BRUSSELS.- A new addition to the
Art Brussels team is Anne Vierstraete, who assumed the role of Business Director in August this year. Anne comes to Art Brussels with an impressive track record and wide range of professional experience in her eighteen years as Head of Marketing & Communication at Bank Degroof and eight years as the director of the Erasmus Fund for medical research.
Internationally recognised curator Katerina Gregos (who this year curated both the Göteborg International Biennial in Sweden and the annual exhibition of the Steirischer Herbst Festival in Graz, Austria) will continue in her role as Artistic Director, which includes developing the artistic profile and strategy of the fair, and programming the artistic projects and discursive events. Art Brussels 2014 will thus be piloted by a close-knit and complementary duo in Anne Vierstraete and Katerina Gregos.
Art Brussels will continue to maintain its profile as a fair that brings together emerging artists and galleries with more established ones. At the same time it will continue to reinforce and build upon its identity as a ‘discovery fair’ and the place where one can identify artists at the beginning of their careers. Indicatively, this year the FIRST section, which includes young and upcoming galleries that have never shown at the fair before, will be enlarged after a record number of applications. FIRST is a unique section at Art Brussels as it is upon invitation only. It is scouted and selected by a Committee of internationally renowned curators which this year includes Daria De Beauvais, Curator, Palais de Tokyo, Paris; Chris Fitzpatrick, Director, Objectif Exhibitions, Antwerp; Nathalie Hartjes, Independent Curator and Head of the Gallerist Programme, De Appel, Amsterdam; Johan Holten, Director, Kunsthalle Baden-Baden; and curator Katerina Gregos, Artistic Director of Art Brussels. In addition to FIRST, 50 galleries will be exhibiting in the YOUNG section, meaning that more than one third of the fair is dedicated to emerging and younger generation artists.
This year, more emphasis will also be placed on individual presentations of artists, in the SOLO section, providing the opportunity to see the work of an artist more in-depth, and allowing for larger scale projects. Art Brussels is partnering, for the second time with Pirelli, for the Pirelli Prize, which will be awarded to the best SOLO presentation. The Prize is selected by the Art Brussels Collectors Committee. Also, new to this year’s edition CURATOR’S VIEW, a new section featuring a select number of thematic, group exhibitions dispersed throughout the fair, curated either by a curator, an artist, or the participating gallery.
As part of the artistic programme, Art Brussels also boasts a new campaign, by the upcoming young photographer Jimmy Kets (BE, 1979). In line with the fair’s commitment to highlighting the position of Brussels as Europe’s most upcoming art city and strengthening its relationship with Brussels art scene, Brussels-based Kets has shot a series of photos that perfectly capture the quirky charm and individual character of Europe’s capital, zooming in on intimate, sometimes offbeat, but telling details.
In April, Brussels will once again become the artistic focal point of Europe’s centre and capital! The city continues to attract international attention and more newcomers in terms of artists and curators. This, in addition to the high number of important private collections, the increasing number of new galleries that are opening spaces in Brussels, and the committed institutions is solidifying Brussels’ reputation as one of Europe’s most interesting art cities.
Hot on the heels of the huge success of last year’s edition of Art Brussels, we look forward to welcoming you to the next edition of the fair and to enjoy together cutting edge contemporary art in the fair’s unmistakeable convivial atmosphere!
