In Regent's Park in London, the doors opened on what has become, in the remarkably short space of three years, one of the world's biggest annual markets for contemporary art. There is something very intimate and direct about Frieze. It is not an auction; each of the items on sale has a fixed price. The artists are alive, and may even be attending the fair themselves. The work is fresh; on some, the paint has barely dried.
Even though galleries, with their typical commission of 50%, are the intermediaries at Frieze, for a collector, buying at an art fair like this is as close to getting work direct from the studio as it comes, short of taking it straight from the artist's own hands. The best-known models in Britain when it comes to acquiring art are Charles Saatchi and Sir Nicholas Serota, the head of Tate Modern.
There are hundreds of other buyers at the fair. The collectors fly in to Frieze from all over the rich world, from America in particular. The fair is not only an innovation but an indicator of how the arts scene in Britain has been commercialised along American and European lines. Fifteen years ago, there were only about five commercial galleries dealing in contemporary art in London. Now there are 10 times as many.
The balance of the 160 galleries represented is from other countries. The effect of this global market intensely focused on one spot is to make for a steep range of prices, from 500 to as much as 1m. Over 2000 artists will be represented at the fair. Many of the worlds most famous and established galleries will be showing alongside the worlds most interesting emerging galleries from across Europe, the Americas, Asia and Eastern Europe. New additions to this years fair include Iris Kadel, Karlsruhe; Herald Street, London and Jan Mot, Brussels. Situated again in London's Regent's Park in a structure designed by award-winning architect David Adjaye, Frieze Art Fair 2005 expects to welcome over 25,000 visitors including the biggest players in the art world.
October 21
