The Frieze Art Fair (London, October 14 — 17, 2015) is underway at Regent’s Park. As we’ve come to expect from such pricey contemporary art fleamarkets, there wasn’t much there that resonated with us. CFile Chief Editor Garth Clark summed up the offerings as “disappointing,” but don’t take his word for it. VernissageTV posted a video from the press preview event.
Above image: Nicole Wermers, Abwaschskulptur (Dishwashing Sculpture) #11, 2015; various china, ceramic, glassware, kitchen utensils, modified dishwasher basket, plinth; 63 x 23 3/5 x 27 3/5 inches. From Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York.
One of our earliest posts on CFile was a recap of a brutal Vocativ post about Art Basel: How to Succeed in Contemporary Art Without Really Trying. The writer showed us pictures of dirty laundry and pieces of fruit wrapped in tinfoil that were masquerading as works one could spend thousands of dollars on. Two years later, that theme is still popping up to a degree in markets such as Frieze. In the above video we saw a fan blowing strips of white paper and a Felix the Cat balloon that looks like one of those kitschy inflatable lawn ornaments that pop up around Christmas. Art is piled on top of itself with little thought given to presentation, making the fair look more like a Sears showroom for power tools. Everyone looks bored, even the people sitting in a tiny greenhouse-shaped structure that plays disco music. Tragic.
That said, Garth took to the web to find notable pieces of ceramic art that will be on offer. Look for them if you attend this year.
Love contemporary ceramic art + design? Let us know in the comments.
Koenraad Dedobbeleer, All Modern People Will, 2011; resin and fired clay on spray painted metal foot, laminated wooden base; 59 1/10 x 26 x 19 7/10 inches. From Mai 36 Galerie, Zurich. Click to see a larger image.
Camille Henrot, Variation on Adumla the First Cow I, 2015, burned clay, 27 3/5 x 26 4/5 x 10 1/5 inches. From Konig Galerie, Berlin.
Camille Henrot, Variation on Adumla the First Cow III, 2015, burned clay, 22 1/5 x 37 x 10 2/5 inches. From Konig Galerie, Berlin.
Julian Stair, Quotidian, 2014; ceramic, Venetian marble on wood, linen and video with soundtrack. From Corvi-Mora, London. Click to see a larger image.
Luigi Ontani, ErmEstEtica ZarathustrAsso, 1996, polychrome ceramic, 73 1/5 x 20 1/2 x 27 3/5 inches. From Galleria Lorcan O’Neill, Rome. Click to see a larger image.
Tomasz Kulka, Exercise #15, 2013, ceramic, 9 1/10 x 11 2/5 x 8 3/10 inches. From Propaganda. Click to see a larger image.
Jesse Wine, Djokovic vs Federer, 2015, glazed ceramic. From Limoncello, London.
Chao Lu, Triangle in the Circle, 2015, oil on canvas, 59 1/10 x 47 1/5 inches. From Rosenfeld Porcini, London. Click to see a larger image.
Robert Mapplethorpe, R M Glass Collection, 1984, silver gelatin print, 24 3/5 x 23 1/2 inches. From Mai 36 Galerie, Zurich. The Scandinavian ceramics this series of works were all from the artist’s extensive collection of pottery.
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