Frieze London’s dull art fair leaves Frieze Masters looking more inventive
The critic finds Frieze London’s contemporary art fair dull and dominated by mediocre paintings, arguing that it serves wealthy buyers more than people seeking new artistic ideas. The contrast with the more engaging works at Frieze Masters, including a vivid painting by a follower of Hieronymus Bosch, is used to question Frieze’s claim to champion the new.
The review singles out Wolfgang Tillmans’s 1994 photograph and works by Helen Chadwick and Lonnie Holley as standouts among the contemporary offerings. At Frieze Masters, an Anselm Kiefer work was priced just under £1 million, while the fair also showed pieces by established artists such as Cy Twombly and Leon Kossoff. The article’s final sentence is cut off, so its assessment of other artists is incomplete.
- The critic calls Frieze London’s contemporary art bland.
- Frieze Masters offers more compelling works.
- An Anselm Kiefer piece was priced just under £1 million.
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Frieze London and Frieze Masters are two art fairs held in London. Frieze London focuses mainly on contemporary art, while Frieze Masters shows work from earlier periods alongside art by established modern artists.
Both fairs bring galleries and artists together with collectors and other visitors. The works on display can range from photography and sculpture to paintings, and some are offered for sale at high prices.
The distinction between new and older art is central to how the fairs present themselves. Comparing their displays raises questions about what counts as inventive art and how commercial art fairs balance attracting buyers with showing work that engages a wider audience.
Both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
A contemporary art fair should make current artistic ideas accessible and visible, but this review suggests Frieze London’s selection is dominated by polished, familiar work aimed at wealthy buyers. The contrast with Frieze Masters implies that historical art can feel more inventive than much of the supposedly cutting-edge offering, raising a fair question about whether the event fulfils its promise to champion new ideas.
The case against
A critic’s impression of dullness is necessarily selective: the review itself identifies strong work by Wolfgang Tillmans, Helen Chadwick and Lonnie Holley, suggesting the fair contains more than mediocre painting. A commercial fair also has to bring together artists, galleries and buyers, and the presence of expensive work does not by itself show that it neglects artistic innovation; the cut-off ending further limits how completely its range can be assessed.
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Originally published by The Guardian as “Frieze review – you’ll see more avant garde wonders in the Bake Off tent”.