IFPDA Print Fair A Tour dé Force For Dealers And Collectors Alike

NEW YORK CITY

:For four days in November of each year for the past 15, a core of international dealers from the International Fine Print Dealers Association (IFPDA) turns the vaulted space of the Park Avenue Armory into a repository of fine art. In this unlikely venue, from November 3 through 6, rare masterworks from the hands of Prianesi, Rembrandt and Albrecht Dürer, along with numbered editions by Picasso, Warhol and Baldessari hung side by side, co-mingled in the mind-boggling concentration that is the IFPDA Print Fair.

As influential dealers and collectors filed into the opening night reception, a benefit for the Museum of Modern Art, the first sale of the show was concluded. In this rarified atmosphere, Jasper Johns' striking 1993 image "Flags," offered by Marlborough Gallery, was claimed by a private collector for an undisclosed amount. Shortly after, Kim Schmidt, director of Marlborough Gallery in New York, was inspired to comment, "It's great to start the show on a high note."

Days later, as the fair wound down, Bob Newman, president of the IFPDA, who co-chaired the event with Diane Villani of The Galerie St Etienne, looked around the floor and proclaimed, "Sales were good this year." Putting his remark into perspective, Michele Senecal, executive director of the IFPDA, reported that about $25 million worth of art either left the armory or was being held for packing and shipping later in the week.

In some instances, as Joe Goddu of Hirschl & Adler ventured, centerpiece offerings as compelling as Edward Hopper's finely finished drawing "House at Railroad Crossing," 1944, and a Thomas Hart Benton lithograph were of such show-stopping quality that the dealer reserved the right to retain them until show's end. As it turned out, Benton's "Going West Express," an image of a racing train, signed, dated and inscribed to Ralph Pearson, sold for "somewhere in the neighborhood of $50,000," Goddu said. As predicted, it remained in place, giving art lovers one last chance to view the rare work before it was whisked away from public eyes and into a private collection.

In general, according to knowledgeable collectors, prints are an accessible way to own works by name artists. "Accessible," of course, is relative, as exemplified by George Bellows' 1917 lithograph entitled "A Stag at Sharkeys." Offered by the Old Print Shop, the forceful portrayal of two fighters in a ring was priced at $175,000. (In contrast, a Bellows painting recently went for more than $3 million.) When a half-a-red button appeared on the frame, Bob Newman explained it was "on hold."

Newman also sold several Ben Shahn bound portfolios inspired by the writings of Ranier Maria Rilke for at the special show price of $11,500. According to the signage, the postshow price was double that. Newman, who handles the estate of Martin Lewis sold several Lewis images for between $7,000 and $20,000.

David Tunick of David Tunick, Incirca Prints and Drawings, which specializes in Old Master and Modern prints and drawings from 1450 to 1950, commented that the show had "been very successful." Tunick realized six sales of at least six figures. A number of smaller sales of prints selected from boxes in the booth went for five figures. Additionally, the dealer sold several Eugene Atget photographs that were being deaccessioned by the Museum of Modern Art. (The Print Fair allows for a small percentage of works other than prints).

On the eve of Rembrandt Harmenszoon Van Rijn's 400th anniversary, it was hoped, by Petra Rumbler of Kunsthandlung Helmut H. Rubmler, Frankfurt, Germany, that images of the "Flight From Egypt" would bring great interest. While they did, her big sale was a print of St Jerome by Albrecht Altdorfer. Titled "Walking in a Garden," the circa 1480 work portrays St Jerome not as the usual penitent but in idiosyncratic stride, book under his arm and lion by his side. The image sold to a private collector for around $80,000.

Just a few booths away, William Weston Gallery of London provided Matisse lovers with an archetypical print, "Seated Nude With a Blouse," that carried a price tag of $50,000.

The majority of the properties at the Print Fair, it must be noted, were more readily reachable. IFPDA's initiative to reach out to a generation of young and new collectors with affordable art created an audience more diverse than in years past. The effect, according to a spokesperson from Mixografica in Los Angeles, was "a fair with an energy I usually only find in Europe."

The overlapping of works by favored artists carried by several galleries created a virtual mini-exhibition of several modern masters' works. Picassos were seen at Belgis-Freidel Ltd of Syosset, N.Y., Dorianne Hutton Fine Art of Greenwich, Conn., and Ian McKenzie Fine Art of London, who also displayed a 1983 Chagall, among other works.

Lautrecs, Dufeys and Vuillons hung on the walls of R. Stanley Johnson Fine Art of Chicago. Meanwhile, The William Weston Gallery, the longest established gallery for modern prints in London, brought the early Twentieth Century into focus with a mixed wall of Picassos, Le Corbusiers and Sonia Delaunays.

The Galerie St Etienee, home base for Diane Villani, showed a panorama of Austrian and German Expressionist works. The gallery is noted for the having penned the Egon Schiele catalogue raisonné and the stand reflected the depth of inventory. Continuing in the German Expressionism vein, Alice Adams Ltd of Chicago showed an outstanding Max Beckman print entitled "Bowler Hat."

The liveliest of booths, however, were those that featured more contemporary works by established and emerging artists working in a variety of techniques.

A walk down the armory's long aisles proved a kaleidoscope of talent that might well appeal to a hipper audience. Durham Press, Durham, Penn., for example, commanded attention with Brazilian artist Beatriz Milhazes' swirling arabesques and floral motifs that seem to embody Brazil's pop culture while evoking modernist pictorial form.

