Sie cannot be overlooked. With its enormous height of almost four meters, Tony Cragg’s “Stack” is at the center of Art Düsseldorf. The Konrad Fischer Gallery transported the three-tonne bronze sculpture to the art fair.
Thomas Rieger, director of the gallery with locations in Düsseldorf and Berlin, wants to set an example with Cragg’s giant. So many trade fairs have been canceled due to the corona pandemic, now the time has come to dare something, he says.
Many of the 85 exhibitors at this year’s Art Düsseldorf think like Thomas Rieger. Admittedly, the mood among gallery owners is not euphoric due to the war against Ukraine. He has a lot of respect for the current situation, says the Cologne gallery owner Philipp von Rosen. And yet everyone has spruced up their stands and not only brought good works with them, but also provided surprises.
Philipp von Rosen offers a large selection of drawings and smaller objects by Joseph Beuys – such as his Capri battery for 26,000 euros. In this density, works by the action artist could hardly be seen at an art fair even on Beuys’ hundredth birthday in 2021.
The Viennese gallery owner Lisa Kandlhofer also put in more effort than in previous years. She brought two large sculptures by the sculptor and performance artist Karl Karner to the Rhine. She was able to spend the transport costs because the fair had significantly reduced the prices for the stands. So it was “made easy” for her to take part.
Sculpture by Karl Karner: “SH++L”, 2021
What: Manuel Carreon Lopez
The offer that the gallery owner is talking about is funding from the Corona aid program “Neustart Kultur” from the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media. While the stand price at Art Düsseldorf is usually 375 euros per square meter, this year it was discounted by 70 percent.
With an average stand size of 60 square meters, that makes 6,750 euros instead of 22,500 euros. “This reduces the financial risk for the exhibitors in times when it is not possible to plan the success of the trade fair,” says Walter Gehlen, artistic director of Art Düsseldorf.
This argument also attracted Aurel Scheibler. So far, the Berlin gallery owner has not had a stand in the Düsseldorf exhibition halls because, as a member of the Advisory Board of Art Cologne, he felt obliged to take part in the Cologne art fair. But the traditional fair was “so-so” last year, so he grabbed it now.
And the Düsseldorf trade fair has another advantage over Cologne, says Scheibler. The light in the former industrial building is atmospherically pleasant due to the side and roof windows. The featured work at Scheibler’s booth is a floor sculpture by sculptor Norbert Kricke for €650,000.
It is no coincidence that Scheibler is showing a Düsseldorf artist at the fair in Norbert Kricke, whose 100th birthday is in November. Other galleries have also concentrated on a “Düsseldorf program”. With Thomas Ruff, Bernd and Hilla Becher, Thomas Schütte and Tatjana Valsang, Galerie Konrad Fischer shows how important the Rhenish artist scene is for the market.
Tatjana Valsang, “ROHLING”, 2020
Source: Tatjana Valsang / Courtesy Gallery Konrad Fischer
And the Berlin gallery owner Daniel Marzona brought along the Düsseldorf photographer Axel Hütte with new works from the “Flowers” series. “We have high hopes for the fair,” says Marzona. Above all, he hopes that his Belgian collectors will visit him.
While guests from the Benelux countries will certainly find the short way to Düsseldorf, things don’t look very international in the gallery ranks. Global players such as David Zwirner from New York took part in the premiere of Art Düsseldorf in November 2017, but now, with the fourth edition and after two years of the corona pandemic, little of it is left.
Around 30 of the 85 dealers come from the Rhineland, followed by 18 galleries from Berlin. Even many of the big German players are missing – such as Gisela Capitain (Cologne/Berlin), Sprüth Magers (Berlin/London/Los Angeles) or Max Hetzler (Berlin/London/Paris), who is currently taking part in Art Paris. Only a few galleries come from abroad, most from Austria.
With such a regional limitation, flexibility is required. But if the Corona crisis has taught us anything, it is the use of digital media. Exhibition boss Walter Gehlen has therefore developed a new online portal for VIP visitors, the “personal guide”. 50 art guides on site are equipped with headphones and a shake-free camera.
Gallery owner Daniela Steinfeld shows a bronze sculpture by the artist Manuel Graf
Source: dpa
The collector can explain to the guide what he would like to see via video chat. For example the seven-part sculpture “Siebenbrenne Türme” by Gereon Krebber at the Christian Lethert stand. Guide and collector set off.
Along the way – the routes at the fair are short – the guide can explain which stands he is passing, stopping here and there to get a closer look at a work that the customer has just caught out of the corner of his eye. If desired, a conversation with the gallery can be arranged immediately. The guide can also reserve the work with a click.
More mature than the Art Cologne
“For customers, the trade fair can be accessed online,” says Walter Gehlen. “While other trade fairs are again relying fully on presence, we are focusing on hybrid.” That is a unique selling point for a small trade fair. “As a result, we expect many more interested parties and hope for great economic success for the gallery owners.”
Michael Beck from the Beck & Eggeling gallery is also enthusiastic about the video chat. This is a promising opportunity to reach many international collectors who are not yet keen to travel. Other trade fairs have also tried such formats. For example the Art Cologne. But the Cologne format was not mature, explains Aurel Scheibler.
Despite all the technical finesse, this year’s Art Düsseldorf shows very clearly that there is nothing nicer at a trade fair than finally being able to look at original works of art again. Even if you have to crane your neck like Tony Cragg’s bronze giants.
Art Düsseldorf is open on April 9 and 10, 2022 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. The tickets can only be bought online.