Twenty-four galleries participating in Art Basel Hong Kong, including Matthew Marks, Paula Cooper, Sprüth Magers and Lisson, have penned a letter to fair directors Marc Spiegler and Adeline Ooi expressing concerns about the upcoming edition and the ongoing pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong. In the letter, sent 16 January, the dealers said they were worried about the reduced attendance of collectors, while their artists were concerned that showing their work was not ‘consistent with their core belief in the freedom of expression’. To allay their concerns, they asked, modestly, for an extension of the payment deadline, access to insurance coverage, no late fees for technical booth-related requests, and, last but not least, a 50 percent discount on booth fees for all participants. Spiegler and Ooi’s reply on 18 January acknowledged this year’s edition would not be ‘business-as-usual’, and in view of the situation agreed to offer booth reductions, work on extended payment plans on request, and said they had secured the ‘optimum insurance currently available’. However, they felt a 50 percent fee-reduction would be ‘financially untenable’. So far, only five dealers have pulled out of the fair (including Luxembourg & Dayan, Tyler Rollins Fine Art and SCAI The Bathhouse); Art Basel said they would add three more galleries from their waiting list.
The race for country-representation announcements for the next Venice Biennale continues. Newspaper Le Monde reported on Friday that Zineb Sedira will represent France at the 2021 edition, making her the first French artist of Algerian descent to do so. Though Sedira grew up in France, she now lives in London, where she moved to in the 1980s to study art (like her predecessor at the French pavilion Laure Prouvost). Meanwhile, Switzerland has selected French-Moroccan artist Latifa Echakhch as its representative – ArtReview was confused too, but it turns out Echakhch is based in the Swiss town of Fully. On 10 January, it was announced that Ceclia Alemani will curate the international exhibition at the Venice Biennale, traditionally set across the Giardini and the Arsenale.
New York’s Asia Society has announced over 40 artists and collectives from 19 countries who will be participating in the inaugural Asia Society Triennial. Titled We Do Not Dream Alone, the exhibition is cocurated by Boon Hui Tan and Michelle Yun, and nearly half of the participating artists have been commissioned to create new work. In an effort to make the triennial accessible to a wide audience, Asia Society have partnered with other New York cultural institutions and venues such as Governors Island and Times Square Arts Midnight Moment in order to deliver the triennial across different locations in New York, while ensuring free entry to visitors. The triennial will open to the public on 5 June 2020 at Asia Society Museum, as well as multiple locations throughout New York City.
Tate Britain has been criticised for its recent job posting for a Head of Coffee, calling into question the value the London institution places on arts professionals. The role, which is advertised with a salary of £39,500, has been defended by the gallery, which said to the Guardian: ‘All Tate’s departments have a variety of roles with different responsibilities and salaries, including curatorial, and a more accurate comparison would be a curatorial team leader. We value all our staff and strive to pay them appropriately for their work at Tate.’ The average curatorial wage in London is listed as £37,300 on salary comparison website Glassdoor.
27 January 2020
