Comments on: Episode 137: New York Art Fair Madness

By: chris kyung

chris kyung — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 14:30:18 +0000

i just ran across this episode, and i have to know: why does amanda “high five” laura higgins for sounding like a complete fucking idiot?
i don’t have a particular affinity for sean raspet’s work, but one would think that a gallery rep would be able to describe an artist’s piece in terms that aren’t so transparently vacuous and meaninglessly obtuse.
some people can effectively exploit allegedly theoretical terms like deconstruct/deconstruction in the service of at least sounding intelligent, but the vast majority just throw them around hoping they’ll stick and no one will press them any further.
geez.

By: tony fitzpatrick

tony fitzpatrick — Tue, 06 May 2008 13:04:24 +0000

In spite of all that they did RIGHT– and they did a lot right — this was extremely well-attended. These guys are not good listeners… nor are they particularly judicious about who they listen to. If one lets Chicago art-dealers become the guiding brain-trust of this enterprise… one is deeply screwed.

By: Michael Workman

Michael Workman — Tue, 06 May 2008 01:50:23 +0000

Poor sales was entirely predictable, and solutions certainly could have been devised. Unfortunately, I’d not look to these guys to size it up with any competence in the foreseeable future.

By: Mark Staff Brandl

Mark Staff Brandl — Mon, 05 May 2008 20:45:51 +0000

I just heard from a Big Time International Gallerist Who Wishes to Remain Nameless that the “Big Boys” did extremely poorly in sales in Chicago. I heard the same from a “middle gallery.” That is bad news. For Chicago to advance the Mart needs to succeed — that menas galleries need to succeed financially — and then the Mart can branch out into more creative forms.

By: Christopher

Christopher — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 01:13:59 +0000

Just got back from walking the show and agree with the Artisit Project as having alot of potential and also missing the mark considerably at the same time.

I agree with Chris Roberts in that we did also smell incense at one point and that was a bit stereotypical and annoying. Also the addition of many artists that obviously had no place there wasn’t so great. If you want my educated guess as to why there were 200 over the chosen 50 is that the Antiques show seemed much smaller than usual and they needed to fill empty space on that floor.

The price being $1,500 per artist block as everyone said above that is nice quick cash, but don’t knock it many of them were selling seemingly more works than some of the floors above. There is the point of connecting with an audience.

Such is Art & Business?

By: Chris Roberts

Chris Roberts — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 16:31:16 +0000

Well, next time, they should cut out the kitsch, and craft, unless it is truely intentional, such as being ironic. It looked like one of those street fairs, which are fine, if you want to buy candles, and listen to a band covering all the hits from the 80′s. I think I smelled incense coming from a booth! And everyone’s name on their booth looked like it was suppose to be their logo. If I saw one credit card machine, I was going to flip a table. Is this what it was initially to be? Could you get into the Artists Project without ever having walked into a West Loop gallery, or the MCA, or even listened to B.A.S. for that matter?

I did, however, get to chat with a few nice artists, such as The Franks, and Jeremy Tubbs. Good Stuff.

By: Mark Staff Brandl

Mark Staff Brandl — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 14:43:40 +0000

I think it could STILL be the smart-chip of the whole deal — next time — if they will aim for an “ART Unlimited” -style “presence” but with ideas from the artists like Tony’s (and those I compiled, etc.)

By: tony fitzpatrick

tony fitzpatrick — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 13:33:29 +0000

There could be a great deal of possibility with the ‘Artists Project’ with a little more thought and some judicious editing….. it could be equitable for artists, the mart and the community… there is a way to do this right– they must lavish the same attention and planning on this element of the fair as they did on the others– more adds — some workshops, data base sharing, and a thematic unity would’ve gone a long way….

this could have worked — could have been the smart-chip of the whole enterprise.

By: Richard

Richard — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 04:12:26 +0000

Hard to sneeze at 375K.

By: Chris Roberts

Chris Roberts — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 04:09:09 +0000

…and then I went to the Artists Project. They should have capped it at 50. But then they would be missing out on the extra $375,000.