Polly Staple, first director, Frieze Tasks, 2002-06; now director, collections, Tate
“The primary years had been wild. All of us felt largely optimistic that London would develop into really worldwide and that something was doable. I can’t think about Gelitin’s nude acrobatics within the auditorium taking place now, nor Martha Rosler establishing an workplace within the truthful staffroom and giving backstage excursions to guests. There have been superb moments—together with the opening of the inaugural Frieze Tasks programme in 2003 and rolling down Paola Pivi’s grass slope—and trickier moments, together with after we arrange an elaborate staging for Henrik Håkansson’s Birdconcert—and the star performer, a Eurasian goldfinch, refused to sing.”
Gerd Harry Lybke, proprietor, Galerie EIGEN+ART
“One of the best second of the truthful is all the time the 5 minutes earlier than it opens. There are the traditional challenges, like when collectors come to the sales space and also you get their names combined up at that second, however basically Frieze is greater than a market and has formed the view of artwork for a lot of generations. It has succeeded as a result of it has all the time been oriented to the wants of the galleries, artists and collectors, and it’s managed by individuals who have made the truthful their coronary heart’s work.”
Tessa Lord, appearing interim head, post-war and up to date artwork, Christie’s, London
“For me, one of the best second was“ the opening of Frieze Masters in 2012. It’s great to discover distinctive examples of artwork throughout the centuries—these artists and actions which have formed the way in which up to date artists see the world. And the true magnificence is which you could think about what you’ve seen as you stroll by the park in your option to Frieze London.”
Freddie Powell, founder and director, Ginny on Frederick
“I’ve all the time been impressed by the solo displays in Focus, even on my first visitsto the truthful as a younger pupil. The Sunday Painter’s bold early presentation of Samara Scott (2015) and Union Pacific’s wild sales space with Urara Tsuchiya (2019) stay utterly hire free in my head. The continued presence of Rita’s Eating additionally means we’re all the time properly fed; I’m very excited for this 12 months’s tostada bar!”
Rakeb Sile, co-founder and chief govt officer, Addis Nice Artwork
“Frieze has all the time been an incredible truthful for us, and we really feel that is due largely to its constant innovation, notably with its displays at Cork Road and boldness within the help of rising artists and galleries. The Frieze VIP programming is actually unsurpassed, and the truthful has managed to leverage its monumental following so efficiently.”
Vanessa Uncooked, artist, Carl Freedman Gallery
“In fact, it’s a large honour to be chosen by Tracey Emin to be a part of Frieze’s 20 years celebration. It’s genuinely thrilling, too, as I will probably be displaying a brand new physique of work, which I’ve not exhibited earlier than. With Frieze London having such a various viewers, I’m actually wanting ahead to seeing what sort of response the work generates.”
Eva Langret, director, Frieze London
“The opening of Frieze Sculpture is all the time heart-warming and appears like such a celebratory second for London as a metropolis. It precedes the opening of Frieze London by a number of weeks, and that is when everybody begins getting so excited. There’s all the time a lot vitality on the opening day of the truthful; it’s onerous to beat this sense. A few of the quiet moments can even really feel actually particular—like strolling across the truthful after it has closed to the general public, and being quasi-alone with a lot extraordinary artwork. The pandemic years had been robust on the occasions sector; we needed to frequently adapt to evolving restrictions with little advance warning. It was difficult, however we emerged with a renewed appreciation for the humanities group—and a extra sturdy digital providing!
Tanya Baxter, artwork advisor, Tanya Baxter Up to date
“I believe Frieze has succeeded as a result of it’s self-avowedly totally different, respiratory a welcome gust of recent air into the up to date artwork world. The place most artwork gala’s current themselves as exhibiting both rising or established and world-famous artists, Frieze is proudly iconoclastic in its embracing of all up to date artwork, enabling artists recent out of artwork college to rub shoulders and canvases with family names. The brilliance of Frieze is that it serves as a relentless reminder that nobody begins off as a family title, and plenty of artists who do aren’t alive lengthy sufficient to see it occur.”
Georgina Adam, contributor, the Monetary Instances, and editor-at-large, The Artwork Newspaper
“Frieze at its very begin was relatively totally different from what it has develop into. It was relatively scrappy and irreverent. I keep in mind the simplicity of Matthew Slotover and Amanda Sharp climbing onto a platform and explaining why they had been launching the truthful. I discovered the sooner tasks fairly superb; they had been issues that most likely they couldn’t do right this moment for numerous causes—the Mike Nelson set up, as an example. Over the previous 20 years, Frieze has matured and develop into extra like different gala’s on the planet. Whereas a lot has been improved, I relatively miss these early days!”
Lucien Y. Tso, founder and director, Gallery Emptiness
“We participated in Frieze London for the primary time in 2022, displaying artist Michael Ho. Throughout the first couple of hours, I used to be stunned and curious to see so many collectors flooding to the Focus part and I grabbed one of many guests at our sales space to ask what made individuals come to this part first, when the truthful had simply opened. The collector instructed me how the part had gained its repute for locating new abilities forward of different gala’s. I felt pleased with being surrounded by an viewers who shares the identical pleasure concerning the subsequent era of artists. It helps that many of the Frieze crew have expertise within the gallery world, so that they know what galleries care about and count on from a global artwork truthful. You see each element coated: issues like specialists monitoring the temperature within the tent throughout the truthful hours.”
