Seventy of the world’s top contemporary art galleries are descending on Paramount Pictures Studios for the newest addition to the Frieze art fair calendar.
Los Angeles has long been renowned as a creative hub for the visual arts. Yet despite being the undisputed world capital of the moving image for almost a century, its fine art scene has only just begun to mature. The past decade has seen the opening of major new public galleries in the city, along with many private ones, while high-profile contemporary artists such as Olafur Eliasson and Ai Weiwei have chosen to site major projects there.
Now, Frieze has joined the party: the inaugural Frieze Los Angeles art fair will take place on February 15–17 at an iconic Hollywood venue, Paramount Pictures Studios. Around 70 galleries from around the world are taking part, displaying the latest work by their artists and providing a unique snapshot of the state of the contemporary art market.
As with the other Frieze art fairs, Deutsche Bank will act as Global Lead Partner and Deutsche Bank Wealth Management will operate a VIP lounge, creating unique experiences for guests in partnership with our Art, Culture & Sports department.
“As Global Lead Partner, we are excited to support this new fair in one of the world’s foremost cultural centers,” says Fabrizio Campelli, Global Head of Deutsche Bank Wealth Management. “Our support signals a reinforced commitment to the US, and to the West Coast in particular as a place of increasing importance in both the contemporary art and business worlds.”
The entrance to the Paramount Theater.
California-based artist Victoria Fu has created a site-based installation for the lounge, which will be situated in the large circular lobby of the Paramount Theater. Fu uses a range of media in her work, mixing video, photography and film with neon sculpture to create a space and light experience. The installation references the luminous and theatrical, two hallmarks of this unique location and its history.
“There are all these layers of things that don’t have a place in the real world,” Fu says. “I am thinking through the processes and tools of how we create visual reality with the moving image, and how we are changing as spectators, from viewers to users in a melding of the two.”
Meanwhile, in the Paramount Pictures Studios Backlot, performance artist Tom Pope will debut his One Square Club, a private members’ club measuring just one square meter. Pope plays the host in his club, and those that join him inside can choose how they wish to spend their time – he will make them a drink, listen to their woes, sing karaoke with them, or even sit in comfortable silence.
Nearby is Café No. 5, Deutsche Bank Wealth Management’s exclusive exhibition and refreshment space. where a collection of historical photographs from the world of Italian motorsport will be on display to celebrate Deutsche Bank Wealth Management’s new position as Global Lead Partner of the event. The exhibition has been put together in partnership with Deutsche Bank’s Art, Culture & Sports department.
“Support of Frieze LA underscores our 40-year commitment to encouraging new and noteworthy talents in art, culture and sports from across the globe,” says Thorsten Strauss, Global Head of Art, Culture & Sports at Deutsche Bank. “We are pleased to bring Victoria Fu and Tom Pope – two extraordinary artists – to the LA fair. Both art installations embrace the site in unique ways and reflect the international scope of both the Frieze platform and our own extensive program.”
Why is Frieze coming to Los Angeles?
As one of the few major art fairs of this kind to launch in LA, Frieze aims to help strengthen the city’s growing community of collectors, art institutions and mega-galleries, while making contemporary art accessible to a broader audience.
Explaining why it was chosen as the location for the new fair, Victoria Siddall, director of Frieze Fairs, says: “So many great artists and writers have lived and worked in LA, a city with an incredibly rich landscape of museums, galleries and art schools which play a pivotal role in the international art world. Frieze LA will add an exciting new dimension to this thriving cultural scene.”
Map of Frieze LA and Paramount Pictures Studios site
The fair will take place in the middle of film awards season, between the Grammys and the Oscars, and is therefore intended to be a place where art and film can intertwine. Its main exhibition space will be housed in a custom-designed tent in the middle of the Paramount Pictures Studios complex, while events and interactive and immersive artworks will run nearby in the Paramount Pictures Studios Backlot – in and around the buildings of a simulated New York street. Frieze has invited a selection of emerging and contemporary artists, including Barbara Kruger, Cayetano Ferrer and Paul McCarthy to create site-specific works that will be shown here.
“The addition of Frieze Los Angeles to the international art fair calendar provides LA with the international Art Fair it’s has been waiting for, demonstrating innovation – a value shared by Deutsche Bank Wealth Management,” says Nicola West, Global Head of Events, Partnerships and Sponsorships at Deutsche Bank Wealth Management. “Through our continued partnership with Frieze we aim to create a positive impact for our clients by bringing them closer to innovative works of contemporary art.”
For further information about this year’s Frieze LA, please visit the event website.
