Highlights from ART ASIA
Miami concludes a successful year.The premier and only Asian contemporary art fair in America, ART ASIA, closed its second year in Miami on Sunday, December 6, with 95% of galleries reporting strong sales. ART ASIA attracted prominent institutions, museums, advisory groups, international collectors, press, and art enthusiasts, from the Americas, Europe and emerging markets from the Middle East to Japan – bringing in over 35,000 visitors within five days.
“I am very pleased by the response and support from collectors, press, and our exhibitors,” says Jeffrey Lawson, Co-founder of ART ASIA. “ART ASIA Miami ’09 was a huge success with increase in attendance and sales. ART ASIA gives us a rare opportunity to bring new galleries and artists to western collectors and foster a great long-standing relationship with the galleries.”
Some of the notable patrons that attended ART ASIA included Charles Saatchi; Agnes Gund; Pearl Lam; Marty Margulies; Chuck Close; Marc & Livia Straus; Magnus Renfrew; Jérôme Sans, The Oppenheimers; Asia Society; The Andy Warhol Museum; The Bass Museum of Art; The Frost Art Museum; MOCA Los Angeles; MoMA New York; Guggenheim Museum New York; The Zechendorfs; The Riverside Art Museum; The Lowe Art Museum; The Toledo Museum of Art; Whitney Museum of Art; Christie’s Auction House; and Sotheby’s, among many others.
New participants such as RCM Gallery from Nanjing sold a painted bronze sculpture by Chinese artist Yu Fan for 50,000 USD to a Miami-based collector. While returning exhibitor, Galerie Kashya Hildebrand from Zurich sold a sculpture by Valay Shende to a Swiss collector for 75,000 USD. Based on the sales, sculpture and photography were collector’s favorites. Grotto Fine Art from Hong Kong sold three stainless steel sculptures by Danny Chin-fai Lee and had five other commissions for the same artist. Keumsan Gallery from Seoul sold several Kim Daesoo’s beautiful gelatin silver prints and other photographers to younger collectors.
Other highlights from galleries: Sundaram Tagore Gallery’s special presentation of SIGNS: Contemporary Arab Art drew an impressive crowd and reported tripling of the sales from the previous year. The special exhibition featured seven renowned artists from the Middle East all exploring the role of traditional Islamic calligraphy and symbols.
Sundaram Tagore Gallery, located in New York, Hong Kong and Beverly Hills, sold a painting by Ahmad Moualla for 75,000 USD to a New York based collector. “People who had money, still had money, but there was a psychological freeze on spending,” said Sundaram Tagore. “They feel the bottom already hit and are coming back.”
Kips Gallery from New York sold six sets of work, selling more in their first time at ART ASIA than at any other fair they have attended in the past. The Ullens Center for Contemporary Art in Beijing attracted many young collectors buying photography, sculpture, and prints ranging from 500 USD to 7,000 USD. Da Xiang Art Space from Taichung City commented on the interests in Zhang Yu’s works and had several commissions for the artist.
ART ASIA’s Curatorial and Educational Programming
ART ASIA launched an entirely new curatorial platform with independent curator Leeza Ahmady. The exhibition titled Truly Truthful showcased 20 internationally recognized artists whose works contest categorical presentations of truth and reality in the world. Hailing from 15 countries—Albania, Cambodia, China, Egypt, France, India, Italy, Japan, Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Pakistan, Taiwan, Thailand, and the US. “Our objective was to create a platform that reflects the diversity of artists’ backgrounds and practices, dispelling the notion that contemporary art from Asia is narrowly focused and comes from a single region” states Truly Truthful curator Leeza Ahmady, an Afghan born and New York-based independent curator and director of Asian Contemporary Art Week at Asia Society.
In addition, ART ASIA continued its film series with Yi Zhou’s The Ear, featuring Pharrell Williams with music by Ennio Morricone, and costumes designed by Rick Owens and BBC Ice Cream. The film was also celebrated at a private ART ASIA party hosted by Chad and Ilona Oppenheim at their private residence.
For more information, please visit www.artasiafair.com/. For media inquiries please contact Zakarin Public Relations at 305.372.2502 or email destiny@zakarinpr.com.
