Art15's Kate Bryan Tells Us Why The Art Fair Is Different

Tabish Khan
By Tabish Khan Last edited 106 months ago
Art15's Kate Bryan Tells Us Why The Art Fair Is Different

Kate Bryan

Kate Bryan was the director of contemporary art at the Fine Art Society and was behind the entertaining and quite brilliant exhibition What Marcel Duchamp Taught Me. She has presented on art for both BBC and Sky Arts, and now she's at the helm of the upcoming Art15. We caught up with her to talk about the fair:

London has many annual art fairs. What separates Art15 from the rest and why should Londonist readers go?
It's a truly global art fair with two thirds of the galleries coming from outside the UK, and 42 countries represented in total. We've picked galleries from countries where the art scene is still emerging, to provide some fresh artists and works that a London audience is unlikely to have seen before.

This is the third incarnation of the fair, how is it different from Art14 last year?
This year it's a lot smaller because we wanted a consistently high level of quality across the galleries. There are also some great curatorial initiatives such as an exhibition at the heart of the fair called Freedom Audit which will focus on how artists incorporate the political topic of freedom of expression into their work.

What new initiatives have you brought to this fair?
As well as this idea of a curated exhibition I've introduced the new 100 club which provides a platform for young art collectors under 40. Also, all of the participating London galleries will be open late on the Friday night giving the public more of a chance to visit these galleries on London gallery night.

Art fairs can often feel quite intimidating. Will this be the case at Art15?
Absolutely not, we want Art15 to be accessible to everyone. We have galleries from around the world and there's no way anyone can be an expert on all those countries, so everyone from collectors to first-time visitors will be in the same position of exploring the fair and discovering new artworks. Prices start at an affordable level and even for those who aren't looking to buy, we just want them to come in and enjoy the fair.

Art 15 will be held at Olympia from 21-23 May, London Gallery Night will be across London on 22 May. Here's a full brief of what to expect from Art15 including a two-for-one ticket offer for Londonist readers.

Also see our video guide on how to make the most out of an art fair and our guide to buying art.

Last Updated 19 May 2015