More than 1,200 art enthusiasts passed through the doors of PULSE New York 2013 before noon on opening day, yesterday, Thursday, May 9. Sales started at 9am and quickly spread throughout the main section and the solo artist exhibitions in IMPULSE. Exhibitors were impressed with the high level of international collectors and curators and commented on strong interest from new clients. Opening day of the fair this year brought 30% more people than last year.
Returning to the fair this year, Tokyo Gallery + BTAP (Tokyo) sold four sculptures based on Japanese folklore, by Miki Taira; Waterhouse & Dodd (London and New York) sold Matt Mignanelli’s charcoal on canvas, Carte Blanche II, and Japanese artistEtsuko Ichikawa’s glass pyrograph on paper. At C24 Gallery (New York) Katja Loher’s kaleidoscope-like Airbubble, 2011, handblown glass bubble and vieo screen in acrylic box, sold in the $10,000 range. Michael Hoppen Contemporary (London), new to PULSE, received active interest in Sohei Nishino’s monochrome photo collages of urban landscapes, selling Diorama Map NY, 2006 for $25,000 from an edition of 15.Gallery Joe (Philadelphia) reported four sales of works on paper by artist Mia Rosenthal, as well as work by Marilyn Holsing, and Sharka Hyland. Berlin based, emerging artist Pius Fox was a success at Patrick Heide Contemporary Art (London);Davidson Contemporary (New York) sold a Kevin Osmond mobile sculpture for $12,000 and a playing card collage by artist collective Ghost of a Dream; Von Lintel Gallery (New York) sold photographs by Amanda Means and Klea McKenna; and,Mike Weiss Gallery (New York) saw a lot of action around the work of Cameron Gray, including selling out the entire edition My Crazy Ex Girlfriend (mixed media and video). Weiss also sold a Marc Séguin oil on canvas, Astronaut No. 1 for $36,000.
Krause Gallery (New York), exhibiting in IMPULSE, sold four David E. Peterson mixed media works as well as receiving a commission for a Peterson piece, with prices ranging from $4-15,000. Several of Carol K. Brown’s evocative painted photographs of women in the art world from the Las Conquistadoras, 2012 series were sold at Nohra Haime Gallery (New York).
Taylor De Cordoba (Culver City) sold a large scale photograph by Danielle Nelson Mourning to a major New York art advisor and collector, and Adah Rose Gallery(Kensington, MD) reports sales of “quite a few of Jessica Drenk’s work including the large installation Bibliophylum”. They also announced the sale of two works by artistBrian Dupont. Santa Fe based Eight Modern placed a large drawing by Fay Ku as well as two small paintings by Siobhan McBride, all before noon.
PULSE PRIZE WINNER ANNOUNCED
Cornell DeWitt, Director of PULSE Contemporary Art Fair, this morning announced the winner of the PULSE prize as Marjolijn De Wit, whose mixed media works are on view atOTTO ZOO (Milan). The finalists also included Johann Ryno de Wet with camara oscura galeria de arte (Madrid) and Ambreen Butt with Carroll and Sons (Boston). Commenting on the three artists, Cornell DeWitt states they “reflect the diversity of the fair. The three presenting galleries are from three different countries, and all from outside New York.”
Each year, the winner of the PULSE Prize is drawn from an artist shown in the solo artist section IMPULSE. The winner, chosen by members of the gallery selection committee as well as guest jurors Lowery Stokes Sims, curator at the Museum of Art and Design; Sue Stoffel, collector and arts patron; and, Hrag Vartanian, editor of Hyperallergic, receives a $2,500 grant and the opportunity to design limited edition promotional items for the following year’s fair.