At 18h on the evening of Sunday, July 17, a spontaneous applause resounded in the fairgrounds of Ibiza. With this gesture, gallery owners, collectors and visitors celebrated the success of the first edition of the international art fair CAN, Contemporary Art Now. For five days, 36 galleries from 13 countries gathered on the island of Ibiza.
Photo Courtesy of @mariasantosphotography
They came from Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, the United States, Lebanon, Greece, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, France, Uk, Belgium and Spain. The inauguration was attended by the president of the Consell d’Eivissa, Vicent Marí. FECOEV has received 5,000 visitors during these days, highlighting the presence of around 250 international collectors, 40 of them invited by the fair, within its Collectors Program, who have come to Ibiza from Asia, America and Europe.
On the last day, the participating galleries confirmed the good level of sales as well as the artistic quality of the fair. Eighty percent of the works exhibited have been purchased. “In some cases, even the first day, some of the gallerists told us that they had sold the entire stand,” said Sergio Sancho, director and founder of CAN. This is the case of the galleries WOAW (Hong Kong), Cob Gallery (London), Johansson Projects (Oakland, United States), Afternoon Gallery (Seoul), Plan X (Milan). And he adds, “the best proof of the good reception of the fair is that in Ibiza there is already talk that, coinciding with CAN, an art week will follow.
Photo Courtesy of ©SayanaCairo
We have had the support of local administrations, but also of the local cultural fabric. Our goal is to strengthen these relationships. We are open to collaborate and that next year there could be more parallel activities around the fair”. This year’s Collectors’ Program included visits to the Museum of Contemporary Art (MACE), the Micus Space, the Ses Dotze Naus foundation and the Ladio workshop.
The support for talent has also been a protagonist in the fair, so the OD Hotels chain has participated with two acquisition awards, one for the artist Navot Miller (represented by 1969 Gallery of New York) and another one for Juan de la Morenilla (represented by the Veta gallery of Madrid). For its part, the Bassat Collection has opted for Manuel M. Romero (represented by Artnueve of Murcia) and Russel Tyler (represented by GAA Gallery, Provincetown, United States).
Photo Courtesy of ©SayanaCairo
Among the most sought-after works sold at the fair, Stickymonger (WOAW Gallery, Hong Kong), Javi Calleja and Kenichi Tamai (Nanzuka, Tokyo) stand out. Being a curated fair-by the critic and curator Sasha Bogojev – has allowed to show the most current art and projecting a trend where painting and a new figuration have been the protagonists. “My personal favorite thing about this fair was likely the general attitude at the fairground, the relaxed, almost camaraderie attitude between the fair team and the galleries and the artists, which I think resulted in a welcoming ambiance that the visitors could hopefully notice.” Bogojev highlights of this first edition.
The fair has had the support of brands such as Gucci -which has lent its experimental space Gucci VAULT with the exhibition The Next 100 Years of Gucci by NFT works-, Blancpain, Organics by RedBull, Vilebrequin, Barceló Imperial, Lucas Fox, Glenfiddich or the collaboration, as the official hotel of Ocean Drive Hotel Talamanca.
CAN, Contemporary Art Now, is already working on its second edition, to be held in mid-July 2023. “Most participating galleries want to repeat although they will have to wait to be invited by the curator. Also, during these days, many international galleries have been in touch showing their desire to participate in following editions,” says Sancho.
©2022 CAN (Contemporary Art Now)
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