Spotlighted Emerging Artists: Frieze Week 2023 Edition
Hello Next Up Collector Community! After a very long and exhausting (but exciting!) week of Frieze in London, I bring to you our spotlighted emerging artists that we think you should keep your eyes on in the future.
Overall, we thought Frieze this year was more exciting than the previous year; however, it still left much to be desired. While many of the booths did put on interesting shows with carefully curated artwork selections, many also fell short of being more imaginative with what they could do. I personally thought that Pilar Corrias had put together a creative and unique display, with colorful brushstrokes serving as the frame in which her exhibited works were situated. Several other galleries also went big with colorful displays (like the rainbow kitten) or went for the ultra-conceptual framework (like the slugs) all of which I admired. Many of the larger blue-chip galleries opted for showing works by major artists, something expected, but, as an industry, it is my opinion that we should be using large platforms, such as Frieze, to showcase newer talent or to tell a story which has not been told several dozen times already.
All of this being said, I leave you with our highlighted emerging artists that we would recommend everyone should keep in mind in the future!
Lindsey Mendick at Carl Freedman Gallery, England
Mendick (b. 1987) surely served as a spotlight in Frieze this year with her sculptural works. As The Art Newspaper remarked: “Lindsey Mendick’s installation of ceramic handbags bursting open with octopi, snakes and—in the case of Thank You For Putting Up With Me—spiders are presented on plinths designed by the artist and decorated with enlarged images of mould spores. The works are a prompt to look beneath the surface, at the messy reality of life.”
Nicholas Hlono, Lehmann Maupin, Various Locations
Hlobo’s (b. 1975, Cape Town), subtle commentary on the democratic realities of his home country and concerns with the changing international discourse of art formed a foundational tenet of his practice. Hlobo uses metaphorically charged materials such as ribbon, leather, wood, and rubber detritus, which he melds and weaves together to create two- and three-dimensional hybrid objects that are intricate and seductively tactile.” -Lehmann Maupin Website
Grit Richter at Galerie Tanja Wagner, Berlin
Richter (b. 1977, Dresden) studied at the Academy of Fine Arts Dresden, before she continued her study at the University of Fine Arts of Hamburg.
“As from 2000, she was pursuing her passion by working as a DJ or initiating several underground club events and was actively involved in these activities for more than ten years. Experimental electronic music stays a big influence for her up to today.” -Richter’s Website
Sophie von Hellermann at Pilar Corrias, London
Hellerman’s (b. 1975, Munich) paintings recall the look of fables, legends, and traditional stories that are imbued with the workings of her subconscious rather than the content of existing images.”
“Her romantic, pastel-washed canvases are often installed to suggest complex narrative threads. Von Hellermann applies pure pigment directly onto unprimed canvas, her use of broad-brushed washes imbues a sense of weightlessness to her pictures.” -Pilar Corrias Website