Neil Wenman, world artistic director and accomplice, Hauser & Wirth
“Frieze has succeeded the place others failed as a result of it’s artist-centred, a spot to suppose, to insurgent. It’s loopy to suppose that there was no worldwide up to date truthful right here earlier than; London has performed such a pivotal position within the visible arts. Frieze quickly grew to become not solely a good however per week, and that week is now virtually a month. It’s been an enormous draw. Considering again to 2003, the time was ripe to rewrite the principles of an artwork truthful. Frieze had this insider/outsider really feel. Matthew and Amanda created a good that appealed to artists, and the general public. Components just like the stay music and the artist commissions made certain it was far edgier than established gala’s.”
Isabella Kairis Icoz, accomplice, Lehmann Maupin
“We’ve been displaying on the truthful for nearly 20 years, earlier than we had a bodily gallery within the UK so, for us, it’s all the time held a particular place in our coronary heart. Within the early years there was an actual feeling of discovery and experimentation, which has naturally shifted a bit because the truthful has develop into extra established, however the alternatives are nonetheless there. This 12 months, for instance, we’re bringing Rogelio Báez Vega for the primary time.”
Sadie Coles, founder and director, Sadie Coles HQ
“Over twenty years Frieze has seen totally different scales and expanded tents however the primary version in 2003 was so stylish; there was new considering, new structure, social areas, artists tasks and a profoundly particular generational shift. London was immediately worldwide. From the very starting, Frieze was miles forward of different gala’s because it really celebrated the depth of latest artwork in London, whether or not this was when it comes to progressive design, communication, the creation of social areas and even the good events. Seeking to this 12 months’s truthful, there may be a lot extra on provide for our viewers now, however Frieze has managed to retain its deal with discovery by showcasing the fixed inexperienced shoots of latest galleries throughout town.”
Almine Rech, founder and director, Almine Rech
“I’ve nice reminiscences of Frieze Masters, notably two solo reveals that had been bought out: De Wain Valentine in 2015 and Vivian Springford in 2022. The brand new truthful, Frieze Seoul, has develop into a vital date on the gallery’s calendar. We love the vitality and dynamism that now we have seen there.”
Paul Neale, director, Graphic Thought Facility and creator of inaugural Frieze id
“In Autumn 2002 Matthew and Amanda requested us to create the graphic id for their new artwork truthful venture. Earlier than we set about creating the marketing campaign we needed to first create an id for the truthful. Graphically talking, the typologies of the artwork world identities had been properly outlined and relatively conservative—particularly at the moment. However Matthew and Amanda’s enterprise supplied a extremely emotive place to begin for a visible id. The distinctiveness and dynamism of the venture wanted to be expressed, however it additionally wanted to be reassuring because it was not but recognized how the galleries would reply to an invite to point out costly artwork in a tent throughout a wet London autumn. The creation of the truthful emblem was truly very fast, working intuitively in direction of the proposed answer that adopted a sturdy tea-chest type of lettering to convey notions of transience and safety. Matthew and Amanda all the time appeared assured that the truthful’s id ought to be distinct from the graphic language of the journal.”
Frieze London’s emblem has a “sturdy tea-chest type of lettering”, say its designers
Picture: Linda Nylind
Rose Uniacke, designer and founder, Rose Uniacke
“I’ve been coming to Frieze since its inception. It’s all the time been an unmissable second within the autumn calendar. It’s a second of discovery for my shoppers, a possibility to additional develop their collections.”
Conrad Shawcross, artist
“One way or the other, my work has been proven at Frieze since its first version and it has been an actual think about my profession. I keep in mind the primary 12 months, after I was nonetheless working part time as a movie further, a piece of mine bought on the final day. It went for £3,000 and was life altering for me. One other 12 months, Alexander McQueen walked in and purchased one in all my Sluggish Arc Inside a Dice items; I used to be blown away.”
Nicholas Cullinan, director, Nationwide Portrait Gallery
“I keep in mind [Frieze] launching whereas I used to be nonetheless a pupil and feeling like one thing really thrilling was taking place. The truthful has all the time been nice at working with organisations throughout London to make sure it goes past a single occasion. I’ve been engaged on the Frieze Masters talks programme for a number of years now and whereas there have been challenges, together with the pandemic and needing to shift every little thing to digital platforms, the programme has all the time attracted extraordinary artists and audio system.”
Lisa Stevenson, co-head, up to date day gross sales, Sotheby’s London
“In all probability one in all my favorite moments was in 2014 when Helly Nahmad London actually modified the format of the anticipated artwork truthful sales space with their ‘The Collector’ set up—a stage set of a Paris condo of a fictional character from 1968. The condo instantly evoked nostalgia, with, for instance, a Fontana portray above a faux desk full with used ashtrays! There had been even socialist posters on the partitions and an outdated black-and-white tv. The truth that that was doable feels fairly distinctive to Frieze.”
