West Palm Beach, Fla. (January 23, 2009) -- The 2009 palmbeach3 contemporary art fair was marked by buoyant sales and record attendance throughout its run, January 15-18 at the Palm Beach County Convention Center. Dealers from 11 countries including the U.S., Great Britain, France and Germany, reported strong sales of post-Modern and contemporary art and photography. Attendance increased by five percent over last year, with nearly 1,800 guests attending the Preview Evening, and many lectures over capacity, with standing-room only.
"Both the sales and number of prominent collectors seen at this year's fair confirm the position of palmbeach3 on the global art circuit," said Fran Kaufman, Fair Director. "We can attribute our success to some new, innovative marketing, programming and promotions, including an expanded Museum Partnership Program with 20 Florida institutions participating; the launch of a Curator Program, which attracted noted curators and museum professionals from around the country; the inaugural Designer Committee, chaired by the internationally-renowned interior designer, Juan Montoya; and a dynamic lecture series, featuring talks with legendary artists Wendell Castle and Steve McCurry."
Seen shopping the fair were high-profile collectors Ted and Ruth Baum, supporters of the Guggenheim Museum of Art in New York and The Norton Museum of Art in West Palm Beach; Dr. Marvin and Elayne Mordes, who frequently loan pieces from their extensive collection to major museums, including the Tate Modern in London; Dale and Doug Anderson, actively involved in The J. Paul Getty Museum in LA, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and The Norton Museum of Art; Miami-based developer Jorge Perez and his wife, Darlene; energy magnate Bill Koch; and financial magnate Wilbur Ross and his wife Hilary Geary, who are prominent collectors with homes in Palm Beach, Manhattan and Southampton. Other notable attendees were Japanese Consul General Yamaguchi and wife, Yoko and Prince Michel of Yugoslavia.
"The mood of this year's fair was upbeat, and its execution highly professional," said Ted Baum, who also serves on the Host Committee. "It was really a coming-of-age for the show, with more high-scale, serious art on view."
Among the museum curators spotted at the fair were Melissa Chiu, director of New York's Asia Society Museum; Eric C. Shiner of The Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh; Christopher Phillips, senior curator of the International Center of Photography (ICP); Barbara Tannenbaum, director of curatorial affairs for the Akron Art Museum in Ohio; Cathy Leff, director of the Wolfsonian-FIU; Neil Watson, executive director of the Katonah Museum; and Irving Lipman, executive director of the Fort Lauderdale Museum of Art. Interior designers frequenting the fair were Bruce Bierman of Manhattan and Palm Beach; Joe David of Washington D.C., Palm Beach and Capri; and Palm Beach designers Alan Reyes and Denis LaMarsh.
Dealers reported solid sales during the four-day event, including Osborne Samuel Ltd. of London.
"Our sales of four Lynn Chadwick bronzes, two Julian Opie paintings, and works by Sam Francis and Frank Stella, surpassed our wildest expectations. This is a year when many fairs around the world are experiencing less than desirable results and we were so pleased with the activity here in Palm Beach," said director Peter Osborne. Prices for two of his sales were in the six figures, and his visiting clients came from as far away as Canada, Brazil and France. "We have 200 clients in Florida, and we saw more than 100 at this year's fair. Just as important, we met some very good new contacts, including one collector with a 75-acre sculpture park."
Wetterling Gallery of Stockholm sold four images by photographer Natalia Edenmont, who also had a special exhibition at the fair; two works Doug and Mike Starn; and a 1984 Warhol silk screen. "Given the financial climate, I'm still surprised," said Bjorn Wetterling.
Goedhuis Contemporary, with galleries in both Manhattan and London, sold Chen Li's Standing Buddha for $250,000 to an important Palm Beach and Manhattan collector. The gallery also sold four paintings by contemporary Chinese artists. Palm Beach gallery Holden Luntz sold 14 images by the Chilean photographer Roberto Edwards, as well as work by the acclaimed fashion photographer Hoyningen Huene from the 1920's. Jerald Melberg Gallery of Charlotte sold a Robert Motherwell work on paper, among others; and Verve Gallery in Ft. Lauderdale, recorded a total of 13 sales, including a Takashi Murakami sculpture, a Frank Stella work on paper, a Jim Dine and others with prices up to $60,000.
