FUTURE FAIR 2025 VIP PROGRAMMING

We are pleased to share with you Future Fair’s 2025 VIP Program!

Highlights include:

- Future Fair VIP Preview (Wed, May 7)
- Director’s Brunch in partnership with Arcual (Fri, May 9)
- A series of curator‑led tours (Thu-Sat, May 8-10)

Additional programming in our onsite Conversations Lounge—presented in collaboration with exhibiting dealers, artists, and fair partners—features panel discussions on topics such as new economic models for contemporary art, artist-dealer relationships, and cultivating the next generation of art patrons.


Tour fee is inclusive of access to Future Fair, Guided Tour and a choice of Coffee or Beverage at the fair’s cafe by STOWAWAY.

Warm thanks to our collaborators and partners for bringing these programs together!

Future Fair 2025 VIP Preview

WED, MAY 7, 2 - 8 PM
On-Site at Future Fair: Invite-Only

A first-access look at Future Fair’s 2025 edition. The first 200 attendees will receive an exclusive tote bag with gifts from our partners. Complementary hydration provided by Smartwater. Enjoy special edition GRIMM x Future Fair beer and cocktail specials with our restaurant partner Stowaway.

Latin American Contemporary Art: Global Perspectives and Local Voices 

THU, MAY 8, 12 PM
On-Site at Future Fair: RSVP Required

Join independent curator and cultural strategist Roberta Zertuche for a guided tour of Future Fair, spotlighting Latin American contemporary art practices. 

New Models | Empowering Artists and Creating Entry Points for New Collectors

with Bibi Zavieh, Founder of newcube (New York, NY), artist Rachel Hakimian Emenaker and philanthropist, collector Pamela Hornik; moderated by Alexandra Steinacker, art historian, curator, writer, and founder of the All About Art podcast

THU, MAY 8, 1 PM; SPECIAL PROJECT 2 AT FUTURE FAIR

Join us in the Talks Lounge for a candid conversation that pulls back the curtain on the artist–dealer relationship—how trust is built, collaborations take shape, and how both sides navigate the art market together. The discussion will also explore practical and accessible entry points for new collectors seeking to engage with contemporary art in meaningful ways.

Visionary Projects Presents: A Guided Tour of Future Fair

Led by Future Fair Exhibitors, Blayne Pearce & Haylee Barsky

THU, MAY 8, 1 PM; SPECIAL PROJECT 2 AT FUTURE FAIR

Join co‑founders Blayne Pearce and Haylee Barsky of Visionary Projects—exhibiting in Booth U10—for a curated tour of Future Fair. Haylee, an Independent Curator based in New York City, and Blayne, an artist and creative consultant, will guide you through a selection of the fair’s standout installations and projects.

Space Making, Travel, and Geolocality a Tour of Future Fair Led by Nicole Restaino

THU, MAY 8, 4PM
On-Site at Future Fair: RSVP Required

Join a private tour of select presentations at Future Fair 2025, led by Nicole Restaino.

This guided tour explores how artists engage with the physical and psychological dimensions of space—how they create, challenge, and reimagine environments through their practices. Framing artworks through the lenses of travel, displacement, and geolocality, the tour highlights how geography, movement, and context shape artistic intention and reception.

Matronage Salon: State of Women Artists

with exhibitor Destinee Ross-Sutton (Ross-Sutton Gallery), Eden Deering, (Director, PPOW), and Less than Half’s founder Hall W. Rockefeller

THU, MAY 8, 4 PM; SPECIAL PROJECT 2 AT FUTURE FAIR

Join us for second annual conversation on the state of women artists in our institutions and the art market. This panel brings together Eden Deering, director at PPOW and one of Future Fair’s 2025 curators, and Destinee Ross-Sutton (Booth #R10) to talk about how they support women artists in their gallery programming and beyond, as well as reflect on the progress for women artists in 2025.

Why I make art

with Brian Alfred, Associate Professor of Art, Penn State and Host of Sound & Vision Podcast, Liz Nielsen, artist and exhibitor (Elijah Wheat Showroom), and artist E.E. Kono

THU, MAY 8, 5:45 PM; SPECIAL PROJECT 2 AT FUTURE FAIR

Discussion with artists and host of Sound & Vision, Brian Alfred. Brian’s book, Why I Make Art: Contemporary Artists' Stories About Life and Work, will be available for purchase.

Susan & Michael Hort Collection - New Installation Preview

THU, MAY 8, 6:30 - 9 PM
153 Hudson Street, NY
Off-Site: No RSVP Required

Preview the new installation at the home of Susan & Michael Hort
at 153 Hudson Street. No strollers or carriages are permitted. Children under 10 are discouraged from attending. No large bags are permitted. Bags over 11 inches must be checked.

