Whether your tastes run to historic or contemporary art, LA Art Show 2015 has something for everybody. That’s certainly good for art collectors who can get their hands on a piece for considerably less than they might pay in a gallery, but some sellers at the fair feel sullied by the company they find themselves in.
Running through Sunday, the annual show features works fromfrom 22 countries, including China, a sponsor of the event with the largest space on the floor, and the UAE with a tent under which buyers can relax. The buyers are as eclectic as the art: retailers, casual collectors, serious collectors and people just looking for something that goes with the couch.
“Some shows really aim to have one focus: just Asian art, just cutting-edge contemporary,” says the show’s general manager, Kim Martindale. “This show is really about the international community coming together here in Los Angeles.”
Major dealers like Larry Gagosian and David Zwirner, as well as European dealers such as Thaddaeus Ropac, are conspicuous by their absence. “There’s never been a sign that says top dealers with the top works stay out. They go where the action is,” commented Jack Rutberg, who’s been attending the show for 18 years. “I know there will be works of remarkable mediocrity and some very few selective high points.”
Including only 14 galleries and 250 attendees when it began back in 1994, this year’s show includes 120 galleries and will attract estimated 55,000 visitors, an expansion that mirrors LA’s growing prominence in contemporary art circles. In 1994, Bergamot Station, a collection of galleries, opened in Santa Monica, followed by the grand opening of the Getty Center in 1997. Renzo Piano completed his additions to Lacma in 2008, and later this year the Broad Museum will open in downtown amid a burgeoning art scene. Yet despite its success, the show still lacks the cachet of Art Basel or the Venice Biennale.
According to Rutberg, part of the problem is location. “Geographically, Art Basel can draw from all points: South America, Europe. Europe is very interested in not being in Europe at the time of Art Basel [which takes place in Miami]. Why would you want to be in December in a place like Paris or London where you freeze your butt off? Here [in LA] it’s two continents away and they have other obligations. So we’re a tougher sell because the Pacific Rim could conceivably be a force but they’re trying to establish their own strength.”
While there are numerous galleries dedicated to contemporary Korean and Japanese art, China is a dominating contributor. Occupying most of the south side of the hall are Light of Ink: Chinese Ink Painting as well as Inspirations: Highlights of 2015 Chinese Contemporary Art, both underwritten by China Cultural Media Group Limited. While traditional art has generally been a safer bet in China, a new market is beginning to emerge. “For the generation who are mainly in their 50s, they’re more for traditional art because they believe the value of the art will last longer,” says China Cultural Media Group’s Jiang Xin. “For the generation in their 30s, they prefer contemporary art. That market is growing larger and larger right now. My goal is to promote contemporary Chinese art to the west.”
“There have been strong showings of Chinese galleries here. I can’t speak to the calibre,” mutters Rutberg, who has brought with him works by Jordi Alcaraz as well as surrealist photographer Joel-Peter Witkin and his estranged identical twin, Jerome, exhibiting together for the first time in 50 years. “Everything we have brought is of museum calibre. There are other galleries that can boast the same.
“The reality is that there are galleries here that wouldn’t interest me but they fulfill a need for certain people. Art is meant to be inclusive but because of our sense of elitism we have made it so exclusive – if you don’t get it, it’s above you. The reality is I don’t think that’s necessarily the criteria.”
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010
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LA Art Show 2015: 'There will be works of remarkable mediocrity'
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