2020 promises to be a special year, full of news, action and movement. In Art Madrid, we face with enthusiasm these final steps before the opening of the fair, an edition in which we want to celebrate our 15th anniversary with all of you. Save the dates on the agenda: join us from February 26th to March 1st 2020 at the Crystal Gallery of the Palacio de Cibeles.

Mónica Sumillera, imagen de la pasada edición de Art Madrid

Within emblematic space of Art Madrid in the heart of the city, this year we will count on 41 exhibitors who will exhibit works by almost 200 artists. From emerging creators to mid-career artists, Art Madrid defines as an open and global proposal that offers the perfect opportunity to discover and acquire unique pieces by dozens of artists that cover all disciplines: painting, sculpture, graphic work, photography, video art and installation.

The fair will become a dynamic event where the audience will enjoy an immersive experience in contemporary art thanks to our program of actions outside and inside the fair. The contact with art will become an experience that transcends the limits of the Crystal Gallery and extends its programming to all lovers of contemporary creation, with a proposal designed for all audiences and that houses the most avant-garde and emerging artistic projects of the moment.

On its 15th anniversary, Art Madrid brings together 27 national and 14 foreign galleries from 9 countries. From France, Portugal, Austria, Germany and Italy, through Ecuador and Cuba, up to Taiwan. International participation is consolidated year after year, and today 35% of the fair is filled with proposals, ideas and projects come from other places to live with national initiatives in the intense Art Week of the capital. This exchange generates a great positive impact on the experience of the public and collectors, that each edition can enjoy a renewed, current and accessible fair.

There are 13 exhibitors that come to Art Madrid for the first time: es.Arte Gallery from Marbella, Galería ATC from Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Galerie LJ from París, Galleria Stefano Forni from Bolonia, Kaplan Projects from Palma de Mallorca, Luisa Catucci Gallery from Berlín, MA Arte Contemporáneo from Palma de Mallorca, Más ARTE Galería from Quito, N2 from Barcelona, Offspace | galerie panoptikum from Gilgenberg, Pigment Gallery from Barcelona, Plastic Murs from Valencia y Urban Spree from Berlín.

Among the galleries that visit again the fair there are the national exhibitors Alba Cabrera Gallery and Shiras Galería from Valencia, Arancha Osoro from Oviedo, Aurora Vigil-Escalera and Bea Villamarín, both from Gijon, Moret Art from A Coruña, Galería Luisa Pita from Santiago de Compostela, Galería Espiral from Noja, Kur Art Gallery from San Sebastián, Rodrigo Juarranz from Aranda de Duero; from Barcelona they come 3 Punts, Galería Miquel Alzueta, Víctor Lope Arte Contemporaneo and the Galería Zielinsky, while from Madrid they come DDR Art Gallery, Galería BAT Alberto Cornejo, Galería Hispánica Contemporánea, Galería Kreisler, Marita Segovia and Soraya Cartategui. In the international sphere, they return: Art Lounge Gallery, Lisbon, Collage Habana, Havana, Galeria São Mamede, Lisbon, Norty, Paris, Nuno Sacramento, Ilhavo, Paulo Nunes Arte Contemporânea, Vila Franca de Xira, Schmalfuss, Berlin, and Yiri Arts, Taipei.

Artwork by Jorg Karg

Nor can we forget the ONE PROJECT program. Under the enigmatic title of Salvajes Art Madrid has wanted to go a step further in this curated section turning it into a place of dialogue (but also of conflict) where nine artists will share a face-to-face space presenting new projects specific to the fair. The program is directed by the art critic and independent curator Fernando Gómez de la Cuesta.

For the ART MADRID-PROJECTOR’20 program, Art Madrid once again trusts on Mario Gutiérrez Cru, director of the pioneering video art festival PROYECTOR, who will be the curator of this program dedicated to visual and interactive arts and action art. The goal is to involve the public outside and inside the fair through performative actions, masterclasses, meetings with artists and a cycle of screenings. Soon, we will release all the details of this program that starts on February 12th until March 1st and will have the collaboration of spaces such as Medialab Prado and Sala Alcalá 31.

Buying the first work of art always instils respect. A difficult feeling to define that mixes vertigo with adrenaline. But over uncertainty and caution, a pleasurable sense of connection, understanding, and desire prevails. That work that, once seen, stays in the mind, reappears in the memory several times a day and seems to tell you that it is willing to be part of your home, is the perfect candidate to make the decision.

