Frieze ii (not strictly Frieze but also in London)
After a day at Frieze I was almost pleased that Francois was not able to leave me his VIP pass – that way I could not feel obliged to go back, though another stroll around Masters might have been fun. Friday’s treat was seeing the amazing collections of artists’ jewellery on several stands at the PAD Fair in Berkley Square. A few years ago I saw jewellery by Anish Kapoor and Zaha Hadid at an auction preview and remember thinking that it was an interesting idea then. In terms of an edition or multiple it is quite appealing. Maybe that is because materials and objects are often my starting points, and perhaps jewellery offers the same possibilities …
It is funny, sometimes, where and how one arrives at things. I went to London expecting to be excited and inspired by one fair when actually it was things at two others that made more of an impact on me. An even more brilliant discovery came from a very familiar place – Kim’s studio where I stay (and where I spent two weeks before moving away last year). On Friday evening I fancied looking through a good book while lying in bed and my gaze fell upon Phiadon’s Roni Horn publication. As I was flipping through it I saw a picture of her Goldfield piece – which caught my attention not only because it is beautiful but it also immediately reminded me of my field project. Reading about it I discovered that the piece lead to a deep friendship between Horn and a favourite artist of mine Felix Gonzalez-Torres. The friendship led both artists to dedicate works to each other and I can only imagine how interesting their conversations and correspondence must have been. Seeing that wonderful image of a sheet gold leaf for the first time it felt as though that was the reason that I was in London. I do not know so much about Roni Horn however I now want to start seeing and reading more.
Saturday was spent catching up with various good friends some of whom I have not seen for a few years. It was really interesting to discuss Frieze with them. Perhaps it is a sign that we are all getting older but there was a general feeling that it was not as interesting to us as it was when it first started. Or perhaps it is a sign of the times that it felt more obviously commercial than it has done in the past. I can be very naïve sometimes and it was not until someone pointed out the practical realities of it being a “fair” rather than an “expo” that a few more dots were joined up for me! I had been wondering why some good galleries had rather odd looking stands, it was explained to me that this is because the VIP and Collectors preview days had actually been very successful and many pieces had been sold. Still I wondered why it was so important to have things packed up and shipped out immediately, my friend continued to explain that I was thinking about things the wrong way around. It is not that the buyer wanted the piece immediately, it is that the gallery can not sell the same piece twice so it is in their interest to take away what is sold and show something which is for sale. The amount of storage required for this also explains why Frieze seems to be the opposite to the Tardis – ariel photographs show a tent which looks far larger than it feels when you are in it.
My final (essential) task of the trip was to buy silver glitter! I am pleased to say I did and it is now sitting here in the studio waiting for me to have time to get on with what might be a very twinkly job – maybe it is good to wait until nearer Christmas when I will not be the only person walking around town sparkling! I highly recommend Flint’s Theatrical and Marine Chandlers (such a wonderful name), not only did they have exactly what I wanted but they offered to pack it in four individual bags so that I could pack it more easily. I am a little disappointed that I was not stopped at customs … I wanted to know what it looked like on their x-ray machine
