The Art Basel and UBS Global Art Market Report 2024 found that global sales topped USD 65 billion in 2023 while, year-on-year, transactions had fallen by four percent. The report also found that despite economic troubles China replaced the United Kingdom as the second-largest art market with 19 percent of the global share, behind the United States at 42 percent.

Melbourne

The biennial Melbourne Art Fair (MAF) (February 22–25) was back in force at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, attracting more than 15,000 visitors and achieving USD 9.53 million in sales, a reported 37-percent increase from its 2022 edition’s total of USD 7.8 million. This year MAF invited curators Tamsin Hong and Shelley McSpedden to spearhead its program, spanning more than 60 Australasian presentations including 11 young galleries established after 2016 and four Indigenous art centers; research-based projects from independent art spaces such as Gertrude and Firstdraft; and a commissioned performance installation Newretro, reworked by the dance company Lucy Guerin Inc.