Expo Chicago is on now

Expo Chicago is open through Sunday, April 12, at Navy Pier, closing out a four-day run that anchors Chicago’s spring art calendar. (expochicago.com, navypier.org) The 2026 fair is the 13th edition of Expo Chicago, and organizers say it brings together more than 130 galleries in a “more focused” format at Festival Hall. Single-day public admission for Friday through Sunday was listed at $40, with a three-day pass at $36 before taxes and fees. (expochicago.com, expochicago.com) That gallery count is down from 170 exhibitors from 36 countries at the 2025 edition, which drew more than 35,000 visitors. ArtNews and The Art Newspaper both reported the 2026 floor plan was intentionally reduced after Frieze acquired the fair in 2023. (expochicago.com, artnews.com, theartnewspaper.com) Expo’s new leadership is part of that reset. The fair’s January announcement said Kate Sierzputowski is directing the 2026 edition, with curator Essence Harden shaping sections that emphasize solo presentations, curatorial context, and what the fair called “meaningful encounters with art.” (expochicago.com, chicago.suntimes.com) The fair is also leaning harder into institutional partnerships this year. Expo said its expanded collaboration with the Obama Presidential Center adds two sections, “Embodiment” and “Evolution,” curated by museum director Louise Bernard ahead of the center’s planned June opening. (expochicago.com, expochicago.com) Other curated sections push the fair beyond standard booth rows. Expo said Katie A. Pfohl, an associate curator at the Detroit Institute of Arts, organized the Focus section, “Gathering of Waters,” around landscape, migration, and craft, while Harden organized Profile around solo and tightly conceived group projects. (expochicago.com) One artist drawing weekend attention is Sarah Nsikak, whose New Orleans gallery, Sibyl Gallery, is presenting a Focus installation of new textile works titled “How could you hold it?” The gallery says Nsikak, who lives and works in Brooklyn, uses hand-sewn appliqué with silks, cotton textiles, and antique silk thread in the series. (sibylgallery.com, sibylgallery.com) Expo’s programming extends beyond sales booths. The fair’s official materials describe talks, installations, public art initiatives, and project spaces, and one listed weekend event paired poet CAConrad with the Poetry Foundation in the Projects section. (expochicago.com, expochicago.com) Chicago’s local galleries remain a visible part of the mix even with fewer exhibitors overall. Expo’s exhibitor announcement named Chicago spaces including Gray, Corbett vs. Dempsey, moniquemeloche, Patron, Andrew Rafacz, Document, Secrist Beach, McCormick Gallery, Good Weather, M. LeBlanc, and The Mission Projects. (expochicago.com) By Sunday evening, this year’s smaller fair will have served as a test of Expo Chicago’s post-Frieze direction: fewer booths, more curatorial framing, and a tighter link to major Chicago institutions. (artnews.com, chicago.suntimes.com)