West Palm Beach is ready to roll out the big gun art shows of the year with the 19th edition of Art Palm Beach hitting the Convention Center and Continuum, a pop up fair, staking it’s claim on Clematis Street.
Like the art fairs that Miami just recovered from in December, Art Palm Beach, the worldwide renowned premiere mid-winter contemporary art fair brings the international art set to town January 20 to the 24th. Art Palm Beach is Palm Beach County’s longest running fair dedicated to contemporary, emerging, and modern master works of art of the 20th and 21st centuries. There will be booths filled with art, outdoor work and art happenings all over town.
“This year we have increased our number of exhibitors, exhibition space, on and offsite events with more than 80 international galleries exhibiting paintings, sculpture, photography, video, new technologies, performance art, and art installations offering collectors exposure to today’s emerging art trends,” says Lee Ann Lester, founder and organizer. Similar to the salons and kabinets at Art Basel Miami, they have created new sections emphasizing emerging art, sculpture and works on paper. An informative schedule of educational lectures and forums are open to fair attendees. An onsite bookstore has been added as well as installation projects from Korea, Israel and the United States.
Some of the highlights this year are the ever popular rotund work of Fernando Botero’s Donna Sdraiata (1995). An installation by Crackling Art Group and William Sweetlove, using recycled plastic byproducts brings their environmental conservation message to international audiences. Solange Heilenkotter, using Japanese and kinetic art traditions will exhibit new sculptural forms from a single piece of paper expanding over 6 feet wide creating a sense of motion in each work.
Street art makes an appearance with new works exhibited by Speedy Graphito, one of the pioneers of the French Street Art Movement who left his mark with his innovative style in the early 1980’s and has continued to reinvent wild style pop iconography. A Community Brunch takes place Sunday, January 24, 2016 – 10:00 a.m. until noon – free and open to the public at WhiteSpace The Mordes Collection in West Palm Beach.
“There will be 80 exhibitors this year and
half of them are new to Art Palm Beach!“
Twenty one countries are represented, including: Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Korea, Nicaragua, Singapore, and more. Documentary Screenings include: Last Days of Vietnam from filmmaker Rory Kennedy, 1989 by Camilo Matiz, and Pilchuck: A Dance with Fire written by Gary Gibson and directed by John Forsen.
The VIP night is First View/Collector’s Invitational by invitation only – January 20. Fair Hours are Thursday. January 21 Noon until 7:00 p.m. Friday January 22 Noon to 9 p.m. Saturday January 23 Noon to 7 p.m. Sunday January 24 Noon until 6:00 p.m.
Happening on Clematis Street is Continuum WPB at a new space. “We are thrilled to be able to provide the 522 Clematis building as the venue for the CONTINUUM WPB 2016,” said Michael Paul of Interstate Companies. “This event will kick off the transformation of this historic building into a center for Arts and Entertainment called The Station Theatre. We thank the Downtown Development Authority for their support of us and the Arts – making West Palm Beach an exciting place to be.”
CONTINUUM WPB will kick off Thursday, Jan. 21 with the charitable VIP event, Black Tie & Sneakers. The public is invited to attend the affair from 7 – 10 p.m. and asked to bring a pair of gently-used or new sneakers, which will be donated to Faiths Place. The evening will include complimentary hors d’oeuvres and beverages; a silent auction of hand-painted sneakers for men, women and children to benefit Faith’s Place; and music by DJ Kyle “Thought” Holder of Smooth Bounce Entertainment, a steel drum performance by the students from Faith’s Place.
Over its 10-day run, CONTINUUM WPB will host a series of events such as the one on Friday, Jan. 22nd. It will feature live body painting by Raquel McInnis, “Battle of the Cubes” art installation sponsored by CANVAS Art Charities, celebrity bartender Cecily Mathis, and music by DJ Cole Rippe. Additional events include a Quarter Auction / Artist Market Place on Thursday, Jan. 28, from 6 – 9 p.m. to benefit Faith’s Place Center for Creative Education Inc. A Brunch and Lecture on Saturday, Jan. 30 at 11:30 a.m., Meet the Artists of CONTINUUM sponsored by the Armory Art Center featuring a panel discussion of art professionals from the local community and an Art Cake Battle from 6 – 10 p.m. Admission to all CONTINUUM WPB events activities are free and open to the public.
ArtSynergy hosts satellite exhibitions throughout the nine Palm Beach County Art Districts featuring 23 artists, curated by Rolando Chang Barrero.
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