In the first steps, many collectors do point out that one does not start from an established plan, but rather that one acquires pieces based on taste and the connection one feels with them until, after time, they realise that the volume of works that accumulates can be labelled as a "collection". For example, this is how Alicia Aza explains it:

“I was not aware that I was collecting until many years later when a third party named me as a collector and talked about my collection. In 2005, I became aware of what collecting means and decided to articulate a collection with an identity of criteria and formats”.

Marcos Martín Blanco, co-founder, with his wife Elena Rueda, of the MER Collection, shares this same opinion:

“Collecting has been a passion, driven by a visceral state that encourages you to do so. The collection, in terms of acquisitions, has not been particularly complicated because, let's face it: it is easy to buy because they are all beautiful things and you have some clear idea of where you want to go, but at first those preferences were not so clear. It is with the time that a criterion is being formed”.

It is not always this way, of course, but for the buyer who starts out on this path, the personal connection that entails the first piece is essential. There it is the germ of a lasting relationship that is not limited to a simple aesthetic question but is an open window to knowledge, to exploration, to a world that is often unknown to us and awakens our fascination. The seed of that connection is purely sentimental, and it is precisely this impulse that determines the first acquisitions. The first piece is never forgotten.

Art Madrid'20, photo by Ana Maqueda

Exceeding the usual recommendations made by advisers and agents, rare is the occasion when the art lover decides to buy by pure investment. These paths usually open later, when the volume of pieces is large enough. In addition, there are those who are a bit against this classic concept of the traditional collector, approached from an eccentric, elitist and little accessible vision. On the contrary, art buyers are, above all, art lovers, sentient beings and permeable to creative stimulus who, at a given moment, decide to deepen the relationship they already have with art to take a piece home.

It is not that hard to overcome that small psychological barrier that turns the visitor into a buyer if one approaches the matter from a more personal and intimate perspective than from social consideration. Small-format works, graphic work or serial photography are of great help for this, whose price range, generally more affordable, allows a closer comparison to the daily basis expenses. In this way, the purchase of art falls within the range of feasible activities and becomes something close and possible.

Art Madrid'20, photo by Marc Cisneros

At that moment, a different relationship with art begins, based on pure experience and coexistence with the acquired piece. Perhaps it can be seen as an act of daring, but on many occasions, it is more a matter of necessity and transformation. Collectors also agree that the acquisition of an artwork is an exercise on personal analysis and opening up to a new field of knowledge that was previously alien to us. Alicia Aza explains that the reason she acquired her first piece of video art, by Sergio Prego, is because she did not understand it and because she saw it as a challenge and an opportunity to self-improve. This open window to knowledge creates new connections and bonds with creators, as one of the most fascinating parts of the process. Candela Álvarez Soldevilla explains that

"I think the most interesting thing in the art world is talking to artists. They are people with a special sensitivity to listen and understand.”

And Alicia Aza also says:

"I can share the satisfaction of being able to count on many artists in my circle of close friends today, and that is a long way to go."

Thus, with works that seem acceptable within the horizon of expenses that each one considers affordable, it is easy to find a piece that catches us. Since then, our home also evolves into a space in which art has a permanent place and presence, and there is no doubt that this transforms us inside.

Art Madrid'20, photo by Henar Herguera

Jaime Sordo, owner of Los Bragales collection and founder of the 9915 Contemporary Art Collectors Association, has always defined his relationship with art as a true passion and a vital necessity. For buyers who start on this path, he has the following recommendation:

“It is an essential condition that they feel the need to live with their passion to enjoy the works. Another very important aspect is that before making decisions for purchases, they are informed, so it is necessary to read specialised newspapers and books, visit exhibitions and museums and a lot of contact with galleries, which is an important and very specific source of information of the artists they represent. Finally, the presence in national and international art fairs. All this generates information and training.”

Indeed, fairs have become a good place for discovery because they condense a wide offer and allow diverse and global contact in a concentrated way. For this reason, many new generation buyers start in the context of an event such as Art Madrid, whose closeness and quality constitute a unique opportunity to meet, soak up and feed the passion for art.

(*) quotes taken from various interviews published in public media between 2013 and 2019.