The 2017 edition of the Armory Show is going big. The fair will see the launch of a new, curated exhibitor section called Platform dedicated to large-scale artworks and installations, and site-specific commissions installed across Piers 92 & 94.
The inaugural edition of Platform, titled “An Incident,” is curated by Eric Shiner, senior vice president of Contemporary Art at Sotheby’s. Shiner, an expert on Andy Warhol and Asian contemporary art, served as director of the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh from 2010 to 2016.
The first edition will feature works by 12 renowned artists: Abel Barroso, Patricia Cronin, Douglas Coupland, Olga de Amaral, Dorian Gaudin, Jun Kaneko, Per Kirkeby, Yayoi Kusama, Iván Navarro, Fiete Stolte, Lawrence Weiner, and Ai Weiwei.
Eric Shiner in 2016. ©Patrick McMullan. Courtesy of Patrick McMullan/PMC.
Two names stand out as potentially becoming Instagram sensations at the fair: Kusama and Ai.
According to the release, London’s Victoria Miro will present a recent, 11-piece installation by the Japanese superstar titled Guidepost to the New World, which will be situated at the center of Pier 94 within the newly created Town Square. Meanwhile, Helsinki’s Galerie Forsblom will present a suspended sculpture made of bamboo and silk by Ai.
“With my selection of artists, I endeavor to present a series of incidents that start to change our relationship with the art fair,” Shiner said in a statement. “It is my hope that the artists and works included in ‘An Incident’ will bring a new energy to the art fair model, encouraging visitors to share in the moment, and to enjoy the phenomenal offerings in vendors’ booths with gusto.”
Patricia Cronin, Tack Room (1997-98). Courtesy of the artist.
Platform, which echoes the acclaimed Art Basel in Basel sector Unlimited, also dedicated to large scale, site-specific installations, is the latest in a string of new additions to the fair devised by its new director Benjamin Genocchio, formerly editor-in-chief of artnet News, who took up the post in January 2016.
“We aim to play a greater role in the artistic life of New York, supporting artists and commissioning new artworks to create exciting experiences for our visitors—experiences like no other art fair,” Genocchio said in a statement.
“Piers 92 & 94 are an immense industrial venue prime for site-specific works and located in the heart of Manhattan; it is a tremendous opportunity to present artworks that activate and engage the space while creating a wholly unique fair experience,” he added.
It seems like sections dedicated to these types of works are hitting the right note within the competitive art fair market, possibly because of their impressive, museum-like appeal and #artselfie photo ops.
The past edition of FIAC also saw the launch of a new section, called On Site, which presented over 30 large-scale sculptural works and installations in the Petit Palais.