“The larger trend of Asian contemporary art hitting the  mainstream…” 

 “The growing popularity and significance of international art events and the increased footprint of Asian artists and galleries within this phenomenon creates an opening for ACAF NY and the Fair will be quite successful.”

Thomas Arnold, Director of Asian Contemporary Art Fair New York, is currently Director of Mary Boone Gallery in New York where, during the last nine years, he has produced numerous exhibitions and has managed sales and operations. Mr. Arnold has also been a private art consultant, placing works in private collections and foundations and was affiliated with the St. Louis (MO) Art Museum. 

ACAF NY, the first annual Asian Contemporary Art Fair in New York, will be held from November 8th through November 12th 2007 at Pier 92 in Manhattan. The Fair will feature 80 exhibitors from more than 10 countries, including China, Korea and India along with guest-curated special exhibition and lecture series led by renowned curators, dealer and scholars. ACAF NY is organized by Asian Artworks, Inc., which is founded by Cristal Kim, dedicated to promoting Asian Contemporary Art. Thomas Arnold, independent curator and currently Director of Mary Boone Gallery in New York is the director of the Fair. He expect more than 25,000 visitors and its affirmative outcome of their purpose, introducing dealers of contemporary Asian Art to a continuously growing base of collectors in New York. art INASIA interviewed Mr. Arnold to discuss the purpose, organization and timeliness process and potentiality of the Fair.

art We would like to know about the germination of the idea for ACAF NY. When did Asian Artworks begin planning the Fair? What made you believe in its necessity? Was part of the reason the increasing prices of Asian art in the international art market? What other purposes, besides simply monetary, are there for launching the Fair? 

Thomas The idea for the Asian Contemporary Art Fair originated in 2005 and came into planning stage in 2006. At that time, it was obvious that New York could support such a fair, not simply because of rising prices, but because of growing genuine interest in Asian contemporary art by collectors, cultural institutions, and the public.  New York is such an important art center and an extraordinarily diverse, international city that it seemed necessary to make ACAF NY happen here. The growing popularity and significance of international art events and the increased footprint of Asian artists and galleries within this phenomenon creates an opening for ACAF NY and the Fair will be quite successful. 

art The interest in Asian contemporary art in New York has grown astonishingly over the past few years, which probably greatly informed your decision to hold the Fair in New York. How do you think the New York art world sees Asian contemporary art at this particular moment? Isn’t it still concentrated mostly on East Asian art, especially Chinese art? 

Thomas Chinese contemporary art comes to mind because of the amount exposure it has received but also because of the strong presence of China on the world? stage.  But in New York, galleries that had traditionally shown only Western art have over time developed a much more diverse roster of artists, including Indian and Korean artist. There are already several great Indian galleries and this Fall three established Korean galleries will open spaces in Chelsea. Organizations like the Asia Society, Japan Society, and China institute have large roles in New York promoting Asian art and culture. The Guggenheim Museum established last year an Asian art department with the appointment of Alexandra Munroe as curator and this year hired Sandhini Poddar as assistant curator. We hope to engage all of them and find a way to include them in some aspect of ACAF NY.

art ACAF plans to host special exhibitions, educational programs and lecture series. Can you tell us a little bit more about them? At the KIAF fair in Korea, they also host subsidiary events each year, such as putting up a special exhibition from a guest country. What do the subsidiary events at ACAF bring to the Fair? That is, what is your aim in hosting these events in terms of the vision of the Fair as a whole?

Thomas One of the very significant aspects of ACAF NY is the educational program. I think of ACAF NY as the beginning of a dialogue about Asian contemporary art, its identity and who and what defines this term, so the program will be one way to address this. The main components, the special exhibition and the lecture panel series, will create an opportunity to deepen knowledge of Asian art and to complement the environment of discovery that should always be present at an art fair. It will be very exciting to bring in curators, scholars, artists and collectors to talk about the work, its history, issues, and practical concerns, and to add some depth to the experience of going to an art fair. The special exhibition will add some balance between a well-organized special exhibition and the less structured collage of exhibitors spaces. One of my goals for both the exhibition and lecture panel is to involve the art community. In the artworld, that sense of community is very strong and very important.

Scene of Pier 94, 12th Avenue at 55th Street, the Venue of Armory Show. ACAF will be held at Pier 92.

art About 80 galleries from 10 countries will participate in ACAF. How many Asian galleries in New York will be at the Fair? Will ACAF cover galleries from whole  Asia including East, South-East and South Asia? Could you tell us about the demographic distribution of participating countries and of the artists who will be showing their work? Are there certain specifications for artists’ age, medium, and level of international recognition?

Thomas ACAF NY is an international fair and will include exhibitors from around the world who show Asian contemporary art. We expect that ACAF NY will draw most of its exhibitors from East Asia, but have been pleased with the response from New York and South Asia and hope to include southeast and central Asia. However, the growing percentage of galleries with spaces in multiple countries blurs the lines somewhat. It also creates an opportunity to explore the identity of Asian art since these artists live or studied in countries different from their cultural origin. In other words, what is the difference between a Korean artist who lives and works in Korea and one who has lived primarily in the United States. This is interesting to me and I expect that these issues will come up. 

art Although the prices of Asian contemporary art have been rising steadily, some specialists predict that this growth might not continue so steadily in the future. How do you see the future of Asian art within the larger art market? How is your insight on this matter reflected within your plans for ACAF? 

Thomas Part of this is due to the way Chinese art entered the art market in the West and that there has not been a large and current forum like this art fair to fully represent the range of Chinese art. Chinese artists are achieving this status because they have a very specific identity in the West as Chinese artists. But over time, as the art world becomes more international they may give up that identity as Chinese artists. In addition, there is a natural tendency to nominate a small group of artists for star status, but I think what will transpire is a broadening of interest as a greater number of people learn more about Asian contemporary art and have wider access to the work and ideas. I hope ACAF NY can help accomplish that.

art You estimate the number of viewers at ACAF to reach about 25,000. Furthermore, the economic expenditure that the Fair will generate (not including the sales of art works at the Fair) is estimated at 11.5 million US dollars. How much business you expect at the Fair? How will ACAF monetarily affect the art world in New York and beyond? 

Thomas We expect to have very high attendance and are timed to coincide with the contemporary art auctions at the major auction houses in New York. A large number of dealers, collectors, and artists will also visit New York just for this fair.  ACAF NY will contribute to the larger trend of Asian contemporary art hitting the mainstream. Already major auction houses include Asian art in their mostly Western contemporary art auctions, and it reflects the growth of an international art market. So, Asian art will begin to take a larger role in this international scene.

art How will ACAF differentiate itself from other art fairs (such as The Armory Show, DIVA, LA Art in NY, PULSE, Scope NY)? What would you say are the most distinguishing aspects of ACAF? 

Thomas The first and most obvious difference is that ACAF NY is a purely contemporary, purely Asian art fair, and as such is the first of its kind in New York. This is very exciting.  It also creates a venue for galleries and artists who are underrepresented in the current fairs. The second difference is the open floorplan of ACAF NY which will be much more conducive to viewing art within booths and in common areas. I have created a layout that is more inviting and less constrictive and hope that guests will want to return to the Fair to explore more, or to attend another lecture. To this end, we will have a multiple entry pass available to encourage visitors to return. 

Above: Feng Zhengjie, Chinese Portrait L Series 2006 No.08, oil on canvas, 210 x 300cm, 2006