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31/3/2004

Artbrussels 2004

Brussels Expo, Bruxelles

artbrussels, a top event at European level

The 22nd edition of artbrussels runs from 1 until 5 April inclusive in the buildings of Brussels Expo.

Over the years artbrussels has become one of the world s most important events with regard to contemporary art. It has become the annual meeting point for collectors, artists, gallery owners, trendsetters and other art lovers, who are charmed by the fair s informal atmosphere and the exceptional high quality of the offer.

This year artbrussels will take place from 1 until 5 April inclusive. A preview and a vernissage will be organised on March 31st, which is only open to professionals and guests.

artbrussels owes its high-quality image first and foremost to the way in which it has succeeded again and again to present an overview of the most recent developments in contemporary art.

Belgium s many art collectors longingly anticipate this unique yearly rendezvous in order to enlarge their collections. In addition, Brussels is at the heart of Europe and therefore an ideal pole of attraction for foreign collectors, institutions and museum curators.

During the last edition the number of visitors soared to 31,140. Twenty percent of these visitors came from outside Belgium, a percentage that is on the increase. The combination of art and Brussels seems to appeal to art lovers abroad!

As always artbrussels will endeavour to make all collectors feel at home. For the duration of the fair artbrussels will be taking over the Belga Queen on the Wolvengracht/Fossé aux Loups, in the heart of the city centre. This beautiful location has a restaurant and an oyster bar. Want to share a drink late into the night? The cosy cigar bar is the place to be. Mr. Pinto of the Belga Queen promises delicious food and marvellous drinks as well as a few extras including special menus and a happy hour at the appropriate times to spice up the collectors stay in Brussels!

Foreign collectors can once again benefit from courtesy VIP treatment. artbrussels has drawn up a programme especially for them, which incorporates visits to contemporary art museums and private collections. For many of them a visit to artbrussels once again will be a unique experience, often crowned by the purchase of one or more works of art.

artbrussels, an international selection committee:
Members : Albert Baronian (B), Elena Buchmann (D/CH), Elga Conrads (D), Jo Coucke - Deweer Art Gallery (B), Massimo Minini (I) Nathalie Obadia (Fr), Rodolphe Janssen (B) and Tanya Rumpff (NL).

The fact that artbrussels is acclaimed around the world, along with a handful of other leading contemporary art fairs, can largely be put down to the strict selection criteria applied by the selection committee. The main criteria are: the quality of the artists, the profile of the gallery, the track record, the exhibitions and the presentation at the fair. For this edition the international selection committee chose to retain less than half of the 300 applications it received.

International participation is not an idle concept for artbrussels:
The 145 carefully selected galleries guarantee a broad international platform. The fair will be hosting exhibitors from 20 different countries and 3 continents! International participation represents almost 73% of all participants with 106 foreign galleries (see enclosed chart).

33 new galleries
Although 80% of all participants were present during the last edition, artbrussels will be welcoming 33 new galleries that include established galleries and young upcoming talent such as Barbara Gladstone (United States), beaumontpublic (Luxembourg), 1000 eventi, Perugi & Zonca and Zonca (Italy), JMG and Lelong (France), Sutton Lane (United Kingdom) and Millan (Brazil). In the Young Galleries zone new galleries will be presenting young upcoming talent such as D Amelio Terras, Maccarone and Slingshot (United States) and Kwai Po Collection (Hong Kong).

A contemporary profile
Since 1997 the fair has been opened to all artwork created after the 50s. Nevertheless, artbrussels has continued to maintain its original contemporary profile and has even managed to strengthen its position as such. artbrussels displays various fine examples of the most diverse disciplines: painting, photography, sculptures, videos, digital art, installations, mixed media and performances. We often discover a number of world premières that have been produced specifically for artbrussels.

The extra's
The majority of the fair is reserved for the best international established galleries. In the young galleries zones 20 young galleries are given the chance to show new talent.

28 x 25
Another feature of the fair are the one man shows where galleries turn the spotlight on one artist. These one man shows are an additional attraction for collectors, museums and other art lovers. In the 2004 edition these shows will be displayed in 28 spaces, each measuring 25m². The one man shows focus on the ground-breaking and innovative character of artbrussels and provide a unique opportunity for young artists to profile themselves next to top international names. During the preview the winning one man show will be chosen by a separate jury made up solely of collectors. This collectors committee will select the project that best illustrates the most recent developments in contemporary art.

A new collectors' committee
For as long as we can remember this region has produced numerous artists and painters of world-renown. It comes as no surprise with such a tradition that Belgium has the highest percentage of collectors in Europe. artbrussels is without doubt the most important contemporary art fair in the Benelux with a solid international reputation. This year artbrussels has approached a number of collectors to take part in a supporting collectors committee. As the fair s ambassadors, these committee members will play an advisory role. In addition, they will actively participate in formulating the cultural programme for international collectors. In 2004 they will also act as the selection committee for the selection of the best one man show , which will be awarded the Illy Prize worth 10,000 E.

Members of the collectors' committee:
Jacqueline d Amecourt, Wilfried Cooreman, Eric Decelle, Filiep Libeert, Baudoin Michiels and Bruno Van Lierde.

Words of thanks
We would like to mention our main sponsors Dexia and BMW for their valuable support that enables us to invite collectors in a VIP Privilege Programme. We would also like to thank the companies that have supported the fair in the context of the Company Club. Our special thanks go to Mr. Arthur Janta- Polczynski of Russell Reynolds Associates. Finally we especially appreciate the wonderful collaboration with institutions and museums. Additional attention must go to the French-speaking Community, which puts in a great effort to offer young and relatively unknown artists a forum next to the established international values at artbrussels.

The asbl toekan/changetout
artbrussels traditionally supports the asbl toekan/changetout. This not for profit organisation endeavours to give deprived Belgian youngsters a better start in life. Through Young Art 2004 artbrussels supports an initiative whereby the artistic creativity of young children is stimulated at the service of deprived youngsters.

Image: Daniël Buren, Il soffitto arlecchino, 2003, mixed material, space dimension
Courtesy Gallery CONTINUA - Italy
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artbrussels 2004
Practical information

Dates
From Thursday April 1st until Monday April 5th 2004

Opening hours
1, 2, 3, 4 April: from 12 noon until 8 PM
5 April: from 12 noon until 10 PM

Ladies'day
Friday April 2nd Free entry for women

Guided tours
Daily at 2 PM and at 4 PM (free of charge)

Admission price 10 Euro / person

Catalogue 15Euro

NEW! Combi ticket 1 Catalogue + 1 admission: 20Euro

Information
Belgium : 0800 30 007 (toll-free)
Abroad: +32 (0)2 402 36 66

Location
Brussels Expo - Halls 3 & 4
Place de Belgique, 1
1020 Brussels

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