Collecting art may seem like an unaffordable luxury for the average office worker. But for the organizers of Young Art Taipei 2009, buying a piece of art should and can be made as easy as purchasing a laptop computer. Billed as the first contemporary art fair held at a hotel in Taiwan, Young Art Taipei aims to position itself as a venue where novice collectors and art dilettantes meet emerging artists whose work they can afford.
Organized by Taiwan Contemporary Art Link (台灣當代藝術連線), a group consisting of local galleries including Dynasty Art Gallery (朝代藝術) and Aki Gallery (也趣畫廊), the three-day event starts today at Sunworld Dynasty Hotel Taipei (台北王朝大酒店) with 42 participating galleries from Taiwan, China, Japan and South Korea. As implied by the name, a hotel art fair showcases art in hotel rooms, where the space best accommodates small- to medium-sized pieces.
“This particular form of exhibition space encourages creative and unconventional approaches to arranging art works. One can be laid on a bed, hung on the wall or put in the bathroom. Small pieces like toy figurines can easily stand out as visitors inspect each part of the room,” the event’s chief organizer, Natasha Lo (羅健毓), explained.
The low cost for participating galleries — a mere NT$65,000 — also makes it easier for them to promote young and relatively unknown artists.
“To attend an art fair like Art Taipei, a gallery needs to throw in at least NT$500,000 to NT$600,000,” said Dynasty Art Gallery owner Frank Liu (劉忠河). “It is not economical for galleries to bring works that are priced at only NT$20,000. But if you lower the fee, young artists have a better chance to come to the front.”
At the hotel art fair, the key words are contemporary and young, and the focus is on art ranging from video and sculpture to installation and multi-media works by artists aged 45 and under. Prices are NT$8,000 to NT$100,000.
Though Taiwan’s contemporary artists have gained recognition on the international art scene, the market for their art didn’t take off here until three years ago. According to Liu and Galerie Grand Siecle owner Richard Chang (張學孔), the local art market traditionally has been dominated by oil paintings. Contemporary art works accounted for only a fraction of art on display as gallery owners and curators saw them more as museum pieces than works with commercial value. The rise of the Chinese contemporary art market over the past half-decade changed that, and made local collectors interested in contemporary Taiwanese art.
Many collectors turned to Taiwanese art because they believe the market for contemporary Chinese art is already saturated, Chang said.
“The market for Taiwanese art started to skyrocket about two years ago, but because of the global financial crisis, the bubble appears to have burst,” he said.
According to Chang, though most artists under the age of 45 have not had their work sold at auction houses, or on the so-called secondary market, which means their works are relatively affordable, these are the artists who are competitive when it comes to the international market.
“Figures like Chen Chieh-jen (陳界仁) and Michael Lin (林明弘) are always at top of the list when international art publications evaluate Taiwanese artists. Clearly, our strength lies in contemporary art,” Chang said.
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