The annual Art on Paper fair at Manhattan's Pier 36 concluded on September 7, featuring approximately 100 exhibitors who transformed traditional paper-based art into extraordinary works that captivated visitors. Among the standout presentations, several artists demonstrated how everyday paper objects could be reimagined as powerful artistic statements, drawing significant crowds and sales during the opening hours.

Nicolas V Sanchez emerged as one of the fair's most compelling artists, participating in his eighth consecutive year at the event. His booth featured Moleskine journals spread open to reveal intricate ballpoint pen drawings depicting intimate corners of his family members' homes. These works, reflecting his Midwest-meets-Mexican upbringing through pastoral and familial scenes, were priced between $3,000 and $6,000. Three pieces sold within the first hours of the fair, including two notebooks with horse drawings and one featuring the exterior of his aunt's refrigerator rendered in forensic detail.

"Because it's pen, I can't erase it, so I just have to keep going," Sanchez explained about his creative process using 4.5 x 7-inch notebooks. "You just commit to it at a certain point, and then that's kind of the beauty of it." His piece "Refri de mi Tia Blanca" (2025) particularly showcased his technical skill, featuring ruled notebook paper letters from his nephew held by magnets. Sanchez noted the biggest challenge was ensuring the letter within the notebook appeared written in pencil rather than sketched by pen.

The Los Angeles-based Arts Unified gallery presented illustrator Adam Greener's oversized clipboard installations, which stunned visitors with their familiar yet dramatically enlarged forms. His work "Choices XL" (2022), priced at $13,500, featured a giant ruled piece of paper on which the sentence "I will start making better choices" was repeatedly written. According to gallery staff, Greener's work draws from his school experiences when his doodles would result in detention. Nearby pieces included comically enlarged report cards with failing grades, evoking nostalgic memories of academic struggles.

At Van Der Plas Gallery's booth, two Canadian artists brought international perspectives to the fair. Susan Day, who flew in from Canada that morning, displayed dream-inspired drawings of air traffic control maps of Canadian airspace. "This is the stuff that kind of keeps me going," Day said about the fair experience. "It puts my work into some context, and I think having other people's eyes see my work is a huge connection for me." She emphasized that New York art fairs bring significantly more traffic than she typically receives in Canada.

Jason McLean, also from Canada, presented alongside Day with his piece "Future Directions" (2025), a self-portrait that simultaneously functions as a map of New York City. Both artists were enthusiastic about discussing their work with visitors, highlighting the interactive nature of the fair experience.

The fair's specialized section, BOOKsmART, created a "fair within a fair" focusing exclusively on paper media and artist books. Mixed-media artist Seth Apter displayed stunning art books meditating on themes of time and aging, with works priced between $600 and $1,800. Despite initial doubts about audience interest in artist books, Apter achieved remarkable success the previous year, selling 12 of the 17 books he brought. The section hosted small presses and art book creators, expanding the definition of paper-based art.

Philadelphia-based artist Stacey Lee Webber provided one of the fair's most provocative presentations with her embroidered currency art. Working with authentic uncut sheets of bills from the United States Mint, Webber adorned the faces on American paper money with tattoos, clown noses, and cigarettes. Her piece "Two Dollar Fire" (2023), priced at $32,000, featured an embroidered sheet of $2 bills with the reverse side showing the founding fathers signing the Declaration of Independence set ablaze with flame-colored thread.

"It's fun to stitch away," Webber explained. "It's tearing away at this structure of money we have." Her work represented a bold commentary on American financial systems through the medium of traditional embroidery techniques.

Among the higher-priced works, Pace Gallery presented Nina Katchadourian's paper sculpture "Plant 53" (2025) for $18,000, demonstrating the range of artistic approaches and price points available at the fair.

The opening night maintained a steady stream of visitors who were particularly drawn to booths featuring artists like Sanchez, Apter, and Webber, who ingeniously transformed everyday paper objects with individual creativity and vision. These innovative approaches stood in stark contrast to more conventional presentations of standard drawings, paintings, and photographs, which felt comparatively two-dimensional. The fair's success highlighted the continuing evolution of paper-based art and its ability to engage contemporary audiences through creative reinterpretation of familiar materials and forms.