A new art fair called Conductor, backed by Powerhouse Arts, will debut in 2026 with a mission to center artists and galleries from the Global Majority—communities from Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Oceania, and Indigenous Nations. A curated invitational preview runs May 7–11, 2025, at Powerhouse Arts' Gowanus space, featuring artists including Amanda Phingbodhipakkiya, Khaled Jarrar, Modupeola Fadugba, and the Brazilian collective MAHKU. The fair aims to reduce barriers by focusing on young galleries and individual artists, and by fabricating work onsite to avoid shipping and customs costs.
Conductor matters because it challenges the structural exclusivity of traditional art fairs, which often price out smaller and international galleries. By lowering entry costs and enabling onsite production, it offers a pragmatic model for equitable participation in New York's competitive art market. Its success could signal whether collectors embrace a fair built on redistribution and accessibility rather than blue-chip prestige, potentially reshaping how emerging artists from underrepresented regions gain visibility.