Are you going to the fair? It's free...

The Yankees aren't the only ones having trouble selling tickets.

The other day I was reading an article on nytimes.com when I noticed an ad offering free tickets to the International Fine Art Fair, which runs at the Park Avenue Armory in New York from May 1 through 5. This is a fancy fair, and I'd never seen that before. I clicked on the tab and printed out a complimentary ticket for two.

Then on Wednesday, I saw the same offer on the New York Social Diary site:

Hmmm. Art fairs often give free passes to museums and collectors, or to dealers who pass them on to collectors. But I'd not noticed such an offer, on the web or in print, to the general public. That had to say something about the state of the art market. The tickets go for $20. 

"We realize the economy is tough," Magda Grigorian, the spokeswoman for the organizer, Haughton International Fairs, told me when I called. She confirmed that this is a first for this fair. "This is the new regime."

Grigorian said the Haughton organization chose the two websites I happened to be on for their "very targeted audience. It's very qualified people, and we thought we'd try it. Foot traffic is very important for the fair. We know that sales may be down but it's also important to have good crowds."

The International Fine Art Fair has been around for about 15 years, with dealers offering works from the Renaissance through the 20th century. This year it has shrunk -- from 61 dealers last year to 40. Still, it's proceeding: the Haughtons cancelled their International Asian Art Fair this year, which had been set for March.

With so many fairs on the art-market circuit in the last few years, there have already been many cancellations, and there are bound to be more. Organizers and dealers will surely be watching the outcome of this tactic.

Here's a link to the fair's site. You may have to rummage around nytimes.com or NYSD to find the free-ticket offer, but it was still available last night.