FUTURE FAIR ARTIST PARTY

THU, MAY 8, 8:00-10:00 PM
BLACK CRESCENT, 76 Clinton St, New York, NY 10002

After Chelsea Night, please join us in the Lower East Side for the Future Fair Artist Party, a convivial evening to celebrate the artists of Future Fair 2025. Drinks by Aval and Wellfleet oysters specials!

Co-hosted by Aval Cider.

Director’s Brunch & Curator Tour with Dr. Margarita Rosa

FRI, MAY 9, 12 - 1:30 PM
On-site Café by STOWAWAY: RSVP Required

Join Future Fair’s directors, 2025 exhibitors, and our partner Arcual—the fair’s official tech provider—for a celebratory brunch in honor of the fair’s fifth anniversary. Select guests are invited to enjoy a breakfast buffet and mimosas at the on-site café, followed by a specially curated tour led by Dr. Margarita Rosa—a member of this year’s Selection Committee and a key voice in shaping the 2025 edition.

in partnership with

Cultivating the Next Generation of Art Patrons: Engaging MillenNials & Gen Z

with exhibitors Jenna Ferrey, Trotter&Sholer Gallery, Zina Reed, Director of Development at Sculpture Center, Future Fair co-founder Rachel Mijares Fick, and collector Monica Lee

FRI, MAY 9, 1 PM; SPECIAL PROJECT 2 AT FUTURE FAIR

Join us for a conversation surrounding the current market and how we engage the next generation of art patronage, collecting, and philanthropy as an industry.

Representations of Culture and Heritage in Contemporary Art

FRI, MAY 9, 3 PM
On-Site at Future Fair: RSVP Required 

Join Federica Jermann Farías for a guided tour of Future Fair exploring how contemporary artists are addressing and reinterpreting concepts of culture and heritage in their works.

Matronage Salon: Value and Values: Sustainably Investing in Women

with exhibitor Maryana Kaliner (KALINER), Rebecca Fine (Athena Art Finance, Yieldstreet), and Less than Half’s founder Hall W. Rockefeller

FRI, MAY 9, 4:30 PM; SPECIAL PROJECT 2 AT FUTURE FAIR

In 2025, the art market is increasingly tangled in the world of investing. With crypto investors and flippers turning their sights on the art market,hoping to make a quick buck, how do find ways to invest in women artists in a sustainable, long term way that lifts the entire art ecosystem with it? Rebecca Fine and Maryana Kaliner will discuss their perspective.

Una Selección de Presentaciones en Future Fair 2025 (Guided Tour in Spanish)

FRI, MAY 9, 4:30 PM; ONSITE AT FUTURE FAIR - RSVP REQUIRED

Descubre una selección de presentaciones en Future Fair en un recorrido guiado por la asesora de arte y curadora Federica Jermann Farías.

Surrealism / Simulacrum / Horrification a Tour of Future Fair Led by Nicole Restaino

FRI, MAY 9, 5 PM; ONSITE AT FUTURE FAIR - RSVP REQUIRED

Join Nicole Restaino for a guided tour of Future Fair examining the strange, the staged, and the psychologically charged. Titled Surrealism / Simulacrum / Horrification, this tour highlights artists who distort reality through dreamlike imagery, unsettling aesthetics, and constructed layers of illusion.

Emerging Voices in Emerging Places: Artists & Galleries Outside of Art Capitals

SAT, MAY 4, 12 PM; ONSITE AT FUTURE FAIR - RSVP REQUIRED

Join independent curator Lauren Hirshfield for a guided tour of Future Fair that highlights galleries and artists working beyond traditional art capitals. This tour explores how geographic context shapes artistic vision, and how new and unexpected voices are influencing contemporary art from the margins.

The Ecosystem of Collecting: Artists, Collectors, Gallerists

with Elena Platonova (Founder, PLATO), Charlotte Hailstone (painter and curator, Loft Projects), Leslie Weissman (an artist, curator, and art advisor, Loft Projects), and artist Vyczie Dorado.

SAT, MAY 10, 12:00 PM; SPECIAL PROJECT 2 AT FUTURE FAIR

Join us for a panel that explores the deeply reciprocal nature of collecting, not just as acquisition, but as a meaningful exchange between artist, gallerist, and collector. The panel will be moderated by Hall W. Rockefeller, founder of Less Than Half.   

Complementary espresso will be available for all guests from our partner Cafe Aroma.

