ARCOlisboa, a decade of commitment to the city and contemporary art
The 9th edition of the fair will take place from 28 to 31 May at the Cordoaria Nacional and will feature 86 galleries from 19 countries.
ARCOlisboa, the International Contemporary Art Fair organised by IFEMA MADRID and the Câmara Municipal de Lisboa, will hold its 9th edition from 28 to 31 May at the Cordoaria Nacional. This will mark ten years of the fair’s presence and commitment to the city, once again establishing the Portuguese capital as a major artistic and cultural focal point in Europe and a meeting place for collectors, gallery owners, artists and professionals from around the world.
The close collaboration between IFEMA MADRID and the Câmara Municipal de Lisboa has enabled ARCOlisboa to grow steadily while strengthening its identity and standing within the art calendar. This is reflected in the participation of 86 galleries from 19 countries, including a strong Portuguese presence of 30 galleries, accounting for 35% of the total, alongside a robust international line-up of 56 galleries.
The General Programme, comprising 63 galleries selected by the Organising Committee, forms the core of the fair. This is complemented by Opening Lisboa, a section curated by Sofía Lanusse and Diogo Pinto, and assisted by Sofia Montanha, which brings together 17 galleries championing new artistic languages and spaces. New to this edition is Archipelago of Art Histories, a project led by Cosmin Costinas that explores the lineages and inherited forms of knowledge shaping contemporary practice. This project will feature the participation of 6 galleries.
Art programme
At the heart of the fair is the General Programme, which has expanded this year to include galleries taking part for the first time, such as Marcelo Guarnieri, Aninat and AA Gallery. A number of participants have returned after being absent for a few editions, including Juan Silió and CarrerasMugica, while others, such as Salgadeiras, Ackerman Clarke and Río & Meñaka, are joining the general section after participating in Opening Lisboa last year. They join the stalwarts 3+1 Arte Contemporânea, Kubikgallery, Cristina Guerra Contemporary Art, Francisco Fino, Pedro Cera, Vera Cortês, as well as Ehrhardt Flórez, Each Modern, Leandro Navarro, Sabrina Amrani, Zeller Van Almsick and Consonni Radziszewski, among others.
SOLO projects, which form part of the General Programme, will also be featured, offering an in-depth look at the work of international artists. These include Susana Rocha -ATM-, Gloria Martín Montaño -Galería Silvestre-, Vanessa da Silva -Duarte Sequeira-, Christian Lagata -Artnueve-, Catarina Real -Angeles Baños-, Sandra Mar -Rosa Santos-, Francisco Correia -Nave-, Virgilio -José de la Mano-, Carsten Fock -Zeller Van Almsick-.
Meanwhile, the Opening Lisboa section will explore new artistic languages and spaces in order to attract new content to the fair. In this vein, the programme will provide an opportunity to explore offerings from returning galleries such as Chilli, Dialogue and Enhorabuena Espacio, as well as new participants Heliconia Projects, Plato, Remota, Salón Silicón and Vision Art Platform.
This edition’s artistic programme is rounded off with the new Archipelago of Art Histories, project, which brings together artists committed to using inherited forms to question how knowledge is transmitted. This includes Irene Chou -Galerie du Monde-, Gabriel Chaile -NVS-, Nadia Taquary -Portas Vilaseca- and Tsherin Sherpa -Rossi & Rossi-.
Organised by EGEAC, an anthological exhibition by Jorge Martins will be hosted on the ground floor of the Torreão Nascente da Cordoaria Nacional. For its part, the Torreão Poente will present TRÊS. As coleções da Fundação EDP: an exhibition marking the 10th anniversary of the MAAT.
ArtsLibris is once again present at ARCOlisboa with some thirty national and international exhibitors. Located in the Torreão Nascente, access is free for the general public. Contemporary art magazines will also play a leading role in this space.
As usual, the fair will host various initiatives to recognise artistic creation by awarding different prizes such as the Fundação Millennium bcp Award for the Best Stand and the Opening Lisboa Award.
With the support of Fundação Millennium and EGEAC, ARCOlisboa will once again present Millennium Art Talks, featuring talks on collecting, patronage and the content of the fair’s curated sections, amongst other topics. The programme will feature sessions organised by DGArtes and WAAU.
This space will be located in the Torreão Nascente of the Cordoaria Nacional and will host presentations and debates on artists’ publications, photobooks, self-publishing and digital publications as part of the ArtsLibris Speakers’ Corner programme.
The general public will also have the chance to enjoy this special encounter with contemporary art from Friday 29 to Sunday 31 May. To make the fair even more accessible, visitors under 25 can enter free of charge from 17:00 to 21:00 on 29 and 30 May.
This edition of ARCOlisboa will feature a new lounge designed by Lisbon Design Week. Located at the main entrance to the Cordoaria, it has been conceived as a rest area and meeting point for visitors, gallerists and professionals.
Exhibitions in Lisbon
Lisbon joins hands with contemporary art to coincide with ARCOlisboa and, alongside the main local art institutions, will host – in parallel to the fair – a cultural programme for both Portuguese and international guests that will include openings and visits to exhibitions and private collections, among other events.
The city's main museums showcase interesting exhibitions, including the Museo de Arte, Arquitectura y Tecnología (MAAT), Centro de Arte Moderna Gulbenkian (CAM), Museu Nacional De Arte Contemporânea (MNAC), Museu de Arte Contemporânea do Centro Cultural de Belém (MAC/CCB), Museu de Arte Contemporânea Armando Martins (MACAM), Coleção de Arte Contemporânea do Estado (CACE), and various institutions that establish Lisbon as a key destination on the international art scene, such as the EGEAC galleries.
ARCOlisboa is jointly organised by IFEMA MADRID and the Câmara Municipal de Lisboa, with the local coordination of the production company Café Pessoa - Cultural Strategies, and is supported by the Ministério da Cultura, DGARTES, Turismo de Portugal I.P; Turismo de Lisboa e Direcção Geral da Marinha, the patronage of Fundação EDP and the sponsorship of Fundação Millennium BCP, Fundação Vasco Vieira de Almeida, MEXTO Property Investment, WAAU (World African Artists United), Bellissimo Cafés / Marca Grupo Nabeiro, Artworks, Ruinart, Valor Pneu, Herdade Aldeia de Cima, Quinta Nova, Taboadella, Dazzle, Me Lisbon by Meliã, El Corte Inglés and Viúva Lamego.