The Crafts Council announced that COLLECT 2010, the leading international art fair for contemporary objects, will return to the Saatchi Gallery on London’s Kings Road from May 14 – 17, 2010. Now in its seventh year, COLLECT has established itself as the event to view and buy the best in contemporary craft. Over 10,000 visitors attended COLLECT 2009, with international private collectors and public institutions, including the V&A and the National Museums of Scotland, making significant acquisitions.
Following on from last year’s success, COLLECT has seen a significant increase in the number of exhibitor applicants for the fair in 2010, making this year’s selection process fiercely competitive. This year some 300 artists will exhibit work at COLLECT, representing 36 galleries from the UK and Ireland, Central Europe and Scandinavia as well as the United States, Japan and Australia. First-time exhibitors for 2010 include the Netherland’s Flatland Gallery and London’s Galerie Besson. COLLECT 2010 is also delighted to welcome back Swedish gallery blås&knåda, London-based Cockpit Arts, Ruthin Craft Centre from Wales and Liverpool’s Bluecoat Display Centre. COLLECT 2010 will present both established artists and new talent, covering all disciplines: ceramics, glass, jewellery, silver and fine metalwork, textiles, and wood and furniture.
COLLECT 2010 will also feature an exciting programme of events and activities, details of which will be announced in late March 2010.
Art Fund Collect
COLLECT 2010 also sees the return of Art Fund Collect, an initiative launched by the Crafts Council and The Art Fund, the UK’s leading independent art charity, in 2008 and now in its third year. For 2010 the fund will again be £75,000, allowing a shortlist of curators to select significant works by artists and makers of international status, taking the total over its three years to £200,000. The successful applicants will be announced at the private view on Thursday, May 13, 2010.
