Beirut Art Fair - the feedback

Laure D'Hauteville is the director of the Beirut Menasa art fair, which completed its fourth edition last month. About 50 galleries showcased more than 2000 contemporary artworks represented by some 200 artists from 30 nationalities represented by galleries from 15 countries. Here we catch up with D'Hauteville for a quick Q&A:

Q: Congratulations on completing the fourth edition of the Beirut Menasa Art Fair. How do you think it went?

A: The event was spectacular success in the midst of an international atmosphere marked by regional tensions. The fair blew a fresh breeze through the city of Beirut auguring a week that vibrated to the rhythms of art and artists.  Beirut presented itself as a city pushing the avant-garde; creating an outpour of ideas and encounters; an open crossroads for the world, for the future, for all cultures. The art fair once again succeeded in providing a forum of exchange and discovery entirely dedicated to the region’s artistic community.

Q: What was the biggest success this year?

A: The dynamism of Middle Eastern, North African and South East Asian contemporary art can be felt in leading art fairs in Paris, Basel, New York and Dubai. There was a vital need for an international event that recognizes the growing demand for art and crystallizes the current change of direction in contemporary art market - and we were successful in achieving this. The sales at the event further proof that the collectors are very active in the present times.

Q: What do you think you will change next year?

A: All I can tell you now is that the fair will only grow - both in quantity and quality. We will always make sure to preserve its mission, while providing it with all the improvements necessary to sustain its international status. Since the beginning, we wanted to create a hybrid fair that does not only focus on the commercial transactions, but that also offers a diversified cultural program, open to the changes in the art market, to meet the expectations of collectors and to provide a vivacious platform for the galleries of the Middle East as well as Arab and Asian artists. This way, we will continue to put together events that will shed light on all types of contemporary creation and that will attract a new public.

Q: There is only increasing interest from all over the world in the fair, including more galleries from the region. Does this signify a boost in artistic production in the Middle East or just hunger for a more established infrastructure?

A: Established artistic values and rising stars of the art market can be found in this region of contrasting cultures which extends from Morocco to Indonesia. These are manifested not only by public sales, but also by exhibitions in museums and private foundations. This is currently the case for events such as the 55th Venice Biennale, testimony to the creative energy and growing presence of Menasa artists globally. What sets us apart from our contemporaries is the fact that Beirut Ar Fair combines a cultural approach with economic development and defends the interests of artists, galleries and collectors. During the stable economic times, investors and art collectors were happy to take risk and invest in emerging and young artists and art that is more challenging and unconventional. After the economic downturn, the well-established names are performing exceptionally well as collectors are confident of the stability of these pioneer and modern artists. We aim to act as a springboard for emerging artists from the region, and serve as a platform for art enthusiasts and collectors around the world to discover and learn the contemporary artists of this area in a professional and cultural environment.

Q: You are also planning the first Singapore Menasa fair set to take place next year and you had a pavilion at this fair dedicated to Asian art. Is this a personal interest or is it one that you believe is happening across the region?

A: We noticed that the Arab World is more and more influenced by Asia and vice versa. The actors of the art market in these two different geographic regions have the same will to exchange and to discover. This mutual interest is also shown by the exhibitions organised in museums, galleries and institutions. It is in this context that we created this year the “South East Asia Pavilion” which will develop in the future editions. And so next year we are hosting Singaporean edition of MENASA art - Singapore Art Fair. It will take place in Suntec City from November 27 to 30 with about 80 participating galleries. The fair is responding to an increasing demand from conversations with galleries, collectors, curators and amateurs worldwide and from within Singapore’s burgeoning arts community.

Q: Do you believe that political instability in the region hampers the production of art or does it boost it due to increased emotional pressure on the artists themselves?

A: Well, in tough times artists find inspiration. It is not that we are at ease with the unrest sweeping Lebanon or the Arab world. No one is. But hard times breed courageous art and provide artists with a repertoire of themes to feed their creative process, voice their concerns and reflect their thoughts and identity.

* The Singapore Art Fair will take place in Suntec City from November 27 to 30 2014 with about 80 participating galleries.