12/02/2002

Arco, the most important Spanish international contemporary art fair, opens to the public from the 14th to the 19th of February in the renovated pavilions of the Juan Carlos I exhibition centre in Madrid. In its twenty first edition, this year Arco will host 260 galleries from 33 different countries. A very rich range of exhibits (there will be the work of about 4000 artists on show) covers the whole of the 20th century, with an emphasis on the latest trends grouped in the Cutting Edge and Project Rooms sections. Each year, the fair invites a foreign country to exhibit as a guest. This year it is Australia’s turn, represented by 14 galleries and by over eighty artists ranging from the aborigine Djambawa Marowili (with prices around $ 70, € 80, Alcaston Gallery, Melbourne) to a more internationally affirmed artist like Dale Frank ($ 12,800, € 14.625, Roslyn Oxley9, Sydney). A rich conference programme runs parallel to the fair, with 37 round table discussions. Of interest is the series devoted to the theme of The art of collecting art, new tendencies in collecting art in museums, by collectors and firms (detailed information is available from the site www.arco-online.ua.es). (Elena Balzani)