Artexpo New York returns for its 48th edition at Pier 36 in Manhattan’s vibrant Lower East Side, bringing together a dynamic mix of contemporary and fine art. This year’s coveted Spotlight Program highlights visionary artists and galleries that are pushing creative boundaries and redefining the art scene.
For nearly five decades, Artexpo New York has been a premier destination for art lovers, having hosted legendary artists like Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, Keith Haring, Leroy Neiman, and Basquiat. The fair continues to shape industry conversations while showcasing some of the most compelling works in the art world today.
Artexpo New York 2025, taking place from April 3-6, will feature a diverse lineup of galleries, art publishers, dealers, and independent artists from around the globe. With over 1,000 artists exhibiting original works—including paintings, sculptures, photography, ceramics, and glass art—this year’s edition promises an inspiring experience for collectors and enthusiasts alike.
Beyond the exhibits, attendees can engage with immersive Art Lab experiences, engage with artists during the Meet the Artist sessions, and check out the highly anticipated Spotlight Program recipients, shining a light on outstanding artists and galleries making waves in the industry.
Explore this year’s Spotlight Program recipients below!
ARIEL RODRIQUEZ — Booth S607
Based in Montana, Ariel Rodriguez is an exceptional scratchboard artist known for her intricate depictions of wildlife. With an x-acto knife to meticulously etch each line onto a scratchboard, Rodriguez captures the beauty and realism of Yellowstone’s iconic animals. Her process, akin to tattoo artistry, requires both patience and precision, with each scratch carefully placed to create stunningly lifelike details, from the texture of fur and feathers to the vivid expression in an animal’s eyes.
Rodriguez’s work has been featured in various exhibitions and has garnered acclaim for its ability to immerse viewers in the natural world. She inspires curiosity in younger generations as she works on scratchboards in front of a live audience, inviting them to come up close and see the medium’s appeal before completion.
BILL HAO — Booth 601
Bill Hao is a Canadian artist who creates his art from the huge format wetplate collodion process. The wetplate collodion process is an early photographic process dating from the 1850s that requires the photographic material, either a glass or metal plate, to be coated, sensitized, exposed and then developed within a few minutes before the plate dries. To work in the field, this process requires a movable darkroom. Wetplate positives can’t be copied or enlarged, making every piece unique — larger photos require a larger camera.
Bill Hao is an adventurer and a dreamer, who loves a challenging impossibility. He converted a 50-seat bus into a dark room RV that he can drive anywhere his creativity takes him. With his movable darkroom, he creates his works anywhere and meets the challenges of weather, temperature, seasons and light.
HAYDN LEWIS — Booth S314
Haydn Lewis is a professional artist based in West Sussex, England, with a passion for oil painting. Originally self-taught while earning a Master’s degree in Automotive Engineering at Loughborough University, Lewis discovered his true calling in the vibrant and expressive world of oil painting. His dual Australian and English heritage has provided him with exposure to diverse landscapes and climates, which significantly influence the color palettes in his work.
Lewis’s art focuses on intricate landscapes, seascapes, and star systems, capturing the essence of nature’s most awe-inspiring forms. His subjects range from vibrant coastal scenes and towering mountain ranges to the vastness of the night sky, each rendered on surfaces such as driftwood, ceramic tiles, reclaimed wood, canvas, and hardboard. Inspired by both the northern and southern hemisphere skies, Lewis employs a distinctive technique that combines various oil-based materials and solvents to create dynamic textures, vivid colors, and energetic compositions.
MRIYA GALLERY — Booth 607
Mriya Gallery, established in 2023, stands as New York City’s first Ukrainian art gallery, dedicated to showcasing the rich tapestry of Ukrainian art and culture. Situated at 101 Reade Street in the heart of Tribeca, Mriya—meaning “dream” or “inspiration” in Ukrainian—serves as a cultural bridge between Ukrainian artists and the global art community.
The gallery’s mission is to foster appreciation for Ukrainian artistic expression by providing a platform for both established and emerging artists. Mriya’s diverse exhibitions reflect a commitment to exploring various themes and artistic styles.
Through their thoughtfully curated exhibitions, immersive experiences, and engaging programs, Mriya Gallery inspires dialogue, sparks creativity, and broadens perspectives, fostering cross-cultural understanding and celebrating diversity in the arts. By showcasing powerful works that blend history, identity, and contemporary perspectives from a collective of artists, including Yurii Vatkin, Dasha S. Kandinsky, Tata Kolesnik, and other acclaimed Ukrainian artists, Mriya enriches New York’s cultural landscape.
NEELAM PADTE — Booth S300
Neelam Padte is an accomplished artist known for her vibrant, symbolic artworks that explore themes of spirituality, culture, and self-discovery. Born in Mumbai, India, she draws inspiration from her Indian heritage and personal experiences. Today Padte is a full-time floorcloth artist, specializing in hand-painted canvas rugs that showcase her intricate compositions that are rich in color and meaning. Her works, which blend elements of realism and abstraction, have been featured in exhibitions across the United States and internationally, earning admiration for their ability to evoke deep introspection and emotional connection.
Neelam creates her floorcloth abstract mixed media paintings from inspirations of earth, water, wind, fire and space as viewed through the prism of her soul, sharing her inner spirit with the viewers. Viewers often find themselves drawn into her paintings, enveloped by the serene atmosphere of the tranquil colors and gentle brushstrokes. Each piece evoking a sense of peace and introspection, inviting viewers to pause, reflect, and perhaps even meditate upon the beauty captured on the canvas. Many describe feeling a sense of calm wash over them as they immerse themselves in the artwork, allowing it to transport them to a place of tranquility and serenity.
PAMELA GALLEGUILLOS — Booth 312
https://www.pamelagalleguillos.com/
Based in Chile, Pamela Galleguillos is a renowned sculptor celebrated for her striking and evocative works that explore themes of identity, nature, and human emotion, Galleguillos has exhibited in prestigious galleries and international art fairs, earning accolades for her innovative use of materials and her ability to convey movement and emotion through form. Her sculptures often combine organic and abstract shapes, blending textures and layers to create a deep connection between the artwork and its environment.
Over time, Galleguillos’ work began to focus on human, organic figures as a foundation for expressing motivations of the soul, each intertwined into a perfect complement. With her own foundry, ​she shares her knowledge with renowned national artists and pursues and exhibits her own work in cities throughout Chile.
