The biggest art visual arts event in New Zealand launches next week with the opening of the fourth Auckland Art Fair, an event which will allow visitors to see some of the best artworks available in New Zealand and Australia.
Auckland Art Fair
Viaduct Events Centre
August 4th – 7th
Gala Opening August 3rd
The biggest art visual arts event in New Zealand launches next week with the opening of the fourth Auckland Art Fair, an event which will allow visitors to see some of the best artworks available in New Zealand and Australia.
This will be like going to a whole years worth of major gallery openings in one day.
The last Auckland Art Fair in 2009 attracted over 8000 people and this year it is expected that well over 10,000 people will attend.
All of the major New Zealand collectors were at the last fair as well as two dozen Australian collectors all of whom purchased work by New Zealand artists
Total sales from the 2009 Art Fair are put at close to $3million, a figure which will probably be exceeded this year.
The opening event, The Vernissage which last year attracted 600 people has been oversubscribed this year with more than 1000 people buying tickets at $125 (the early bird tickets went for $100)
On exhibition at the forty galleries will be work by nearly 400 artist including most of the well established artists in New Zealand and Australia.
The Melanie Roger Gallery will exhibit for the first time at the Auckland Art Fair and will exclusively exhibit newly commissioned work by Graham Fletcher, Gavin Hurley, Ruth Cleland, Sam Mitchell and Martin Poppelwell.
There are four new works from Graham Fletcher’s Lounge Room Tribalism series – a selection of which are currently on exhibition in his solo show at Wellington’s City Gallery. Three works from this series were also recently purchased by the Queensland Art Gallery with an invitation to participate in the next Asia Pacific Triennial following. Each of his works will be priced at around $8,500
Gavin Hurley will be showing a selection of new collages and paintings ranging from $1,500 - $12,500 each.
Ruth Cleland who was the winner of the 2010 BMW Art Award selected by Auckland Art Gallery director Chris Saines will be showing new drawings and ‘miniature’ paintings ranging from $1,500 - $4,950 each. .
Sam Mitchell who was the paramount winner of the 2010 Wallace Arts Trust Award and is currently in New York on a six month residency at the prestigious International Studio and Residency Programme is showing new works ranging in priced from $2,500 - $7,500. The gallery will also have selection of her original works on paper priced from $500 - $3,000 each.
Martin Poppelwell will exhibit new ceramic works ranging from $100 - $1,500 each. Related works by the artist are currently on show at Te Papa in their Collecting Contemporary exhibition which is on until June 2012.
The gallery will also carry a selection of unframed recent and new work by Liyen Chong, Tony Lane, Stanley Palmer and Richard Orjis
This year Gow Langsford Gallery is taking a different approach to the art fair model and is hosting four different exhibitions on consecutive days. Visitors will need to visit the stand each day to get the full impact of the gallery’s art fair project.
On show will be new works by gallery artists Karl Maughan (Thursday), Reuben Paterson (Friday), John Pule (Saturday) and Paul Dibble (Sunday).
The artists have each created a new body of work especially for the fair. Included in the John Pule exhibition will be the first paintings on a significant scale since his last exhibition in 2009. Paul Dibble will be showing new maquettes and mid-scale works while Karl Maughan will be showing a new suite of paintings. I addition to some new glitter paintings by Reuben Paterson, the gallery will be launching two of his new screen-prints.
To coincide with the Auckland Art Fair, Gow Langsford is also showing The Dead and the Souls, an exhibition of works by British sensation Damien Hirst, at their Lorne Street Gallery.
Wellington’s Bowen Gallery will be showing several artists who have not previously been shown at the Art Fair while other such as Jeff Thompson who has regularly exhibited.
Kathy Barry will be exhibiting a large bill board while Tracey Williams is shoeing tiny gems of drawings.
Gregory O'Brien who recently travelled to the Kermedecs with fellow artists Elizabeth Thomson, Phil Dadson, Fiona Hall, Robin White and John Pule will be showing drawing done on his trip.
Louise Purvis says of her sculptural works in the show, “I have made an interactive work of houses which sit on a plywood shelf so people can do home renovations and plan add-ons while they visit the stand. I thought it would suit people who love art with partners who think its rubbish and get dragged to the art fair. So, the bored partners can fiddle away”
ARTIS Gallery will be presenting a range of paintings and sculpture with one of the highlights being “Dodo is Brought Ashore on the Styx” ($30,000) a painting by Ray Ching specially selected by gallerist Jonathan Gooderham during a recent visit to the artist’s studio in England.
Other artists in the show include George Baloghy with a recent “View from Mt Eden” ($8,000 ) Pamela Wolfe showing a large floral work “Receptor” ($19,500)
The gallery will also have a strong emphasis on sculpture, including a large work by Jim Wheeler suspended in the Sculpture Court.
Also in the Sculpture Court will be works by Robert Jahnke, Lisa Roet, Brett Graham and Dion Hitchens.
