What to watch out for at Art15

Now in its third year, Art15 returns to Kensington’s Olympia from 21–23 May, with a new fair director in the form of Kate Bryan, previously head of contemporary art at the Fine Art Society. With a strong focus on international art, some 150 galleries from 40 countries are represented – more than half of the dealers have spaces outside Europe – and the work on show encompasses both modern and contemporary.

Pussy Riot butterfly (Nadya Martha and Katya) (2013), Stella Vine. Cob Gallery

Many of the galleries are offering in-depth solo presentations – London’s Cob Gallery presents Stella Vine; Hong Kong’s 10 Chancery Lane mounts a Huang Rui show – and this curatorial rigour is reflected more widely in the fair’s commissioning of two major projects. The show ‘Freedom Audit’, curated by Kathleen Soriano, former director of exhibitions at the Royal Academy, questions ideas of freedom in light of current world events, while a new digital commission headed by Valentina Fois, invites two artists – Émilie Gervais and Sara Ludy – to ‘perform’ a digital artwork live at the fair.

Last Illusions 09 (2015), Joël Andrianomearisoa. Sabrina Amrani

In addition to its commitment to showing work from the burgeoning Asian market – this year, nine Taiwanese galleries are participating – the fair also supports the up-and-coming. Jonathan Watkins, director of Birmingham’s Ikon Gallery, is the curatorial adviser for the Emerge section, which considers the notion of ‘emerging’ in broad terms – from markets, to artists, to galleries, and features among the latter Madrid-based Sabrina Amrani and London’s Bosse & Baum. The London First section, meanwhile, provides young galleries with a strong platform in the capital. The fair is accompanied by a wide-ranging series of talks, alongside a section dedicated to non-profit institutions.

A few more highlights from the main fair…

Art15 is at Olympia, London, 21–23 May.