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Five Works That Stole the Show at Frieze New York

Our correspondent’s irresponsibly subjective list of the fair’s best art.

Spare a thought for the many people in the art world who touched down this week fresh from a magnificent time in Venice and then, somehow, found themselves in the Shed. The jolt is a little like when Neo wakes up from the Matrix for the first time, yanking from his throat the tube that had been sustaining him via a steady diet of spritzes and cicchetti. But Frieze New York is not so different from Venice. Everything here is for sale, too, and, for all its faults, the Shed is not much bigger than a palazzo, so the fair tends to be manageable in size. Dealers focus on quality over quantity and can bring ambitious works, since they don't have to ship them very far. Meanwhile, collectors feel like they have the time to linger, whether they're hunting for gems or masterpieces.

Should you end up visiting the fair this weekend, you should set your gait to saunter and make your own discoveries. But also be sure not to miss mine.

The best art at Frieze

Sarah Sze, Badlands (2026)

Cindy Sherman, Untitled #686 (2025)

Yeni Moa, fig 21.7 lossy (2023)

Joe Andoe, 3/20/26 (2026)

Akinsanya Kambon, Oya—Goddess of The Wind (2015)

Sarah Sze, Badlands (2026)

Many years ago, I profiled Sarah Sze (b. 1969) for this publication. Digging into her work and personality, I found her to be a bona fide genius—she was later named an actual genius with a MacArthur Grant—but I found myself wondering what it would be like to collect her. The........

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