Frieze London 2025 returns to Regent’s Park with renewed international ambition, positioning itself as one of the most globally representative editions in the fair’s 23-year history. Running from October 15-19, 2025, alongside its historical counterpart Frieze Masters, this year’s edition unites 168 galleries from 43 countries under the iconic white tents, reflecting an art world increasingly focused on diverse voices and cross-cultural dialogue.
The fair’s strategic positioning at the heart of London’s autumn cultural calendar coincides with significant institutional presentations, most notably Tate Modern’s groundbreaking “Nigerian Modernism” exhibition, creating a moment of unprecedented focus on Global South contemporary art practices. This convergence signals a broader shift in the international art market toward recognizing previously marginalized artistic voices and regional scenes.
Curatorial Innovation and Global Perspectives
The Artist-to-Artist initiative, now in its third year and sponsored by Tiffany & Co., exemplifies Frieze’s commitment to fostering genuine artistic community beyond commercial transactions. Six established practitioners have selected emerging voices for solo presentations: Amy Sherald champions René Treviño, whose fabric sculptures merge European and Mesoamerican histories; Chris Ofili highlights Neal Tait’s paintings of solitary figures; and Nicole Eisenman presents Katherine Hubbard’s collaborative photographs with her mother.
Dr. Jareh Das’s curated section “Echoes in the Present” presents eight galleries exploring artistic connections between Brazil, Africa, and their diasporas—regions linked by the historical trauma of the transatlantic slave trade but united through contemporary artistic innovation. This section includes presentations by galleries from Angola, Brazil, Senegal, the UK, and the US, featuring artists such as Diambe, Tadáskía, Alberto Pitta, Bunmi Agusto, and Serigne Mbaye Camara.
The curatorial approach acknowledges both shared historical experiences and the generative potential of diaspora cultures. As Das explains, the section examines how artists “intertwine heritage, materiality, and speculative futures,” creating new narratives that transcend geographical boundaries.
The Focus section, supported by Stone Island, maintains its central position in the fair’s layout, featuring 35 galleries under 12 years old from over 20 countries. This year’s selection includes notable newcomers such as Kayokoyuki (Tokyo), Eli Kerr (Montreal), King’s Leap (New York), and London’s a.SQUIRE.
Frieze Masters: Historical Perspectives and Contemporary Dialogue
Frieze Masters 2025, featuring 137 galleries from 27 countries, operates under new leadership with Emanuela Tarizzo as director. The fair bridges centuries of artistic production through its signature curated sections: Studio, Spotlight, and the inaugural Reflections.
Studio: Living Artists in Historical Context
Curated by Sheena Wagstaff and Margrethe Troensegaard, the Studio section presents six artists—Anju Dodiya, Samia Halaby, H. Quaytman, Glenn Brown, Dorothy Cross, and Anne Rothenstein—exploring intersections between art history and contemporary practice. Each artist examines how personal archives, materials, and memory inform their work within broader historical narratives.
Spotlight: Rediscovering 20th-Century Voices
Valerie Cassel Oliver curates the Spotlight section, now in its third year, focusing on rediscovered artists and overlooked movements from the 20th century. This year’s selection includes presentations of Eleonore Koch, Sonja Sekula, and Bertina Lopes, expanding the historical narrative of modern art to include previously marginalized voices.
Sophia Al-Maria: The Frieze Artist Award 2025
Sophia Al-Maria, the London-based Qatari-American artist, receives the 2025 Frieze Artist Award for her commission “Wall-Based Work (a Trompe LOL)”. The work transforms a section of the Frieze London tent into a temporary comedy club, where Al-Maria performs daily stand-up sets addressing themes from Brexit to “art-world lesbian clowning”.
The performance responds to this year’s theme of “future commons,” using comedy as what Al-Maria calls “the last honest art form” in an age of artificial intelligence. The work exemplifies Frieze’s commitment to supporting experimental practices that challenge traditional art fair formats.
Frieze Sculpture 2025: Art in the Landscape
Running from September 17 to November 2, Frieze Sculpture 2025 presents 14 international artists throughout Regent’s Park’s English Gardens. Curated by Fatoş Üstek under the theme “In the Shadows,” the exhibition explores absence, transformation, and ecological vulnerability.
Indian Galleries: A Growing Presence
This year’s fair features a significant representation of South Asian galleries, including Jhaveri Contemporary, Vadehra Art Gallery, Experimenter, Project 88, Gallery Maskara, and Nature Morte.
Frieze London 2025 emphasizes on Global South voices, diaspora perspectives, and cross-cultural dialogue which reflects broader conversations about decolonizing cultural institutions and expanding art historical narratives.
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