SWEETEST HANGOVER Malibu’s Jacqueline ‘Jac’ Forbes, co-owner of CANVAS.MALIBU, recently traveled to both Art Basel in Hong Kong and then in Switzerland to bring a snapshot of the global art market back to Malibu.
✎ written by Jacqueline ‘Jac’ Forbes
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et- lagged and dragging from Basel Switzerland, safely sliding into my familiar West Coast home base, I feel exhausted but grateful to be relishing an ‘Art Hangover’, after attending both Art Basel Fairs, on opposite sides of the globe with my Hubby. Experiencing the World’s most important contemporary Art fairs back to back was the ultimate goal, the mission… to better service clients and our Gallery - CANVAS.MALIBU, with Fresh Art and a Global perspective. I knew that by witnessing Art Basel Hong Kong followed quickly by Art Basel in Basel I would have the opportunity to gain a snapshot of the current Global Art Market. It was time to take my show on the road, first stop Hong Kong then, Basel Switzerland. Just a bit of backstory on the Art Basel Fairs - Established in 1970 I have to say Art Basel has proven to be the undisputed champion of Art Fairs, with annual fairs held in Miami, Hong Kong and Basel. Thousands of Artists and Galleries from around the Globe come primed and ready to deliver a stellar showing of their proven winners. I was in great anticipation of seeing the elite performers and their newest presentations of not only paintings but massive installations, including ‘Art-tech’ the fresh flavor virtual reality Art experience… which turned out be quite bizarre! Anything you may deem
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ART BASEL HONG KONG ‘Paradise of Eyes’, 2018 by Keiichi Tanaami.
ENCOUNTERS ‘Where Are We Going’, 2017-2018 by Chiharu Shioto.
Art, is there. Stretching across exhibition spaces the size of several football fields and with multiple floors, art shines under these bright lights in these massively curated spaces, vibrating with excitement color and texture. Though Art may in its purist form be altruistic in nature, there is a strange mix in these places, the Artist’s passion mixed with the ‘Art hustle’ of
this bustling marketplace. A marketplace where work is being introduced, art stars are being made and artwork is being sold en masse. Hong Kong is the center of Asia’s international Art Scene and most suitably its Convention & Exhibition Center hosts Art Basel in the district of Wan Chai. At Art Basel Hong Kong the energy is palatable. It was an art fair, like I had never experienced. This was like a Rock Concert with long lines wrapped around the convention center for ticket holders to be ushered into a sold out four day event. Hearing murmurs of desperation of how to get a ticket created urgency – weird for an Art fair, but patrons were wiling to line up at 5 am in hopes of purchasing a ticket. This unique Art fair experience started to make sense. Hong Kong is comparable to NYC on steroids, with over seven million people on the island of alone. This city pioneered the contemporary Art Market in the region and is experiencing an innovative time, with the World’s best Galleries and Artist to match with buyers ready to consume. This fair was special. There was heightened excitement due to the fairs commitment to insure that half of its exhibitors were based in the Asian Pacific Region- historically, this is a region where Artist have been censored and even criminalized. The moment you step into the exhibition hall your eyes trace up to impressively large installations perfectly
MALIBU MAGAZINE
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7/16/19 15:27