Image: Battery Maritime Building. © Etienne Frossard and Independent New York.
Independent is pleased to announce its plans for 2021, with a new iteration of the fair alongside new dates and venue. The fair is scheduled to take place from September 9 - 12, 2021 at Cipriani South Street in New York City, a landmark, world class restoration of the Battery Maritime Building due to fully launch later this year.
The 2021 edition of Independent takes its inspiration from Independent Projects, a special edition of the fair at the former Dia Center for the Arts in 2014, which at the time was praised by The New York Times as a “welcome mutation” to the traditional art fair format.
This year’s fair will feature approximately 40 leading international galleries, each invited to present specially commissioned, museum caliber presentations by leading artists that are both relevant and timely to our current moment.
Located at the base of Manhattan with views onto the water, Cipriani South Street is within walking distance of both the Tribeca and Lower East Side gallery neighborhoods. It will provide both exhibitors and visitors with an exemplary art fair experience, with three exhibition halls, a 200+ foot outdoor terrace and an exclusive outdoor cafe and restaurant.
Elizabeth Dee, co-Founder of Independent, states: “2021 is going to be a hybrid year for art and cultural events in New York as we reestablish the city as a global center for contemporary art. On behalf of Independent and the participating galleries, we’re delighted to be co-producing a new edition of the fair in an exceptional, open setting to welcome our loyal collectors and visitors for the first time.”
Matthew Higgs, Founding Curatorial Advisor to Independent, states: “Since its founding more than a decade ago Independent has sought to create a focused context for both artists and galleries alike, one that they actively wish to participate in. Independent seeks to introduce new voices alongside more established practices, creating in turn a tangible conversation among artists - of different generations and intentions - that is both unexpected and original."
Press contacts
For further information about Independent: Sam Talbot, sam@sam-talbot.com
For further information about Cipriani South Street: Stefania Girombelli, SGirombelli@cipriani.com
About Independent
Independent Art Fair is the globally recognized art fair for the international art world community. Our mission is to inspire relevant encounters for a well-informed and devoted Contemporary Art audience. Every year results in a unique fair in New York that is “an art experience, not a shopping experience that sets it apart from the competition” as hailed by The New York Times. Since its inception in 2010, Independent has developed “a near cult status among art world insiders,” as described by The Wall Street Journal. Today, Independent continues to champion artists, innovation, expertise and community as core values in every project–from gallery residencies and exhibitions to the art fair, which takes place annually.
About Cipriani South Street
Housed in the iconic former Battery Maritime Building, Cipriani South Street is an extraordinary venue, reminiscent of the early 1900’s luxury liners or the great Paris expos of the era. The venue will open officially this year, revealing the recently restored Beaux-Arts 1906 complex, that has been in development for several years, under the interior design leadership of Thierry Despont, the mastermind of the recent restorations of The Woolworth Building, the Statue of Liberty, Claridge’s in London and the Ritz in Paris.