ARCO
The International Contemporary Art Fair
25th Anniversary
9-13th February
-Vernissage: Thursday 9th February at 12 noon
-Professional Visit Wed 8th February 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Thurs 9th February 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
-General Public: Thursday February 9th February 5 to 9 p.m
Friday 10th, February, Saturday 11th February,
Sunday 12th February, Monday 13th February
12 noon to 9 p.m.
IFEMA
Feria de Madrid
28042 Madrid, Spain
www.arcospain.org
ARCO06 The International Contemporary Art Fair
Vernissage
H.M. King Juan Carlos I, Honorary President of ARCO, and H.M. Queen Sofía, will be with us inaugurating a new and very special edition of ARCO: our 25th Anniversary. During these two-and-a-half decades, they have shared our enthusiasm, long-term efforts, and hard work. As well as other friends, whose collaboration we truly treasure and who will be present to celebrate such a special occasion.
The Fair
ARCOs huge popularity with the professional and general public can only be compared its wide view that gains in sophistication with each edition. This year we have managed to bring together almost 300 of the worlds leading galleries from 35 different countries. As well as 29 renowned curators that will take part of the fairs ground-breaking projects featuring consolidated and emerging artists, and our forum composed by 235 speakers that include museum directors, curators, professors, editors, authors, art critics, philosophers, artists, collectors and gallerists.
The Context
ARCOs influence can also be felt in all the contemporary art museums, centres and institutes that have been created throughout the last quarter-of-century, the amount is overwhelming and the prospect is more appealing than ever. For this reason ARCO has elaborately prepared and edited a very special publication, the Directory of Contemporary Art / Spain 2006.
The International Contemporary Art Experts Forum
From the very start, we realised how important it was to give the audience the proper tools to understand what was being shown. Therefore, we have always celebrated symposiums and round tables which have now matured into our International Contemporary Art Experts Forum. This years forum is organised into nine different series of panel discussions, each focusing on a different theme, reflecting some of todays major art concerns: Art Criticism; Museums Past and Present; New Channels/New Systems of Art Consumption, Diffusion, Patronage and Protection; the Art of Collecting Art; Media and Materials (centring on Urban Art and Biotechnological Art); Visual Culture Today; Art and Education; Art and Feminism; and Directions in Digital Art. Moreover, there will be a Seminar on Visual Studies entitled Geo-Politics of the Image in the Knowledge Society.
The Legacy
We have also been keenly aware of the importance of leaving a legacy evincing ARCOs accomplishments, including our extensive list of publications and our Foundation, which has created a noteworthy Contemporary Art Collection. We hope that this selection, made by renowned consulting curators and encompassing a wide variety of styles and trends, featuring key artists from all over the world, will stand the test of time, transcending the up-to-the-minute, whats-new-and-different spirit that makes the art fair vibrate.
The Curated Programmes
Our curated invitationals constitute another key ingredient in ARCOs unique formula for promoting cultural wealth and creativity. These programmes have long played a starring role at the art fair, and are a continuous source of satisfaction. This year we proudly present the following:
Special Guest Country: AUSTRIA
Twenty-two Austrian galleries selected for this special event. Sixteen Spanish Art Projects
María de Corrals metaphoric view of Spanish cultural and artistic diversity. Project Rooms: The Pursuit Curve
Twenty-two solo shows curated by Agustín Pérez-Rubio and Octavio Zaya theblackbox@arco
Twelve new media solo shows curated by Karin Ohlenschläger, Christiane Paul, Jemima Rellie, Mark Tribe and Ángela Molina. On youthculture
Subversive projects by ten artists under the age of 40, curated by Pedro Alonzo and Peter Doroshenko. Cityscapes
A unique view of some of the worlds most interestingand, in some cases, relatively unknownart scenes, offered by curators from around the globe. Featured cities include: Beijing, Shanghai, Bogotá, Guadalajara, Mexico City, Calgary, Montreal, Toronto, Caracas, Copenhagen, Cairo, Douala, Johannesburg, Dublin, Istanbul, Havana, Ljubljana, L.A., Moscow, Tallinn, New York, Porto, Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, Santiago de Chile, and Singapore.
Information concerning travel and accommodations for ARCO guests available at
Viajes El Corte Inglés: grupossectorpublico@viajeseci.es;
(phone) 34 91 454 6014
Viajes Marsans: ferias3@marsans.es; (phone) 34 91 722 5236
(fax) 34 91 722 5239 www.arcospain.org
Advanced ticket sales at www.arcospain.org and www.entradas.com
Advanced sales of the Official Catalogue DVD Appendices and the Directory of Contemporary Art / Spain 2006 through our website: www.arcospain.org.
