Shanghai International Art Fair 2020 is about to get started. All the specific differences from the first edition of the fair are still to be revealed, but we know for sure that Shanghai International Art Fair 2019 was a great success, thus expectations are high!
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Within the current uncertain situation Shanghai International Art Fair 2020 edition (19 - 22 Nobember 2020) will surely be different from what we experienced last year, but it will definitely maintain its good vibes and unexpected surprises. Just to start with, this vital Chinese art fair gives a positive signal towards the art system, focusing on artists before everything else. Indeed, going through the SIAF high quality exhibitior section what immediately comes up is the list of exhibited artists. Moreover, through the fair website, the public can learn directly from the artists featured during the event, peering into their studios, where some emergent artists have been interviewed (South Korean painter Ga Sujeng, or the German Reinhard Stammer, for instance).
The love for emerging art, the interest towards a global market and the desire to support galleries and artists are the mutual commitments of the second edition of Shanghai International Art Fair, organized by Global Art Agency (GAA). The venue will not change as last year it was a great success both in terms of quality and of total visitor number (80,000 visitors, including 15,000 professional buyers). Once again, the fair will be indeed hosted by the beautiful National Exhibition and Convention Center Shanghai (NECC), which is part of the Yangtze River Delta international Cultural industries Expo. Such location is “the largest exhibition complex of China, making it one of the landmark buildings in Shanghai. The building was co-built by Ministry of Commerce of China and Shanghai Municipal Government”.
Another good knack of this event is that GAA combined a good community of curators and collectors, so to develop different channels for communications on different territories. The fair will indeed be able to reach an international audience and several galleries around the globe, maintaining a good neutrality, internationalism, and an instinct for quality, while focusing on emergent artists. This year, an important new feature is that collectors, buyers, galleries and art lovers who will not have to possibility to attend the art fair in person, can see the exhibition remotely in live streaming, having a real time interaction with the collectors and local sales representatives.
In order to respect security measures, exhibiting galleries were carefully restricted to only 60 and they will be divided into three main sections: emergent galleries – less than 3 years old -, galleries and “Solo platform”.
Why should we keep an eye on the second SIAF edition? Because for the Eastern consumer base and art market it is a fundamental event: “the Yangtze River Delta International Industries Expo (iCiE) established to celebrate the development of the region’s cultural industries. And is China’s largest Cluster for international cultural trade”. China ranked number 1 in global art auction sales in 2016, with 6.33 billion US dollars. A detail not to forget.
Find more about Shanghai Art Fair on Kooness.
Cover image: The Shanghai Art fair Commitee.
Written by Rossella Farinotti
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