Foire Internationale d'Art Contemporain

The Paris International Contemporary Art Fair (Foire Internationale d’Art Contemporain or FIAC) is a contemporary art event that occurs in Paris.

History

FIAC was usually held in October in the Grand Palais.[1] In 2019, the fair announced that it would move to a temporary venue on the Champ de Mars, by the Eiffel Tower, for at least two years and to move back to the Grand Palais by 2024.[2] In 2022, however, Art Basel surprisingly ousted FIAC from the Grand Palais.[3]

From 2006 to 2019, as part of the fair’s outdoor program Hors les Murs, well-known venues across the city – the Tuileries Garden, the Musée national Eugène Delacroix, the National Museum of Natural History and Place Vendôme – featured temporary installations of Alexander Calder, George Condo, Thomas Houseago, Robert Indiana, Per Kirkeby, Alicja Kwade, Richard Long and Oscar Tuazon, among others.[4][5] From 2018, the venues also included Place de la Concorde, with architectural works by Kengo Kuma, Claude Parent and Jean Prouvé, among others.[6]

Milestones

Directors

Marcel Duchamp Prize

The Marcel Duchamp Prize (in French : Prix Marcel Duchamp) is an annual award given to a young artist by the Association pour la Diffusion Internationale de l'Art Français (ADIAF) since 2001 at the FIAC.[13]

The winner receives €35,000 personally and up to €30,000 in order to produce an exhibition of their work in the Modern Art museum (Centre Georges Pompidou).[14]

Controversy

In 2014, a Hors Les Murs feature, the 80-meter-high inflatable sculpture Tree by Paul McCarthy in the Place Vendôme was deflated by vandals. McCarthy and local authorities decided not to re-inflate it. The lime green sculpture was described by the artist as a Christmas tree, but critics said it looked like a butt plug.[15]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Paris, capitale des arts, galvanise la Fiac 2018". Le Figaro (in French). 2018-10-18.
  2. ^ Ted Loos (16 October 2019), A Fair With a French Accent, Inside and Out New York Times.
  3. ^ "FIAC-Art Basel ou l'exception culturelle française mise à mal". Les Echos (in French). 2020-01-02.
  4. ^ Ted Loos (18 October 2017), Can’t Get Enough of FIAC? Go Outside New York Times.
  5. ^ Ted Loos (16 October 2019), A Fair With a French Accent, Inside and Out New York Times.
  6. ^ Ted Loos (17 October 2018), In a Busy Month for Art Fairs, FIAC Counts Collectors Among Its Treasures New York Times.
  7. ^ Scott Reyburn (24 March 2022), France’s New Art Fair Is Called ‘Paris+’ New York Times.
  8. ^ "The Artprice / FIAC Contemporary Art Market Report is out!". Artprice. 2011-10-09.
  9. ^ "At 44, a Paris Art Fair Is Gaining Even More Steam". New York Times. 2017-10-18.
  10. ^ "Fiac art fair director Jennifer Flay on the challenges ahead". Financial Times. 2019-10-11.
  11. ^ Scott Reyburn (24 October 2014), Art Fair Crowd Moves Across the Channel New York Times.
  12. ^ Ted Loos (17 October 2018), In a Busy Month for Art Fairs, FIAC Counts Collectors Among Its Treasures New York Times.
  13. ^ "Prix Marcel Duchamp shortlist announced". Art Review. 2019-12-20.
  14. ^ "Marcel Duchamp Prize Exhibition". Centre Pompidou (in French). 2020-09-10.
  15. ^ Tara Mulholland (23 October 2014), Paris Art Fair Strives for Bigger and Bolder New York Times.