SOFA NEW YORK Opening Night Preview, April 15

NEW YORK. April 19, 2009.  Long considered the world's foremost fair for masterworks bridging contemporary decorative, fine art and design, the 12th annual International Sculpture Objects & Functional Art Fair at the Park Avenue Armory enjoyed buoyant sales and steady crowds from the vernissage on April 15 straight through its four day run ending on Sunday, April 19. View a selection of art sold >

An estimated 17,000 collectors, curators, architects, interior designers, art advisors and new enthusiasts took in SOFA NEW YORK, the first produced by its new owner, The Art Fair Company. Founding director of SOFA Mark Lyman recently reacquired the SOFA fairs from dmg world media, along with partner, Michael Franks, Chief Operating Officer of dmg. Lyman says, “We’re delighted that even in this economic downturn, collectors came to buy and many dealers sold well. Michael and I share a deep commitment to SOFA and its potential for growth, and look forward to the successful launch of our new fair, SOFA WEST: Santa Fe this June.”

Pippin Drysdale's work in the Joanna Bird Pottery Booth at SOFA NEW YORK 2009

Even opening SOFA NEW YORK on tax day did not scare off buyers. Over 2,200 persons jammed the vernissage over the course of the evening and many supported The Museum of Arts & Design, New York by attending a benefit cocktail reception held concurrently in the Armory’s Tiffany Room. Plucked up immediately from London dealer Joanna Bird was a Pippin Drysdale 2009 Installation 1, a series of carved, thrown ceramics for $79,000.  As of Saturday, Bird had racked up a dozen significant sales. Nearby, Leo Kaplan Modern of New York sold a Richard Jolley 2009 Still Life for $38,000, while the Chicago Habatat Galleries red-dotted a Shayna Leib glass installation for $46,000, selling close to a staggering 40 percent of its material on offer, including blown and cast glass sculptures by Oben Abright at $38,000 each. “Initially we were concerned about the economic climate but clients are still seeking to buy,” says Michael John Hofer, Habatat’s Assistant Director.

	Miyashita Zenji's work in the Joan B. Mirviss Ltd. booth
	Junko Mori (right) and guest in the Clare Beck at Adrian Sassoon booth. View a video Interview with Junko Mori at SOFA >

Further proof of spirited sales Opening Night was Manhattan dealer Joan Mirviss selling five Miyashita Zenji’s layered, opalescent stoneware priced up to $15,000. Mirviss had 29 sales and of the 19 Miyashita pieces debuted in the United States, only three were left as of noon Sunday. “It’s really startling—more than half the sales were to clients totally new to me. Collectors came from across the US, from California, Minnesota, Massachusetts and Washington, DC. And I was amazed Opening Night at the number of collectors who were not from this hemisphere.”

London dealer Clare Beck showing with the venerable Adrian Sassoon scored banner sales including works by metal artist Junko Mori, such as her large-scale steel 2009 Propagation Project, as well as striking hand-hammered gold and silver vessel forms by Hiroshi Suzuki. “Longtime Belgian collectors flew in for SOFA for the first time,” says Beck, attesting to the international reach of the fair. Sassoon adds, “We’ve sold examples by every single artist, including a large Hiroshi Suzuki, and some work went to collectors of 18th century antiques and art.”

Guest viewing Sergei Isupov and Chris Antemann work in the Ferrin Gallery booth. View a video interview with Chris Antemann at SOFA >

Collectors honed in on the Ferrin Gallery from Pittsfield, Massachusetts, purchasing a total of 15 works including Sergei Isupov’s uncharacteristically monumental 2009 Prelude in stained and glazed stoneware for $40,000. Gallery director Leslie Ferrin also achieved multiple sales during the show run of Chris Antemann’s elegant parodies of classical decorative figurines, including a commission from New York-based interior designer Geoffrey Bradfield, best known for his residential commissions for international art collectors.  Ferrin also secured a commission for a large-scale Gordon Chandler sculpture to be installed as an exterior architectural element at an eastern shore Maryland country home.

	Lia Cook PRESENCE/ABENCE: GATHER browngrotta arts

In addition, curators were acquiring work. For example, the Wilton, Connecticut browngrotta sold Lia Cook’s sculptural hanging textile 1998 Presence/Absence to the Cleveland Museum of Art. The Tai Gallery from Santa Fe achieved a reserve on a contemporary 1980 Richard Landis textile Chaparral at $24,000 to a Midwest museum. “So far 70% of my sales have been to painting collectors who own work by such artists as Gerhard Richter, Picasso and Philip Guston,” says Tai Gallery director Rob Coffland. With the demand for sustainable materials at an all time high, he quickly sold Morigami Jin 2008 Peerless for a five figure sum along with four other examples.

