Inaugural Pavilion art fair debuts in Taipei
首屆台北國際藝術博覽會開幕
| TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The inaugural curated art fair, Pavilion, is open through Jan. 26 at the Grand Courtyard, a historic site in Taipei.
Moving beyond the monotony of traditional white cube galleries, the fair serves as an experimental dialogue among history, architecture, and contemporary art. The event gathers 18 premier galleries from seven regions, including Kiang Malingue, Galleria Continua, and Axel Vervoordt Gallery. Notably, the fair demonstrates a strong international draw; five heavyweight galleries are making their Taiwanese debut: New York’s 47 Canal, Kobe’s Eunoia, Paris’s Galerie Marguo, Seoul’s Meyer Riegger Wolff, and Tokyo’s Misako & Rosen. Pavilion was founded by Willem Molesworth and Ysabelle Cheung (張伊婷) of the PHD Group, who sought to rethink the modern art fair model. They collaborated with Michelle Hsieh (謝盈盈), a client consultant for Frieze; independent art manager Alan Ku (谷有倫); and architect Chen Kuan-fan (陳冠帆) to create the curated platform. Hsieh said unconventional exhibition venues have flourished globally, citing Basel’s Basel Social Club, situated in an old bank, and Hong Kong’s Supper Club. Pavilion uses the winding corridors and weathered atmosphere of the Japanese-style Grand Courtyard to guide viewers through a nostalgic space where art viewing becomes a journey of exploration. The core themes focus on "Urban Memory, Nostalgia, and Homecoming." Ku poses a question: In a rapidly changing and globalized society, how do cities serve as vessels for memory, and how do individuals redefine their psychological coordinates through the perception of space? Among the highlights, Venice Biennale Golden Lion winner Tobias Rehberger, presented by Galleria Continua, stands as the visual centerpiece. The fair features his "Me as you I" series, consisting of eccentrically shaped 3D head sculptures paired with three watercolors created through oral translation. The works humorously challenge the blurred boundaries of authorship and artistic value. Contrasting Rehberger’s playfulness is the poetic photography of Giovanni Ozzola. Known for composing poetry with light, Ozzola presents his 2025 work, "Atlantic," which captures the stark contrast between a dimly lit, graffiti-strewn interior and the sea beyond the window. Axel Vervoordt Gallery continues its exploration of emptiness and nothingness through the works of Slovenian master Zoran Music. A recipient of the Venice Biennale Grand Prize, Music’s desolate landscapes and skeletal imagery are sublimations of his traumatic experiences at the Dachau concentration camp. Hong Kong’s Kiang Malingue showcases "A Page by" by Taiwanese conceptual artist Lai Chih-sheng (賴志盛). In a challenge to perception, Lai transformed a heavy block of marble into a sheet as thin and light as paper through manual labor and polishing. This blank "marble leaf" illustrates the transformation of value between labor and everyday materials. Furthering the international perspective, Galerie Marguo presents the ritualistic paintings of Mexican artist Dennis Miranda Zamorano, whose brushstrokes are inspired by the vitality of his family’s traditional open-air markets. New York’s 47 Canal features the ethereal paintings of Cici Wu, which explore memory and belonging. Taipei’s Artemin Gallery presents American artist Yuri Zupancic, who paints in oil on cold microchips. By transforming digital-age objects into tender landscapes, he offers a metaphor for humanity’s persistent look back at primal emotions beneath the gears of technological progress. |
|
| Lyla Liu Taiwan News, Staff Reporter | |
| 2026-01-25 |
