THE VAULT
FAIR EXCHANGE Rosalie Doubal lifts the lid on an inventive new art market opening in Glasgow this month and profiles some of the artists showcasing their work
V ault is a new art fair that will take place inside an art installation, set inside an arts space, that houses artists’ studios. Like a Russian doll the event playfully peals back the dominant layers of today’s art market, to reveal independent practice as ripe for investment, while simultaneously granting young artists the opportunity to sell their work.
Curator-led by Patricia Fleming in collaboration with not-for-profit arts organisation UZ Arts, this new fair has been programmed specifically for the recently-refurbished Briggait building – previously home to Glasgow’s fish market. The organisers have invited some of the city’s most exciting independent organisations, including SWG3, David Dale Gallery and The Mutual, to sell work by early career artists alongside more established practitioners such as Alex Frost, Christine Borland and Martin Boyce. Paying homage to the mercantile history of the building, many works have been made for the fair with the theme ‘art and commerce’ in mind. Interest-free loan scheme Own Art has pledged its assistance and loans of up to £2000 will be available for every sale. While exchanges are certainly on the agenda, the fair promises to be an impressive exhibit in its own right, with site-specific commissions, tours and workshops also on the agenda.
Vault, the Briggait, Glasgow, Fri 9–Sun 11 Sep.
DAWN YOULL Youll’s high-gloss, high-finish ceramics depict familiar objects or homely vignettes. Beautifully evoking notions of ritual, commemoration and souvenir, the Glasgow-trained artist is interested in our use of ceramics to create votive-like objects that represent reflection or provide a mental link. The recent winner of a prestigious Arts Foundation Fellowship, Youll’s work has been widely exhibited across Europe and has been presented at London’s V&A Museum. The artist was also last year selected by the Scottish Arts Council and Crafts Council UK to represent the UK at the Ceramics New Generation exhibition in Paris. These are ornate, intelligent and often humorous works that explore our shared desire to collect, organise and display.
68 THE LIST 25 Aug–22 Sep 2011