Although this year's dynamic duo of John Waters and Mary Heilmann are a tough act to follow, British artist Ewan Gibbs will give it a go. Today the Armory Show announced that 35-year-old Gibbs, known for his labor-intensive grisaille drawings, has been commissioned to create the visual identity of next year's installment of the sprawling contemporary art fair, which will be held in New York City on March 4-8, 2009.

Gibbs' artwork will feature iconic images of New York City (as in his 2006-7 work pictured at right) and will shape the fair's look, figuring prominently in all advertising and marketing materials as well as the catalogue. Armory Show executive director Katelijne De Backer believes that Gibbs is a particularly good match for the 2009 show, which will inaugrate a section dedicated to dealers specializing in Modern and secondary market works. "Ewan Gibbs is the ideal artist to represent both sections of The Armory Show 2009," said De Backer in a statement issued today. "His meticulous, meditative drawings reference early Modern movements like Pointilism while remaining firmly contemporary."