SOFA NEW YORK 2009

New York, December 22, 2009:  Long heralded as the nation’s premier fair for outstanding contemporary decorative arts and design, the 13th International Sculpture Objects & Functional Art Fair in New York City will open on the evening of Thursday, April 15 and run through Monday, April 19, 2010 at the Park Avenue Armory. Mark Lyman, Founder/Director of SOFA and President, The Art Fair Company says, “The move to a Thursday opening and extended fair-run through Monday was recommended by our dealer committee in response to collector, curators and dealers needs. Judging from the remarkable success of our 16th SOFA CHICAGO held last November, we anticipate vigorous sales at SOFA NEW YORK.”  Donna Schneier of Donna Schneier Fine Arts, Palm Beach, succinctly expressed the sentiments of dealers at the Chicago fair—“The fear is gone.” Lyman adds, “Collectors are giving themselves permission to buy again—at all price levels. And because contemporary decorative arts and design has flown a bit under the radar, the area has yet to be marked by a heavy preponderance of speculative buying and flipping.  Bounce-back sales at SOFA fairs reflect the continuing stability of this market."

Guest in the Ornamentum booth at SOFA NEW YORK 2009

SOFA NEW YORK 2010 Opening Night this year will be Thursday, April 15. Lyman will repeat the successful format of an invitation-only tier beginning at 5:30 pm, with the vernissage open to the public from 7 – 9 pm by ticket purchase. Opening Night attendees may also support New York’s Museum of Arts and Design (MAD) by purchasing a ticket to attend a private dinner in the Armory’s Tiffany Room beginning at 8:30 pm. Lecture Series presentations are planned and will take place in the Armory’s Tiffany Room on Friday, April 16. Also planned for the fair is an expanded VIP Program for upper-level collectors and gallery clients. 

	Michael Eden A Rebours, 2009 Clare Beck at Adrian Sassoon London, UK

Among the premier dealers participating in SOFA NEW YORK 2010 to date are: Clare Beck at Adrian Sassoon, Joanna Bird Pottery and Contemporary Applied Arts from London; Heller Gallery, Joan B. Mirviss, Scott Jacobson Gallery (formerly Leo Kaplan Modern), and Lyons Wier Gallery from New York. Veteran dealer Thea Burger of New York, returns to SOFA NEW YORK to present seminal modernist ceramics by the late Ruth Duckworth. Leading the way in contemporary and mid-century modern furniture and art are Moderne Gallery, from Philadelphia and secondary market dealer, Donna Schneier Fine Arts of Palm Beach. Top dealers in textiles are browngrotta arts of Wilton, CT and bamboo specialist Tai Gallery/Textile Arts of Santa Fe. Art jewelry gallerists include Charon Kransen, Ltd., of New York, Ornamentum of Hudson, NY and Valentin Magro New York. Also of special mention are long-time SOFA venerables: Ferrin Gallery of Pittsfield, MA; Jane Sauer Gallery of Santa Fe, Snyderman-Works of Philadelphia, and Duane Reed Gallery of St. Louis.

Kishi Eiko Rectangular, leaning form with colored clay inlays, 2007 Joan B. Mirviss, Ltd. New York, NY

Lyman is excited by the new dealers comprising 25% of the galleries accepted so far for the fair, including galleries from Belgium, Brazil and Tokyo. New and noteworthy are cross mackenzie gallery of Washington, DC and Schantz Galleries of Stockbridge, MA, a solo debut for Jim Schantz, Holsten Galleries gallery director for 27 years, who recently purchased the Berkshires gallery.   

Lyman concludes, “We are looking forward to a successful SOFA NEW YORK and second annual SOFA WEST: SANTA FE, July 8 - 11, 2010, Opening Night, July 7, at the Santa Fe Convention Center in the city’s historic downtown.”

The Santa Fe fair has moved from June to July to be part of Santa Fe’s high summer season, with the world-acclaimed Santa Fe Opera, and popular Folk Art Market in full swing.

	Ruudt Peters Ornamentum Hudson, NY

Downloadable high-resolution press images are available in the Press Room at www.sofaexpo.com/epress/.