Elsewhere, Luis and Lea Rumba of Mixografia, Los Angeles - the gallery bears the same name as the high relief printing process for which it is known - showed a bold and colorful series of six images by John Baldessari, in which the faces of monotone men are replaced by large, raised circles in primary colors. In the background looms the recognizable form of Stonehenge, for which the series is named. Other images in Mixicografia were by Larry Rivers.

Ironically, it was Advanced Graphics, London, that featured a screen print by British artist Ray Richardson that could arguably be considered the most iconic of American images. "Hitchhike" portrays in the right foreground a Stetson-hatted loner wearing a bright red and white striped shirt. He dominates the background cityscape. Louise Peck of Advanced Graphics explained that the image was inspired by a night Richardson spent with his harmonica, blues-playing brother in Chicago. Peck went on to say that, "This was our first year here. We had a good reception all around."

"Malcolm X Speaks for Us," a moving image in relief by Elizabeth Catlett, and presented by Sragow Gallery of New York, captured another side of the American experience. A portrait of Malcolm X wearing black-rimmed glasses sets off several modules of repeating faces. It caught the viewer in a web of news stories as relevant today as in they were in the 70s.

At Goya Contemporary and Goya Girl Press's booth, Martha Mack-Kahn, head of the organization also reported, "We did quite well." In describing the art she elects to represent or publish, Mack-Kahn said, "I mix old with new artists. Bring blue chips artists like Sean Scully and Louise Bourgeoise and mix with new artists like Sanford Biggers." She sold three of Biggers' tall vertical print "Afro Pick," signed in both pencil and a Japanese chop impression, for $2,500 each. "Wall of Light" by Sean Scully, an aquatint color field in crimson and gold, sold for $7,000.

Reflecting the current interest in everything Oriental, several dealers of Japanese art found their booths filled. Among them were Egenolf Japanese Prints and Drawings, Burbank, Calif., and Art of Japan, Mountainview, Calif. The latter provided images from the Edo period. A stunning sensual image, "Couple Making Love Behind a Screen," circa 1800, by Utagawa Toyahira, ink and color on silk and signed Toyahira Ga, epitomized the craft of the Japanese artist. Another, an Oban triptych "Santo Kioden at Daimyo's Mansion," by Kitagawa Utamara, circa 1760-1790, was a masterful portrayal of privileged life.

So intriguing to artists are the ancient Japanese techniques that more than one contemporary artist has adopted them. In a fine example of the ukiyo-e style of printmaking, Francesco Clemente recreated his own painting "Earth." Jeremy Dine of Pace Prints unveiled the ukiyo-e woodblock print, stating, "It was approved by the artist just this morning." A run of 51 editions is anticipated by the end of January. Acquisition price: $4,000.

Dine summed up the fair this way: "We had an excellent show. We were very, very happy. We did a lot of business." Though Dine saw a lot of young collectors, he felt the more established collectors and some dealers comprised the bulk of his clientele.

In another display of disarming woodcut bravura, the Annex Galleries of Santa Rosa, Calif, which represents the estate of Gustave Bauman, devoted an entire wall to Bauman's remarkable color prints. Unlike more organic media, woodcuts are an inflexible medium in which one mistake can cost an entire image, and yet Bauman's work captures the landscape as few others have. The prices of these works ranged from $3,000 to $15,000.

Robert Brown Gallery, Washington, D.C., showcased the work of William Kentridge, a South African artist, with a wall of prints that included "Pacing Panther," a drypoint etching, and "Village Deep," an assemblage of black paper pieces on collaged paper.

Sims Reed Ltd of London made its debut appearance at the fair with two Warhols. One, a color self-portrait, was dedicated to Warhol's florist Tommy Pashun. It was priced at $69,000. Hung én suite with a Warhol image of Robert Mapplethorpe, the photographer, the effect was overwhelming. Lindsey Ingram of Sims Reed said, "The show was new to us, but it was good."

Purdy Hicks of London, a publisher that represents contemporary English and Irish artists, highlighted an Andrejz Jackowski titled "Vigilant Dreamer." The provocative image was a fiery red and orange. Another Jackowski, titled "Station," was rather abstract, representing a corner of a park near Brighton Station. So thorough was the line work that on viewer declared, "I knew exactly where it was even though it is rather abstract." Other offerings were by Hughie O'Donoghue, an Irish artist specializing in carborundum prints. (Carborundum prints are created by a process of spreading carborundum crystals on copper plates to create etchings).

Joni Moissant Weyl of Gemini GEL, pointed out a small statue in her booth by John Chamberlain titled "Statue of Muse." The chrome plated bronze cast from a foam carving, one of nine, sold for $25,000.

With so much to see and choose from, it was obvious that the dealers had put months of effort into locating and selecting their finest pieces. As one dealer remarked, "We work very hard to bring pieces that are fresh to this show. We consider it the best way to introduce new artists and advertise others."

"We are delighted to be associated with the Print Fair," stated gala preview co-chair Anna Maria Shapiro of The Museum of Modern Art.

Stellar merchandise, strong sales, the watchful eye of IFPDA and an ever-expanding customer base make this show a destination event within the print art world. For further information, or to contact IFPDA, call 212-674-6095 or view www.printdealer.com.