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Saatchi Gallery
Chelsea NYC
From dollhouses to miniature dioramas, the creation of new worlds has never failed to capture popular imagination. Even today, modern artists continue to explore the fascination that we have for tiny worlds.
The rise of the virtual world has drastically transformed the way we see and experience our world today. Indeed, the creation of a new reality – one parallel to the physical world, has paved the way for the skyrocketing success of other industries, such as VR, AI, and NFTs.
What is reality? Who are in this vast universe, and what is time? These are some of the existential questions that have plagued humans for centuries. Humans are inevitably subjected to the passage of time. We live in a relationship to time marked by the memory of the past, the present moment, and the anticipation of the future that define our existence and inexorably lead us to death.
“Nothing is more concrete, more real than a line, than a color, than a surface. " As declared by the members of the Concrete Art group formed in the 1930s by Theo Van Doesburg, founder of the magazine De Stijl. Indeed, lines, shapes, and colors are at the very heart of the artistic movement known as geometric abstraction. FOCUS Art Fair invites you to discover four artists who perpetuate this movement through works combining abstraction, symbolism, dynamism, and technique.
With every click of the shutter, a moment is preserved, and an action is frozen in time. The images produced by a camera hold the power to inspire, motivate, and transport the viewers who lay eyes on the pictures produced. This week, we feature South African-born Wildlife Fine Art Photographer Chris Fallows, who in September will be joining forces with MORF AI to produce digital renditions of his most celebrated pieces at the FOCUS Art Fair Boom at the Carrousel Louvre.
Following a period of great uncertainty, there is an imminent post-pandemic BOOM on the horizon for the art world. As the COVID-19 pandemic altered our lives, the art industry (art galleries, auction houses, and art fairs) was forced to adapt to a virtual and socially-distanced existence, reflecting the global demand for escapism after being deprived for so long.
Art has always imitated and been inspired by nature. From Flemish paintings of bucolic landscapes to 19th-century impressionists, to Land-Art, the love and fascination for nature, its colors, elements, and power have always been very present in art. Conceived as something beautiful yet powerful, but also moving and deeply inspiring, many artistic movements have drawn on the infinite beauty of nature to capture it in their way.
The rather peculiar bond between man and nature is a theme which has fascinated artists throughout history. In literature, nature is often depicted as an all-encompassing figure — ranging from portrayals as the mother of earth, the life-giver, and an unforgiving force which punishes mortals who attempt to destroy it.
With the rise of modern technology and artificial intelligence (A.I.), the connotation of art has also witnessed a grand revolution. Escaping from the boundaries of the static, the art of today is immersive, transportable, and encapsulates infinite possibilities.
The term, ‘city’ often evokes the imagery of towering sky-scrapers, crowded sidewalks, and a kaleidoscope of neon colours flashing from digital screens. With the arrival of modernisation, we have come to associate the metropolitan environment with the notion of endless possibilities.
The celebrated French poet, journalist, and aviator Antoine de Saint-Expupéry has once said the following: “a tree is more than a seed, a living trunk, then dead timber. A tree is a slow and enduring force”. Indeed, throughout history and across a plethora of cultures, the motif of nature has been closely linked to the life journey of human beings.
Culture does not limit us to the environment in which we are born — instead, it encompasses the ideas, beliefs, and social behavior that we adopt as we travel along the journey of life. However, when we stand at the crossroads of multiple cultures, how does this shape our personal identity and how we perceive ourselves?
The search for realism often recurs in contemporary art as it is a way to create witnessed and engaged works. Today we will focus on two artists who represent reality in different ways: Gilbert Ryu who makes documentary photography and James Earley who makes hyperrealistic paintings.
Many artists attempt to communicate a feeling of isolation and loneliness through their paintings, it can be achieved using color and composition. Often the subjects are alone on the canvas or if others are also present, their eyes do not meet. The figures sometimes appear small in vast spaces, the scene seems to swallow them.
After a clash between two giants of the organization of fairs, the RX France group (FIAC, Paris Photo) and the MCH group (Art Basel), it is finally MCH who is retained to the detriment of the FIAC to organize a contemporary art fair in October in the Grand Palais Éphémère until 2023 and then at the Grand Palais when it reopens in 2024.
The exploration of the metropolitan lifestyle is a theme prevalent in contemporary artworks. From towering skyscrapers to maze-like streets, the theme of the city corresponds to a plethora of other concepts, such as industrialisation, isolation, and self-identity.
From GIFs, video clips, to digital real estate gathering millions in sales, the skyrocketing popularity of NFT owes its success to the upsurge in digitalisation and the allure of the open internet. Yet, how does the rise of the metaverse influence the domain of art? More importantly, how does the creation of the digital art market affect how we perceive art today?
The mid-nineteenth century witnessed the birth of a new poetic season in Europe. Discontent with Realist traditions, rising young artists sought to break free from the pursuit of perfect symmetry and clarity of form, instead emphasizing the expression of subjective emotion. Yet, how does the spirit of Impressionism continue to inspire the artists of today, almost two centuries later ?
Ever since the dawn of mankind, man’s obsessive pursuit of new technology and industrialization has led to the exploitation of our planet, and the demise of its creatures. Indeed, the rapid rise of civilizations and modern society has simultaneously led to the unforgiving destruction of nature.
Art holds the power to generate strong emotions upon a single glance. Indeed, images of a pastoral landscape or a forest stream evoke a sense of tranquillity and calmness. On the other hand, a monochrome palette may create mystery, anxiety, and obscurity. Yet, for French artist Florence Boré and Belgian artist Stéphanie Poppe, the power of art is not simply limited to visual perception.
What is the meaning behind existence? This introspective question is certainly not foreign to the artistic sphere. Indeed, throughout the history of French philosophy, there have been constant attempts to dissect the nature of human existence, simultaneously pushing the boundaries of societal construct.
An abstract painting often does not seem to represent anything in particular and it is precisely this particularity that makes it such a powerful medium for communicating emotions: when we observe an abstract work of art, we can identify with it, and remember our own experiences. We don't have the help of objective images to help us recognize specific stories or objects.
What is portraiture? Traditionally, the term implies the artistic representation of a person on canvas. What often comes to mind are the grandiose portrait paintings of the Classical era, featuring stiffly poised subjects against artificial backdrops. Yet, how can the art of portraiture go beyond the boundaries of simple documentation?
In the current economic, social and environmental crisis context, artists can use there as a powerful vector of expression and communication. An invisible link but percussive and all the more interesting to develop.
What is the meaning behind existence? This introspective question is certainly not foreign to the artistic sphere. Indeed, throughout the history of French philosophy, there have been constant attempts to dissect the nature of human existence, simultaneously pushing the boundaries of societal construct. But can the mysteries of existence really be unraveled?
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