NEW OPENING DATE! SOFA NEW YORK 2010 will be presented April 16 – 19th at the Park Avenue Armory, Park Ave. at 67th. Opening Night, Thursday, April 15: Invitation-only 5:30 – 7 pm; Public Preview 7 – 9 pm, Tickets: $100.00. Opening Night attendees may also support New York’s Museum of Arts and Design (MAD) by purchasing a ticket to attend a private dinner in the Armory’s Tiffany Room beginning at 8:30 pm.  To purchase dinner tickets call Stephanie Lang at 212.299.7729. Exposition hours: Friday, April 16: 11 – 7 pm; Saturday, April 17: 11 – 7 pm; Sunday, April 18: noon – 6 pm; Monday, April 19: 11 – 5 pm. Tickets are $25 for a single day of general admission and $40 for a four-day pass; both include catalog. For general information, visit www.sofaexpo.com; call 800-563-SOFA (7632) or 773-506-8860; or email info@sofaexpo.com.

	SOFA NEW YORK Opening Night Preview, April 15

NEW YORK. April 19, 2009.  Long considered the world's foremost fair for masterworks bridging contemporary decorative, fine art and design, the 12th annual International Sculpture Objects & Functional Art Fair at the Park Avenue Armory enjoyed buoyant sales and steady crowds from the vernissage on April 15 straight through its four day run ending on Sunday, April 19. View a selection of art sold >

An estimated 17,000 collectors, curators, architects, interior designers, art advisors and new enthusiasts took in SOFA NEW YORK, the first produced by its new owner, The Art Fair Company. Founding director of SOFA Mark Lyman recently reacquired the SOFA fairs from dmg world media, along with partner, Michael Franks, Chief Operating Officer of dmg. Lyman says, “We’re delighted that even in this economic downturn, collectors came to buy and many dealers sold well. Michael and I share a deep commitment to SOFA and its potential for growth, and look forward to the successful launch of our new fair, SOFA WEST: Santa Fe this June.”

Pippin Drysdale's work in the Joanna Bird Pottery Booth at SOFA NEW YORK 2009

Even opening SOFA NEW YORK on tax day did not scare off buyers. Over 2,200 persons jammed the vernissage over the course of the evening and many supported The Museum of Arts & Design, New York by attending a benefit cocktail reception held concurrently in the Armory’s Tiffany Room. Plucked up immediately from London dealer Joanna Bird was a Pippin Drysdale 2009 Installation 1, a series of carved, thrown ceramics for $79,000.  As of Saturday, Bird had racked up a dozen significant sales. Nearby, Leo Kaplan Modern of New York sold a Richard Jolley 2009 Still Life for $38,000, while the Chicago Habatat Galleries red-dotted a Shayna Leib glass installation for $46,000, selling close to a staggering 40 percent of its material on offer, including blown and cast glass sculptures by Oben Abright at $38,000 each. “Initially we were concerned about the economic climate but clients are still seeking to buy,” says Michael John Hofer, Habatat’s Assistant Director.

	Miyashita Zenji's work in the Joan B. Mirviss Ltd. booth
	Junko Mori (right) and guest in the Clare Beck at Adrian Sassoon booth. View a video Interview with Junko Mori at SOFA >

Further proof of spirited sales Opening Night was Manhattan dealer Joan Mirviss selling five Miyashita Zenji’s layered, opalescent stoneware priced up to $15,000. Mirviss had 29 sales and of the 19 Miyashita pieces debuted in the United States, only three were left as of noon Sunday. “It’s really startling—more than half the sales were to clients totally new to me. Collectors came from across the US, from California, Minnesota, Massachusetts and Washington, DC. And I was amazed Opening Night at the number of collectors who were not from this hemisphere.”

London dealer Clare Beck showing with the venerable Adrian Sassoon scored banner sales including works by metal artist Junko Mori, such as her large-scale steel 2009 Propagation Project, as well as striking hand-hammered gold and silver vessel forms by Hiroshi Suzuki. “Longtime Belgian collectors flew in for SOFA for the first time,” says Beck, attesting to the international reach of the fair. Sassoon adds, “We’ve sold examples by every single artist, including a large Hiroshi Suzuki, and some work went to collectors of 18th century antiques and art.”

Guest viewing Sergei Isupov and Chris Antemann work in the Ferrin Gallery booth. View a video interview with Chris Antemann at SOFA >

Collectors honed in on the Ferrin Gallery from Pittsfield, Massachusetts, purchasing a total of 15 works including Sergei Isupov’s uncharacteristically monumental 2009 Prelude in stained and glazed stoneware for $40,000. Gallery director Leslie Ferrin also achieved multiple sales during the show run of Chris Antemann’s elegant parodies of classical decorative figurines, including a commission from New York-based interior designer Geoffrey Bradfield, best known for his residential commissions for international art collectors.  Ferrin also secured a commission for a large-scale Gordon Chandler sculpture to be installed as an exterior architectural element at an eastern shore Maryland country home.

