The 13th Frieze Art Fair, which opens in London's Regent's Park today, is set to be the biggest yet, with 164 galleries from 27 countries represented across two fair sites.
The international fair focuses on saleable art under two banners, Frieze London (contemporary art) and Frieze Masters (20th century and earlier), but also includes specially commissioned artist projects, films and talks. With so much to see, it's hard to know where to start. Here we take a look at some of the highlights:
Free Frieze Sculpture Park
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While tickets to the fair will set you back £34, the public can visit the outdoor sculpture show between the fair tents in Regent's Park, for free, says The Times. This year's selection of large-scale work includes 16 new and historical pieces by artists including Richard Serra, Haroon Mirza and Jesse Wine, as well as an 11th-14th century AD pre-Ekoi monolith from western Africa. A free downloadable guide app from Clare Lilley is also available from the Art Fund website.
Comedy Genital Art
This week, women can have a comedy drawing of their breasts sketched, while men can get a drawing of their genitals, by artist Ken Kagami, reports The Guardian. Kagami's gallerist Jeffrey Ian Rosen, of Misako & Rosen, said that the event aims to lighten up the stuffy atmosphere that can sometimes be found at art fairs. Kagami is "encouraging us to have fun in the right kind of way," says Rosen. "If they're game, we're game!"
The Comfort Zone
Of this year's seven special commissions, most touch on the theme of "temporary architecture", says the Financial Times. "They are housed, after all, in a giant tent." Collective AYR (Fabrizio Ballabio, Alessandro Bava, Luis Ortega Govela and Octave Perrault) has created "Comfort Zone": a six-bedroom rest-area running through the heart of the bustling fair, where visitors "can lounge, and ponder ideas of domesticity and public space, design solutions to today's problems... or perhaps just charge their phones".
Modern Classics
"If you want fun fair-style excitement, like you experienced as a kid in front of the confectionary stall at the county fair, there's only one place to go," says Time. The Bruce Silverstein gallery stand at Frieze Masters has the rarest of treats in the form of modern photographic masterpieces, including work by Alfred Stieglitz, Robert Mapplethorpe and Man Ray.
Carmen Herrera and Ai Weiwei at Lisson
"The showstopper is an important part of Frieze," where more subtle artworks can disappear in the mass of aisles and booths, says The Independent. Lisson Gallery has imported Chinese artist Ai Weiwei's sculpture Iron Root – the huge tree root cast in iron and painted with custom purple car paint is up for grabs at an undisclosed price. Meanwhile the Lisson booth at Frieze Masters is dedicated to colourful Cuban abstract painter Carmen Herrera, who celebrated her 100th birthday this year but "remains on top form".
