Art Fare
photographer’s monograph
Andy Freeberg / Sojourn Books
In his essay, “Fair Fare,” W.M. Hunt writes, “Two men in front of black paintings, let’s call them Gogo and Didi, are the central players in Mr. Freeberg’s Marlborough, Art Basel 2010, one of the best of these. It has existential gravitas and irony. Dealers, obviously, in dark suits are in very deep conversation in front of a triad (!) of equally black and serious paintings (Ad Reinhardt). Mordant. The abstract is expressed here. It is an exquisitely crafted short play. The rectangle behaves exactly like a proscenium ensnaring the drama with the deal: so weighty, so solemn, so black. Art is such serious fare. It is performance.”
In a statement about his pictures, Freeberg writes, “Gallery owners and their staff are usually hidden behind large entry desks and closed office doors. But at the major art fairs I've visited, like New York's Armory Show and Art Basel in Miami and Switzerland, they're in plain view in their booths. As if on stage, you can see art dealers meeting with collectors, selling and negotiating, talking on cell phones, working on laptops, and manipulating touch screens in 21st century postures newly adapted for the latest electronic devices. I found the lighting, costumes, and set design excellent for photographing these living dioramas, where the art world plays itself.”
