Brazil’s rising art-world profile brings renewed international attention to SP-Arte, the country’s biggest fair
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Loading... - Marcelo Miguel
- 31 Mar 2023
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The 19th edition of SP-Arte features a small but optimistic set of international dealers who say navigating the country’s complicated and expensive customs rules is worth the trouble
The biggest art and design fair in Latin America, SP-Arte, opened its 19th edition on Wednesday with 168 galleries participating. Long lines formed outside Bienal Pavilion in Ibirapuera Park as visitors waited under the hot sun to get into the fair.
“You can feel excitement in the air, both from galleries as well as collectors,” Fernanda Feitosa, founder and director of SP-Arte, tells The Art Newspaper. “The pandemic is completely behind us and we are expecting a great reconnection.” Organisers say they are expecting between 26,000 and 28,000 over the run of the five-day fair.
According to Feitosa, along with the easing of the pandemic has come renewed art market interest in Brazil—both from international galleries looking to connect with the domestic collector community, and Brazilian dealers looking to rekindle relationships with collectors from abroad who may not have visited since 2019. The renewed interest comes at an important time for the Brazilian art world, following the selection late last year of Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand (MASP) artistic director Antonio Pedrosa to curate the 2024 Venice Biennale and with the 34th edition Sao Paulo Biennial due to open in September.
The country is also benefitting from improved geopolitical standing following Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s victory over Jair Bolsonaro in last year’s presidential election. “Brazil no longer is seen as a pariah in the environmental, social and racial agendas,” Feitosa says. “Events like SP-Arte, the Bienal and Pedrosa’s appointment project a positive image of the country to the art world.” Read More..
