Sydney Art Fair 2018

Written by: Evan Lowenstein

In September it was with an air of familiarity and excited anticipation that I crossed the threshold of Carriageworks in Sydney’s Redfern for the third iteration of Sydney Contemporary – the premier art fair in Australia.
It certainly lived up to its reputation as the pre-eminent art fair with many and varied delights on show and a huge and interested art buying public on hand who, as evidenced by the increased sales figures, had their wallets and purses open.

There were some wonderful innovations at this year’s fair, including a wonderful installation by Patricia Piccinini entitled ‘The Field’.

In addition to the usual commercial gallery stands, there was also an interesting series of talks, including one that I attended on the advent of blockchain technology on the art market which is truly an exciting innovation – it’s a subject that I will write about in an upcoming edition of the Newsletter.
Sydney Contemporary was a huge event with many days of VIP events, previews, tours, and an all-pervading mood of optimism and happiness permeated the entire five days.
Amongst the highlights for me, were Tim Storrier’s majestic works at Australian Galleries that were framed in an equally majestic way; Fox Jensen’s most magical stand with the quiet elegance of Callum Innes’ work shown alongside luscious and explosive red works by Aida Tomescu; and some exquisite Daniel Walbidi works at D’Lan Davidson.
I write this in the hope that this Sydney fair, along with the successful Melbourne Art Fair, creates the momentum for more commercial success that has evaded the Australian art world for quite a number of years.