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ERDMANN_An Intimate Affair_AA_DEC
- 1. REVIEWS 180 181START ART FAIR / HEIDI ERDMANN An Intimate Affair START ART FAIR at Saatchi Gallery, London, UK by Heidi Erdmann The Saatchi Gallery is a dream location for an intimate art fair. Its fifteen interconnected galleries are generously spread over three floors; the double volume ceilings, architectural minimalism and all white interior were purposefully designed to focus on the display of contemporary art. The temporary walls installed for the purposes of the art fair are solid and sturdy and clad in thick canvas a seamless addition into this luxurious museum environment. The Saatchi brand offers an established and loyal audience. Admission to this gallery is free (not during the art fair) and its location, just off Kings Road in Chelsea, is easily accessible and extremely family-friendly. A high-quality location was the prerequisite for husband and wife team, Serenella and David Ciclitira, who founded this fair in 2014. They were also clear about its identity; a fair for emerging artists from across the globe with a strong emphasis on Asia. For the second edition they introduced a new section, This is Tomorrow, and selected fourteen international galleries to present solo exhibitions by emerging talents. Mingling and networking with a hand-picked guest-list is what art fairs are all about. The Ciclitiras initiative of hosting dinner parties, spread over two evenings prior to the preview with selected participating gallerists, artists and collectors deserve a mention. It is not often that gallerists have an opportunity to meet fellow exhibitors, particularly when the group is drawn from across the globe. Tuesday evenings dinner was in support of the Singaporean art industry, but the talk at the table was very much centered on the vibrant commercial gallery industry in Teheran. The quality, spread and variety of works on offer at START did not disappoint. Fair Director, Niru Ratnam did an excellent job in selecting his range of galleries from countries like Hungary, Vietnam, Iran, Slovakia, South Korea, Colombia, Saudi Arabia, Latvia and India. The START Projects sections, which occupied a whole floor, underpinned the fairs identity of discovering and presenting new art scenes. The Prudential Eye Zone exhibition was dedicated to art from Singapore, which is a fast developing young and exciting art world. An impressive, interactive and immersive installation by the Tokyo based teamLab was definitely an audience favourite and attracted queues of visitors on Saturday and Sunday. After the preview evening, the London media gave the fair the thumbs up, with loud applause going to the This is Tomorrow section. START is an intimate affair; visitors needed nothing more than a morning to do the rounds. No sore feet, no fair fatigue, no endless food halls, no coffee or champagne booths, no sponsored VIP lounges; just three floors of art. It also has its problems, however, and perhaps its greatest one lies with its strongly focused identity. Although the fair managed to attract a large audience, particularly over the weekend, its ability to attract the major collectors to an art fair with generally unknown talents proved to be trickier. Many of the artists presented are at the start of promising careers and in many cases are included in museum and private collections, but major collectors are interested in the latest auction prices. This index is still absent on the curriculum vitae of an emerging artist, particularly those represented by countries with a young art world, and a small and developing secondary market for contemporary art. STARTs greatest success came via its secondary tagline, a strong emphasis on Asia. Young artists from these regions are tapping into global inspirations, keeping up with world affairs, producing arresting works and simultaneously finding and growing a collector base. Heidi Erdmann is a gallery owner in Cape Town, South Africa. Her gallery, Erdmann Contemporary, participated in START 2015. START art fair ran from 10 - 13 September 2015 at Saatchi Gallery, London. 01 teamLabs Butter鍖y Room. Courtesy of START Art Fair. 02 Donna Ong, And We Were Like Those Who Dreamed (Cocoon #5) (detail), 2013. Paper cuts-out, wood, acrylic, LED lighboxes and furniture, 48 63 38cm. Courtesy of the artist. 02 01