Hans Coper Galerie Besson

Secondary market material was also sought after and Florida dealer Donna Schneier sold a Dan Dailey vessel for $35,000, a large Michael Lucero sculpture, a Bertil Vallien glass sculpture, and three Robert Arneson ceramics. Schneier says, “It wasn’t just glass and ceramic collectors buying work, it was also contemporary art collectors, for example, one collector to whom I delivered a piece had paintings by Jasper Johns, Frank Stella, Sam Francis and Christo.” Galerie Besson of London sold a major Hans Coper 1970 ceramic vessel form for $32,000 and a prized Peter Collingwood textile to a well-known East Hampton collector.

	Lola Brooks' work in Sienna Gallery

Metal artistry from jewelry in gold and silver with precious stones to such far-out materials as spare rocket parts, took off at the Fair.  New dealer Alistair Crawford, who offered his own designs in silver and gold, quickly sold a 18-carat gold and diamond bracelet for $12,800. Then the Cambridge, Massachusetts Mobilia Gallery sold a number of brooches, bracelets and necklaces by artist jewelers as well as a Mariko Kusumoto large metal sculpture for $50,000 to a Midwest collector. The Hudson, New York Ornamentum Gallery sold a Ted Noten acrylic necklace for $27,000 to a Chicago collector, a Sergey Jivetin brooch of fragile egg shells reinforced with Kevlar for $6,000, as well as a necklace of small 18th century European cannon balls for $11,000. Lenox, Massachusetts Sienna Gallery sold artist/designer Lola Brooks’ highest priced piece, a necklace tagged at $10,000 on Opening Night. Clare Beck at Adrian Sassoon sold an Adam Paxon hand-carved acrylic brooch for $8,900. View video interview of Sergey Jivetin at SOFA >

	The SOFA NEW YORK 2009 VIP Lounge

Spotted shopping were prominent contemporary art dealers Sean Kelly, Barry Friedman and Hollis Taggert, collectors Nanette Laitman, Nancy Epstein, Barbara Tober, Charles Bronfman, real estate developer Larry Silverstein, and fashion designers Vera Wang and Mary McFadden. Of the more than 30 designers on the floor were Ellie Cullman, Mario Buatta, Geoffrey Bradfield, Kenneth Alpert, Amy Lau and Suzanne Lovell. David Ling, who designed the stunning SOFA NEW YORK VIP Lounge, spoke at the Thursday morning Designer Breakfast and show preview to a standing-room only crowd of 80 RSVPing interior designers and architects.

Miyashita Zenji lectured Friday, April 17 as part of the SALON SOFA: Lecture Series.

The Salon SOFA program of lectures, artist conversations and book signings also were well attended, with over 400 enthusiasts taking in 9 lectures in the Armory’s Tiffany Room. “The high number of attendees not only confirms the enthusiasm for first-hand knowledge of SOFA artists but also spills over into the sales arena,” says Anne Meszko, Salon SOFA director.  For example, Danish artist Steffan Dam with the Tribeca-based Heller Gallery spoke to a standing- room only crowd and by Saturday, Heller had sold 7 of his cast glass examples.  Attendance in the second annual VIP program was up more than 30 percent to 550 taking in the exclusive events for high-level gallery clients and collector and museum groups, putting SOFA on the same platform as Art Basel. VIPs attending the Fair included membership groups and curators from The Whitney Museum of American Art, The Guggenheim, Museum of Modern Art and Metropolitan Museum of Art

For press images and general information on SOFA Fairs, including art sold, show shots and artist interviews from the 12th annual SOFA NEW YORK 2009, ongoing through April 19 at the Park Avenue Armory, visit www.sofaexpo.com. The next SOFA Fair is SOFA WEST: Santa Fe, June 11 – 14 at the Santa Fe Community Convention Center. Opening Night, Wednesday, June 10 benefits the New Mexico Museum of Art Design Collection. 16th SOFA CHICAGO 2009, Nov. 6 - 8 at Navy Pier. For more information, call 800-563-SOFA (7632) or 773-506-8860; or email info@sofaexpo.com.

NEW YORK, March 6, 2009: Superlative contemporary and modern decorative arts, design and jewelry by internationally recognized museum class artists will be showcased by 55 international dealers from 12 countries at SOFA NEW YORK 2009, which debuts Wednesday, April 15 and runs from the 16 -19 at the Park Avenue Armory. An overwhelming number of the examples epitomize not only the extraordinary artistry of material-based artworks but also recession proof values in today’s art market. Here are just some of the unrivalled highlights from the fair:

WILLIAM ZIMMER GALLERY,
MENDOCINO, CA
In blurring the boundaries of sculpture and design, Tom Hucker with the Mendocino, California based William Zimmer Gallery is considered a leader in the American studio furniture movement. To his artistry, Tom Hucker brings a rare mastery of two distinct disciplines: Asian aesthetics with intensive study at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and the Urasenke School of Tea Ceremony in Boston along with solid technical training at the Domus Academy in Italy, under a fifth generation German cabinetmaker.