Today’s Majority Minority: Latinx Power and Cultural Presence

with Aida Valdez (Founder, MAD54, Curator), exhibitor Antonio DelValle-Lago (Sabroso Projects), exhibitor Steve Rivera (CON ALTURA), and Karen Vindangos (Senior Manager of Social Media at The Met)

SAT, MAY 10, 2:00 PM; SPECIAL PROJECT 2 AT FUTURE FAIR

Latinx communities are a growing force in the U.S., shaping culture and conversation across industries—but they remain underrepresented in the art world. In this panel, Future Fair 2025 exhibitors, Antonio del Valle (Founder, Sabroso Projects) and Steve Rivera (Founder, Con Altura), are joined by Karen Vidangos (Head of Social Media, The Met) to explore the current landscape for Latinx artists, curators, and cultural leaders. From curatorial visibility and collector support to the role of social media and broader structural challenges, the conversation will reflect on where we are—and where we’re headed.

MAtronage Salon: Legacy Makers: Writing Women into Art History

with Nicole Shipley (Safe Space Pictures), Valerie Harris (independent writer and researcher), and Less than Half’s founder Hall W. Rockefeller

SAT, MAY 10, 4:30 PM; SPECIAL PROJECT 2 AT FUTURE FAIR

How do women’s stories from the past reach us in the present? What are the obstacles to telling these stories? The rewards? Nicole Shipley, CEO of Safe Space Pictures, will discuss the forthcoming documentary on Artemisis Gentileschi, while Valerie Harris will speak on her ongoing scholarship bringing Harlem Renaissance painter Laura Wheeler Waring to the fore. 

Federica Jermann Farías

Federica Jermann Farías is a multilingual art administrator, art advisor, and curator with an M.A. in Art Business from the Sotheby’s Institute of Arts New York. She manages and represents artists of a high caliber, paving their path to success. She is active in major art hubs including Basel, Paris, New York, London, and Mexico City.

Find out more at @fedejefa

Lauren Hirshfield 

Lauren Hirshfield is a Brooklyn-based independent curator, arts producer, and the co-founder of PARADICE PALASE. Since 2015 she has championed the careers of emerging and underrepresented artists - including with over 40 exhibitions across galleries, fairs, and digital platforms - and is currently interested in the transmutation of materials, clichés, and technologies in relation to collectivism and eco-futurism.

Find out more on Lauren’s website and Instagram.

Nicole Restaino

Nicole Restaino is an arts administrator, project manager, and programs and performance curator. She's trained in Art History and Public Humanities, and has a deep interest in the interpretation, circulation, display, trade and curation of art and cultural production.

Follow Brianna at @suffragette_city_

Hall Rockefeller

Hall W. Rockefeller is the founder of Less Than Half, a membership platform dedicated to helping culturally curious women find meaning in art by teaching them how to collect, support, and invest in women artists as "matrons of the arts." She holds a BA from Yale and an MA from the Courtauld Institute and regularly brings her feminist perspective on art to essays and articles for Hyperallergic. 

Find out more on the Less Than Half’s website and Instagram.

Dr. Margarita Lila Rosa

Margarita Lila Rosa is a Harlem-based public scholar specializing in Afro-Latinx, Latinx, and Black ​Atlantic history and contemporary art. Dr. Rosa is a Lecturer in the Department of Black and Latino Studies at Baruch College. She has been a visiting critic at several residencies and MFA programs, including the Pratt Forward Residency and the Mason Gross MFA Program at Rutgers University. In 2024, she was part of the Studio Museum in Harlem’s Arts Leadership Praxis. Rosa has written for the Museum of Modern Art and has art history essays in The Brooklyn Rail, i-D, and Frieze, among others. Rosa’s curatorial focus is modern and contemporary Afro-diasporic, Latin American art, and global contemporary feminist art. 

Find out more at @margaritalilarosa

Emily SusSman

Emily Sussman is an Art Advisor, Writer, and Independent Curator based out of Brooklyn, New York. She has previously held positions at galleries in New York, such as Paula Cooper Gallery and Hesse Flatow Gallery, and has served as the Director of Communications at the non-profit Monira Foundation based in Jersey City, NJ. Additionally, Emily has co-directed and founded the Young Collector's League and has curated art shows throughout New York City, most recently at The Java Project in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, and The Sleep Center in Chinatown. Emily has earned an MA from the Institute of Fine Arts (NYU).

Find out more on the @sussedandsorted.

Roberta Zertuche

Roberta Zertuche is a New York City–based publicist, advisor, and dealer working at the intersection of art and culture. She is the Senior Public Relations Manager at Department PR and the founder of La Artisteria—a dynamic arts and culture platform offering art collection management, curatorial services, and advisory support.

Find out more on Roberta’s website and Instagram.