Zero Art Fair

July 8-12, 2025, at The FLAG Art Foundation, NYC

Zero Art Fair is the art fair where all of the artwork is free, with strings attached.

The second edition of Zero Art Fair is currently in development. Our Open Call closed on April 18th. Applicants will receive notifications in early May.

While it is not a sustainable model for artists to give away more than a small fraction of the artwork they create, the fair exists in part to remind the art world that the retail prices within the art market are a fiction for most working people, including artists themselves. This fair brings out into the open what is normally hidden behind smoke and mirrors: that fine art is abundant rather than scarce. When a lot of artists make a little of their work available, art is brought out of storage and into loving homes, enlarging the community of those who live with art and beginning a virtuous cycle of generosity.

–Jennifer Dalton and William Powhida, 2024

For more information about Zero Art Fair visit our About page.

Artists make a lot of work. Unfortunately we don’t sell most of it.

The art market is built on a myth of scarcity,

and a highly choreographed limiting of supply.

Since most people can’t afford the high price of art,

a lot of work is left out of sight.

Through Zero Art Fair, visitors can take possession of art without buying it,

becoming art collectors in the process.

Our platform allows artists to give their work away

Without giving up on future sales.

In 2024 we placed 178 works with new collectors through our contract

representing $536,913 in potential retail value.

Zero Art Fair is enabled by our contract,

that legally transfers ownership of work after a vesting period of 5 years.

If an artworks transferred through Zero Art Fair is ever sold,

the artist receives 50% of the first sale price.

Our contract grants artists 10% resale royalty rights

on all subsequent sales of the work.

Zero Art Fair is not a substitute for the art market

It’s an experimental intervention into a system that doesn’t serve most artists or art lovers.

At Zero Art Fair, price does not determine value.

We believe everyone deserves to live with art.

This is simpler in theory than in practice.

Our model relies on support from those who can afford to help others live with art.

In 2024 we raised $16k from individual donors for the Elizaville edition

and thousands in in-kind support to cover the costs of the fair including $3.5k in benefit sales of our own prints.

Costs included website development, e-signature service, event insurance, art handling, building materials, lighting, port-a-potties, curatorial fees, event staffing, food, transportation, event listings, participation fees, and tax liability.

In 2025 the budget for the fair is generously covered primarily by two institutional sponsors

allowing us to provide artist fees this year while covering the rest of the costs of the fair.

In 2024 anyone with access to a car could take home works from Zero Art Fair in Elizaville, NY

This year, we will prioritize access to the art work for people who need financial help to live with art.

Our philosophy to subsidize access to art is inspired by author Mark Bittman’s non-profit Community Kitchen model for the restaurant industry

We share a belief that there are:

People who can afford to help others live with art.
People who can sometimes afford to buy art for themselves.
People who need help to live with art.

Zero Art Fair 2025 will open with a 3-day exhibition period open to the general public. Works will be available for sale at their retail price.

The fair will close with a 2-day event for people who apply for tickets to take home artwork for free using our contract. Tickets will be prioritized for those who tell us they need help to live with art.

Zero Art Fair is a continuing experiment to help get art out of storage and into people’s lives.

Please come back for updates about how to collect or visit the fair