Art Toronto 2003

In its fourth year, Art Toronto 2003, Canada’s foremost international art fair, will engage the Canadian and international art community, as well as new and seasoned art enthusiasts, with an innovative, multi-disciplined exhibition of modern and contemporary art. To be held November 13 to 17 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre (Exhibit Hall A), the fair will feature top Canadian and international galleries presenting and selling works by more than 1,000 acclaimed and emerging artists.

The Toronto International Art Fair achieved record sales and attendance last year, and captured the world’s attention as a rising star on the international art scene and one of the best performing fairs in North America.

"Art Toronto 2003 is pleased to present its most comprehensive event since its inaugural show in 2000," says Linel Rebenchuk, the Fair’s founder and producer. "This year the fair brings a prestigious list of 77 galleries from 11 countries, showcasing an outstanding selection of artworks by some of the world’s finest artists."

Visitors to this year’s Fair will also see the strongest national presence yet, with numerous top Canadian galleries in attendance from coast to coast.

Art Toronto 2003 offers a meeting of minds and art forms where the latest developments in contemporary art and established modern works can be viewed, appreciated, discussed, and purchased. Museum quality works by established artists and the latest from emerging contemporary artists in a variety of artistic styles and media will be available including painting, drawing, photography, printmaking, sculpture, video, installation and mixed media. An eclectic public exposition, the fair will appeal to all who appreciate art – from distinguished collectors to first-time buyers. Prices range from $300 to over $3 million for museum quality masterpieces.

A Focus on the Contemporary: Fresh Avant-Garde Art Toronto 2003 will include a special focus on the contemporary with its presentation of Fresh Avant-Garde, a collection of sixteen galleries known for their fresh and exciting perspective on art trends. An exciting curatorial draw, this group of galleries features young, cutting-edge artists with their distinctive approach and raw talent. This collection of galleries makes art accessible with the majority of their works priced well under a ceiling of $5,000.

Only at Art Toronto 2003: Special Installations Three dynamic installations will be specially curated for the Fair:

• The News at Five – "The News at 5:00" is a series of daily feature exhibitions of contemporary Canadian art chosen from participating dealers at TIAF 2003. Presented by Canadian Art and Art Toronto, the series is curated by Richard Rhodes, editor of Canadian Art. Following the gala evening, a new exhibition will open each day of the Fair with a hosted tour at 5:00 p.m. The series is intended as an introduction to the work of some of the leading artists in Canada today. The exhibitions will cover contemporary photography, emerging artists and painting. Themes include "Mixed Messaging", "Outside In", "Fountain of Youth", and "Magnets." (Additional details provided in "Art Toronto 2003 At-A-Glance.")

• Vice Versa – Vice Versa is a survey exhibition of works by Austrian and Canadian artists resulting from the close collaboration of contemporary art galleries in the two cities of Toronto and Vienna. Curated by Grita Insam of Galerie Grita Insam in Vienna and Jane Corkin of Toronto’s Corkin /Shopland Gallery, Vice Versa will focus on contemporary Austrian art and its Canadian counterpart. Jane has selected Austrian works from the Vienna Art Fair to be presented at Art Toronto, and Grita will select Canadian works from Toronto’s Art Fair to present at the Austrian fair. Born from the collaboration of artists and their galleries during the two art fairs last year, the idea of "Juxtaposition" inspired this unique exhibition.

• Paul de Guzman, The Art Gallery of Ontario – The AGO’s booth, curated by Ben Portis, will show recent works by Vancouver artist Paul de Guzman from his "Invisible Cities" series, including a new bookwork made from an AGO publication design. For Guzman, architecture and language are interdependent, embodied in his excavations of contemporary architectural literature. The book is treated as a micro-edifice, whose text he first reads and then precisely cuts out, page by page, removing layered images and isolating words, to reveal an apparently deep foundation and skeletal infrastructure. Trained as an engineer, Guzman is heir to a line of radical environmental artists such as Robert Smithson, Dan Graham and Gordon Matta-Clark; however, he swings their discourse entirely to the "site" of printed matter.

Shopping for "everything art": Super Art Market The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery and Art Metropole have joined together to present a "new type of art market." Shoppers will feel like they’re in their favourite grocery store, complete with checkout line, cash register, and shopping bags! Everything in the store will be art-related and sold for under $250 including special edition multiples by an international roster of artists along with artist books, gifts, and exhibition catalogues. Proceeds from Super Art Market will benefit future educational programming by The Power Plant and Art Metropole.

Art Wisdom: The Cultural Program Organized by Popsy Johnstone and Marshall Webb, the Fair’s stimulating Cultural Program features a series of educational forums and reflective panel discussions presented by leaders in the art field. To complement art viewing, notable experts will speak on the latest topics in contemporary art:

Andy Warhol Foundation President Joel Wachs, and the Museum of Modern Art’s Chief Curator of Photography Peter Galassi and Carol Appel, Toronto based collector and philanthropist will speak about supporting the future – what it takes to make room for the new in contemporary art.

Amada Cruz, Director of the Museum at the Center for Curatorial Studies at Bard College; Kitty Scott, Curator of Contemporary art at the National Gallery of Canada; and Lia Gangiatano, Founder of Participant Inc. in New York City will speak about curating for public institutions in the 21st century.

Artists Helen Mirra and Ernst Karel (Chicago), Hendrika Sonnenberg and Chris Hanson (New York City) and Daniel Borins and Jennifer Marman (Toronto) will discuss negotiating art projects – partners who make art.

A special focus on collecting will include internationally known collector Martin Margulies who will deliver the keynote address. Ottawa lawyer Joe Friday and Baltimore doctor Bill Goldiner will share their tips on beginning and shaping a personal collection along with Kathleen Bartels, Director of the Vancouver Art Gallery.

Sobey Art Award (Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art, North York) Being presented as a special project in conjunction with the Toronto International Art Fair, the Sobey Art Foundation is mounting Sobey Art Award – The 2002 Exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art (MOCCA). Organized by the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, the Exhibit will run November 14 to December 20, 2003.

Featured in the MOCCA exhibition will be recent works by Sobey Art Award 2002 winner Brian Jungen along with works by nominees David Hoffos, Jean-Pierre Gauthier, Marla Hlady, and Colleen Wolstenholme.

These young contemporary Canadian artists were selected for the 2002 national shortlist by a panel of curators for the pre-eminent and inaugural Sobey Art Award. Their innovative works, mounted first at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia in December 2002, represent the range of thought provoking art practices that is the contemporary art scene in Canada.

Created by the Sobey Art Foundation, the $50,000 Sobey Art Award is awarded every two years to a contemporary Canadian artist, 39 years of age or under, who has exhibited his or her work in a public or private art gallery in Canada within 18 months of being nominated. (For further information and nominations guidelines, visit the Sobey Art Award website at www.sobeyartaward.ca)

4th Toronto International Art Fair - Art Toronto 2003
Canada’s Premier Fair Features 77 International Galleries and Leading Innovation in Contemporary Art

Künstler: Paul de Guzman, Helen Mirra, Ernst Karel, Chris Hanson & Hendrika Sonnenberg, Daniel Borins, Jennifer Marman, ...