7 Booths You Definitely Won’t Want to Miss at Masterpiece London, the UK’s Premier Fair of Art, Design, and Antiques

Courtesy of Masterpiece London.

Since it launched in 2010, the Masterpiece London art fair has become a perennial favorite for anyone looking for a cross-section of art, antiques, and design. This year, despite the uncertain political climate in the UK, galleries seem to be putting their best feet forward with carefully curated booths. With more than 150 galleries participating (and a legendarily long champagne bar) there is much to imbibe. To get you started on your tour, we’ve picked 7 booths we think are worth seeking out.

 

Bowman Sculpture

Emily Young, Green Lake Head (2018). Courtesy of Bowman Sculpture.

Emily Young, Green Lake Head (2018). Courtesy of Bowman Sculpture.

The London-based Bowman Sculpture gallery is showing works by contemporary artists such Emily Young alongside giants of the medium like Auguste Rodin. Young’s figurative works are hewn from raw stone, emphasizing the natural color and textures of the material in a surprisingly painterly way.

 

Mazzoleni 

Nunzio di Stefano, Nunzio Racconto (1989). Courtesy of Mazzoleni Art.

Nunzio, Racconto (1989). Courtesy of Mazzoleni, London-Torino.

In its London gallery space, Mazzoleni recently opened “The Shock of Objectivity,” the first solo London exhibition of Italian artist Nunzio’s bold, almost industrial sculptural work, curated by Kenneth Baker.  A selection of these imposing forms, dating from the 1980s onwards, will be presented at Masterpiece. Composed of materials such as lead and combusted wood, Nunzio’s sculptures are dominated by the color black, bringing to mind scorched earth, coal, the darkness of night, and the metamorphosis of regeneration.

 

Galerie von Vertes

Yayoi Kusama, Nets Infinity (OPQA) (2004). Courtesy of Galerie von Vertes.

Yayoi Kusama, Nets Infinity (OPQA) (2004). Courtesy of Galerie von Vertes.

Zurich-based Galerie von Vertes will be bringing tried-and-true crowd pleasers, including paintings by Rene Magritte and Pierre Soulages, among others. The gallery has an exhibition devoted to Yayoi Kusama slated for the end of the year and as a preview, the gallery will be showing a vibrantly hued green and orange Infinity Net at Masterpiece.

 

Osborne Samuel Gallery

Henry Moore, Maquette for Reclining Figure No 2 (1952). Courtesy of Osborne Samuel.

Henry Moore, Maquette for Reclining Figure No. 2 (1952). Courtesy of Osborne Samuel.

Veteran gallerists Peter Osborne and Gordon Samuel are mainstays in London’s Mayfair gallery district, and are bringing a variety of works to Masterpiece including sculptures and paintings. Look forward to strong examples of Lynn Chadwick’s geometric abstractions of animals and people, alongside more rounded and naturalistic pieces by Henry Moore.

 

Sundaram Tagore Gallery

Karen Knorr, The Opium Smoker, Chitrasala, Bundi (2017). Courtesy of Sundaram Tagore Gallery.

Sundaram Tagore operates galleries in New York, Singapore, and Hong Kong, and is committed to presenting works by Western and non-Western artists. In its booth, works by Pakistani artist Anila Quayyum Agha will be alongside pictures by German-American photographer Karen Knorr, and there will also be new works by Tayeba Begum Lipi and Ricardo Mazal.

 

Dickinson Gallery

Jean Dubuffet, Tête en tache de moisissure (1950). Courtesy of Dickinson.

Jean Dubuffet, Tête en tache de moisissure (1950). Courtesy of Dickinson.

London and New York-based Dickinson Gallery is treading on familiar ground with a booth of Old Master, Modern, and Post-War work at this year’s fair, highlighting examples from the recent show “Beauty Shared: A Collector’s Vision,” which is making its debut in London. One prime example of the gallery’s inventory is Tête en tache de moisissure (1950) by Jean Dubuffet, whose later work from the 1960s fetched the highest price at Christie’s Post-War sale in London this week.

 

Bailly Gallery Geneve

Pablo Picasso, Faune (Unique Piece) (1956). Courtesy of Bailly Gallery Genève.

Pablo Picasso, Faune (Unique Piece) (1956). Courtesy of Bailly Gallery Genève.

If you’re seeking an element of whimsy, head to Bailly Gallery Geneve’s booth. The gallery, which has locations in Geneva and Paris, will be showing a playful mix of drawings, paintings, and design objects including a menagerie of animal-themed watercolors and ceramics by Picasso, a lamp with a woman’s head designed by Giacometti, and a François Xavier Lalanne lamp in the shape of a pigeon, among other fanciful creations.

Masterpiece London is on view at London’s Royal Hospital Chelsea from June 27 to July 3, 2019.