Art Brussels 2025 Shrinks but Innovates with New Horizon Section

The 42nd edition of Art Brussels, held under the Atomium, responds to a struggling contemporary art market by reducing exhibitors from 165 to 138 while introducing a new section called 'Horizonte.' Curated by Devrim Bayar, senior curator at Kanal Centre Pompidou in Brussels, Horizonte features six large-scale installations, including Pao Hui Kao's fragile chapel-like structure made of transparent paper, rice glue, and urushi lacquer, and Oswald Oberhuber's panoramic painting 'Paradiesgarten' priced at €380,000. The section shares a hall with catering, creating a refuge from the fair's bustle. The 'Prime' section saw the largest drop, from 108 to 83 galleries, while 'Discovery' remained stable at 38. Notable exhibitors include Xavier Hufkens with works by Tracey Emin, Antony Gormley, and Cassi Namoda; Krinziger with Marina Abramović and Monica Bonvicini; and Richard Saltoun with Fernand Khnopff and Everlyn Nicodemus. The fair leans toward decorative eyecatchers, avoiding overtly political works, though exceptions include Klaartje Lambrechts' conceptual photo series on Iranian society and Stéphanie Baechler's textile works. Prices remain in the five-figure range for emerging artists.