Frieze
Preview of the world’s leading art fair
London’s ground-breaking contemporary art fair returns this October to Regent’s Park, an annual showcase of the best in art, design, film and music and an increasingly vital event in the global calendar.
As far as contemporary art fairs go, Frieze sets the standard. Launched in 2003 by Frieze Magazine founders Amanda Sharp and Matthew Slotover, and held in the picturesque setting of Regent’s Park, it is an immense annual showcase of art, design, film and music, a landmark London event and one of the most important dates in the global art calendar. This year Frieze received its biggest number of participating applicants to date, and an impressive total of 168 of the world’s most forward-thinking galleries are set to exhibit the work of over 1,000 artists, mixing up fresh blood with some of the best known names in the industry.
Expect to see all the important arcades from across Europe and America, from emergent territories such as Asia and South America, plus several dynamic new additions from South Korea, Romania and UAE. UK galleries to look out for are The Approach, Hauser & Wirth, Sadie Coles HQ, the Lisson Gallery and White Cube, while New York’s David Zwirner, Berlin’s Galeria Plan B and Tokyo’s Taka Ishii are just some of the internationals that will be flying in. Although initially staged for the purpose of selling art, Frieze has become a crucial cultural experience, and 80% of its visitors now attend purely to spectate. So, whether you’re a Regents Park regular having your weekend stroll or Larry Gagosian looking to blow some billions, Frieze is an all-embracing affair and welcomes newcomers and aficionados alike.
Kicking off on Thursday October 14 and running for its usual four days, the Frieze Art Fair compliments its multitudes of gallery exhibitions with an additional curatorial programme, presented by the Frieze Foundation and divided in to several different sections. The first section, Frieze Projects, involves a series of specially commissioned works which in the past have included creations by Richard Prince, Ryan Gander, Paola Pivi and Mike Nelson. This year the projects will focus on performative action, including a wacky live game show-based performance by Spartacus Chetwynd, video installations by Shahryar Nashat exploring how display and reproduction can affect meaning, and a panel discussion organised by Jeffrey Vallance in which psychic mediums will attempt to channel the spirits of famous artists such as Leonardo de Vinci and Jackson Pollock.
The other sections that make up the curatorial programme are Frieze Talks, Frieze Film and Frieze Education; Frieze Talks featuring keynotes by artists and writers including Michael Bracewell and Bridget Riley, Frieze Film four new commissions screened in a bespoke cinema and Frieze Education a series of events and workshops geared towards families and designed to familiarise young people with the best in contemporary art. There is also an annual sculpture park, free to the public and which has in the past featured work by Paul McCarthy and Vanessa Billy, while a special Frieze Music programme is an event unto itself. New York’s Hercules & Love Affair will play with special guests including Dalston art-noise duo Hype Williams at new London venue Debut on Friday October 15, premiering material from their unreleased second album, while Baby Dee and the Elysian Quartet will be playing on the Saturday in a candle-lit Shoreditch Church.
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Last but by no means least, the Frame programme returns in its second year. Perhaps one of the most exciting events of the whole fair, Frame is dedicated to solo artist presentations from galleries that have been in existence for less than six years. While curators and contemporary art veterans Daniel Baumann and Cecilia Alemani have this year advised the participating galleries’ selections, presentations to look out for include Naeem Mohaiemen at Kolkata’s Experimenter, duo Daniel Keller and Nik Kosmas at Berlin’s Gentili Apri and the first showing in Europe of Brazilian sculptor Carlos Bevilacqua’s work at New York’s Simon Preston Gallery. A Frame presentation is the place to spot exciting new talent for the first time, and the event provides fresh faces a brilliant platform on which to emerge.
It’s not hard to see why the Frieze Art Fair has come to be viewed over the last eight years as “the most relevant factor in London’s development as an Art Metropolis” (Welt Am Sonntag). Providing its visitors with an opportunity to enjoy and buy art by so many of the world’s leading artists, to discover new arrivals on the scene and to enjoy all manner of other artist-led events and projects, Frieze Art Fair is well worth its entrance fee and well deserved of its reputation as one of the most influential global art events. Last year’s Frieze saw well over 60,000 visitors flock to the grasses of an autumnal Regent’s Park, and this year promises to be even bigger. Advance tickets are £15 each, £10 concessions and £40 for the full weekend and can be purchased online here. Don’t miss out!
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