Lisbon, contemporary art capital

Following the success of last years’ event, ARCOlisboa 2017 inaugurates its second edition amidst the support of galleries, collectors and professionals from the international circuit.

A total of 58 galleries from 13 countries will take part in this edition, 50 of which form part of the General Programme while 8 are included in the new Opening programme, dedicated to young galleries under seven years old.

To coincide with Lisbon’s nomination as the Ibero-American Capital of Culture 2017, the Meeting of European and Latin American Museums will be held in Portugal for the first time.

The Fair enjoys the support of the Fundaçao EDP, Câmara Municipal de Lisboa, the Portuguese Ministry of Culture, EGEAC, Turismo de Portugal and Turismo de Lisboa, in addition to other private institutions and entities.

The contemporary art world once again turns the spotlight on Lisbon for the second edition of ARCOlisboa, organised by IFEMA, from 18 to 21 May in the Fábrica Nacional da Cordoaria. Quality contents and a focus, by the 58 galleries from 13 countries, on projects of a high standard will once again convert ARCOlisboa 2017 into the Portuguese capital’s major art and social event. In addition to the attractions of the Fair, an extensive art and cultural programme will take place in the city, awakening the interest of international collectors, renowned professionals and the general public.

On this edition, the General Programme will welcome 50 galleries selected by the Organising Committee, 58% of which are foreign. Portugal’s most important galleries will be represented: Cristina Guerra, Pedro Cera and Vera Cortês from Lisbon, Murias Centeno, Quadrado Azul –both of which also have venues in the capital- from Oporto,  Fernando Santos and Pedro Oliveira along with other interesting projects from Braga - Mario Sequeira- and from the Azores - Fonseca Macedo. Additionally, there will also be a remarkable international presence with galleries such as Elba Benítez, Juana de Aizpuru, Giorgio Persano, Nueveochenta, Vermelho, Monitor, Zak Branicka, among others. Under the Outstanding Artist concept, visitors will focus their attention on works ranging in scope from the historic Avant-gardes to the contemporary classics and current art.

The novelty of ARCOlisboa 2017 will be Opening, a new curated section to include the participation of 8 national and international galleries under seven years old, selected by João Laia, the Portuguese writer and curator. Thus, the programme will include a representation of the Portuguese art scene’s young galleries, including Francisco Fino, Hawaii-Lisbon, Madragoa and Pedro Alfacinha, in dialogue with international counterparts such as Bwa Warszawa, Dürst, Britt & Mayhew, José García or Narrative Projects.

Thus, the scope of the Fair will range from the emerging artists represented in Opening such as Renato Leotta or Karlos Gil to creators of international repute such as Erwin Wurm, José Pedro Croft, João Louro, Sergio Vega, Nathaniel Mellors and Carlos Garaicoa, alongside more classic pieces by the contemporary masters –Picasso, Vieira da Silva, etc-, in galleries such as Leandro Navarro, João Esteves de Oliveira and José de la Mano.

In addition to its gallery programme, independent Portuguese publishers and bookshops will also be present at ARCOlisboa in the ´As tables are shelves´ space, under the direction of Luiza Teixeira de Freitas and Ana Baliza. This is a space for the discovery of new editorial contents, to be completed with the presence of other local and international magazines and publications linked to contemporary art.

During the month of May, Lisbon becomes a city wholeheartedly dedicated to contemporary art, joined in its enthusiasm by the Feria de la Câmara Municipal de Lisboa, Fundaçao EDP and the Portuguese Ministry for Culture, EGEAC, Turismo de Portugal and Turismo de Lisboa which, along with other institutions, art centres and galleries, offering their support in the form of different exhibitions and events, thus providing opportunities for encounters with ARCOlisboa’s participants and guests. All of this at a time of particular dynamism in the country’s art scene, coinciding with the new Museu de Arte, Arquitetura e Tecnologia (MAAT) de la Fundação EDP, new galleries and non-profit spaces.

Forum and Professional Meetings

The Fair also presents a programme of debate and reflection revolving around contemporary creation. A forum that will bring together outstanding professionals from over 20 countries, giving rise to interesting conferences and talks.

On this occasion, ARCOlisboa proposes a series of Master Talks by Manuel Borja-Villel, James Lingwood and Hans Ulrich Obrist, to be presented by Filipa Oliveira in the auditorium of the Casa da América Latina, just a few metres from the Cordoaria Nacional. These are open to the public.

ARCOlisboa will also host other presentations within the Fair, coordinated by Miguel Amado and Ana Cristina Cachola. Under the title ´What am I working on?´, over 20 international professionals will share their current and future projects. The sessions will include the participation of João Ribas; Abdellah Karroum; Aveline de Bruin; Manuel Segade; Jesse James; Benjamin Weil; Marta Gili; Luísa  Santos; Nicolas de Oliveira; Markéta Stará Condeixa; Martha Kirszenbaum; Guilherme  Blanc; Julia Charlton; Martim Dias; Pedro Gadanho; Atlas Projectos; Raphael Chikukwa; Filipa Oliveira; Margarida Mendes;  María Mercedes González; Bomi Odufunade; Vera Appleton; Bruno Leitão; David Cabecinha y Susana Pomba, among others.  

