Juxtapose Art Fair is a new, non-commercial art fair that celebrates the diversity of the artist-run sector. The fair will premiere on 20-22. August 2021 in Rå Hal on Godsbanen in Aarhus, and in its first edition will show 26 projects, organized by visual artists and/or independent curators from home and abroad.
On the fair's opening day, the Association of Visual Artists (BKF) awards the prize This year's Artist-run Exhibition Venues. It is the fifth time that the association has awarded the prize, which was created to recognize the important artistic work that takes place on the self-organized art scene.
Anyone can nominate one or more places for the BKF award by sending an email with a short motivation mk@bkf.dk before 1 August 2021.
Visual artist Jacob Juhl and the curators Pamela Grombacher and Sasha Rose Richter. PHOTO Daniel Emami Riis.
bag Juxtapose Art Fair stand visual artist Jacob Juhl and the curators Pamela Grombacher and Sasha Rose Richter.
Here, Jacob Juhl talks about the background for the fair:
— Why have you started a new art fair for artist-run spaces?
“There is so much happening in the independent art spaces right now and the scene is really booming! There is a lot of energy and willingness to try new and bold formats that you don't see in museums or established galleries. But many of these initiatives are still a well-kept secret to most people – the audience is mainly other artists and curators. We feel that the independent platforms deserve a much wider reach and hope that we can contribute to that by presenting some of them in a popular public space like Godsbanen in Aarhus, which is visited by people from all walks of life.”
— What will happen at the Juxtapose Art Fair?
"We start with an opening party on Friday 20 August, followed by a varied program of activities over the weekend. The fair unfolds everywhere in Godsbanen, but the main exhibition takes place in Godsbanen's Rå Hal – a huge space that combines modern and historic architecture with concrete floors and a curved wooden ceiling. In our Open Call last summer, we invited artist-led initiatives to submit proposals for how they could utilize this space in creative ways. And we look forward to seeing all the good ideas realized! "
The near and far perspective
"The weekend's program also offers talks from the exhibitors about their initiatives, and in the evening there will be a series of thematic panel discussions and debates. On Saturday, in collaboration with the Bikubenfonden, we will hold a vision salon with a focus on the international networks in the artist-driven sector", says Jacob Juhl.
The exhibition platform Til Vægs, which last year was among the winners of the BKF award Artist-run Exhibition Places of the Year, was behind the performance Helbredelsen in November 2020. Here, a large group of residents and artists came together to protest that Lundtoftegade, where Til Vægs is based, was put on the government's so-called Ghetto list. The performance spanned several months of artistic actions and healing carried out on several continents, before culminating in a physical manifestation at Lundtoftegade with a ritual walk with masks, music and smoke. The following day, Lundtoftegade was removed from the Ghetto list. PHOTO here and at the top of the page: Marina Castagna.
"In Godsbanen's central foyer, a curated exhibition of artists who are members of AIM Network (Artists' Initiatives' Meetings Network). We also collaborate with Artist Run Network Europe (ARNE), a new project supported by Creative Europe, about a conference that will focus on some of the important issues facing the artist-run sector today, in particular sustainability in a broad sense. Finally, we present a Nordic guest curator programme, which is about how freelance and institutional curators can support artist-driven initiatives. This year we will be visited by 5-7 Finnish curators, and at the next fair it will be a team of curators from another Nordic country. We have also invited six local artist-run exhibition spaces to be associated partners, which visitors to the fair can experience on our guided walks around the city centre.”
— What are the future plans for Juxtapose Art Fair?
“It is hard to know what the world will look like in the coming years, given the pandemic we are in the midst of. But we hope to continue as a biennial fair after this first edition in August 2021. We believe that there is a need for an initiative like Juxtapose Art Fair that can strengthen the artist-run sector by shedding new light on this important, but often overlooked, corner of the art world.”
Read more about the program and exhibitors here: → juxtaposeartfair.com
BKF prize Artist-run Exhibition Places of the Year
• Consists of three awards of DKK 25.000 each.
• Everyone can nominate one or more artist-run places for the award, which this year will be awarded at the Juxtapose Art Fair in Aarhus on 20 August.
• Send an email with a short justification for your nomination to mk@bkf.dk before 1 August 2021.
• The winners are selected by a jury, which this year consists of curator and art adviser Mette Wollersen, visual artist Sofie Thorsen and BKF's chairman Nis Rømer. Read more at → bkf.dk/kunstnerdrevne