ARTHAMPTONS Early Results: Art Sales Reviving; The Hamptons Still Attract Enthusiasts By Jack Karp ArtHamptons 2009 repeated the attendance level of 5,000 fairgoers compared to 2008, the inaugural year, with 68 galleries, up 33% compared to the number in ’08, showing $200 million in art. Post-show activity reported a month later shows sales of $8 to $10 million. “The robust business over the four-day event is a definite harbinger that art sales are finally reviving and stimulating,” said Rick Friedman, founder of ArtHamptons. “The fish were biting, not like in 2008, but well enough to eat well. It reinforces that a good picture at a good price will always sell.” While Peter Marcelle Gallery’s sale of an Andrew Wyeth landscape for $975,000 seems at this point to be the on-site show leader, Mr.Friedman expects other major sales to follow in post-show activity. Sculptor Hans Van deBovenkamp reported a large commission was secured. On site individual sales ranged from $10,000 to $100,000, most centering in the $30,00 to $60,000 range. Many galleries reported that total on-site sales wellexceeded $100,000 including Forum Gallery, Gallery Henoch, Waterhouse and Dodd Gallery, Throckmorton Fine Art, Gary Snyder/Project Space, and Eric Firestone Gallery.
White triangular sails punctuating thick olive water under crisp cerulean skies, the sun setting orange off in the distance. Vivid seascapes like these are often what come to mind when thinking of the Hamptons, a beautiful seaside playground where New Yorkers and the world’s elite go for a myriad of reasons. For many people the Hamptons evoke images of windswept seas lapping up against cool, sandy beaches. But, surprisingly, many of these breathtaking images can’t be seen outside the walls of the wealthy enclave’s multimillion-dollar homes, but on them. “The Hamptons have a century-long tradition as a world-famous marketplace for
Elliot Erwitt, Marilyn Monroe New York City, 1956, © Elliott Erwitt/Magnum Photos, Erwitt will be at ArtHamptons at the Hackelbury Fine Art gallery on Sunday, July 12, 12 to 2 p.m.
painting, art collecting, and art patronage,” says Hamptons resident and art collector Rick Friedman, founder/chairman of the ArtHamptons fair. “We currently have about 2,500 active painters living and working here.” “This is where the rich, famous, and big art collectors spend the summer,” Friedman says of the Hamptons. With all these celebrated artists and collectors, Freidman Steve Zaluski in his Humansphere mobile sculpture at ArtHamptons 2009 felt “we have everything except a major international fair.” Resnick, the usual suspects.” With over 80 So that is exactly what he set out important works amassed in four years, to remedy when he began ArtHamptons Friedman now has a major collection and one year ago. ArtHamptons, the second brings that same passion from his own edition of which was held July 10-12, 2009, collection to ArtHamptons. is the Hamptons’ first and only fine art fair Housed in four large, connected, spotlighting museum quality modern art. modular buildings, the fair hosts 64 nationally “In a sense, I am paying homage to the respected galleries, including New York’s Hamptons as a center for fine art by staging Forum Gallery, Tibor de Nagy, and Gallery ArtHamptons,” says Friedman, who lives in Henoch, as well as galleries from Toronto, Southampton and is himself a passionate Barcelona, and London. This year’s festival collector of post-war New York Abstract offered an eclectic mix of well-known Expressionists. “I felt it was a ‘can’t miss.’” masters — Larry Rivers, Donald Sultan, Jane Like the artists he collects, Friedman Freilicher, August Saint-Gaudens, Childe is excited and inspired by the beauty and Hassam and William Glackens — peppered electricity of this eastern end of Long Island with group and solo shows by younger, “I collect the artists who painted here in the emerging artists, like hyper realist painter 50s through the 70s – Pollock, Krasner, de Denis Peterson, participating in the fair for Kooning, Motherwell, Kline, Brooks, Rivers, the second time. Fine Art Magazine • Fall 2009 • 41