On the occasion of Lisbon’s nomination as the Ibero-American Capital of Culture 2017, the Meeting of European and Latin American Museums will be held in Portugal for the first time. Directed by Juan Gaitán and Pedro Gadanho, it will draw over 20 directors and curators of prestigious institutions from both sides of the Atlantic. A private encounter under the title of The Idea and Role of the Contemporary Museum, it will include professionals such as Stephane Aquin –Hirshhorn, Washington-, Julia Charlton -WAM Wits Art Museum, Johannesburg-; Iwona Blazquez –Whitechapel, London-; Raphael Chikukwa -National Gallery of Zimbabwe, Harare-; Suzanne Cotter -Museu Serralves, Oporto-; Barbara Coutinho -Museu do Design e da Moda, Lisbon-; Penelope Curtis -Centro de Arte Moderna da Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian, Lisbon-; João Fernandes –Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid-; Marta Gili - Jeu de Paume, Paris-; María Mercedes González –MAAM, Medellín-; Stefan Kalmár -, Institute of Contemporary Art, London-; Abdellah Karroum –MATHAF Arab Museum of Modern Art, Doha-; Evendro Salles –MAR, Rio de Janeiro-; Dirk Snauwaert –WIELS, Brussels-; Joana Sousa Monteiro –Museu de Lisboa, Lisbon-; Benjamin Weil –Centro Botín, Santander-.

João Laia will also direct another closed meeting of around 8 international curators including Gudny Gudmundsdottir; Lissa Kinnaer; Martha Kirszenbaum; Kestutis Kuizinas; Steven Op de Beeck; Yve Stevenheydens. ARCOlisboa will provide the scenario for other interesting sessions with the presence of professionals such as Rosario Peiró -Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía-, Miguel von Hafe -independent curator- and Manuela Villa –Matadero Madrid-, among others.

Collectors and other professionals

ARCOlisboa has made a special effort to organise actions geared towards international promotion –national and foreign press; foreign advertising- in addition to the guest prescribers and buyers programme that will bring over 120 guests to Lisbon, collectors, institution directors, curators and other international professionals from the art world.

A key strategy to drive this important Portuguese art market platform, set to include the presence of both professionals and patrons, collectors and members of museums including S.M.A.K and Kunsthaus Zürich.

Support of the private initiative

ARCOlisboa 2017 enjoys the support of the private initiative, in addition to the institutions, which have supported this fair through sponsorship activities in different areas of the Fair, including the Fundação EDP and MAAT, along with other brands such as Ruinart; illycaffè; Audi; Renova; Adico, which will take part in various actions.  

Espacio Cordoaria Nacional

The Cordoaria Nacional, considered one of the most outstanding examples of 18th-century industrial architecture, once again offers a unique design that not only adapts to the volume of the stands, but also makes it possible to walk the fair easily. This year, ARCOlisboa will also extend out to the building’s courtyards, creating spaces for meeting, eating and activities. Likewise, it will once again offer a VIP Lounge in a space combining contemporary and vintage styles, and equipped with exquisite eateries. The Fair is located in the new contemporary art enclave just a few steps from the Museu MAAT and the Museu Serralves collection exhibition.

For five days, Lisbon will become the capital of contemporary art thanks to the Fair and visits to the city’s best museums, institutions and collections, set to present exhibitions as outstanding as Utopia / Dystopia -curated by João Laia, and others of artists such as Carlos Garaicoa, Ana Pérez-Quiroga and João Onofre, in MAAT -Museu de Arte, Arquitetura e Tecnologia-; Pedro Neves Marques in the Museu Coleção Berardo; José Pedro Croft, in Chiado 8 –Espaço Fidelidade arte contemporánea / Mace-; Paloma Bosque, in Pavilhão Branco –EGEAC-, Almada Negreiros and Manuela Marques, in Museu Calouste Gulbenkian; Julião Sarmento, Helena Almeida, Jorge Molder, Alberto Carneiro, in Culturgest; Francisco Tropa, in Fundação Carmona e Costa. Other spaces will present the oeuvre of artists like Jorge Martins, Vieira da Silva, Arpad Szénes and Ana Vidigal, in the Museu Arpad Szénes Vieira da Silva; Pedro Cabrita Reis, in Pavilhão 31 –Julio de Matos Psychiatric Hospital-.

In addition, there will be collections such as the Fundação Leal Rios; Museu Nacional de Arte Contemporanea do Chiado, as well as the exhibition O olhar do artista: obras da Coleção de Serralves, including works from the Serralves collection, to be held in the Torreão Nascente da Cordoaria Nacional.

The city’s independent scene will also present very high quality proposals with exhibitions by Emily Roysdon, in Kunsthalle Lissabon; Noé Sendas and Jacobo Castellano, in Appleton Square, and Vitor Palla and Bento d'Almeida, in Garagem Sul –CCB Fundação Centro Cultural de Belém, to mention but a few.  

As part of the programme, each morning from 17 to 21 May, a special opening and the ARCOlisboa galleries’ brunch will be held in one of the city’s gallery districts.

ARCOlisboa 2017 will open its doors to the public from 18 to 21 May, from 12 noon to 8pm (and until 6pm on the last day).