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T he Texas Contemporary — an event that defines fall in Houston for the collector set — returns for year eight Thursday through Sunday, October 10 through 13. It's Houston's entrée in the Brooklyn-based Art Market Productions portfolio of art fairs, which includes the Paul Allen- endorsed Seattle Art Fair, Market Art + Design in the Hamptons, Art on Paper in NYC, Art Market San Francisco, and (in partnership) the upcoming Prospect 5 in New Orleans. Since its launch in 2011, the Texas Contemporary has contributed vital dollars to benefit Contemporary Arts Museum Houston (to date, in the six figures), supported Houston artists, and brought to town a litany of headliners, most notably Michael Chow (aka Mr. Chow) and the Haas Brothers. This month, the Texas Contemporary takes over George R. Brown Convention Center, presenting an of-the-moment view of contemporary art and design via more than 60 galleries traveling in from both coasts and Canada. Hopes are high that year eight will build upon the success of 2018, where thousands flocked to the GRB, with strong sales and much fanfare. Here follows our preview of what's new and what's next — and the best booths this year. Design Is Spoken The Texas Contemporary continues to push out design as part of its mantra and messaging. The fair's biggest coup is exhibiting the Black Artists + Designers Guild, a New York-based, globally focused collective of talents typified by the pared-down beauty of Ethiopian-American Jomo Tariku's furniture. Set up like a museum exhibition, the BA + DG wares will be available for acquisition and include ceramics by Malene Barnett and lighting by studio PGRB. Houston design exhibitors include Carol Piper Rugs and the recently minted Shop by Adam Cook, who curates a selection of CC- Tapis' Rug Invaders collection, lighting by Bocci, and glass vases by OAO Works. Another design high point is always the VIP Lounge; once again, BeDesign has been tapped to create the experience, selecting furniture and design objects culled from its international designer roster. Top Stops This year's fair largely looks outside Texas, with dealers flocking primarily from New York, California, and Florida. Melissa Morgan Fine Art, Palm Desert, brings mystical geometric boxes by Brit/L.A. artist Anthony James — portals into monumental worlds of nature and science. Adamar Fine Arts, which helped birth Miami's Design District, offers a roster of contemporary masters, including works by Julian Opie, Damien Hirst, Robert Longo, Donald Sultan, and streetwise Mr. Brainwash (a memorable portrait of Kate Moss). Two heritage names in the New York gallery scene promise an impact: Spanierman Modern and Adelson Galleries. At the former, a standout is a heroic mid- 1980s colorfield canvas by the late Dan Christensen; the latter's Pop- inflected sculptures by Federico Uribe are formed from bullet shells. Also worth noting are ZieherSmith, and Alpha 137 Gallery, New York fine art booksellers turned art dealers who feature a knockout Marina Abramovic self-portrait with scorpion — one of the defining images of this year's fair. From the other coast, Santa Monica gallerist Axiom Contemporary showcases its Pop- and street-art stable, including Bogotá lensman Max Steven Grossman's bookscapes comprised of 50 to 60 composite images to recreate a collector's dream-library shelves. San Francisco gallerist K. Imperial Fine Art emphasizes the star of its stable: Tahiti Pehrson, whose intricate cut-paper sculptures speak to mathematics, patterning, space, and time. Pasadena, California-based Arcadia Contemporary rolls out its lineup of figurative realism. Further north, Lustre Contemporary represents Canadian talent, including Alice Zilberberg and her heroic photographic portrait of a lone bison. For a photo finish, Stephen L. Clark Gallery, Austin's esteemed photographic source, is setting up shop. Pan American Art Projects, in from Miami, is devoted to works encompassing the Americas — Cuba, U.S., Argentina, and the Caribbean; it's owned by Robert Borlenghi, brother of Houston real estate magnate Giorgio Borlenghi. Finally, during your fair perambulations, don't be startled by sculptures of mammoth sea slugs rendered in Styrofoam: They've benevolent creations by hometown artist/ BY CATHERINE D. ANSPON FAIR PLAY THE TEXAS CONTEMPORARY ART FAIR — YEAR 8 ALL IMAGES COURTESY THE ARTISTS AND THEIR RESPECTIVE GALLERIES Marina Abramovi 's Homage to Frida Kahlo (Portrait with Scorpion), 2014, at Alpha 137 Gallery Suzette Mouchaty's Nudibranch I, 2018, presented by Anya Tish Gallery in the fair's common area Alice Zilberberg's Be Here Bison, 2019, at Lustre Contemporary 82