Curators, collectors, designers and architects alike praise Hucker’s innovative works for his streamlined sense of design and lyrical sense of rhythm. “His work is in major museums like the Art Institute of Chicago,” says dealer William Zimmer. “Hucker’s work sold within minutes at SOFA CHICAGO this past November, proving the popularity of his artistry with both seasoned and novice collectors,” says Mark Lyman, Founder/Director of SOFA fairs in New York, Chicago and new in June 2009, Santa Fe, and Vice President, dmg world media Art & Antiques. “At that time, CBS Marketwatch reporting on the fair, accurately and aptly designated SOFA ‘a sweet spot in the market’,” says Lyman.

CLARE BECK AT ADRIAN SASSOON, LONDON
Millionaire collectors who turn to superstar architects and interior designers Peter Marino, Brian McCarthy and Sally Sirkin Lewis as well as young art collectors all share one particular art object in common: the gold and silver vessels by the Japanese born, London based Hiroshi Suzuki. They’re hardly alone as close to 30 museums stretching throughout Britain and across to France, Australia and Korea own his work as well. “They’re attracted to Suzuki’s unsurpassed artistry as he demonstrates an entire new versatility in precious medals,” says Clare Beck who works with London dealer Adrian Sassoon, former curator of the Getty Museum.

In a nutshell, Suzuki’s intricate vessels hand hammered from a paper thin, single sheet of silver are a contemporary response to a traditional material, treasured by kings and queens for centuries. “While his work has gone up 100 percent in a scant five years, at the same time his vessels remain surprisingly undervalued,” says Beck while adding that Britain’s foremost collector, the Duke of Devonshire plucked up a Suzuki recently for his vast art collection. In addition, on their stand is the work of another leading London silversmith, Junko Mori, who is also receiving major league acclaim and will be at SOFA speaking in the Lecture Series, included with admission.

HABATAT GALLERIES, CHICAGO, IL
“Even as an undergraduate, Shayna Leib’s dazzling glass art was racking up awards as she snapped up an “Emerging Artist” award from the Museum of Arts and Design,” says Michael John Hofer, Habatat, Chicago gallery manager. “But still her artistry remains significantly undervalued,” he says, “as compared to contemporary art, her work is a bargain with prices beginning at only $12,000.”

A number of high profile corporate CEOs, private investors and interior designers own her glass sculpture. Above all, they are attracted to Leib’s dynamic exploration of materiality. “To complete just one square inch of her wall pieces requires more than a grueling two hours of pulling intricate glass canes for firings,” says Hofer. “If you don’t collect her work very soon, it will become untouchable in terms of prices as Shayna branches into the fine arts like few other glass artists.” “She’s amazing,” he says. “Just how many other artists have technical skills honed while earning a Masters of Fine Arts, Summa Cum Laude?”

	SOFA NEW YORK 2008

NEW YORK, February 10, 2008:  Long heralded as the nation’s premier fair for outstanding contemporary decorative arts and design, the 12th International Sculpture Objects & Functional Art Fair in New York City is slated for April 16-19, 2009 at the Park Avenue Armory, moving from its former Memorial Day weekend dates. The Opening Night Public Preview will be held on Wednesday, April 15, 2009. Mark Lyman, Founder/Director of SOFA and Vice President, dmg Art & Antiques says, “The move was made in response to collector, curators and dealer needs in order to give SOFA NEW YORK a stronger placement on the international art fair calendar.” The acclaimed SALON SOFA offers fair-goers a Lecture Series featuring renowned collectors, curators, artists and dealers, as well as in-booth artist and dealer talks, all free with SOFA admission.

SOFA CHICAGO: "A Sweet Spot in the Art Market", Featured in CBS MarketWatch. Perimeter Gallery.

SOFA NEW YORK will follow the lead of the successful 15th SOFA CHICAGO staged at historic Navy Pier, November 7-9, 2008, with dealers reporting solid sales despite the Dow dropping 400 points the day of the opening night preview. No less than CBS MarketWatch of The Wall Street Journal Digital Network reported in its November 20th story, A Sweet Spot in the Art Market: "Fine art auctions have been a tough sell this season, but contemporary decorative pieces sold well at the recent SOFA Chicago Fair." Lyman says "Proven values in arts and design distinguish SOFA NEW YORK throughout as our dealers showcase artists and designers who have achieved prominent placement in world renowned museums, with many artworks on offer at accessible price points," says Mark Lyman. Sixteen years ago, Lyman noticed that contemporary decorative artists and designers merited an international fair and since then he has developed three SOFA fairs, adding a new edition SOFA WEST: Santa Fe June 11 – 14, 2009 in Santa Fe, NM, The Opening Night First Choice Preview, Wednesday, June 10 will benefit the New Mexico Museum of Art’s inaugural Design Collection.