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March 3, 2016

New York Armory Week & Expansion of International Art Fairs

With the end of Armory Arts Week in New York (Feb. 28-March 6th), we thought it would be a good time to follow-up on our blog last year about the future of international art fairs by examining the rising importance of New York as a hub for such fairs.

As explained in Video #6 in our Know2collect library, while a handful of art fairs existed as long ago as the 15th century, we are now witnessing an exponential growth in their popularity with more than 200 being held in this century around the globe annually.

Klaus von Nitchssagend Gallery Booth at Armory Show 2016 (Photo by Adam Reich for Artsy)
Klaus von Nitchssagend Gallery Booth at Armory Show 2016 (Photo by Adam Reich for Artsy)

In New York, the art fair season is kicked off every March with two major international fairs known as “The Art Show” at the Park Avenue Armory and the “Armory Show” at Piers 92 & 94.  Sponsored by the Art Dealer’s Association of America and in its 28th year, the former features works ranging from Old Masters to Contemporary from 70 member American galleries and the latter, founded in 1994, features modern and contemporary art from over 200 galleries around the globe.  Significant satellite fairs have also sprung up during Armory Arts Week such as Independent New York, Pulse New York, and Spring/Break Art Show.  And, in May each year, NYC again sizzles with even more major annual art fairs, including NADA (New Art Dealer’s Alliance) (May 14-17) and Frieze (May 5-8).

Hanging works by Danh Vo at Marian Goodman’s space, Frieze NY 2015 (Photo published by artnet news, 12/18/14)
Hanging works by Danh Vo at Marian Goodman’s space, Frieze NY 2015 (Photo published by artnet news, 12/18/14)

And while it is not surprising that the Big Apple has been and continues to be a mecca for globe-trotting art enthusiasts, what is interesting is that the success of such fairs have prompted other important international art fairs abroad to expand their fairs by adding NY as an additional location.

As reported by Brian Boucher of artnet news, TEFAF (The European Fine Arts Fair), one of the oldest international art fairs has announced that it is coming to NYC.  Following the lead of other prestigious international fairs like Frieze London which opened 2 new Frieze fairs (Frieze Masters and Frieze NY) in NYC in 2012, TEFAF will no longer be limited to its annual March fair in Maastricht, Netherlands, but will add two new fairs in NYC: October, 2016 (featuring antiquities to the 20th century) and Spring of 2017 (modern and contemporary art).

According to Boucher, while such plans for expansion carry inherent risks, it may be that the competitive global market is now compelling art fairs to have more convenient locations that are regional and closer to buyers.  Indeed, this development mirrors the phenomenon being observed with mega galleries like Gagosian, Pace and Hauser & Wirth which we also covered in Video #5 and which Boucher points out are opening more and more international locations.

Time will tell whether the proliferation of even more international art fairs will dilute the quality and focus of such fairs and whether the collector will really be better served.

Shannon Robinson is the curator and chairperson of the national biennial exhibitions Windows to the Divine (Nov. 17-Dec. 13, 2016) and the national symposiums sponsored by Collectors for Connoisseurship (Nov. 2015 at Denver Art Museum and Oct. 2017).  More about Shannon…

Filed Under: Global Art Market

July 15, 2015

MEET THE ARTIST: Scott Fraser

As part of Collectors for Connoisseurship which will launch in September, Windows to the Divine will feature blogs about the artists who are members of our Circle of Artists.  Composed of our Master Artists from our National Symposiums (November 13, 2015 at Denver Art Museum) and our Fra Angelico Artists of the Year (awarded at Windows Exhibition held every other year since 1999), these renowned artists will share with our members their unique insights about their work, practices and influences.  The Circle of Artists will also provide valuable advice to both artists and collectors and will share with our members behind the scenes information regarding their exhibitions, awards and career news.

