Dallas Art Fair brings Texas’s relationship-driven collecting community into focus
Low exhibitor turnover and deliberative buying underscore a market built on long-term connections, while younger dealers shape the city’s evolving cultural context
After the disruptions of the pandemic years, the Dallas Art Fair appears to be settling into a steadier rhythm and consistently drawing a distinct roster of dealers and collectors. This year’s edition saw fewer departures from its exhibitor roster, with around 31 galleries not returning from 2025, compared with more than 40 in previous cycles. The overall number of exhibitors has held roughly constant at around 90.
“We have a great return rate and list of returning galleries every year, and strong desire from others to get in,” Kelly Cornell, the fair’s director, said during Thursday’s VIP preview. “We think it’s due to the market and that they’re able to place work here.”
That stability reflects a collector base often described as both tight-knit and deliberate. Local buyers may acquire only one or two works annually, but will wait to make those purchases at the Dallas Art Fair, reinforcing its role as a focal point for the city’s market. Dealers reported solid interest during the preview, albeit with few immediate sales. Transactions in Dallas tend to unfold slowly; collectors often revisit stands multiple times, with deals sometimes only confirmed on the fair’s final day (19 April).
The art institutions in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex are among the most important in the state and region, and the opportunity to connect with their directors, curators and board members is a selling point for participating dealers. This year, the Dallas Museum of Art acquired six works for its permanent collection through a combination of the Dallas Art Fair Foundation and the museum’s own acquisition fund. With a total spend of $100,000, the museum purchased works by Nicole Eisenman from the New York gallery Anton Kern; Caroline Monnet from the Montréal- and Toronto-based gallery Blouin Division; Hasani Sahlehe from the New York gallery Canada; Gloria Klein from the Los Angeles-headquartered gallery Anat Ebgi; and two pieces by Raymond Saunders from Andrew Kreps Gallery of New York.
Like last year, the New York dealer Hollis Taggart reported the highest-priced sales right out of the gate, placing Sam Francis’s Untitled (Blue, Green, Red) (1964) for $140,000 and Corinne Michelle West’s Red Still Life (1959) for $100,000. Carvalho, a gallery in Brooklyn owned by a Dallas native, reported the highest overall volume of sales at the fair, with seven works by Rachel Mica Weiss generating a combined $177,000, including the marble sculpture What Weight To Wield? (2026) and multiple textile-based works.
Jody Klotz Fine Art from Abilene, Texas, reporting selling Alice Baber’s Piper’s Message (1962) for $120,000 and Wolf Kahn’s pastel Orange Band for $32,000. Spinello Projects from Miami reported selling half its stand, dedicated to works by Marlon Portales priced between $4,000 and $20,000, as of Friday afternoon.
Luis De Jesus Los Angeles reported four sales ranging from $3,000 to $35,000, including works by Evita Tezeno and Gabriel Sanchez. The Sydney-based gallery Piermarq reported selling Henrik Godsk’s Young Matriarch with Pink Skirt (2026) for $12,000, and Cannon Dill’s Portrait of a Bull (2026) for $10,000.
“Dallas is a place where you can make a strong foothold in the South,” Cornell says. “It’s a place where you can really build relationships and grow a business.”
Patching into local lore
Even dealers and artists from out of town are looking to examine Texas’s diverse cultural history. At the dealer-led fair the Dallas Invitational (until 18 April), the Miami dealer Nina Johnson is showing a quilt by the Kentucky-based artist Elsa Hansen Oldham that maps Texas identity through a patchwork of cultural figures. Beyoncé appears alongside Waco cult leader David Koresh; Donald Judd is depicted next to one of his signature stack sculptures; Selena Quintanilla is shown at her last concert and Willie Nelson wears his red bandana and carries a guitar. Oldham also included politicians like Ann Richards, the most recent Democratic governor of Texas, and James Talarico, the progressive challenger for one of Texas’ senate seats.
“She’s been really interested in Texas politics and this idea of how a place comes to be known for one thing, when there really is a population that’s very invested in another way,” Johnson says.
The work sparked conversations among visitors, even some who had personal connections to the quilt’s subjects. Johnson says she spoke to attendees who recalled the actors Andrew, Owen and Luke Wilson growing up in Dallas, or shared anecdotes about living near the film-maker Wes Anderson in Houston.
“What I love about Elsa’s work is that it’s so warm and tactile and welcoming, and it does have that feeling of you’re being wrapped in it,” Johnson says. “That really disarms people and makes them feel comfortable. They want to chat a little bit about it.”
As of Thursday afternoon, the quilt remained available, priced at $18,000—another indication that in Dallas, even amid strong interest, buyers move at a more ponderous pace.