Sculpture was also popular at this year's palmbeach3. Costas Grimaldis of the C. Grimaldis Gallery in Baltimore had several sales of river stone and pigmented steel work by sculptor John van Alstine, as well as sales of the Korean Chul-Hyun Ahn's large light sculptures. "In all, it has been better than Art Chicago," said Grimaldis.
The Habatat Gallery of Royal Oak, Michigan quickly sold a massive Daniel Clayman ceramic sculpture, a Howard Ben Tre glass sculpture and others. First time fair participant, the Long Island City Gallery Gen reported selling 80 percent of their stand, including ceramics, screens, textiles and paintings. "Saturday was fantastic for us and it got even better through the weekend, so our sales were far greater than we could have ever achieved in New York," says Massako Dempo, who heads up the gallery.
Even relatively new categories like artist jewelry sparked healthy sales. For example, Paris dealer Marion Meyer sold five brooches and rings by Picasso, Kiki Smith and other major artists with some prices in the $25,000 range.
"Initially we were nervous about our prospects in Palm Beach," said Christian Niederhuber of Munich's Helicon Contemporary, which featured blown and lampworked glass by Oliver Habel. "But we finished the fair with important sales, and we never heard the name Madoff."
Next year's fair, which returns to the name artpalmbeach under the direction of owners David and Lee Ann Lester, will be held January 21-24, 2010 at the Palm Beach County Convention Center.
For more information, visit www.palmbeach3.com.
Partial list of 2009 exhibitors Adamar Fine Arts, Coral Gables / Alan Brown Gallery, Naples / Andrea Meislin Gallery, New York / Aperture Foundation, New York / Art + Shanghai, Shanghai / Ayyam Gallery, Damascus/Dubai / Barbara Paci Gallery, Pietrasanta / Barry Friedman Ltd., New York / Browngrotta Arts, Wilton / C. Grimaldis Gallery, Baltimore / Carolyn Blitz Fine Art, New York / Cernuda Arte, Coral Gables / Charon Kransen Arts, New York / Coplan Gallery, Boca Raton / CREA Gallery, Montreal / David Findlay Jr. Inc., New York / Davis Klemm Gallery, Mainz-Kostheim / Donna Schneier Fine Arts, Claverack / Duane Reed Gallery, St. Louis / Eckert Fine Art, Kent / Eight Modern, Santa Fe / Flowers, London / Galerie Barbara von Stechow, Frankfurt / Galerie Adler Bertin-Toublanc, Miami /Paris/ Galerie Caprice Horn, Berlin / Galerie DEste, Montreal / Galerie Hafenrichter, Nuremberg / Galerie Lelia Mordoch, Paris / Galerie Marion Meyer, Paris / Galerie Mark Hachem, Paris/New York / Galerie Voss, Dusseldorf / Gallery 456, New York / Gallery Biba, Palm Beach / Gallery DeNovo, Ketchum / Gallery Gen, New York / Gerald Peters Gallery, New York / Goedhuis Contemporary, New York / Habatat Galleries, Boca Raton / Habatat Galleries, Royal Oak / HackelBury Fine Art, London / Helicon Contemporary/Numisart GmbH, Munich / Holden Luntz Gallery, Palm Beach / Holsten Galleries, Stockbridge / James Goodman Gallery, New York / Jane Sauer Gallery, Santa Fe / Jerald Melberg Gallery, Charlotte / John Szoke Editions, New York / Lausberg Contemporary, Dusseldorf/Toronto / Lawrence Savage Galleries, Miami / Leonhard Ruethmueller Contemporary Art, Basel / Loveed Fine Arts, New York / Mark Borghi Fine Art, New York / Marx-Saunders Gallery, Chicago / Margot Stein Gallery, Lake Worth / Maurine Littleton Gallery, Washington D.C. / Michael Steinberg Fine Art, New York / Orley & Shabahang, Palm Beach / Osborne Samuel LLP, London / Raquelle Azran Vietnamese Contemporary Fine Art, Tel-Aviv / Rosenbaum Contemporary, Boca Raton / Rudolf Budja Gallery/Artmosphere Galerien GmbH, Salzburg / Scott Richards Contemporary Art, San Francisco / Scott White Contemporary Art, San Diego / Seine 51, Paris / Thomas R. Riley Galleries, Cleveland / Venice Projects, Switzerland / Verve Gallery, Ft. Lauderdale / Wetterling Gallery, Stockholm / Wilde Gallery, Berlin / William Zimmer Gallery, Mendocino