Expo Chicago Expands Global Reach with Frieze-Backed Korean Gallery Influx

Expo Chicago has unveiled its exhibitor list for the 2025 edition, set to take over Navy Pier from April 24–27. With over 170 participating galleries, the fair continues to evolve—this year, most notably, through a new alliance with the Galleries Association of Korea (Gaok). Thanks to support from South Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, twenty Korean galleries will make their mark at the fair, an unmistakable sign of Expo’s shift under the Frieze umbrella. The move echoes the synergy between Frieze Seoul and Gaok’s Kiaf Seoul, reinforcing the increasing globalization of art fairs as strategic cross-market ventures rather than mere sales hubs.

Among the Korean exhibitors joining the fold are Gallery Baton, BHAK, Gallery Joeun, Lee & Bae, and One and J. Gallery. Frieze’s executive director of fairs, Kristell Chadé, underscored the significance of this expansion, calling it a natural progression of the brand’s “global reach.” Meanwhile, Gaok president Hwang Dalseung positioned the collaboration as a major step toward internationalizing Korea’s art market—suggesting a deliberate effort to carve a stronger presence on Western turf.

Beyond this notable influx, the 2025 fair brings together exhibitors from 36 countries and 93 cities, with over 50 galleries making their Expo Chicago debut. Fresh faces like Lehmann Maupin, Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, Two Palms, and ILY2 will take their place alongside blue-chip returnees Almeida & Dale, Monique Meloche, Nara Roesler, and David Nolan Gallery.

Curatorial sections are also set to evolve: The Exposure section, helmed by Rosario Güiraldes of the Walker Art Center, continues to spotlight emerging galleries under a decade old, this year bringing in names like April April, Mitre, and Megan Mulrooney. Meanwhile, Lauren Haynes, head curator at Governors Island Arts, will oversee a new sector featuring GRAY, Jenkins Johnson Gallery, The Melrose Gallery, and Pippy Houldsworth Gallery. Jessica S. Hong, chief curator at the Kemper Museum, will take the reins of IN/SITU, dedicated to large-scale works dispersed throughout the fair.

In a statement, Expo Chicago president Tony Karman framed the upcoming edition as an opportunity to “engage new audiences.” The real question, however, is whether this latest iteration—buoyed by Frieze’s influence—will transform Expo into a more dynamic player in the global fair circuit or risk diluting its distinct Midwestern identity in pursuit of a broader, more commercially driven vision.

021gallery, Daegu
Gallery 41, Seoul
193 Gallery, Paris, Venice
313 Art Project, Seoul, Paris
A Lighthouse called Kanata, Tokyo
ACA Galleries, New York
Addison Rowe, Santa Fe
Allouche Gallery, New York
Almeida & Dale, São Paulo
Galería Artizar, Canary Islands
Gallery Baton, Seoul
Richard Beavers Gallery, Brooklyn
BHAK, Seoul
Bienvenu Steinberg & C, New York
Bockley Gallery, Minneapolis
Bogéna Galerie, Saint-Paul de Vence
Browse & Darby, London
C24 Gallery, New York
Casterline|Goodman Gallery, Aspen, Chicago, Nantucket
Cernuda Arte, Miami
Catharine Clark Gallery, San Francisco
Ethan Cohen Gallery, New York
The Columns Gallery, Seongnamsi, Seoul, Singapore
Cynthia Corbett Gallery, London
Cristea Roberts Gallery, London
DOCUMENT, Chicago, Lisbon
EBONY/CURATED, Cape Town, Franschhoek
Everyday Mooonday (EM), Seoul
Les Enluminures, Chicago, New York, Paris
Everard Read, Johannesburg, Cape Town, London, Franschhoek
Eric Firestone Gallery, East Hampton, New York
Friedrichs Pontone, New York
Galerie GAIA, Seoul
The Gallery of Everything, London
Gana Art, Seoul, Los Angeles
GRAY, Chicago, New York
Gallery Grimson, Seoul
Richard Heller Gallery, Los Angeles
Hexton Gallery, Aspen
Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery, London, Berlin, West Palm Beach
Bill Hodges Gallery, New York
Nancy Hoffman Gallery, New York
Rhona Hoffman Gallery, Chicago
Edwynn Houk Gallery, New York, Zurich
Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, London
Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery, London, Miami
ILY2, Portland
Jenkins Johnson Gallery, New York, San Francisco
Gallery Joeun, Seoul
Keumsan Gallery, Seoul, Gyeongju
LEE & BAE, Busan
Lehmann Maupin, New York, Seoul, London
Richard Levy Gallery, Albuquerque
Diana Lowenstein Gallery, Miami
David Lusk Gallery, Memphis, Nashville
JD Malat Gallery, London
Galeria MaPa, São Paulo
McCormick Gallery, Chicago
Miles McEnery Gallery, New York
The Melrose Gallery, Johannesburg
moniquemeloche, Chicago
Gallery MOMO, Johannesburg
Melissa Morgan Fine Art, Palm Desert
David Nolan Gallery, New York
Gallery Nosco, Brussels
October Gallery, London
Claire Oliver Gallery, New York
ONE AND J. Gallery, Seoul
Opera Gallery, New York, Aspen, Beirut, Dubai, Geneva, Hong Kong, London, Madrid, Miami, Monaco, Paris, Seoul, Singapore
Galerie Pici, Seoul, New York
Pontone Gallery, London
PYO Gallery, Seoul
Galerie Quynh, Ho Chi Minh City
Rele, Lagos, London, Los Angeles
Revolver Galería, Lima, Buenos Aires, New York
Galerie Richard, Paris
Galerie Robertson Arès, Montreal
Nara Roesler, São Paulo, New York, Rio De Janeiro
Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, New York
RYAN LEE Gallery, New York
Secrist | Beach, Chicago
SEIZAN Gallery, New York, Tokyo
SmithDavidson Gallery, Amsterdam, Miami
SOUS LES ETOILES GALLERY, New York
Southern Guild, Los Angeles, Cape Town
Marc Straus Gallery, New York
Sun Gallery, Seoul
Suppoment Gallery, Seoul
Sundaram Tagore Gallery, New York, London, Singapore
TAI Modern, Santa Fe
Tandem Press, Madison
Tang Contemporary Art, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Beijing, Seoul, Singapore
Two Palms, New York
Unix Gallery, New York
Vallarino Fine Art, New York
Gallery Vit, Seoul
Tanya Weddemire Gallery, Brooklyn
Weinstein Gallery, San Francisco
Weinstein Hammons Gallery, Minneapolis
Wellside Gallery, Seoul
W-galería, Buenos Aires, Pueblo Garzón
Yares Art, New York, Beverly Hills, Santa Fe
Timothy Yarger Fine Art, Los Angeles
Zidoun-Bossuyt Gallery, Luxembourg, Dubai, Paris
Zilberman Gallery, Istanbul, Berlin, Miami

Exposure