QuidleyFACmay2015FraserFor our first blog in this ongoing series, we are pleased to introduce to you Master American Realist, Scott Fraser.  In our first story about Scott, we wanted to let you know about his upcoming exhibition (July 17-30) at Quidley and Company in Nantucket.  The exhibition by this nationally known still life artist who combines the traditional with the contemporary will be a fascinating exploration of the complex and painstaking process of the artist.  Featuring Lemon Fall, shown here, the exhibition will include Scott’s pre-study work, including two large drawings, one smaller oil painting, one smaller watercolor and four preparatory drawings.

lemon-fall,-final-paintingWatch this artful video documenting Scott’s 5-month process for Lemon Fall! 

The Fraser exhibition will also include other works such as A Lesson in Paint and Below the Moon.

We also want to extend our congratulations to Scott as two more museums have added his work to their permanent collections:  New Britain Museum of American Art, New Britain, CT and the Whitney Western Art Museum, Buffalo Bill Center of the West in Cody, WY.

More about Scott Fraser…

Filed Under: Blog, Circle of Artists

June 24, 2015

Art Basel 2015 & Future of International Art Fairs

With the conclusion of Art Basel 2015 (June 18-21), it is an opportune time to discuss the role of international art fairs in the global art market.  Founded in 1970 and touted as the premier fair for Modern and contemporary art, Art Basel exhibited the works of over 4,000 artists from 284 galleries from 33 countries and attracted 98,000 visitors.

Art Basel 2015 Ai Weiwei, Stacked; artnet news, 6/6/15; Photo: Instagram@alexandracoorssen
Art Basel 2015
Ai Weiwei, Stacked; artnet news, 6/6/15; Photo: Instagram@alexandracoorssen

While international art fairs date back to the 15th century, they have only recently become a major player in the art world with now more than 200 being held each year. According to the TEFAF Report, in 2014, the top 22 fairs attracted over a million visitors. The U.S. held the most fairs with 39% of the total followed by Europe at 38% and Asia at 12%.  More importantly, as reported in the TEFAF Report, art fairs generated at least €9.8B in sales and constituted the second largest sales channel after in-gallery sales.

The popularity of art fairs is explained by three of its major benefits: (1) collectors can view works from the top dealers in the world under one roof and have the convenience of comparison shopping; (2) works are vetted by a committee of experts for quality and authenticity; and (3) social events are held concurrently for collectors that reinforce the exciting arts “lifestyle”.

TEFAF Maastricht 2015 Antonio Balestra, Juno and Argus, Exhibitor Charles Beddington, Ltd.
TEFAF Maastricht 2015
Antonio Balestra, Juno and Argus, Exhibitor Charles Beddington, Ltd.

Two of the most well known international fairs are Art Basel and TEFAF (The European Fine Art Fair). Held every year in the Netherlands, TEFAF exhibits a broad range of works from Antiquities to Old Masters to Modern and Contemporary Art.

And while the number of art fairs seems to be spreading across the globe, they are increasingly becoming the subject of scathing reviews by critics such as Adam Lindemann who explains that art fairs used to provide mutual benefits to dealers and collectors since they provided a global stage to showcase the best works of both known and unknown artists.  Lindemann complains that the “freshness of new discoveries has mostly evaporated because there are so many international fairs in a single year” and the galleries now pre-sell all the best art and bring the lesser works to the fairs.

Moreover, the phenomenon of overproduction has become of increasing concern.  As Georgina Adam explains in her book, “Big Bucks: The Explosion of the Art Market in the 21st Century¹, with so many art fairs around the world, dealers and their artists have had to scramble to maintain sufficient inventory, causing many artists to either outsource their production or increase production via an increasing use of multiples; photographs, videos, prints and editions.

This response by artists and dealers has lead to what many critics call “art fair art” or “zombie art” which Jason Frago of the Guardian describes as “safe, predictable abstract painting…that repeats postwar innovations in purely decorative fashion.”

Despite such criticisms, with the increasing globalization of art and the mobility of collectors, art fairs are likely to continue to dominate the arts scene at least for the near future.

