Five reasons to visit London Art Fair

We round up a handful of highlights as the London Art Fair returns for its twenty-eighth edition

By Martin Coomer Posted: Friday January 15 2016

If you're looking to spruce up your walls with the work of young British artists, acclaimed photography or a casual masterpiece or two, the London Art Fair (Wed Jan 20–Sun Jan 24 2016) will certainly be on your radar. As one of the most celebrated art fairs in London, it brings together the best in modern British and contemporary art and will be taking over the Business Design Centre in Islington this week. Here are five reasons to visit, whether you're a millionaire or not.

The new Catlin Art Guide

Launching at the fair, the latest ‘XL Catlin Art Guide’ (£12.99) gives you the lowdown on 30 need-to-know recent graduates and postgraduates (‘Violet, You’re Turning Violet…' by Goldsmiths grad Riikka Hyvönen, pictured). Work by the featured artists will be on show.

The main fair

This is where to head if you’ve got the space and the wallet for a modern masterpiece by the likes of John Piper (‘Aberayon Fields’, 1955, pictured above at Alan Wheatley Art) from established galleries such as Austin/Desmond, Flowers Gallery and James Hyman. Prices from £100 to £1 million.

Art Projects: Dialogues

Art Projects is a showcase of emerging art from young galleries such as Kristin Hjellegjerde (‘What Your Language Says About You’ by Celina Teague, pictured). You’ll also find Dialogues, a series of collaborations between UK and international galleries.

Photo 50

The photography section of the fair is curated on the theme of ‘Feminine Masculine’ and features work by Jo Broughton (‘Egg Shell Pink’ from the ‘Empty Porn Sets’ series, pictured). Wednesday 20 is Photo Focus day, with themed talks and tours of the fair.

Coast

Each year, the fair works with a museum partner. This year, the Jerwood Gallery, based in Hastings, brings along a selection of seaside-related works by big-league Brit modernists including Barbara Hepworth, Ben Nicholson and Christopher Wood (‘The Bather’, 1925, pictured).