So here we are, year four of the Joburg Art Fair, an achievement notable not the least due to the fact that it marks the Art Fair surviving for double the expected installment-span of large-scale art events in the harsh climate of the South African cultural landscape. And with the recent adoption of the FNB moniker securing continued existence until at least 2013, the ‘Fair looks set to persevere for a while yet. Thus the question is posed, as this franchise rolls into its second trifecta, what is it that has allowed it to succeed where other endeavours have failed and how can Artlogic ensure that it continues to be a viable and relevant platform?
An answer to the first question is that the Joburg Art Fair has always been geared towards sustainability, arguably far more so than any similar venture. This has progressively allowed the Fair to increase its profile from year-to-year by targeting it directly towards the people that matter (for the time being), that enigmatic sect known as “art buyers”. Thus it has established itself as a viable entity in terms of the commercial/investment art market (not intended as derogatory terms), testified to by the fact that FNB felt it to be a good move to affix its name to the event.
Having established itself as a resilient little tyke in this regard, other factors start to become more nagging, namely that of audience and inclusion. While the buyers are indeed undertaking the pilgrimage; in many ways they ultimately compose the vast majority of those in attendance. That and the mandatory culture-seeking fieldtrips enforced upon the school-going lot. So how does one move away from this model of preaching to the choir? The hefty prizes are perhaps a good start. From the public’s perspective large wads of greenies being shoved into something generally functions as an enticing agent. But still, you can bring a horse to R100,000 prize-winning water, but this may not necessarily suffice to make it drink.
Simon Njami’s suggestion during his talk last year of the “inclusivity of art fairs” also comes to mind. Is an Art fair located in the middle of the Sandton Convention Centre with a R100 entrance charge necessarily conducive to a model of inclusion?
In a sense it is these obstacles that have ultimately toppled the Art Fair’s precursors, and however much one wants to situate the Art Fair within purely commercial imperatives, they shan’t be ignored indefinitely. So hats-off to Artlogic for setting the precedent for Art events of this sort in the country thus far and best of luck for the future, some of the greatest challenges have yet to be surmounted.