Frieze London is back for its thirteenth edition this weekend featuring 164 galleries from 27 countries, and thousands of works of art. Located at Regents Park in Central London, the world’s leading art fair can be overwhelming, even to the most seasoned art aficionados.
As you wander through the endless corridors you will likely end up face to face with a giant Felix the Cat or the minuscule cut-outs at the A Gentil Carioca Gallery. Live performances will also pop up during your visit, like the provocative Japanese artist Ken Kagam, who has been sketching obscene portraits of fair go-ers. Other happenings include film, music, and readings – so stay aware.
Whether you will be visiting the fair and need to know what to look out for, or just want to see what is on view from the comfort of your own home, we’ve included a few of the highlights below.
Lisson Gallery (London) Booth B5
The Lisson Gallery features sculptures by two of the most infamous contemporary artists today – one by Ai Weiwei and the other by Anish Kapoor. The Iron Root (2015) by Weiwei is a beautiful iron cast root painted with purple auto metallic paint (the piece sold yesterday for €500,000 to an undisclosed buyer). Kapoor’s three dimensional piece Untitled (Storm Grey) (2015) is a breathtaking reflective orb that inverts your likeness, quite literally turning the world upside down. The line to take a selfie with this work was insane.
Taka Ishii Gallery (Tokyo) Booth C8
The entrance to the Taka Ishii booth is curiously obscured with a jungle of potted plants, which turned out to be an installation by Diego Pérez. The plants conceal a video by Cerith Wan Evans and a collection of beautiful black and white photographs by Armando Salas Portugal. The highlight of this booth is the geometrical abstract painting by Koji Enokura, an artist that works with objects and surface textures. The gallery provides a booklet that documents Enokura’s creative process, making the work especially intriguing.
Project 88 (Mumbai) Booth H10
At this booth, photography lovers will not be disappointed by the vibrant photo series “Noise Life” by Desire Machine and the green membrane five-panel “Untitled” by Sandeep Mukherjee. Founded in 2006, this gallery has been exposing the art fair circuit to emerging contemporary artists from India.
The Jessica Silverman Gallery (San Francisco) Booth H26
The Jessica Silverman Gallery chose to feature a solo body of works by Ruairiadh O’Connell. The London-based artist created six towering sculptural pieces that are perfectly complimented by large graphic works on canvas.
Barbara Wien Gallery (Berlin) Booth G8
Traditionally, there is an obvious “Don’t Touch the Art” policy at art fairs, but “Sonic Dance” at The Barbara Wein gallery encourages it! This curious sculpture is made of thousands of metal rings, bells, and jute twine and was created by Korean artist Haegue Yang. The sculpture is moved throughout the booth, providing an alternative experience for fair goers.
While there is plenty to see within the pavilion, you also need to be sure to check out the Frieze Projects 2015. With support of LUMA foundation, Frieze Projects presents installations that utilize the fair’s architecture to create thought provoking and interactive experiences for fair goers. From Jeremy Herbert’s windy chamber underneath the fair to Thea Djordjadze’s mobile sculptures, Frieze Projects highlights the unique experience of attending a world-class art fair. Other participants include Winner of the 2015 Frieze Artist Award Rachel Rose, Lutz Bacher, the French interdisciplinary gallery castillo/corrales, AYR, and Asad Raza.
If you’re in London and don’t have time to tackle the whole fair, you can also just take a stroll around Regent’s Park and enjoy the Frieze Sculpture Garden created especially for the event. The installation includes pieces from Richard Serra, Anri Sala and Seung-Taek Lee.
The fair is open all weekend long in London’s Regent’s Park. Click here for information on fair hours and tickets.
Like this article? Check out our highlights from ARTBO or other fair and gallery highlights.
