Premier Hamptons Art Fair Wows Top Collectors and Art Enthusiasts with High-Quality Works from Prestigious Galleries in a Luxurious Setting 

 

As the second edition of Art Southampton, presented by Art Miami, drew to a close this Monday, July 29, the overwhelming consensus was that the fair had cemented its status as the premier contemporary and modern art fair in the Hamptons, offering the highest quality of 20th- and 21st-century masters as well as noteworthy emerging artists. The spacious 100,000-square-foot pavilion hosted 16,300 international collectors and art enthusiasts over the course of its five-day run. More than 90 exhibitors - nearly twice as many as at the fair's 2012 debut - hailed from 13 countries in the Americas, Asia, Europe and the Middle East.  

 

"There's a very impressive variety of dealers with some really major works by top names," said Audrey Gruss, a discerning, prominent collector with her husband Martin Gruss. "A fair like this belongs in the Hamptons. It's the only one on this level." 

 

Blue-chip London gallery Osborne Samuel sold Lynn Chadwick's sculpture Sitting Figures in Robes I for around $80,000 and Sean Henry's sculpture of a pair of pugilists for $60,000. Top-notch New York dealer James Goodman placed a print by Frank Stella listed at $30,000 and a painting by Abstract Art pioneer Giorgio Cavallon for close to $50,000. Two sculptures by Venezuelan abstractionist Jesus Rafael Soto went for $80,000 and $28,000 at Miami-based Ascaso Gallery. 

 

Heiner Meyer's metallic Donald Duck sculpture that gleamed beside the VIP lounge at Gallery Terminus sold for $113,000, plus two of his pool paintings for $11,000 and $6,000. The Munich-based heavyweight has requested twice as large a booth for next year, among numerous exhibitors who are already committing to return for Art Southampton's third edition. 

 

Some were still closing deals on important works as the fair ended on Monday, July 29, including a Robert Motherwell that Jerald Melberg parted with for $50,000 while crating paintings to ship to his gallery in Charlotte, N.C. Stephan Keszler, whose gallery is mere blocks from the fair, parted with a major piece by the notorious graffiti artist Banksy for multiple six figures. Hollis Taggert confirmed two more transactions once back on Madison Avenue, for a total take of $150,000, including two oil paintings from Theodoros Stamos' early-1980s "Infinity Field" period and a large work on paper by Sam Francis for over $50,000.

 

The destination fair pulled in collectors from East Hampton and Bridgehampton as well as Manhattan and Connecticut throughout its five-day run. Among those who converged in Southampton were Wilbur and Hilary Geary Ross; Parrish Art Museum President H. Peter Haveles, Jr. and his wife Elizabeth; financiers Stanford Warshawsky & his son-in-law Matthew Mark; Ziel and Helene Feldman; David and Simone Levinson; and George and Joan Hornig, who have stocked a 2,8000-square-foot barn in Water Mill with important pieces. Also adding luster to the aisles: Stanley Cohen; Vivian Horan; Patricia Birch; Emma Torres; Rafael Herman; Sharon Bush; Cheri Kaufman; and financier Jay Sugarman, whose Gin Lane home is filled with contemporary art. New York dealer Eli Klein was "very impressed with the venue and attendance." His Chinese artists were a big hit, scoring "terrific sales with pre-existing clients and new collectors." 

 

Art Southampton opened in dramatic fashion with a VIP Preview reception on Thursday, July 25, that over the course of the evening attracted more than 4,200 collectors, socialites, art advisors, artists and supporters of the Southampton Hospital. The hospital was the beneficiary of the evening's proceeds as well as many exhibitors' pledges of a portion of sales from selected works throughout the fair's run. Word of mouth spread quickly among the Hamptons cognoscenti and the New York media about the world-class contemporary art in an equally elegant setting.