Dealers, collectors, and enthusiasts who hopped from fair to fair in New York this month had best prepare for another go come April 13, when the 14th annual Sculpture Objects & Functional Art Fair opens at the city’s Park Avenue Armory. Fifty-five international galleries and dealers will represent 12 nations, comprising Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, England, France, Italy, Israel, Turkey, and of course the United States. SOFA’s unique blend of decorative and fine art spans offerings in ceramics, glass, metal, wood and fiber by new names and heavy hitters alike, the latter including Wendell Castle, Geoffrey Mann, and Lino Tagliapietra. Brand new international exhibitors include Gallery S O from London, Sarah Myerscough Fine Art also from London, Litvak Gallery from Tel Aviv, and New York’s Asian specialists Ippodo Gallery.
True to form, the show will feature its popular category of art jewelry, some in unusual materials like antlers, shells, plastics, and mixed-media alongside the typical precious metals and gemstones. A necklace by Jennifer Trask, represented by Ornamentum gallery in Hudson, New York, combines antler and17th-century gilded frame with gold leaf and gold. According to Trask, her “recycled materials address the uncomfortable distance we have created from nature itself…Beauty is great, but I’m more interested in getting people to look at the unusual.” Trask will also be speaking at the fair’s popular Lecture Series, expanded to three days this year, Thursday through Saturday. Other jewelers include Zoe Arnold from London’s Contemporary Applied Arts and Helen Britton from Sienna Gallery in Massachusetts.
A special focus reveals itself this year in the realm of new technology and materials like 3-D prototyping, bulletproof carbon fiber, and other advanced techniques. Represented by Clare Beck at Adrian Sassoon, London, Michael Eden uses 3-D printing and rapid manufacturing to create works such as Grey Bloom, designed and created using software to manipulate nylon and mineral soft coating. From Ornamentum, Sergey Jivetin presents a series of brooches in eggs, carbon fiber, steel, and resin.
Also new this year is a Friday evening reception welcoming bright young things, New Collectors/Young Designers on April 15th at 6:30 pm. SOFA founder and director Mark Lyman created this invitation-only event to highlight younger collectors and designers, who Lyman believes have a special appreciation for the fair: “SOFA is a wonderful survey of museum-quality artworks bridging many cultures, media, and styles – under one roof. It appeals to the next generation because of its strong support of pluralism in the arts,” says Lyman. Lyman is drawing on a strong team to reach out to groups of young collectors: institutions like the Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum and the Museum of Arts and Design in New York, renowned designer and collector Jack Lenor Larson, and architect David Ling.
In addition to participating in New Collectors/Young Designers, Jack Lenor Larson will present the new LongHouse Prizes for Best Artwork in Show and Best Booth Design. The celebrated textile designer, author, and collector is one of only four Americans to ever be honored with a retrospective at Paris’s Palais du Louvre, and his alliance with SOFA is certainly a boon. What’s more, a breakfast panel discussion on April 14 will feature designers Alexander Gorlin, Amy Lau, and Juan Montoya on the topic “Contemporary Design: Where Do We Go From Here?” moderated by Modern Magazine editor in chief Greg Cerio.
Overall, there is clearly much to see and do, and don’t forget Ferrin Gallery’s Chris staged version of an 18th-century porcelain room filled with figurines, plates, and objects and conceived by sculptor Chris Antemann. Save the date! The fair runs April 14 through 17. More information at http://www.sofaexpo.com/.
