ArtParis, which took place from March 18 to 22, 2010, was the first major modern and contemporary art event of the year. More than 47,000 visitors, both members of the international art community and clients, flocked to the glass roof of the Grand Palais to discover the artistic proposals of the 114 international exhibitors, making this fair an unprecedented event in the Paris art market.
Franck Sorbier
The 12th edition of this great contemporary art fair proposed this year a new formula by allowing the galleries who wished to co-produce their stand by inviting guests from various worlds: fashion, cinema, media, music, gastronomy, architecture. About thirty galleries have thus chosen to cross their approach with other actors, well beyond the simple limits of art. Some collaborations flowed naturally like those between galleries or mixing art and literature like the collaboration of Vanessa Suchar and Marie Darieussecq. Others proved to be much more surprising, such as the unexpected collaboration of the Pascal Vanhoecke gallery and Marc Dorcel Productions in the early stages of the exhibition Sexe et Convenances 2 and in an attempt to represent sexuality in contemporary art. Frank Sorbier, haute couture designer, confronted his universe with that of the Galerie Vieille du Temple in a rather successful conversation with the works of Guy de Malherbe and Hanna Haaslahti. The Vu gallery has invited the architectural firm of Christian Biecher et Associés around the ten international photographers it exhibits.
Chéri Chérin
ArtParis+Guests was also an opportunity to showcase the dynamism of contemporary art through seven geographical and cultural platforms presenting emerging art scenes. Thus, one continent and three countries were represented: Africa, Finland, Indonesia and Ukraine. The Utopia/Dystopia platform put Paris back on the international art scene with its panel of galleries in the Marais (Anne Barrault, Patricia Dorfmann, Frank Elbaz, Nuke, Odile Ouizeman and Chez Valentin) and a Collector’s Apartment was recreated by the Left Bank Galleries (Downtown, In Situ-Fabienne Leclerc, Jousse Entreprise, Hervé Loevenbruck, GP&N Vallois). Visions offered works from young European galleries in an amazing cabinet of curiosities.
Gao Brothers - Miss Mao
The Nordine Zidoun Gallery, from Luxembourg, proposed very visual artists playing with optics, including Devorah Sperber, who is fascinated by the process of visual analysis of the human being, who proposes a work made of a spool of thread which, when viewed through the prism of an acrylic sphere, reveals itself to be the famous language of the Rolling Stones. The kinetic house proposed by the Leila Mordoch Gallery in partnership with Espaces 54 and Juliette Aittouarès includes paintings from the sixties, carpets, furniture by Romain Minar, sculptures and collectibles. Patrick Hughes’ paintings give us a lesson in perspective and movement and play with our vision of things.
Chinese art was honored by the Albert Benamou Gallery through the sculptures of the Gao Brothers or Choi Xooang.The Arte Contini Gallery was the opportunity for me to admire the so recognizable works of Fernando Botero and to contemplate the organic works of Enzo Fiore.
The “Afriques” platform, orchestrated by André Magnin, was an opportunity to discover an art in constant evolution, dynamic, colorful. It is moreover a quasi sold-out which greeted this platform and the composition of the Congolese Chéri Samba in the manner of Arcimboldo was very tasty. And what about Chéri Chérin’s “Challenges of globalization” between political discourse and naive art. The masks of Calixte Dakpodan made of springs seemed to have an ironic look on the traditional masks.
The platform “Indonesia” offered us an interesting collection through the set “The Grass Looks Greener Where You Water it” of the collector Deddy Kusuma.
ArtParis was also an opportunity to explore several vanities both on the “Indonesia” platform and through the Parisian galleries.
Simon Procter
This edition also gave pride of place to photography. We were delighted to find Nick Brandt’s wildlife photographs at the Galerie A booth and Vee Speers’ prints coupled with the unconceived but striking work of Chinese artist Zhang Peng at the Galerie Acte2 booth. Julia Gragnon offers us some moments with 20th century icons such as Serge Gainsbourg in Melody Nelson mode or Yves Saint-Laurent at work.
The Taiss Gallery offers us a magnificent fresco by Simon Procter inspired by both Renaissance works and contemporary dance. As for the 64bis Gallery, the photos of Jessica Graig-Martin offer us a look without concessions on the failings of the powerful and rich of this world.
Lorenzo Rudolf, strategic director and general curator of ArtParis+Guests, said: “This year we have inaugurated a new kind of contemporary art fair by pushing the limits of traditional fairs and adapting to the new practices of contemporary art lovers. It is now up to us to continue this evolution and to prepare a 2011 edition of ArtParis+Guests that is even more international, even more qualitative and even more surprising.
We are looking forward to the next edition of ArtParis+Guests, from March 30 to April 3, 2011, still at the Grand Palais.
More information is available at www.artparis.fr.
And in the meantime, I’ll share with you some of the artists I discovered there through a few focuses.
Photo credits:
Zhang Peng : with the courtesy of Acte2 Galerie
Platforms L’appartement de collectionneur and Afrique : copyright Marc Domage
Foxy Brown by McCallum and Tarry : with the courtesy of Galerie Zidoun
Others photos : copyright Marie-Odile Radom
Marie-Odile Radom
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