The build up to Sydney Contemporary 2013 has been intense. With so many individual galleries involved our inbox has been choking with spam high-quality email marketing from every gallery around Sydney. So, what’s all the fuss about?
Sydney Contemporary is a new international art fair, bringing Sydney’s commercial galleries to one enormous (like, properly huge) venue for your viewing pleasure. They’ll take your cash too, if you’re interested. Thanks to the lovely people at [art]iculate PR we headed along to the opening night to bring you a preview of what’s in store.
The sheer volume and variety of work on show was overwhelming. Carriageworks has been transformed into a labyrinth of art. We had fun ignoring our map and getting lost in the maze. No matter whether you love or hate commercial galleries, if you like art, you will love Sydney Contemporary. The organisers have successfully setup a kind of hybrid of art museum and market. There was no uncomfortable pressure to buy, just smiling faces encouraging us to enjoy the work. To be honest, after some weird experiences at art fairs in the past we think Sydney Contemporary is exceptionally well done.
It was a debut for Sydney Contemporary, so there were a few drawbacks on opening night: expensive drinks, not enough staff, too many patrons. We felt sorry for anyone who actually paid for a ticket to the launch. There weren’t really any perks at those who forked out 3x the ticket price that applies over the next 3 days.
So if you missed opening night, not a huge shame. But if you miss Sydney Contemporary altogether, you’ll regret it.
For more, hit the Sydney Contemporary website.
