ENTHUSIASTIC COLLECTORS PACK SOFA CHICAGO 2005
October 28 – 30, Opening Night: October 27
Festival Hall, Navy Pier

VIEW LIVE UPDATES FROM THE SHOW WITH
ARTWORK SOLD AND IMAGES FROM THE EXPOSITION

Guests enjoy SOFA CHICAGO 2005 Opening Night Preview.

October 30, 2005. The 12^th Annual International Exposition of Sculpture Objects & Functional Art: SOFA CHICAGO 2005 opened Thursday night with a tremendous surge of serious buyers and energy. Ann Nathan of Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago said the show floor was “Packed! Loaded with expectation and enthusiasm.” “Phenomenal Opening Night!” said Leslie Ferrin of Ferrin Gallery, Lenox, MA.

Dan Dailey (right) with his sold artwork in the Leo Kaplan Modern booth at SOFA CHICAGO 2005.

“Opening Night was spectacular,” said Terry Davidson of Leo Kaplan Modern, New York, NY. “Best we’ve ever had. We had people in the booth at 5:01 pm. It was amazing—a very focused group of buyers.” Major sales Opening Night included works from new series by Kaplan artists Dan Dailey and Richard Jolley.

Steve Rosenzweig of John Natsoulas Gallery, Davis, CA said, “Probably the best opening in the history of SOFA. I don’t know one dealer who was disappointed. The largest Opening of qualified buyers at any art fair I’ve ever experienced.”

Ivan Mares On Edge, 2005 Glass, 20.5 x 43.75 x 9" Heller Gallery, New York, NY

Katya Heller translating for Ivan Mares in his lecture.

Douglas Heller of Heller Gallery, New York, NY said, “The Opening was a wonderful experience—it was also very good business.” In a repeat performance of SOFA CHICAGO 1999, Heller Gallery sold every piece of an outstanding new body of cast glass sculpture by Czech artist, Ivan Mares—with a waiting list for new pieces. Heller said, “Ivan invests an extraordinary amount of time in creating a single piece, often 9 months, as much as two years, because he takes such risks technically and aesthetically. Great achievements involve great risks.” One Mares sculpture was purchased for the permanent collection of National Gallery of Australia. Heller said the illustrated talk given by Mares and attended by 140 persons in the SOFA Lecture Series created strong collector interest because “the audience recognized the presence and soul of a true artist.”

An astounding 3100 persons attended 32 Lecture Series presentations on Friday and Saturday. Anne Meszko, Director of Programming said, “I’m very proud of the audience at SOFA CHICAGO for seeking out a broader understanding of the artists and their artworks, and the wide range of theory and techniques behind them.”

Lino Tagliapietra Dinosaur Heller Gallery, New York, NY	Dale Chihuly artwork in Holsten Galleries booth at SOFA CHICAGO 2005.

Crowds at the exposition remained steady throughout the weekend and included an increased number of collectors from overseas. Holsten Galleries, Stockbridge, MA once again mounted a gorgeous presentation of new glass art by Lino Tagliapietra and Dale Chihuly. Jim Schantz of Holsten said, “We had a spectacular Opening Night. SOFA is a destination for many of our clients...and we sold work to new clients from as far away as New Zealand.”

John McQueen Grizzly, 2005 Sticks and string, 17 x 24 x 17" Perimeter Gallery, Chicago

Frank Paluch reported that Perimeter Gallery, Chicago had a very successful show, which included the sale of a new narrative ceramic by Jack Earl, and a major textile sculpture by John McQueen entitled Grizzly, purchased by the Long Beach Museum of Art in California.

Judith Schaechter Patron Saint of Circus Apes Day Parade, 2000, Stained glass panel in light box (triptych) Snyderman-Works Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

A major sale at Snyderman-Works Gallery, Philadelphia was Judith Schaechter's triptych stained glass panel in a light box, Patron Saint of Circus Apes Day Parade, purchased by The Museum of Arts & Design, New York, NY. Rick Snyderman said this SOFA CHICAGO was “the best we’ve ever had.”

Michael Lucero She-Devil, 2005 Ceramic with yarn and glazes Donna Schneier Fine Arts, New York, NY

Leonard Goldberg of Donna Schneier Fine Arts, New York, NY said, “We’ve had an excellent, excellent show.” Sales included a Stanislav Libensky/ Jaroslava Brychtova cast glass sculpture, two large-scale Viola Frey ceramic sculptures, and three major Michael Lucero ceramics including She-Devil, purchased as a promised gift to the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

Tobias Møhl with his sold artwork in the Galleri Grønlund booth at SOFA CHICAGO 2005.

Buyers showed their appreciation for the contemporary expressions of Scandinavian design at four top Danish galleries. Anne Merete Grønlund of Galleri Grønlund, Copenhagen said, “We had a great Opening Night! Sales exceeded the whole of last year’s. A huge success! We’ve very satisfied and coming back next year with a bigger booth.” Top sellers were the “glass weavings” of Tobias Møhl and the perforated bowl forms with their marvelous shadows of Steffan Dam.

