A young gallery that is only participating for the second time says that it is quite exciting. In the booth next door, a seasoned gallery owner announces to a Dutch museum director: ‘I sold this work to a Belgian museum.’
This variation: young arrived right next door, is typical of Art Rotterdam. This variety also applies to the artists at the 23rd edition of the art fair, which will take place in the Van Nellefabriek until Sunday. A canvas by the well-known painter Co Westerik (1924-2018) is presented, but also painting talent Rinella Alfonso (27) can be found here.
‘Art Rotterdam is a regular fixture every year’, says art collector Bas Kuiper (37). He is already holding a work of art in bubble wrap under his arm during the preview on Wednesday. Not that he comes to the fair with the intention of buying something, he says: ‘I mainly come here to see and discover a lot.’ Talking to gallery owners is of course also part of it. ‘It’s going well, last week I was still in zero-twenties, now here’, says Kuiper. ‘Are you still going to Art Basel?’ is the next question to him. The art market appears to be fully operational again after the lockdowns.
In the stand of Galerie Mieke van Schaijk, the Belgian artist Guillaume Bijl (76) is showing two works of art. Bijl is best known for his realistic installations. In 1984 he caused a stir at the Art Basel art fair. At the time, he had set up a gallery stand as a lamp shop, as a ‘parrot on art markets’, explains the artist. Other galleries were not amused: ‘They saw that as blasphemy towards art. But it was the first work of art I sold.’
Today the art world has more sense of humor. This is also apparent in the stand of the Rotterdam gallery Cokkie Snoei. Artist Tim Breukers (36) made a table, a chair for the gallery owner and a chair for a collector from cast aluminum especially for the fair. The chair in front of the gallery is quite comfortable, the collector has to sit on an uncomfortable stool. ‘It has a slightly more active seat,’ says Breukers dryly. As a result, a sale may be closed faster. The pinball machine that Breukers made, also made of aluminum, has not yet been sold, but it does attract fanatical players.
Two slot machines attract a lot of attention on the other side of the aisle, at the Dudokdegroot gallery. They are works of art by Maze de Boer (46). Visitors can score digital artworks at one of them. The lucky buyer/winner will receive a printed receipt with which this NFT (non-fungible token) can be added to the digital wallet. The technology behind it is quite complicated, but the device is user-friendly and cheap: trade fair visitors can already take a gamble for 20 euros. The artwork also leads to interesting discussions about the value of digital art, says gallery owner Jedithja de Groot.
This playful atmosphere fits the summer weather of Wednesday. Usually the art fair is in February, but the event was postponed twice due to the lockdowns. Exhibition director Fons Hof does not want to make a habit of this: ‘This is a busy period, from an international perspective. Last week was Amsterdam Art Weekend and Photo London, next weekend is Antwerp Art Weekend.’ It seems less crowded during the preview. Art Rotterdam may not only compete with international events, but also with the sunny weather. When it gets busier in the evenings, the fun moves outside.
Hof, who also runs the Unseen photography fair, is committed to price transparency at the fair. New this year is that each gallery has a QR code on the stand with which the ‘online catalog’ of the art fair can be viewed on the Galleryviewer.com website. According to Hof, this saves uncomfortable situations for both the visitor and the gallery owner. ‘Research also shows that mentioning prices is good for the return.’ However, not all galleries list the prices yet. ‘Sometimes the artist prefers not to.’
Simone Schuffelen (28) who has no problem with that. She is one of the 88 artists exhibiting at the major exhibition prospects of the Mondriaan Fund, at two locations in the Van Nelle factory. These artists received a ‘work grant for Young Talent’ in 2020 and together they form a surprising sample of art talent in the Netherlands.
Schuffelen stands at her mobile ‘Souvenir Shop Schuffelen’, in which she sells snow-shaking balls, T-shirts and other paraphernalia with, for example, a photo of herself on it. ‘My works of art are often performances or installations, which are difficult to sell or keep. You can do that with souvenirs,’ she says. To then continue like a real market woman: ‘This T-shirt is really a runner, costs 25 euros, no money of course!’
Video art for sale
Painting dominates at Art Rotterdam, but art forms that are more difficult to sell also have a place at the fair. In previous years, a large darkened room had been set up especially for video art, now this video art program can be seen in nine galleries spread over the fair. Two years ago, Art Rotterdam even organized a presentation for performance art, but that ‘Performance Show’ has not yet been followed up.
Art Rotterdam, Van Nelle Factory, Rotterdam, until 22/5.