Everyone takes pictures of the black, winged car with the bright yellow bat emblem on the wheel rims. That
Like other places in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region with the Villa Arson in Nice, the Foundation Maeght and the Fondation Carmignac on the island of Porquerolles, the city-state has developed into an art hotspot. Last but not least, the Art Monte Carlo, which is now taking place for the sixth time in the Grimaldi Forum, contributes to this, the small, fine “Salon d’art” offshoot of the parent fair Artgenève founded by Thomas Hug in 2012.
34 galleries, most with headquarters in France, Switzerland or Italy, the only one from Germany is the Berlin gallery Esther Schipper, as well as the Asian heavyweight Tang Contemporary Art (Bangkok, Beijing, Hong Kong, Seoul) and the Beijing HdM gallery of the Frenchman Hadrien de Montferrand, as well as five dealers with headquarters or a subsidiary in London, confirm the increasing attractiveness of niche models with a European accent. Better fewer participants, but the highest possible level – that’s Hug’s motto, which also points out that the size of the exhibition stands between 25 and almost 40 square meters at 400/500 euros per square meter is relatively homogeneous this time: “Big players like Hauser too
Of course, they occupy the pole positions immediately behind the entrance. On preview day, Princess Caroline of Monaco and her brother Prince Albert, surrounded by their bodyguards, admire Alexander Calder’s “The Three Wings II” maquette from 1967 (price: $700,000) right at the beginning of White Cube next to a small format revolver motif by Andy Warhol from around 1981 for $1.25 million. At Hauser
For the first time at Art Monte Carlo is gallery owner Andrea Caratsch, who was “abstinent from the fair” for a long time. “Of course I hope to attract new collectors,” he says expectantly. He should actually succeed, as he brought along rarities by Helmut Newton and the enchanting painting by John Armleder “Anthericum liliago” from 2008 (175,000 €), the hybrid-surreal oil painting “The Opera Singer” by George Condo from 2003 , undoubtedly a highlight of museum quality (€2.35 million). Also exquisite and popular thanks to numerous exhibitions is the work on paper “Untitled (Espagnole)” from 1926/27 at a price of 420,000 euros by Francis Picabia at Richard Saltoun, who runs galleries in London and Rome and is also testing the fair.
The old master dealer Moretti Fine Art, who brought two allegories by the Florentine master Giovanni Martinelli with him, is somewhat exotic among the contemporary gallery owners, of which the one of astronomy (110,000 €) in the original magnificent frame was still available on the second day. Works by artists with moderate prices are also recognized. Such is the floral, colorful faience of the Florentine duo
Around 500 guests were invited to the Collectors’ Dinner on Thursday, including major collectors Patrizia Sandretto Re Rebaudengo and Julia Stoschek. With seven video works from her collection, Stoschek beams visitors into the 21st century under the title “Anti-Monuments” in the Espace Indigo opposite the fair. Artists like the Canadian Chloe Wise and the German Loretta Fahrenholz show how the urban architecture of our cities and living spaces can shape and deform identity.
The counter-program one floor up should not be missed. Here the Parisian stiletto guru Christian Louboutin not only reveals his fetish-friendly creations with “L’Exhibition(niste)”, but also his obsessions and works from his art collection, including a new video work by the British pop art star Allen Jones. Caroline of Monaco and her family support this exhibition as well as another at the Nouveau Musée National de Monaco. It is dedicated to the sensational rediscovery of the painter, draftsman, interior designer, set designer, film set designer and fashion designer Christian Bérard (until October 16). The title of the show, “Excentrique Bébé”, based on a text by Professor Tirza True Latimer, is a great homage to an artist who was famous at the beginning of the last century and then unjustly forgotten, and to eccentricity as an aesthetic of resistance. The exhibition “Pirates Stew Pot” by Paul McCarthy in Hauser’s Monte Carlo branch is also in this context