Jenny Edlund Vessel Silver Galleri Nørby, Copenhagen, Denmark	Bodil Manz Untitled, 2005 Porcelain, 10 x 14 x 9.25 Galleri Nørby, Copenhagen, Denmark

Other participating Danish galleries also did very well. On Saturday morning, Bettina Koppe of Galleri Nørby, said, “We are so pleased. We’ve done as well today as all of last year.” Top sellers at Galleri Nørby were the delicately translucent bowls by the master of eggshell porcelain, Bodil Manz. Galerie Tactus enjoyed key sales of European holloware, including two silver Vessels by Sweden’s Jenny Edlund, new to SOFA this year. View Jenny Edlund speaking about her work. (quicktime video)

Mo Jupp Tall Blue Standing Figure, 2005 Earthenware Galerie Besson, London, UK	Philip Eglin Oliver's Cranach Nudes, 2005 Ceramic and glazes Galerie Besson, London, UK

A key sale at Galerie Besson, London was Tall Standing Blue Figure by Mo Jupp, whose work Galerie Besson premiered for the first time at SOFA this year. Also selling well were subtly colored hand-built stoneware vessels by Jennifer Lee, who also spoke in a well-attended Lecture Series presentation. Philip Eglin was the top seller at Barrett Marsden Gallery, London, including Reclining Nude, and a major Eglin “bucket” entitled Oliver’s Cranach Nudes.

Jose Chardiet Totem, 1990 Blown, cast and pated glass, 11 x 8 x 36" Wexler Gallery, Philadelphia, PA	Betty Woodman Greek Vase with Shadow, 1984 Glazed ceramic, 24" high Wexler Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

On Saturday morning, Lewis Wexler of Wexler Gallery, Philadelphia said, “The market for historic contemporary glass is very strong at SOFA. We’ve had a very successful day and a half of the show!” Sales included early pieces by José Chardiet, Dan Dailey and Frantisek Vizner. Franklin Parrasch Gallery, New York, NY also enjoyed key secondary market sales of major ceramic works by Betty Woodman, Peter Voulkos, Richard DeVore and Ken Price.

Other top sales at SOFA CHICAGO (VIEW SOLD ARTWORK IN LIVE UPDATES)

• John Cederquist’s 2005 Breakfast at Plutos, various woods and inks at Franklin Parrasch Gallery, New York, NY;
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• Five deeply reflective cast glass sculptures by Petr Hora (right) at Habatat Galleries, MI;
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	• Gathering Storm by William Hunter of rare cocobolo wood at Del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles;
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• Three mystical sand cast glass sculptures by Bertil Vallien at Marx-Saunders Gallery, Ltd., Chicago;
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• Three large figurative ceramics by Hawaii’s Esther Shimazu (left) at John Natsoulas Gallery, Davis, CA;
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•Fantastic steel, glass and bronze Cocktail Table by Albert Paley at Hawk Galleries, Columbus, OH;
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• Triptych abstract color-field textile by Barbara Lee Smith entitled Soundings II at Snyderman-Works Galleries, Philadelphia;
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• Two major ceramic wall pieces by Jun Kaneko at Sherry Leedy Contemporary Art, Kansas City, MO;
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• Three ceramic and mixed media sculptures by Cristina Cordova at Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago;
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• Patrick Hall’s (right) narrative aluminum cabinetry at Despard Gallery, Hobart, Tasmania;
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• Spring Tide, bamboo by Fujinuma Noboru at Tai Gallery/Textile Arts, Santa Fe, NM;
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• Antique ceramics from the Olmec Culture of Mexico and Colima Culture of South Columbia at William Seigal Galleries, Santa Fe, NM;
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• Major sandblasted stoneware vessels by the late Robert Turner at Helen Drutt: Philadelphia/Hurong Lou Gallery;

Michael Sherrill sector in the booth of Ferrin Gallery, Lenox, MA at SOFA CHICAGO 2005.

By all accounts—from SOFA visitors to key curators, designers and collectors—the galleries and dealers at SOFA CHICAGO outdid themselves this year with inventive booth architecture and design. The stunning stand of Ferrin Gallery, Lenox, MA included a custom-built section for Michael Sherrill’s voluptuous plant forms of clay and metal, whose works Ferrin said “are the most ambitious to date.” On Saturday, Ferrin said this SOFA CHICAGO has been the “Best ever. The artists we presented are reaching the mature phases of their works and careers. They’ve mastered their techniques and ideas and are able to devote serious time to one piece or a body of work.” Major sales included Foreteller by Sergei Isupov.

Rudy Autio Mankato, 2003 Stoneware, 35 x 31 x 27" R. Duane Reed Gallery, New York, NY

Duane Reed of R. Duane Reed Gallery, New York, NY said, “This is our 12^th SOFA CHICAGO and our most successful show ever. We took more booth space this time and were fearful of the risk. But we cleared our costs on Opening Night and enjoyed equal sales on Friday and Saturday, with 50-50 split between new and old clients, which is fantastic. We’re incredibly happy. It’s been unbelievable.” A major sale at R. Duane Reed was a very large Rudy Audio Mankato.

Hank Murta Adams Consultant, 2005 Cast glass, patinated copper, 39 x 11 x 14" Elliott Brown Gallery, Seattle, WA

Kate Elliott of Elliott Brown Gallery, Seattle, WA, who has exhibited in arts expositions produced by Mark Lyman since 1984 agreed that this SOFA CHICAGO was “one of the best fairs ever. It has been really good, with a balance of new and old clients.” Top sales at Elliott Brown were two large “Village People”—cast glass and patinated copper heads by Hank Murta Adams.

Mark Lyman, president and founder of SOFA said, "SOFA has become part of the life of Chicago and an annual destination. It was a spectacular show."