Tel Aviv art fair with a ‘fresh’ new format

The event, which began Thursday and continues until June 3, is considered to be one of the largest fairs in the Israeli art community.

By SHAKED KARABELNICOFF
PONDERING PAINTINGS at last year’s Fresh Paint fair in Tel Aviv (photo credit: EYAL GAZIEL)
PONDERING PAINTINGS at last year’s Fresh Paint fair in Tel Aviv
(photo credit: EYAL GAZIEL)
Tel Aviv’s Fresh Paint Fair has launched their 11th annual fair with new features and expanded programming.
The event, which began Thursday and continues until June 3, is considered to be one of the largest fairs in the Israeli art community. This year’s fair will offer new durational artworks, performances, and shows in various locations around Tel Aviv and Jaffa.
After a decade of serving as a meeting place for art lovers, designers, and professionals to gather and purchase contemporary artwork, organizers felt it was time to revive the fair, explained Michal Baharav Uzrad, Fresh Fair’s director of content.
One of the new additions is “Fresh&Live!” – a performance art program which will offer time-based and interactive art, according to Baharav Uzrad.
“The performances can be interactive, some deal with inter-art world issues, gender issues, some will be indoors, some outdoors,” she said. “The idea is that you can enjoy independent artwork, and see a dance performance. It will be really interesting and dynamic.”
In the evenings, “Fresh&Live!” will bring the fair to life with live and video performances by the Israeli Choreographers Association. Live shows will be offered every day from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at several locations throughout Expo Tel Aviv.
The main event is a multidisciplinary presentation which includes different media and artists. The goal is to bring together local and international artists and serve as a platform for dialogue about art, design, craft and technology, according to a press release issued by Fresh Paint.
As a part of a collaboration with the Budapest Art Market, and on the occasion of the Hungarian Culture Year in Israel, Fresh Fair will also present a group exhibition called “Focus on Hungary,” according to the release.
Live shows and performances will kick off the opening event with singer Adi Ulmansky as the main musical performer.
This year will also see galleries, museums, hotels, boutiques and restaurants open their doors to host Satellite exhibitions and projects in 50 different locations throughout Tel Aviv and Jaffa, added Baharav Uzrad.
Fresh Paint also offers personal guided tours of the fair facilitated in both English and Hebrew, she said. The tours will focus on must-see projects, exhibitions, and selected artists from the fair’s “independent artists’ greenhouse,” which exhibits work by emerging local artists.
The “greenhouse” is an original model invented by Fresh Paint, which selects 12 promising Israeli artists to showcase and sell their work at the fair.
This year’s new format will provide a stage for five “greenhouse graduates” from previous years to display their projects at solo exhibitions.
“We see that this program is like a springboard,” explained Baharav Uzrad. “Fresh Paint enables young artists to start off and be exposed to curators, museum directors, and the international crowd. After 10 years, we see the success of this model and we are really proud.”
More information about Fresh Paint Fair can be found on their website: www.freshpaint.co.il/en