The confession continued: I am not well versed on the differences between art fairs, art festivals and biennales (confining the discussion to the visual arts).
Two references caught my eye while investigating the differences between biennales and art fairs.
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| Art San Diego 2014 (November 6-9) / Balboa Park, San Diego, California |
Federica Martini suggests that the presentation of contemporary art in biennales emphasizes the “spectacularisation of the everyday.”
Georgina Adam adds some detail: [In biennales] “[t]he ‘traditional’ countries with pavilions in the Giardini (Venice gardens) tend to show artists who are already well established and have an existing market, so it is inevitable that pieces are sold there. . . Many will come from countries without a developed gallery system, and the excitement of the Biennale is this element of discovery. ‘Biennales are very different from art fairs: they are laboratories,’ says Hans Ulrich Obrist, co-director of London’s Serpentine Gallery, who has directed biennales in Berlin, China, Russia and elsewhere. ‘They are often about process and experimentation.’ (Quoted by Judith H. Dobrzynsk)
But we do have an Art Fair in San Diego – different from the San Diego County Fair that encompasses ferris wheels and other rides, displays of animal husbandry, lots of sticky and yummy food as well as art; different too from Art Walks (Little Italy and other locales) and community fairs (Hillcrest, La Jolla, etc.).
Georgina Adam adds some detail: [In biennales] “[t]he ‘traditional’ countries with pavilions in the Giardini (Venice gardens) tend to show artists who are already well established and have an existing market, so it is inevitable that pieces are sold there. . . Many will come from countries without a developed gallery system, and the excitement of the Biennale is this element of discovery. ‘Biennales are very different from art fairs: they are laboratories,’ says Hans Ulrich Obrist, co-director of London’s Serpentine Gallery, who has directed biennales in Berlin, China, Russia and elsewhere. ‘They are often about process and experimentation.’ (Quoted by Judith H. Dobrzynsk)
But we do have an Art Fair in San Diego – different from the San Diego County Fair that encompasses ferris wheels and other rides, displays of animal husbandry, lots of sticky and yummy food as well as art; different too from Art Walks (Little Italy and other locales) and community fairs (Hillcrest, La Jolla, etc.).
AnnBerchtold remains as one of the constants to San Diego’s annual Art Fair, continuing as its director, but now under the ownership of Redwood Media Group. The art fair is now titled Art San Diego Contemporary Art Show.
Now located in Balboa Park, the exhibit
describes itself as “committed to supporting and showcasing
emerging and promising artists. We take risks; we enjoy surprises. We love to
spot talent and introduce them to new audiences.”
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| Stacy Conde, Conde Contemporary (Miami) / Art work by Darian Rodriguez Mederos (left) |
More confession: With this understanding
of Art (Fair) San Diego in mind, I can now share my personal experience as I
walked through the exhibit. I now know what I saw and why I enjoyed it.
As soon as I entered the pavilion, I was struck by a collective wall of art. Stretching from waist high to the top of the wall was the small moody landscapes of Nihal Kececi. I needed to close in on the paintings to see the detail and fusion of colors. Kececi traveled from Washington, D.C. where her gallery is located. This was part of the delight of Art SD - being able to talk with many of the artists (and even the gallery owners and agents) and discover what brought them to San Diego. After all, aren't we in the hinterland? Maybe not so much anymore.
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| Nihal Kececi art work at the entry to Art SD 2014 pavilion |
I asked Kececi what she was trying to capture with her art.
Nihal Kececi: Mood, the undefined, mystery, uncertainty and the unknown.
Nihal Kececi: Mood, the undefined, mystery, uncertainty and the unknown.
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| Nihal Kececi / Relationship |
One of the provocative art works was a glass sculpture by Einar and Jamex de la Torre, being shown by the Sergott Gallery. I wrote to Einar de la Torre and asked him what the sculpture was about, especially since most of us in the United States are not familiar with the politics of Mexico.
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| Einar and Jamex de la Torre |
Einar de la Torre: We made that figure while teaching in Oaxaca in 2010. Ulises
Ruiz was the governor when all the turmoil happened about 2006. He 'disappeared' many school teachers who were protesting low pay and
terrible classroom conditions. This led to massive strikes and
roadblocks by the locals that continue to this day.
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| Einar and Jamex de la Torre / PRI glass sculpture / side view with knife in the back |
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| Chris Trueman at White Box Contemporary at Art SD 2104 |
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| Visitors at Art SD 2014 |
Such art exhibits should also inspire. So, here's my take on being included in a future Art SD exhibit.
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| Joe Nalven imagines his own exhibit space at a future Art SD |
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