	Lia Cook PRESENCE/ABENCE: GATHER browngrotta arts

In addition, curators were acquiring work. For example, the Wilton, Connecticut browngrotta sold Lia Cook’s sculptural hanging textile 1998 Presence/Absence to the Cleveland Museum of Art. The Tai Gallery from Santa Fe achieved a reserve on a contemporary 1980 Richard Landis textile Chaparral at $24,000 to a Midwest museum. “So far 70% of my sales have been to painting collectors who own work by such artists as Gerhard Richter, Picasso and Philip Guston,” says Tai Gallery director Rob Coffland. With the demand for sustainable materials at an all time high, he quickly sold Morigami Jin 2008 Peerless for a five figure sum along with four other examples.

Hans Coper Galerie Besson

Secondary market material was also sought after and Florida dealer Donna Schneier sold a Dan Dailey vessel for $35,000, a large Michael Lucero sculpture, a Bertil Vallien glass sculpture, and three Robert Arneson ceramics. Schneier says, “It wasn’t just glass and ceramic collectors buying work, it was also contemporary art collectors, for example, one collector to whom I delivered a piece had paintings by Jasper Johns, Frank Stella, Sam Francis and Christo.” Galerie Besson of London sold a major Hans Coper 1970 ceramic vessel form for $32,000 and a prized Peter Collingwood textile to a well-known East Hampton collector.

	Lola Brooks' work in Sienna Gallery

Metal artistry from jewelry in gold and silver with precious stones to such far-out materials as spare rocket parts, took off at the Fair.  New dealer Alistair Crawford, who offered his own designs in silver and gold, quickly sold a 18-carat gold and diamond bracelet for $12,800. Then the Cambridge, Massachusetts Mobilia Gallery sold a number of brooches, bracelets and necklaces by artist jewelers as well as a Mariko Kusumoto large metal sculpture for $50,000 to a Midwest collector. The Hudson, New York Ornamentum Gallery sold a Ted Noten acrylic necklace for $27,000 to a Chicago collector, a Sergey Jivetin brooch of fragile egg shells reinforced with Kevlar for $6,000, as well as a necklace of small 18th century European cannon balls for $11,000. Lenox, Massachusetts Sienna Gallery sold artist/designer Lola Brooks’ highest priced piece, a necklace tagged at $10,000 on Opening Night. Clare Beck at Adrian Sassoon sold an Adam Paxon hand-carved acrylic brooch for $8,900. View video interview of Sergey Jivetin at SOFA >

	The SOFA NEW YORK 2009 VIP Lounge

Spotted shopping were prominent contemporary art dealers Sean Kelly, Barry Friedman and Hollis Taggert, collectors Nanette Laitman, Nancy Epstein, Barbara Tober, Charles Bronfman, real estate developer Larry Silverstein, and fashion designers Vera Wang and Mary McFadden. Of the more than 30 designers on the floor were Ellie Cullman, Mario Buatta, Geoffrey Bradfield, Kenneth Alpert, Amy Lau and Suzanne Lovell. David Ling, who designed the stunning SOFA NEW YORK VIP Lounge, spoke at the Thursday morning Designer Breakfast and show preview to a standing-room only crowd of 80 RSVPing interior designers and architects.

Miyashita Zenji lectured Friday, April 17 as part of the SALON SOFA: Lecture Series.

The Salon SOFA program of lectures, artist conversations and book signings also were well attended, with over 400 enthusiasts taking in 9 lectures in the Armory’s Tiffany Room. “The high number of attendees not only confirms the enthusiasm for first-hand knowledge of SOFA artists but also spills over into the sales arena,” says Anne Meszko, Salon SOFA director.  For example, Danish artist Steffan Dam with the Tribeca-based Heller Gallery spoke to a standing- room only crowd and by Saturday, Heller had sold 7 of his cast glass examples.  Attendance in the second annual VIP program was up more than 30 percent to 550 taking in the exclusive events for high-level gallery clients and collector and museum groups, putting SOFA on the same platform as Art Basel. VIPs attending the Fair included membership groups and curators from The Whitney Museum of American Art, The Guggenheim, Museum of Modern Art and Metropolitan Museum of Art

For press images and general information on SOFA Fairs, including art sold, show shots and artist interviews from the 12th annual SOFA NEW YORK 2009 visit www.sofaexpo.com.