Coronavirus Cancellation Watch: An Up-to-the-Minute Guide to How the Global Health Crisis Is Rewriting the 2020 Art Calendar

by admin

Mar 11, 2020

artnet

The opening months of the year have been defined by the spread
of the novel 2019 coronavirus from its origin point in Wuhan,
China, to a growing number of cities and countries around the
globe. Public-health concerns have led officials and event
organizers to modify, delay, or completely shutter large gatherings
of all kinds, from professional sporting events and concerts, to
university classes and professional conferences.

And perhaps no sector of the world economy to date has had to be
more flexible than the art industry—with its for-profit and
nonprofit sides equally affected.

As a reference guide, below is a comprehensive list of every
art-related event that has either been canceled or postponed due to
concerns about the virus’s spread. You will also find information
on related museum closures and a sampling of key upcoming events
still proceeding as planned.

The latest developments are listed at the top of each category.
We will continuously update the list if and when organizers
announce additional cancelations, postponements, or other
modifications.

Last updated: Tuesday, March 11, 2020 at 9:15
a.m.

Canceled Events

Unless otherwise noted, the below events will return in
2021.

March 5: Artmonte-carlo
– Originally scheduled for May 1–3.

February 21: Jingart,
Beijing – Originally scheduled for May 21–24.

February 7: Art Central
Hong Kong – Originally scheduled for March 18–22.

February 6: Art Basel Hong
Kong – Originally scheduled for March 19–21. (Art
Basel will offer online viewing
rooms for exhibitors from March 18–20 [VIP access] and
March 20–25 [public access].)

January 31: Shanghai’s Festival of Design
Architecture Conference – Originally scheduled for March
2020.

Postponed or Modified Events

March 11:
Drawing Now Art Fair, Paris – Moved from March
26–29 to May 29–June 1.

March 10: Berlin Gallery
Weekend – Exhibitions and small-scale events will proceed
on May 1–3, but large-scale events will be moved to September
1–3.

March 9: The Photography Show and
Video Show, Birmingham, UK – Moved from March
14–17 to September 2020 (exact dates to be announced).

March 8: Sharjah Art Foundation’s
March Meeting – Moved from March 21–23 to new dates yet to
be announced.

March 6: Miart, Milan – Moved from
April 17–19 to September 10–13.

March 5: Art Paris –
Moved from April 2–5 to May 28–31.

March 5: Venice Architecture
Biennale – Moved from May 23–November 29 to
August 29–November 29.

March 3: Art Dubai –
Downsized to a yet-to-be-announced program of talks, exhibitions,
and events taking place from March 25–28.

March 3: Lille Art Up!
– Moved from March 5–8 to June 25–28.

February 27: Milan’s Salon
del Mobile – Moved from April 21–26 to June 16–21.

February 24: Sotheby’s Hong
Kong – Modern and contemporary art evening sales
originally scheduled for the week of April 3 have been moved to
April 16 in New York; sales of jewelry, watches, wine, and Asian
art scheduled for the week of April 3 will remain in Hong Kong, but
take place in July on dates yet to be announced.

February 14: Hong Kong Art Gallery
Association’s Art Gallery Day – Moved from March 19 to
April 3; South Island Art Day moved from March 16
to April 4; an Outdoor Sculpture Installation and
Exhibition has been added to the calendar for March
26–April 26, and an Art Talk and Art
Picnic has been for March 28.

February 12: Asia Week New York
Auctions – Themed sales by Christie’s, Sotheby’s, Bonhams,
Doyle, Heritage, and iGavel all postponed from March 12–19 to dates
in June yet to be announced.

February 11: Bonhams Hong Kong –
Sales scheduled for March have been postponed to new dates yet to
be announced.

February 7: Christie’s Hong Kong
– 20th-century and contemporary art sales moved from March 19–20 to
May 30–31; sales of fine wine and rare spirits moved from the week
of March 16 to May 29–30.

February 5: Gallery Weekend
Beijing – Tentatively moved from March 13–20 to mid-April;
a final decision about whether the event will be postponed or
canceled outright will be announced by March 15.

January 31: Design Shanghai Fair
– Moved from March 12–15 to May 26–29.

January 30: CAFA Art Museum’s inaugural
Techne Triennial, Beijing – Postponed from its February 20
opening to new dates yet to be announced.

Museum Closures and Admissions Limits

March 10: The
Contemporary Austin’s “Art Free for All” event –
Originally scheduled for Saturday, March 14; now canceled.

March 9: The Louvre – Only
visitors with pre-booked e-tickets will be guaranteed entry until
further notice.

March 9: Musée d’Orsay – The
number of visitors inside the museum will be capped at 1,000 until
further notice.

March 8: Italy – All museums
and heritage sites in the country are closed until April
3.

February 28: Japan – All museums
closed until March 17;
the opening of “Masterpieces From the National Gallery” at Tokyo’s
National Museum of Western Art delayed.

February 23: South Korea – All
national museums and libraries closed until further notice.

February 4: Foshan’s He Art
Museum and Beijing’s X Museum – Grand
openings postponed indefinitely; the X Museum
has launched a “gamified” virtual project
space in the interim.

January 28: Hong Kong –
All government-run museums, stadiums, and public gathering places
closed indefinitely.

January 23: China – All museums
closed until further notice; state officials have directed all
institutions to launch online “cloud
exhibitions” based on their expected programming.

Key Upcoming Events to Watch

The below events are still scheduled to go forward on the listed
dates, but may be canceled or modified in the days or weeks to
come. (To see a full list of art fairs scheduled to take place
through June 2020, see here.)

March 18: Christie’s New York – South
Asian Modern and contemporary art sales

March 20: Villepin Gallery, Hong
Kong, grand opening

April 1–5:
SP-Arte