Largest art fair in Latin America

SP-Arte: see what three Bahian galleries will exhibit at the biggest art fair in Latin America
Three galleries from Bahia will participate in SP-Arte, which is considered the largest art fair in Latin America. The event, which starts next Wednesday (3) and continues until Sunday (7), at the Biennial Pavilion, in São Paulo, will feature the participation of galleries Acervo, Alban and Paulo Darzé.

SP-Arte is expected to receive an estimated audience of 35 thousand people over five days and will present more than 5 thousand works by 2 thousand artists from Brazil and around the world. The 19th edition of the event brought together 168 exhibitors and received an audience of 31 thousand people, including collectors, professionals and art lovers.

This will be the 20th edition of SP-Arte and the director of Galeria Paulo Darzé, Thais Darzé, is proud to be able to say that, throughout the history of the event, they have been present in all editions. “We are the only one from the North / Northeast that participated in the 20 editions”, she says. This time, 45 works by artist J. Cunha will be brought to the center of the arts spotlight.

“It has been the gallery’s strategy, from the beginning, to bring a solo project to the event. Historically, it has always been a strategy to try to transform Bahian names into national ones and this has been working,” she explained. In other editions, they focused on artists such as Pierre Verger, Mário Cravo Jr., Mário Cravo Neto, Mestre Didi, Almandradre, Agnaldo Manoel dos Santos and Rubem Valentim.

Gallery director Paulo Darzé believes that being present at the largest art fair in Latin America is important both from the point of view of the business carried out and the formation of new markets. She says that the main objective is to include these artists in important collections, in large showcases for collectors and institutions.

“I see the fair as a medium and long-term investment. It is a very important moment economically for the gallery. We can see how much a fair is capable of moving the economy, of transforming the Brazilian art market. The city stops, the world of visual arts stops to see what is happening. Fairs are vectors, lighthouses, income-generating powers, generators of many things”, she assesses.

The Acervo Galeria de Arte also takes the work of Bahian artists to SP-Arte. Gallerists Ricardo Portela and Denny Venegeroles selected 40 works by five artists, four of whom were from Bahia (Almandrade, Aurelino dos Santos, Dedé Lins and Juraci Dórea), and one from Pernambuco, Montez Magno.

“It’s a very special event for us. It is a place where we meet collectors, art lovers from all over the world, it is a consolidated event”, highlights Portela. Although the event lasts five days, the gallerist emphasizes that the work of curating the works begins at least six months in advance. It is necessary to prepare a project, present it, it needs to be approved and, only then, carried out. “Our expectations are the best possible”, says Ricardo Portela, who has been taking his gallery to the event for the third year.

Acervo Galeria stand in 2023

Alban Galeria will participate in SP-Arte for the 17th year and, this time, will take 26 works by 18 artists. Among them names like Célia Euvaldo, Paulo Whitaker and Afonso Tostes. Director and owner of the gallery, Roberto Alban believes that being at an event like this provides a lot of visibility for the gallery, as it brings together important collectors and curators.

“At an event like this you make new customers and acquire others that will last forever. It is also an opportunity for other gallerists and curators to get to know some artists and include them in institutional exhibitions or join the collections of important Brazilian collectors,” he says.