The Brooklyn Powerhouse Arts Fine Art Print Fair is making its grand debut

The Powerhouse Arts Brooklyn Fine Print Art Fair, Artist entrepreneur section

By RUBEN NATAL-SAN MIGUEL March 28, 2025, photos by the author.

Let’s Face it, The Art Fair market is heavily saturated. In such a competitive art market, a new art fair needs to bring something new to the table, something fresh, with the proper prices for such volatile market and unpredictable climate. When it comes to art fairs, it is always Manhattan as a main destination since the borough of Brooklyn has never had exciting and enticing art fairs to make you cross the bridge for. Not since the 1-54 Art Fair (which happened for a few years at Pioneer Works) and Photoville, there isn’t enough motivation to cross that bridge.

Collectors and fair visitors like me tend to be jaded (I mean how many art fairs we see in whole year?), but I must say I was very impressed, delighted and excited to attend and witness the opening of The Powerhouse Arts Brooklyn Fine Print Art Fair last night.

From the minute I boarded the R train to the Union Street Stop, I knew something good was in place. My subway car was pretty full of Jaded Manhattanites heading over - it is at times hard for people to leave Manhattan during rush hour to trek to Brooklyn. A nice short walk from the R subway to Union Station stop and you arrive to witness the magnificence of The Powerhouse Arts building (formerly the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Power Station).

I walked into a great reception with non stop crudités & cocktails served till the very end of the evening. The facilities are so vast that the fair only needed one third floor space to accommodate it all. The great thing of this fair is that was divided in two areas. One for the print art dealers and businesses gallery booths, the other for independent and individual artists hosting, hustling and selling their art creations.

So, let’s get to the ART!

Here are some highlights:

At Two Palms, the always seductive artwork of Marilyn Minter (@marilynminter) dominated and commanded attention at one of the art fair entry walls. I was hoping to see the limited editions (and timely politically charged works) by the recently late Brooklynite Nona Faustine Simone but, these fairs were planned way in advance of her passing so, I hope to see them in the next fair edition.

 
Marilyn Minter “ Soft Spoken “
2024
41 1/8 x 60 1/4 inches
Silkscreen in 24 colors on Lanaquarelle paper
www.twopalms.us 

At David Krut Projects, there was a great selection of fabulous and very affordable priced prints (run!). The William Kentridge prints are incredible! They have a "South African Artists in New York" program, where they intentionally showcase emerging artists with little to no US representation. The goal is to promote these talented individuals and provide opportunities for their career development.

William Kentridge Procession II 2023
www.davidkrut.com

Aida Muluneh Strengh in Honor 2016
www.davidkrut.com

 Aida Muluneh Sai Mado 2016
www.davidkrut.com

Diale, B 2024
Can’t keep running away
Watercolor & monotype collage

Langa, S 2024
Oil base monotype with, and hand painting with oil base ink

 At D&S Fine Art Studios
Found this collaboration with Dread Scott and Jenny Polack very interesting, beautiful and very affordable (Run)

 Dread Scott and Jenny Polak
Liberté Mon Seul Pirate
11 color lithograph from stone and photo plate
45.5" x 30.75" (120 x 80 cm)
Edition of 60
2022. $1200
www.dsfinearteditions.com

At The Cooper Union booth, I found the work of student Harlemite Rickey Mathieu (@555rickstar) - great and quite promising!

 Rickey Mathieu
Mother and Daughter
2024
11x17 inches
$400.00

At the other side of the fair where the entrepreneurial artist were running their own personal art tables, a great a fair move and something that every fair should have, one of the highlights was Susan Martin’s works on paper . Loved, the circular format prints!

Susan Martin
@inkedplate
www.tworollers.com

Overall, this art fair's debut is a very polished, inclusive, democratic and inviting debut. I highly encourage you to visit during the perfectly balmy weather this weekend and snatch a couple of extremely affordable and collectible print works featured there.

Congratulations to Eric Shiner, Powerhouse Arts, Brooklyn and all the galleries, institutions and artists in it!
@ericshiner
@powerhouse_arts

Eric Shiner, Powerhouse Arts Director and Art Fair maven

Eric Shiner & Ruben Natal-San Miguel
@realrubennatalsanmiguel
@whitehotmagazine

 Art Fair opening in progress