October 6–9, 2016
The Old Truman Brewery
Ely’s Yard, 15 Hanbury Street
London E1 6QR
Hours: Friday–Saturday 11am–8pm,
Sunday 11am–7pm
Crossroads Art Show launched last night in London—a new fair set to offer a fresh alternative during Frieze Week.
Hundreds of people gathered last night at the launch of Crossroads Art Show at the Old Truman Brewery in East London. Collectors, museum directors, curators, artists and personalities from the art world celebrated this new and fresh art fair where international and contemporary go hand in hand.
With a generous supply of champagne, visitors enjoyed the most current artistic trends that are presented by 46 galleries, mainly from abroad, handpicked by a team of renowned curators.
Alongside there is a selection of curatorial projects, different and thought-provoking that range from video, food and on-site installations.
Alejandro Zaia, Director of the fair commented on the inaugural night: “We aimed to bring a new and fresh fair to London, almost like a boutique fair, which is not overwhelming, and where the visitor can have a very enjoyable experience discovering the best of international contemporary art. Galleries were selected by our artistic committee, offering Londoners the chance to discover, right on their doorstep, what the young contemporary galleries around the world are showing. Tonight there is a great vibe from the public and exhibitors in general, not only with their comments, but with already a very healthy number of sales reported.”
Humour, irony and social comment seem to underlie many of the works exhibited. Carlos Aires’ uses a 5 GBP note that shows Queen Elizabeth faced by a British hooligan or terrorist with his face covered by the English flag. The UK 5 GBP note, the first to become plastic a few weeks ago, is presented by MAM Mario Mauroner Gallery and is part of a series called “Disaster,” which uses real banknotes with photographs taken from the media.
Jaime Pitarch’s (Angels, Barcelona) Can’t Paint is a sculpture made from a painted can of paint that seems impossible to open. Through displacement and re-contextualisation, every day objects are stripped off from their meaning and practical use. In Let’s be ironic!, Meyer Peter uses a wooden cane with the logo of a famous brand of trainers and sportswear followed by the slogan ”Just do it.” Tulio Pinto (Baró, Sao Paulo) juxtaposes materials, weights, textures, sizes and densities in works that explore materiality, the ephemeral and transformation. In Situaçâo de Canto, a blown glass bubble appears to be cornered or smashed by a gigantic steel beam. Man Ray’s 1963 Trompe l’oeuf (Galerie Eva Meyer, Paris) uses a toilet seat with a photograph of an ostrich egg, evoking the surreal, by irrationally over-layering images. Marilá Dardot (Vermelho, Sao Paulo) displays covers of books in different languages that she does not speak, arranging them by colour and size, questioning the power of imagery over knowledge and language.
Other highlights of the fair include Anna Malagrida’s (Galeria Senda, Barcelona) moving portraits and videos; T20′s colourful installations (Murcia) and Andrea Galvani’s much sought after “The End” series photographs (Galeria Revolver, Lima).
A dialogue between cultures, geographies, history, diverse political situations and aesthetics intersect at Crossroads, in a relaxed and accessible way, showcasing the highest quality contemporary art by established and emerging artists.
Crossroads Art Show is on until Sunday, October 9.
Participating galleries
Area72, Valencia Spain; ATM, Gijón, Spain; Bacelos, Vigo/Madrid, Spain; Baró Galeria, Sao Paulo, Brazil; Bendana Pinel, Paris, France; Cecilia Brunson Projects, London UK; Dittrich & Schlechtriem, Berlin, Germany; FL Gallery, Milan, Italy; Frittelli Arte Contemporanea, Florence, Italy; Galeria Joan Gaspar, Barcelona, Spain*; Galeria Marc Domènech, Barcelona, Spain; Galeria Miguel Marcos, Barcelona, Spain*; Galeria Pilar Serra, Madrid, Spain; Galería Senda, Barcelona, Spain*; Galeria Silvestre, Tarragona/ Madrid, Spain*; Galeria Trama, Barcelona, Spain*; Galerie Dix9, Paris, France; Galerie Eva Meyer, Paris, France; Indiana Bond Gallery, Bogota, Colombia; Kir Royal, Madrid, Spain; Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery, London, UK; MAM Mario Mauroner Contemporary Art, Vienna, Austria; N2 Galería, Barcelona, Spain*; Narrative Projects, London, UK; NF Galería, Madrid, Spain; Paolo Maria Deanesi Gallery, Trento, Italy; Revolver Galeria, Lima, Peru; Sala Branca, Lisbon, Portugal; Salar Galeria de Arte, La Paz, Bolívia; Saphira&Ventura Gallery, New York, USA; Satélite, Queretaro, Mexico; Sicart, Barcelona, Spain*; Slowtrack, Madrid, Spain; Galería T20, Murcia, Spain; Víctor Lope Arte Contemporáneo, Barcelona, Spain*; Walden, Buenos Aires, Argentina; Y Gallery, New York, USA; Ybakatu Gallery, Curitiba, Brazil; Zahorian & Van Espen, Bratislava, Slovakia/ Prague, Czech Republic; Zorzini Gallery, Bucharest, Romania.
Selected curatorial projects
Let’s be ironic!: an original exhibit of works from the Servais Family Collection curated by Eva Ruiz and Eva Mansergas
The Middle Field: videos programmed by Bruno Leitão and Marta Ramos- Yzquierdo
readingroomincolor: a site-specific installation by Franklin Evans
Years by Diango Hernández: courtesy of Federico Luger
Somewhere Else: an on-site project curated by Fortunata Calabro
Crossroads Design: furniture and objects selected by Manuel Díaz Cebrian
This is not a Restaurant: Food + Art experience by Argentine chef Martin Milesi
Presented by Marta Ramos-Yzquierdo
Àngels, Barcelona, Spain*; Vermelho, Sao Paulo, Brazil; Galeria Pilar, Sao Paulo, Brazil; Galleria Macca, Cagliari, Italy; Isla Flotante, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Special proposals
Ateliê Alê – Espaço de Arte, Sao Paulo, Brazil; Naranjo, Barcelona, Spain; Collectionair, Dubai, UAE
*supported by the Government of Catalonia
**Images above: (1) Man Ray, Trompe de l’oeuf, 1963. Assemblage of black & white ostrich egg photography, circa 1930 and bakelite toilet ring on painted wood panel. Certificate. 50 x 40 x 10cm. Courtesy of Galerie Eva Meyer. (2) Jaime Pitarch, Qui Custodiet Ipsos Custofes / Can’t Paint (2014-2016), 2016. Mixed technique, acrylic paint, paint can, 11 x 9 x 9 cm. Courtesy of Angels Gallery. (3) Marilá Dardot, Minha biblioteca dinamarquesa (My danish library), 2015. Hard cover books glued with neutral glue and fixed on the wall with velcro, polyptych with 19 parts, 108 x 361 cm. Unique edition. Courtesy of Galería Vermelho. (4) Tulio Pinto, Situaçao de Canto #2, 2016. Steel beam, blown glass bubble, 155 x 35 x 70 cm. Courtesy of galería Baró.