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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SPLIT LEVEL Fair Returns for Second Edition, Bringing Together Exhibitors Shaping New Models of Gallery Practice

The fair presents galleries, independent dealers and project spaces navigating the balance between experimental programming, artist support and commercially sustainable practice.

NEW YORK, NY (August 15, 2026) — SPLIT LEVEL returns to Rimadesio (102 Madison Avenue) for its second edition October 1–3, 2026, with a VIP and press preview on Thursday, October 1 from 3–6 p.m. Founded by gallerist and artist Jaqueline Cedar, the fair brings together exhibitors exploring varied approaches to sustaining ambitious programs—from nomadic and experimental spaces to established commercial galleries and independent dealers.

Hosted throughout Rimadesio New York’s showroom, participating exhibitors will create site-responsive presentations that move beyond the conventions of standardized fair booths. Rather than dividing the fair into white-cube spaces, the format allows each exhibitor to bring its own curatorial approach into a shared, design-forward environment.

SPLIT LEVEL grew out of the evolution of Cedar’s gallery, Good Naked, whose trajectory mirrors the adaptability required to maintain an independent gallery practice. An artist herself, Cedar first launched Good Naked as an apartment-based gallery hosting exhibitions, performances and conversations and expanded into an outdoor exhibition program during the pandemic before evolving into the nomadic gallery model it operates as today. That spirit now informs SPLIT LEVEL, reflecting Cedar’s interest in creating new contexts for exhibiting contemporary art and bringing together exhibitors that are similarly navigating the relationship between experimentation, artist support and commercial sustainability.

“For decades, the commercial gallery model has been built around a very specific structure, but the realities of the art world have changed rapidly,” said Jaqueline Cedar, founder of Good Naked and SPLIT LEVEL. “Despite these challenges, gallerists remain agile, driven by a belief in their artists and a desire to sustain ambitious programming. SPLIT LEVEL highlights galleries that are responding to this moment with creativity, and together, they demonstrate that the gallery model can take many forms, and that experimentation will be essential to the future of the field.”

The exhibitor roster reflects a range of approaches to building and sustaining contemporary art practices:

• SPILL 180 operates as an interdisciplinary art space supporting experimental artists, creative technologies and research-driven projects. 

• Kelly-McKenna Gallery combines a contemporary exhibition program with art advisory, collection management and professional appraisal services, extending its role from presenting artwork to guiding collectors through long-term stewardship.

• Artist Estate Studio operates between artists’ studios and the marketplace, providing management, archival, strategic and promotional infrastructure that supports artists’ careers and preserves their legacies.

• Blah Blah Gallery, founded by Megan Galardi, connects Philadelphia to the national and international arts ecosystem, creating new opportunities for emerging artists, and recently expanded its platform with the launch of Elsewhere Fair in 2026.

• The Sphinx is an itinerant curatorial project developing exhibitions across shifting contexts and locations

• Alongside these approaches, established commercial programs including Eli Klein Gallery and Geary Contemporary bring longstanding models of artist representation and institutional engagement into conversation with newer approaches.

• 95 Gallon is an alternative gallery space in an eponymous 95 Gallon trashcan run by New York-based artists Bradley Milligan and Dan Gausman.

Programming throughout the fair will build on SPLIT LEVEL’s inaugural edition with performances, talks and guided tours designed to encourage deeper engagement with artists, dealers and the work on view. Additional details to be announced.

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EXHIBITORS INCLUDE: 

95 GALLON

ALEX STOLLER

ARTIST ESTATE STUDIO

BELOW GRAND

BLAH BLAH GALLERY

CARA SHEFFLER

ELI KLEIN GALLERY

EMILY MCELWREATH

FLATLINE

GEARY CONTEMPORARY

GOOD NAKED GALLERY

KATY DIAMOND HAMER PROJECTS

KELLY-MCKENNA GALLERY

MASSEY KLEIN

SPILL 180

THE SPHINX

SCHEDULE

VIP Preview 

Thursday, Oct. 1, 3-6 p.m. 

Vernissage

Thursday, Oct. 1, 6-8 p.m.

Open Hours 

Friday, Oct. 2, 12-6 p.m.

Saturday, Oct. 3, 12-6 p.m. 

VIP Talks and Tours 

Friday, Oct. 2, 11 a.m.-12 p.m.

Saturday, Oct. 3, 11 am.-12 p.m.

Performances

Friday, Oct. 2nd, 3-4 p.m.

Saturday, Oct. 3. 3-4 p.m.

HOST COMMITTEE

Mark Rosen, Founder, Studio Roh

Kate Lee, Co-founder and Executive Director, 603 Arts Foundation

Tracy Yuan, Art Advisor, Trace Out Art

Rachel Mijares Fick, Co-Founder, Future Fair & Program Director; Center for Art and Creative Exchange at Tyler School of Art + Architecture and Temple University

Nicholas Sorenson, Collector and Advisor

John Mauricio Lyons

Lila Allen, Editor, Wrong House

Mallory Ruymann, Managing Partner, art_works

Jesse Aran Greenberg, Owner/Founder, JAG Projects 

Mac Cumpian, Development Associate, Public Art Fund

ABOUT GOOD NAKED

Titled after a Seinfeld episode where Jerry’s girlfriend attempts to open a pickle jar and fix a bike in the buff, it is with levity and sincerity that Good Naked’s programming hovers around the intimate and awkward. The focus is on work that engages tactility, humor, movement and play. Good Naked's exhibitions are responsive and generative, prioritizing space for new voices and dialogue amongst contemporary artists.

ABOUT JAQUELINE CEDAR 

Jaqueline Cedar was born in Los Angeles, CA and currently lives and works in Brooklyn, NY. In 2009, she received an MFA in Visual Arts from Columbia University. Recent exhibitions include White Columns, New York (2026), Hollis Taggart, New York (2026), de boer gallery, Antwerp Belgium (2026), Morgan Lehman, New York (2026), Kelly McKenna, Spring Lake NJ (2026), Andrew Rafacz, Chicago IL (2025), Blah Blah, Philadelphia PA (2025), Essex Flowers New York (2025). Cedar's paintings and drawings address uncanny scenarios where characters engage with sincerity and purpose. Moments of desire, self-reflection, and lack of control motivate postures filled with bravado and vulnerability. In October 2019, Cedar launched the curatorial exhibition program Good Naked Gallery. 

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Press Contact

Carrie Paveglio 

carriepaveglio@gmail.com / (586) 925-5546