ARCO 2009: Blue Days in Madrid
A work by James Casebere at ARCO Madrid 2009 / photo Richard Rhodes
“Where to begin?” is the question on this bright, clear afternoon—what they call in Madrid a “blue day.” A foot-high pile of press materials and catalogues has been gathered over three days at the 2009 ARCO art fair. Outside the Hotel Puerta América, the sound of heavy traffic growls. Inside, there is a mirror finish on the black lacquer desk that is part of a design scheme by Japanese architect Arata Isozaki. His idea was to make a hotel room that is entirely black, from its walls to its bedsheets to its toilet paper. Out the window, lost in the near distance, the city’s grand bullring lies invisible. The demanding pile of paper has gotten no smaller but thoughts of Hemingway and Death in the Afternoon now glide in the murk.
Welcome to Spain. Until recently, the country had been a prosperous economic engine of the new, post–Cold War Europe, but the global recession has taken hold and unemployment is up to 14 percent. The country is suffering worries about debt load, exports and a collapse of its housing market and manufacturing sector. It is a dodgy context for hosting a successful art fair, but the ARCO press office has helpfully released a document titled “Confidence and Calm in the International Art Market.” It reminds worriers on the economic front that the contemporary art market is holding its own with a 12.5 percent rise in prices over the past year and a 132 percent increase since 1991. Boldface type quotes French consultants Artprice, who declare, “1,760 artists born after 1945 have broken their own auction records.” ArtTactic adds as a follow-up that “art and artists will not vanish. Tough situations are even more stimulating for creativity.” The conclusion of the release is a reminder that artworks, unlike investment markets, carry an intrinsic value “that makes them an excellent investment in times of crisis.” So Spanish realism reasserts itself. ARCO is ready for business. It has a can-do spirit that has made it one of the leading art fairs in the world.
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A “blue day” in Madrid / photo Richard Rhodes |
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