TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
New fair opens doors to Asian art collectors
Some works are displayed at the last 2015 October show in Hong Kong
Change Size
Some works are displayed at the last 2015 October show in Hong Kong. (via China Daily/ANN) (via China Daily/ANN)
Some works are displayed at the last 2015 October show in Hong Kong. (via China Daily/ANN)
Singapore Contemporary, a new art fair, will be presented from Jan 21-24, adding new luster to the city-state's developing, vibrant art landscape.
Show organizers hope to not only interest top collectors, but also to unlock an art passion in Asia's growing middle and upper-middle class, including emerging young buyers from the Chinese mainland, the show's director Mark Saunderson tells China Daily via e-mail.
Saunderson, an avid collector and gallery owner, co-founded Hong Kong's biannual Asia Contemporary Art Show in 2012.
Together with his partners Douwe Cramer and Sarah Benecke, Saunderson is ambitious to translate their 20 years of experience in art, media and events in Hong Kong to Singapore, another flourishing art hub in the region.
Greatly motivated by its national arts council and other government bodies, Singapore boasts a packed art calendar, including the marquee Art Stage and Affordable Art Fair.
The recent opening of the National Gallery Singapore marks a milestone in the city-state's art story.
Online platform Artsy.net ranks Singapore 11th on its list of 15 most influential art cities of 2015. Hong Kong is ranked ninth, the highest for an Asian city.
Saunderson says apart from attracting art aficionados, Singapore Contemporary will court an expanding base of young professionals who have discretionary income and would like to enjoy leisure.
The fair aims to raise their awareness about art for both enjoyment and investment.
He says few of these people, however, have time "with family and business commitments to stroll the art-gallery circuit".
He adds that art shows will provide them the convenience of spending time with friends while exploring artworks priced between $7,000-70,000.
Cramer told Blouinartinfo.com last month that: "In our experience this group really likes the idea of browsing a wide selection of artworks and then making up their minds about what works to acquire."
The inaugural edition of Singapore Contemporary will host 65 galleries that promote both established and promising artists in three segments: Artist Dialogues, China Encounters and Gallery Projects. Saunderson expects the fair to draw some 20,000 visitors.
China Encounters will give visitors access to works by more than 400 contemporary Chinese artists, many of whom are known at home but have only been occasionally exhibited internationally, Saunderson says.
While Hong Kong is seen as principally serving interest in North Asian artists, Singapore is viewed as a gateway to Southeast Asia. Its vitality has impressed Chinese collectors in recent years.
An Indonesian pavilion will be installed to showcase more than 200 paintings and sculptures of the country's leading artists, including Nyoman Erawan, Chusin Setiadikara and Yoga Mahendra.
"A strong gallery showing from China particularly excites us," Saunderson says.
"Our VIP Collector Relations team has seen strong interest from Chinese mainland collectors whose appetite for collecting now extends to promising artists elsewhere in the region." (kes)(+)
