Friday, March 20: New Museum Re-Opens on The Bowery

After a nearly two-year expansion and a delayed reopening, the New Museum in New York City will finally welcome the public again this week. Designed by the Office for Metropolitan Architecture’s partners Rem Koolhaas and Shohei Shigematsu with Cooper Robertson, the new complex uses laminated glass with metal mesh to create a crystalline facade that complements the SANAA-designed flagship without outshining it. Even though the seven-story addition is shorter than the main building, it will essentially double its footprint. Below: A rendering of the expanded fourth floor exhibition gallery in the New Museum.

On its upper floors, the expanded building will feature a dedicated studio for artists-in-residence and a purpose-built home for the Museum’s cultural incubator NEW INC. On the ground level, visitors will be welcomed into an enlarged lobby, an expanded bookstore, and a full-service restaurant operated by the Oberon Group. 

Spanning the entirety of the expanded New Museum, the inaugural exhibition NewHumans: Memories of the Future traces a diagonal history of the past one hundred years through the work of more than two hundred international artists, writers, scientists, architects, and filmmakers, highlighting key moments when dramatic technological and societal changes spurred new conceptions of humanity and new visions for its possible futures. If you would like to book a guided tour, please go here

New Museum, 235 Bowery, New York, NY Info

Wednesday, March 18-Sunday March 22: 2026 Affordable Art Fair

The 2026 Affordable Art Fair NYC Spring returns to the iconic Starrett-Lehigh Building in Chelsea, continuing its mission to democratize the art market. Whether you’re a seasoned collector or looking to buy your first original piece, the fair offers a vibrant, pressure-free environment to discover thousands of contemporary works.

This year’s edition brings together over 90 local and international galleries, showcasing a diverse array of paintings, sculptures, and prints priced between $100 and $12,000.

 Beyond the booths, visitors can explore the curated photography exhibition, "Sight Unseen," or join interactive workshops and tours designed to help you find the perfect piece for your home. 

If you have extra new or gently used art supplies laying around the house that you need to get rid of, bring them to the fair on Thursday, March 19 from 6-8pm, drop them in a designated donation bin, and enjoy the fair for free! Materials for the Arts will then take all of the donated art supplies and distribute them to New York public schools. Starrett Lehigh Bluilding, 601 W 26th St 3rd floor, New York, NY Tickets

Thursday, March 19 – Sunday, March 22: 2026 Outsider Art Fair

The Outsider Art Fair is the world’s leading platform for "art without borders"—works created by self-taught, visionary, and marginalized artists who operate entirely outside the traditional art establishment. Founded in 1993, the fair challenges conventional ideas of "fine art" by spotlighting raw, intuitive talent that is often born from personal necessity rather than academic training.

This 34^th edition of the fair brings together an international community of 68 galleries, collectors, and enthusiasts from around the world to celebrate Art Brut and folk art. Educational programming, including expert talks and live talks are scheduled throughout the fair. Info

Metropolitan Pavilion, 125 West 18th Street, New York, NY Tickets

From the Home Office: AI45 Deadline extended to Midnight, Today, March 18

Call for Entries | American Illustration 45 | As humanly possible

Honored: Artists and their collaborators must be brave to report on matters of both public interest and personal expression. American Illustration applauds the stories told – and the right to tell them. Good pictures, as humanly possible. The jury is: Josh Cochran, Victoria Escobar, Toby Fox, Emily Glaubinger, Sarah Lee Grillo, Marina Grinshpun, Sara Loane, Randy Minor, Linda Rubes, Play Siripant, Lizzie Soufleris, and Raghu Vadarevu.    Enter here

American Illustration 44 hardcover books have arrived stateside! Order your discount copy now, still for just $35 here Get a preview here

Tuesday, March 24 , 6:30-8:30pm, Artists Talk: Making Sense | Seven Movements at Cooper 

In this talk Shannon Mattern and Curry Hackett draw on their own research and architectural practice to explore a variety of methods for making knowledge material — spatial, experiential, sense-able, manipulable, inhabitable, navigable. Through a call-and-response structure, they’ll examine how actions from cooking and collaging to furniture making to syllabus design help us to make sense of a disordered world.  Discussion follows. 

Cooper Union Foundation Building, Room 315F, 7 East 7^th Street, New York, NY In-person Registration  Online Registration