Frieze Art Fair takes place every October in Regent’s Park, London. This year, it will be held during 16-19 October, 2008. The fair provides an environment to introduce and showcase new and established artists to visitors from around the world.

Background of Frieze Art Fair

Launched in 2003, Frieze Art Fair is one of the few fairs to focus only on contemporary art and living artists. Frieze Art Fair features more than 150 galleries from around the world, providing visitors with a unique opportunity to see and buy art by the world’s leading artists. The exhibiting galleries represent the most exciting contemporary galleries working today.

The fair presents a curated programme of talks, artists’ commissions and film projects, many of which are interactive or performative and encourage visitors to engage with art and artists directly.

 Amanda Sharp, co-director of Frieze Art Fair, Photo credit Linda Nylind, Courtesy of Frieze Art Fair

Interview with Amanda Sharp

Recently, Artintern has an interview with Amanda Sharp (co-director of the Frieze Art Fair, together with Matthew Slotover). Amanda Sharp talks about the beginnings and the status quo of the Frieze magazine and the Frieze Art Fair.

What is the relationship between frieze magazine, Frieze Art Fair and the Foundation?

The magazine was founded, in 1991, by Matthew Slotover and I with the artist Tom Gidley. When the magazine began both Matthew and I served as editors, but ceased direct involvement in editorial decisions in 2001. In 2003, the first year of Frieze Art Fair, we assumed the roles of Publishing Directors of the magazine, and directors of the fair. We maintain the overall direction of both the art fair and the magazine, but editorial decisions are made by the editors Joerg Heiser and Jennifer Higgie, as well as their associates Dan Fox and James Trainor. In 2008 for the first time the talks programme at the fair has been organised by the magazine editors.

Frieze Foundation is a non-profit organisation, which was established the same year as the fair in 2003. The foundation oversees: Frieze Talks, a programme of panel discussions and lectures printed annually during the four days of the fair; Frieze Projects, a curated programme of site-specific projects by artists in and around the fair; The Cartier Award, annually presented to an emerging artist. The foundation also oversees Frieze Music, Frieze Education and Frieze Film. Matthew and I oversee all of these organizations, but they are separately constituted.

What is the background/history of Frieze Art Fair?

Frieze Art Fair was launched in 2003. It is one of the few fairs to focus only on contemporary art and living artists. The exhibiting galleries represent the most exciting contemporary galleries working today. The focus on living artists is also evident in the critically acclaimed Frieze Projects’ programme. The fair presents a curated programme of talks, artists’ commissions and film projects, many of which are interactive or performative and encourage visitors to engage with art and artists directly.

Unlike most other fairs, Frieze Art Fair is housed in a bespoke temporary structure in Regent’s Park and benefits form having a natural light source, avoiding the atmosphere of a trade show, thus making the fair more lively and energetic.

Since the first year Frieze Art Fair has also been fortunate enough to work with a series of talented architects: David Adjaye, Jamie Fobert and, in 2008, Caruso St John, who are well known for their work on museums and art galleries. The architects’ brief is to make the fair an inviting and unique experience. Each year there are eye-catching changes to the design, décor, entrance and spaces such as restaurants and cafes. The architects have the opportunity to experiment and this further adds to the experience of the fair.

What do you think will be the highlight of Frieze this year?

I think there will be many great presentations by participating galleries. We are welcoming 11 new exhibitors, presenting an innovative architectural scheme by Caruso St John, an expanded Sculpture Park and a very strong Frieze Projects programme. I can’t wait to see Jeppe Hein’s magical tree project in the fair entrance.

Each year, the fair organizes several interesting and profound programmes. What about this year - would you please explain some of them to us?

Frieze Projects and Talks are important aspects of the fair. Alongside Frieze Film and Frieze Music they have helped build multiple audiences for curatorial activities at the fair. The projects are curated by Neville Wakefield. In 2008 the projects engage with the ecology of the fair and its surroundings and reflect on the tensions between nature and culture, pollution and purity, economic gain and strategic loss. Frieze Projects presents art that regards the particular circumstances of Frieze Art Fair as an opportunity to create work that could not exist elsewhere. This year’s projects include the rotating trees of Jeppe Hein, the barking parrots of Agnieszka Kurant, and Norma Jeanne’s smoking capsules, amongst others.

ShContemporary is the biggest international art fair in China. This year, because of the economic contraction, most galleries complained about the low sales volume. Could this situation occur at Frieze? Are you worried about this?

Our concern is to provide the best structure we can for the galleries, to market the fair well, and to do anything we can in terms of organization to help make the fair work as well as possible. We have focused the fair on people, both exhibitors and collectors, who have a serious, long standing interest in contemporary art. We started in the art world publishing a magazine in the early 90s, and many of our relationships have been in place for over 10 years, well before any market boom. These are with people who love art and will continue to be involved with art irrespective of ups and downs in the market.

How many galleries from China will participate this year, and what do you think of Chinese galleries and artists?

This year we have two galleries in the fair from China: Vitamin Creative Space, and Long March. This is the third time Vitamin have participated at the fair, and the first for Long March. There is a lot of international interest, as you know, in Chinese art. It is an honour to have Chinese artists and galleries at the fair. We believe there is good art being made in China and our goal over time is to bring the best of this work to London.