Upcoming international art fairs include: Art Basel, Miami Beach (December 3-6, 2015); Art Basel, Hong Kong (March 24-26, 2016); TEFAF, Maastricht (March 11-20, 2016); Frieze London (October 14-17, 2015) and Frieze NY (May 5-8, 2016); The ADAA Art Show & Armory Shows in NYC (March 2-6, 2016).

¹Adam, Georgina (2014), Big Bucks:  The Explosion of the Art Market in the 21st Century (ISBN 978-1-84822-159-8) (p. 114), UK:  Lund Humphries.

Shannon Robinson is the curator and chairperson of the national exhibition Windows to the Divine and the national plein air event Altitude and Attitude. More about Shannon…

Filed Under: Global Art Market

May 20, 2015

Napa Valley Arts Scene: Sharing and Pairing Wine with Art Collections

Who says Napa is only for oenophiles and foodies?  Think ART while sipping wine and indulging in Michelin starred cuisine!  From the Napa Valley Museum to the di Rosa collection to the Hess Art Museum, Napa offers art lovers much more than great food and wine. 

Napa Valley Museum, Yountville, CA
Napa Valley Museum, Yountville, CA

Last month, with artist Vincent Xeus as our host (he also serves as a commissioner on the Yountville Arts Commission), we experienced NAPA VALLEY COLLECTS, in its third year at the Napa Valley Museum featuring The Art of Collecting, a unique and diverse exhibition of over 50 works loaned by resident collectors of the Valley.  Touring the exhibition with Guest Curator, Doreen Schmid, we were visually and intellectually stimulated by a wide range of art collecting styles and media, including sculpture by Andro Wekua, owned by Howard and Cindy Rachofsky, founders of The Rachofsky House and photographs by Ansel Adams from Turnbull Winery owner Patrick O’Dell.  We also attended “Collective Conversations”-the Museum sponsored panel discussion with five of the lending collectors from the Exhibition.  The conversation proved engaging, humorous and thought provoking and represents the types of educational forums that Windows to the Divine endorses as a way of encouraging  individuals and communities to collect and share their art. 

Another must-see example of collectors sharing their art with the public is the famed di Rosa collection of approximately 2,000 works by more than 800 artists.  Considered the most significant holding of Bay Area art in the world, the nonprofit public trust was born from the vision of Rene and Veronica di Rosa, longtime art collectors and Napa vintners whose association with Bay Area artists flourished in the 60’s during Rene’s viticulture classes at UC Davis where he met and befriended artists and professors, including William T. Wiley, Robert Hudson and Robert Arneson.  In 1982, Rene sold the vineyards, comprising 250 of their 450 acres in order to focus exclusively on building an “art park” for the public with the di Rosa collection as its centerpiece.  The property includes a 35-acre lake and wildlife preserve and three galleries contained in the Gatehouse, Main Gallery and the historic residence of the collector couple shown here.  

di Rosa Collection Historic Residence with Figure of Speech Sculpture by Robert Hudson
di Rosa Collection Historic Residence with Figure of Speech Sculpture by Robert Hudson

Finally, while enjoying Napa’s more than 450 wineries, art lovers should also venture down the bucolic country road leading to the Hess Art Museum at The Hess Collection Winery; an international collection of modern and contemporary art, including the work of Francis Bacon, Anselm Kiefer, Robert Motherwell and Frank Stella, housed in three museums (Napa, South Africa and Argentina) and started in the 60’s by Donald Hess.  Believing that collectors have a responsibility to share their collections and make them accessible to the public, the Hess museums are open to the public and free of charge.

At Windows to the Divine, we applaud the efforts of other arts-related organizations and for profit corporations like the Napa wineries that affirm the importance of collecting and the need to make art collecting more accessible to everyone.

Shannon Robinson is the curator and chairperson of the national exhibition Windows to the Divine and the national plein air event Altitude and Attitude. More about Shannon…

Filed Under: Art & Travel

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