Brussels/Shanghai/Gstaad/Monaco)
- AKKA Project (Venice/Dubai/Lugano)
- Berman Contemporary (Johannesburg)
- FILAFRIQUES (Geneva/Abidjan)
- Fridman Gallery (New York)
- Gallery 1957 (Accra/London)
- Galerie Clémentine de la Féronnière (Paris)
- Galeria Karla Osorio (Brasília/São Paulo)
- Galerie Carole Kvasnevski (Paris/New York)
- Gallery Article 15 (Washington)
- Galerie Myrtis (Baltimore)
- Jonathan Carver Moore (San Francisco)
- Kalashnikovv Gallery (Johannesburg/Cape Town)
- David Krut Projects (Johannesburg/New York)
- KATES-FERRI PROJECTS (New York)
- Knowhere Art Gallery (Oak Bluffs)
- KUB’ART Gallery (Kinshasa)
- Doziearts (New Jersey)
- Larkin Durey (London)
- LIS10 Gallery (Arezzo/Paris/Hong Kong)
- Loeve & Co (Paris)
- Nil Gallery (Paris)
- O’DA Art (Lagos)
- spaceUn (Tokyo)
- TERN Gallery (Nassau)
- The African Art Hub (London)
- The Bishop Gallery (New York)
- The Melrose Gallery (Johannesburg)
- Yossi Milo (New York)
Special Installations
Gallery 1957 will present a powerful installation by Yaw Owusu, incorporating U.S. pennies to reinterpret the American flag, sparking dialogue on liberty and political symbolism.
Almine Rech will showcase Figures of Miracle by Joël Andrianomearisoa, a poetic raphia-based work examining cultural memory and transformation through the hand-woven gestures of Madagascar’s textile tradition.
Special Projects
Art Comes First introduces Textile Language, an immersive exploration of Black cotton history and African weaving traditions, including nods to a Black-owned cotton farm in Alabama and the symbolic Afrocomb.
FORGOTTEN LANDS debuts its Afro-Caribbean Resource Library, a curated selection of literature from the diaspora, offering a thoughtful retreat for fair visitors.
Caribbean Spotlight
Curated by ATLANTIC ARTHOUSE, this year’s 1-54 Caribbean Spotlight will highlight eight standout artists from the region. ATLANTIC ARTHOUSE is a hybrid platform expanding access to contemporary Caribbean art through exhibitions and e-commerce.
Fair Partners
INFINIMENT COTY PARIS brings an innovative olfactory-art experience to the fair, with a new collaboration featuring artist Deborah Segun. The brand’s stackable bottles become canvases for visual storytelling.
Christie’s continues its sixth consecutive partnership with 1-54, reinforcing a shared commitment to elevating contemporary African art to global audiences.
For more information, please visit 1-54 New York.
