Art Madrid'23 – Art Madrid closes its ninth edition

The CentroCentro Galería de Cristal had sold-out at various moments of the 9th edition of the Contemporary Art Fair Art Madrid. From its opening on February 19th until its closing, five days later, Art Madrid was visited by over 20,000 people. Both the organizers and the participating galleries have confirmed that an event of this kind, well connected and located in the heart of the city is guarantee of success.

One of the galleries that premiered in the fair is moproo ( Shanghai) whose director Julian Ramirez Rentero greatly appreciates his participation and “the fact of being in the heart of the city that has helped us to have more visibility. I want to highlight the large crowds and the high degree of satisfaction that I received from both our customers and other visitors who have share with me their impressions".

To Marc Decoene, responsible for a gallery in Erolzheim (Germany ), the experience has been more than satisfactory . "It's the first time we participate and it wont be the last. An event like this, with a central location, good times and a perfect organization should be on the TOP of the Spain and Europe list of art fairs".

Good figures not only occurred in audience but also viewed in sales. "We were able to contact many collectors for this moment but, most important, for the future... Sales have exceeded what I expected", said Marc Decoene. Indeed, over 90% of the participating galleries have sold artworks from the first day of the fair.

As Javier Lopez, director of 3Punts in Barcelona, says: "we have noticed that also the public and collectors were more willing to buy". The director of the Valencian Point Gallery, José Ignacio Agrait, also remarks the presence of "true collectors" thanks to a previous work in "trust, communication and good proposals".

Fernando Herencia, chief in Materna&Herencia Gallery, points to the selection of galleries and artists and "the importance that has been given to emerging galleries". "If we bet on this line of renovation and we can be more selective in the selection of galleries, the fair of the future will be very competitive" says Fernando.

Competitive character, good organization and support and communication services to collectors and galleries are the keys with which Art Madrid prepares itself for upcoming issues.

 

In the year 2020 in the heart of Barcelona a wandering gallery was born, the same one that in February 2021 would debut at Art Madrid with an exhibition proposal focused on contemporary portraits; with this subject matter it would manage to create a powerful dialogue between artwork and audience and make the seal Inéditad remain in the history of the event that contained it.

Jean Carlos Puerto. Protección. Oil and copper leaf on wood. 60 x 48. 2021. Image courtesy of the gallery.

Since that first time and until today, the wandering gallery has managed to build projects on otherness, has repositioned in the spotlight the discourses on the LGTBIQ+ collective, has consolidated a group of artists who share its principles of resilience and empathy and the best thing is that it continues to bet from the professionalism and commitment to give voice to the difference.

Claudio Petit-Laurent.. El Joven de la Perla. Oil on wood. 30 x 30 cm. 2023. Image courtesy of the gallery.

Inéditad Gallery, thanks to its founder Luis López, its collaborators and the infinite possibilities manifested in the works of the artists it represents, is a gallery that has demonstrated its capacity and courage to stimulate the sensibility of the public through art and seduce a generation that moves between the glass window and the analogical story. Inéditad is a nomadic gallery that has gathered around it a community of artists and has moved the context with exhibition projects that think about LGTBIQ+ art without prejudices.

Pepa Salas Vilar. Las marcas del arcoiris. Oil on canvas. 40 x 50 cm. 2022. Image courtesy of the gallery.

Pride and Prejudice was inaugurated. An exhibition that brings together the works of sixteen artists: Abel Carrillo, Alex Domènech, Carlos Enfedaque, Silvia Flechoso, Jamalajama, Daniel Jaén, Claudio Petit-Laurent, Jean Carlos Puerto, Fernando Romero, Pablo Rodríguez, Pepa Salas Vilar, Jack Smith, Pablo Sola, Bran Sólo, Elia Tomás and Utürüo. Painting, illustration, photography and digital art are the manifestations that bring into dialogue around fifty neatly threaded pieces, in a discursive line that discusses such a latent phenomenon as discrimination. To achieve this, the artists invited to the exhibition question themselves whether: Does discrimination exist within the LGTBIQ+ collective?

Pride and Prejudice Official Poster. Image courtesy of the gallery.

With approaches on and from the body, the proposal invites to celebrate diversity, proposes to question and self-question the prejudices and attitudes of society against the collective. Pride and Prejudice is a space for dialogue about the constructs imposed on us by society. It is also an oasis in which to deconstruct with tolerance and respect the subjectivities that sometimes prevent us from approaching the production of the participating artists, simply because "the beautiful" does not fit in an androgynous body. The subjugation of stereotypes are pressed with determination to find the beauty of diversity in other palpable facets of reality.

Pablo Sola. All men are dogs. Photography. 2014. Image courtesy of the gallery.

Throughout these three years Inéditad has stimulated the vindictive projection towards bad practices, has questioned estates around the LGTBIQ+ body and the most admirable thing, is that these capacities have resurfaced around the dialogue and the visual narrative of the stories that are told from the visual: Artworks that are people, art that is, per se, humanity. Overcome impositions and accept what is different in order to continue fighting against homophobia, biphobia, lesbophobia or transphobia and defend the equal rights that all the acronyms of the collective deserve in our community.

That's Pride and Prejudice: One creature, the happiest in the world. And maybe other projects and other people have said it - or felt it - before, but none so fairly.

Silvia Flechoso. Hola, soy maricón. Oil on canvas. 73 x 54 cm. 2023. Image courtesy of the gallery.

From June 8th until June 22nd you can visit Pride and Prejudice. Carrer de Palau núm. 4. Canal Gallery space. Barcelona.