Art fairs continue to be challenged by pandemic-impelled travel restrictions, lockdowns, and postponements. Several regional events enjoyed the benefit of in-person interactions, but it remains to be seen if some planned fairs will go ahead in areas with rising infections. Going online is a possible alternative, although, as last year revealed, digital initiatives do not always translate to lucrative transactions for smaller fairs.
PORTSEA
The inaugural Quarantine Art Fair (January 7–10) took place in the historic Commanding Officer’s House in Point Nepean National Park. An intimate affair with seven Melbourne galleries, the event drew more than 2,000 visitors—many from nearby Melbourne—to the seaside town.
This Is No Fantasy sold out its oil abstractions and white (2019); prices were in the range of AUD 8,000–12,000 (USD 6,100–9,150). At LON Gallery, buyers snapped up Grace Wood’s photographic collages, Caleb Shea’s geometric aluminum sculptures, and Casey Jeffery’s oil painting of a window, (2020). An impromptu event connecting current situations to the location’s history, the boutique fair exemplifies alternatives to the usual large-scale fairs.
