Claus Mueller

The international art fair held its 6^th New York edition in Randall’s Island Park from May 5-7, 2017, presenting more than 200 leading galleries from 31 countries showcasing contemporary and 20^th century art. Its international character was reflected by galleries from the Americas, Europe and Asia and new comers from Brazil, Guatemala, Japan and Poland. Its highlights featured some of the most important contemporary arts, including artists showing their works at the current Venice Biennale, major Latin American artists, site specific new commissions and seminars  on Latin American art, to name but a few.  Frieze continues getting support from its lead sponsor the Deutsche Bank which has supported the Frieze Art Fairs since their inception.

It has become more expensive to participate in most other fairs which have increased their fees due to the growing demand for exhibition spaces exceeding the expansion of the art market on all levels.  The recent TEFAF (The European Fine Art Fair) 2017 Global Art Market Report estimates growing art sales reaching $45 billion in 2016 in spite of greater global instability and political uncertainty. But this uncertainty strengthened art as an investment more appealing than stocks. Compared to  2015 global art sales, including antiques, increased by 1.7 percent in 2016 and experienced a significant shift of transactions from the auction sector to private sales and dealers. Dealers stress the growing importance of international art fairs for their sales transactions and for serving old and attracting new buyers. Fairs have gained an important curatorial function determining which galleries and artists are shown given the excess of demand for space over the supply of art work. There is much more art produced than what can be absorbed by galleries. The United States is the largest global art market with 21,370 active art galleries and antique dealers, a number that seems to get bigger each year. Most art and antiques dealer reports for 2016 show sales increases compared to the prior year. 

The fair was well attended and by the late afternoon of the press and VIP preview day it became so crowded that navigation was difficult. More than 200 galleries participated with many galleries reporting strong sales, though the overlapping upscale TEFAF art fair premiering at New York’s Armory served a similar audience. Overall, the success of Frieze reflects a strong art market with the volume of sales growing each year even though this year the fair reduced its length from five to four days. Combined with the unprecedented reduction of fees charged for stands this resulted in a more focused and less costly fair. What also added to the attraction was the museum-quality exhibitions in an airy light – filled structure designed for the fair. 

The fair was organized by the director of Frieze Art Fairs, Victoria Siddall and its artistic directors with support from a team of independent curators. Experts curated special sections of the fair   Spotlight, Frame, Focus, and the Frieze talks.   Among the topics covered by the discussions were activism and a new special symposium arranged with the Getty and NYU’s Institute of Fine Arts, on Latin America and Latino Art.  Special sections of Frieze 2017 expanded to 74 galleries and showcased some of the most interesting work presented at the fair. In Spotlight foundational art work since 1960, rare iconic avant-garde pieces, and artists from developing countries were presented.  Frame, an experimental section, focused on 17 emerging galleries from 13 countries, and Focus hosted programs from 28 young galleries from different countries. The inclusion of tribal and African art offered by three galleries, art which had much influence on modern and contemporary artists was a welcome addition to the fair.  Frieze invited again three non-profit groups to present their programs at the fair.  It also partnered this year with the Arts Action Fund, the largest US organization mobilizing Americans to fight for continued public funding of the arts. 

Many of the leading international galleries were present at Frieze 2017 in the main section, including, David Zwirner, Hauser & Wirth, Gagosian Gallery, and the Castelli Gallery, Marian Goodman, Gallery, Mendes Wood, Galerie Chantal Crousel, as well as Sprueth Magers. An emphasis was also placed on introducing exciting emerging galleries which included this year VI, VII (Oslo), Bridget Donahue (New York), and Proyectos Ultravioleta (Guatemala City). Discussion with gallery staff indicated that those who returned this year had good sales in 2016 and those who participated for the first time in the fair expect to do well this year as it was borne out by the time the pre-view day was over.  Overall strong sales were reported by Jack Shainman, Hauser & Wirth, Skarstedt Lemann Maupin, and David Zwirner. 

This immense exhibition of modern and contemporary art is an overwhelming assault on our ability to process the impressions. Yet there were some artworks arresting the visitor and prompting reflection. The Galerie Thaddeus Ropac offered a portrait by Yan-Pec-Ming of President-elect Trump for $160.000 and had past experience with similar sales of art presenting other politicians. Threshold by Lea Catera at South Reid in the Frame section showed an installation of hybrid video, performance and sculpture. Also in the Frame section at the VI,VII Gallery were Eva Le Witt’s  large scale installations and sculpture using  acetate, rubber and foam with machine-made and hand-sculpted elements.  In its first exhibition at Frieze the Munich based Daniel Blau gallery presented in its True Vintage show vintage photos taken during the thirties and forties by Weegee, an immigrant who grew up on the Lower East Side, Edward Wallowitch a young gay photographer from Pennsylvania, and Margaret Bourke-White. The first known print of “Lunch Atop a Skyscraper” (1932) by an unknown photographer is a highlight of the True Vintage exhibit. Carol Bove’s sculptures at the David Zwirner stand were among the most impressive art works of the Frieze fair. She uses large pieces of found steel and stainless steel to form into sculptures and covers their sides with bright paints drawing immediate attention. All of the sculptures were sold. 

For each Frieze Fair several projects are commissioned including this year cinematic doubling, that is doubles of well-known figures walking throughout the fair to question our perception of reality, the construction of an air-raid shelter outside an entrance to the fair, a tribute to a Rome gallery showing work from its 1968 exhibition alternating with new commissions, and a video by Jon Rafman reflecting his work. Dream Journal is a one hour single-channel video with a soundtrack by Rafman’s favorite musicians. It is a creative masterpiece where Rafman digitizes his phantasies and dreams in a large number of fragments. Sharp images in high resolution and surprising alternation of the presented create a captive audience.  There is a surreal, erotic, and critical transformation of reality encompassing landscapes, people, animals, nature in short our environment presented in a never ending rapidly changing interlocking images. What Rafman offers are images which are beautiful but also upsetting, erotic and violent. He immerses us in his dream world that transforms whatever he is touching. Stills from this video could fill a seperate exhibit of digital surrealism.

Claus Mueller        filmexchange@gmail.com