Kyohei Fujita, Tempo Flow. Glass & Silver. H 4 1/2" W 4". Courtesy of Wexler Gallery. (Price: $48,000)
UPDATED 4/20/11
The four-day 2011 SOFA NEW YORK art fair that closed Sunday evening was a boom for one dealer in secondary-market sales, while primary market dealers reported modest sales and a Chicago-based dealer who had devoted their exhibition display to the work of a single artist had not sold any work by the end of the third day. SOFA founder Mark Lyman, president of The Art Fair Company that produces the show, said the latest installment of SOFA NEW YORK was a mixed bag, as it always is. “It was a fair like all other successful fairs,” Lyman wrote in an email to the GLASS Quarterly Hot Sheet. “We had dealers sell out of major artists exhibits, dealers that sold very well from a range of artists, dealers that were met with sales only adequate to meet the expense of the fair, and some dealers who met new clients but did not have strong sales at the fair.”
The Hot Sheet made the rounds of the show at the end of its third day, Saturday, April 16th to see what was selling. It is a non-scientific way of taking the temperature of the market and seeing what was generating collector interest. Prices are listed where available, though keep in mind that the final price is often negotiated downward by the buyers, who at this particular SOFA, were able to wield considerable power. Dealers also reported a lot of interest in commissioned work, and even those with limited sales felt they had strengthened existing collector relationships and made new ones. New special events at the show, such as the “New Collectors” and “Young Designers” affairs, were designed to bring a new generation of collectors and creative professionals, into the market. Design is becoming an increasing focus of the show’s organizers, one that will continue in future SOFA fairs according to Lyman. “I want to rethink the formation of the fair, and develop an additional emphasis on contemporary design,” he says.
Editor’s Note: In the gallery below, the four pieces sold at Wexler Gallery were initially posted with incorrect pricing information. This has been corrected.
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