The forthcoming editions of
Art Brussels and
Art Cologne have been postponed as the COVID-19 pandemic worsens. Both of the fairs were originally set to run concurrently, from April 23rd to 26th; Art Brussels has been
pushed back to run June 25th to 28th, while Art Cologne will run from November 19th to 22nd. In Brazil, the forthcoming edition of
SP-Arte, set to run from April 1st to 5th, has been
suspended without a reopening date.
The fairs join the growing ranks of cultural events and institutions that have altered their plans in an attempt to curb the spread of coronavirus. Earlier this week, TEFAF Maastricht
closed early after an exhibitor tested positive for the virus, and the Dutch government
shut down two of Amsterdam’s most popular public institutions, the
Rijksmuseum and the
Van Gogh museum, shortly thereafter. Italy and Austria have closed all state-run cultural institutions, and
Madrid and
Berlin have done the same.
Mega-galleries
Pace,
Hauser & Wirth,
David Zwirner and
Gagosian have
revealed plans to close spaces across the U.S. in the coming days. Pace will close its New York galleries, but plans to keep its spaces in Hong Kong, London, and Seoul, Geneva, and Palo Alto, California open. Hauser & Wirth will close its locations in both New York and Los Angeles to the public, though they will remain open for appointments. David Zwirner will close all of its New York locations. Gagosian will close all five of its locations in the city. Gagosian and Pace have also postponed their planned exhibitions of works from the estate of Donald Marron, which they secured with
Acquavella in
February. They have not yet announced a new date for the show.
The closure of private galleries follows the shuttering of
most major museums in New York, Washington, D.C., Boston, and other U.S. Cities. It follows the
postponement of other fairs like the inaugural edition of the Paris Photo New York and the
Dallas Art Fair, as well as New York’s Asia Week auctions. As more and more events are rescheduled to the summer and fall, one additional consequence of the pandemic could be an exceptionally busy second half of the year for the art market, with postponed fairs and auctions tucked between regularly scheduled events like
Expo Chicago, Frieze London, and FIAC.