In the Latest Blow to Singapore’s Fledgling Art Market, the Inaugural Art SG Fair Has Been Delayed for a Second Time

The inaugural edition of Singapore’s Art
SG has been postponed for a second time, with organizers
moving the event back to November 4 to 7, 2021, “out of
consideration for the health and safety of all involved,” they
announced in a statement .

The event, first announced in July
2018, was pushed back a year from its original opening date in
fall 2019 due to “requests from galleries and key participants… to
have more time to prepare,” according to the fair, which is led by
director Shuyin Yang and cofounder Magnus Renfrew.

No exhibitor list has been released yet for Art SG, but several
major galleries, including White Cube and Lehmann Maupin
Gallery, said they supported the postponement in a press
release.

“We understand and appreciate the prudent decision taken by
Magnus and his team to delay the inaugural edition of the fair and
believe that it is in the best interest of all stakeholders during
this uncertain time. We look forward to participating in Art SG
2021,” said Nick Simunovic, the managing director of Gagosian’s
Asia operations.

Art SG was originally part of a regional expansion
effort by Art Basel’s parent company, MCH Group, and was to be
held in collaboration with Sandy Angus and Tim Etchells, the
cofounders of Art HK (now Art Basel Hong Kong). But MCH backed out in
November 2018, and has since divested from regional
fairs, selling shares in Art
Düsseldorf last May and the India Art Fair in
September.

Singapore’s other major art fair, Art Stage Singapore, had its
2019 edition abruptly
cancelled just days before its January opening. The event
has shrunk dramatically in recent years, from 170 exhibitors
in 2016 to just 35 for the cancelled 2019 fair.

There are other recent signs of
market uncertainty in the country, with the Affordable Art
Fair cutting one of its two Singapore editions and the cancellation
of plans to expand Hong Kong’s Asia Contemporary Art Show
to the city-state.

The post In the Latest Blow to Singapore’s Fledgling Art
Market, the Inaugural Art SG Fair Has Been Delayed for a Second
Time appeared first on artnet News.