Parts of this article (those related to the 2009 fair) need to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(February 2021)
Joburg Art Fair 2008Joburg Art Fair 2008, Gallery MOMO and SMAC stands on the rightGoodman Gallery stands at Joburg Art Fair 2008
Joburg Art Fair is acontemporary artfair held annually inJohannesburg,South Africa. The first show took place from 13 to 16 March 2008.[1] The second Joburg Art Fair is scheduled for 3 April to 5 April 2009.[2]
The Joburg Art Fair which is sponsored byFirst National Bank aims to address the gap between prices attained by living African artists behind those from developed countries and Asian emerging markets. FNB's aim is to bring contemporary art to a broader, upper-income local market, including black business people with new-found wealth.[3]
The 2008 event, which was the first of its kind in Africa, included 22 galleries from Africa, Europe and North America, showing work by contemporary, predominantly African, artists.[4]
The fair included a show curated by Simon Njami from artists throughout Africa who are not represented by galleries on the fair. Njami had previously acted as chief curator of the Africa Remix exhibition and the Africa pavilion at the 2007Venice Biennale.
The second Joburg Art Fair is scheduled for 3 – 5 April 2009. Twenty-four galleries will participate in the 2009 fair, including two new South African galleries (Afronova and iart) and four new international galleries (Seippel Gallery; Galerie Beatrice Binoche; Centre for Contemporary Art, Lagos and Emerging World Art).
The galleries that will take part in 2009 are: Gallery MOMO, Galerie Ames d'Afrique, Galerie Peter Herrmann, Goodman Gallery, David Krut Projects, Art on Paper Gallery, Joao Ferreira Gallery, Whatiftheworld, October Gallery, Seippel Gallery, Warren Siebrits, Michael Stevenson, Brodie/Stevenson, CCA Lagos, Everard Read, SMAC,KwaZulu Natal Society of Arts, Rooke Gallery, iArt, Erdmann Contemporary,Afronova, Townhouse Gallery, ARTCO, Galeriebeatricebinoche, Emerging World Art.
The Featured Artist for 2009 will beJane Alexander exhibitingSecurity, an installation originally commissioned for the 27thSão Paulo Biennale and hosted by theGordon Schachat collection.[7] The fair will also include a screening booth featuring moving image work from countries in the Global South, a book lounge, and artist talks.
