4/2/2010
Outsider Art Fair
7W, New York
Thirty-eight dealers will gather again at the fair's new home. The fair brings togheter international artists who created outside of mainstream society-visionary, primitive, self-taught and intuitive in nature. The American Folk Art Museum will be organizing events and lectures throughout the fair and that week as a part of Outsider Art Week.
Last year, enthusiasm for the unique Outsider Art Fair prevailed over the turn in the economy, a snowstorm, a
change in dates, and a move to a new venue. "At every turn this fair has a new clarity," wrote Roberta Smith of
The New York Times, "the art rises to the occasion..." This February 5 – 7, 2010, thirty-eight dealers will gather
again at the fair’s new home, 7 West 34th Street, to bring together the largest and most promising Outsider Art
Fair yet. The fair brings international a en on to art created outside of mainstream society—visionary, primitive,
self-taught and intuitive in nature. Besides exhibiting "a kind of outsider art Hall of Fame," The New York Times
also notes, "the fair harbors new talents of all kinds."
The fair began eighteen years ago showcasing an otherwise unrecognized market at that time. Many of the
founding dealers s ll exhibit in the fair, maintaining the original spirit and high quality of the first and foremost
fair devoted to outsider art. These dealers include: Ames Gallery, Henry Boxer Gallery, Cavin-Morris Gallery,
Ricco/Maresca Gallery, Carl Hammer Gallery, American Primi ve Gallery, Galerie Bonheur, Gilley’s Gallery,
Phyllis Kind/Ron Jagger Gallery, Marion Harris, Luise Ross Gallery, and Jimmy Hedges/Rising Fawn Folk Art
Gallery. For a current exhibitor list with links to gallery websites, please visit www.sanfordsmith.com.
The American Folk Art Museum will be organizing events and lectures throughout the fair and that week as a part
of Outsider Art Week. In a special awards ceremony the museum will honor fair organizer Sanford Smith with
the Contemporary Center’s Visionary Award, which recognizes major contribu ons to the world of outsider and
folk art each year. For more informa on on Outsider Art Week and its special programs, email publicprograms@folkartmuseum.org.
This fair is produced and managed by Sanford L. Smith & Associates. The company also organizes The New York
An quarian Book Fair (April 9 – 11, 2010) and Modernism + ART20 (November 12 – 15, 2010), both of which take
place at the Park Avenue Armory.
With almost 40 exhibitors from the U.S. and abroad, the 2010 Outsider Art Fair will be the largest yet. Higlights will include:
Galerie Bonheur (St. Louis, MO) will feature colorful works by the late Bahamian ar st, Amos Ferguson (c.1920 – 2009) including Bird Bath [1].
Henry Boxer Gallery (England) returns to the fair highligh ng works by the self-taught savant and calendar calcula ng whiz,
George Widener of North Carolina.
Fountain Gallery (New York), the not-for-profit coopera ve run by and for ar sts living with mental illness, joins the Outsider Art Fair for the second year. Among the works in their booth will be Girl with Red Hat by Dick Lubinsky [4].
Gilley’s Gallery (Baton Rouge, LA), specialists in Louisiana ar sts, will include in their booth pain ngs by Clemen ne Hunter
(1886 - 1988).
Marion Harris (New York), will introduce Carlos DeMedeiros. A er living as a monk in Bolivia for 15 years, DeMedeiros le
the monastery with his personal religious ideas in conflict with the one he felt obliged to follow. From this ambivalence,
he creates small-scale confessionals accompanied by confessions in sealed envelopes [2].
Just Folk (Summerland, CA), newcomers to the fair, is pleased to bring a collec on of 28 works by Bill Traylor (c.1854 -
1949). This is one of the largest groups available and has not been seen in the U.S. for more than ten years.
Outsider Folk Art Gallery (Reading, PA) will feature recent mixed media construc ons by Thorton Dial (b.1928) as well as
rare 1970s pain ngs by Purvis Young (b.1943), with works by emerging ar sts such as Jim Bloom (b.1968).
Ricco/Maresca (New York) represen ng both the William Hawkins and the Mar n Ramirez estates will bring fine examples
from both, including Hawkins’s Historical Monument [3].
Luise Ross Gallery (New York), among a fine selec on of drawings by Minnie Evans and by Viole a Raditz, will feature for
the first me at the Outsider Art Fair metal collages from Colorcoat by the Icelandic Óskar Jónsson (1922 – 1997).
Judy Saslow Gallery (Chicago) will bring rare pieces from the Oswald Tschirtner estate that have never been seen before.
Galerie St. E enne (New York) con nues a tradi on of exhibi ng self-taught greats including Grandma Moses, John Kane,
and Morris Hirshfield. The booth will include the pain ng, "John Kane and his Wife" circa 1928.
Media Contact:
Sarah Donnell sarah@sanfordsmith.com
The Outsider Art Fair will run February 5 – 7, 2010 at 7 West 34th Street, near Fi h Avenue; this venue is wheelchair accessible and only a short distance from most major public transporta on routes.
Hours are: Friday, 11am – 8pm; Saturday, 11am – 7pm; and Sunday, 11am – 6pm.
Admission during regular fair hours is $20 daily and $30 for a two-day pass; both include a catalog.
Refreshments will be available at the café and bar. Call 212. 777.5218 with ques ons or to inquire about special rates for student and group admission.