CIRCA PR 2009

Circa 2008

CIRCA PR, the premier Caribbean and Central American international art fair will celebrate its fourth edition from April 17 - 20, 2009, at the Puerto Rico Convention Center in San Juan. Since its inception in 2006, CIRCA PR has become an important stop within the annual international contemporary art itinerary, offering a platform for promoting regional artists and galleries, and facilitating collaborative and exchange relationships with the rest of the world.

Our magazine spoke with Roberto Jose Nieves, its director, about the next edition of the fair.

Roberto Jose Nieves: “CIRCA PR is a small, sophisticated art fair.”

WAM - In less than three years CIRCA PR has become a fair notable for its organization and the quality of participating gallery offerings. Tell us how it all started, and what the goals of CIRCA PR are.

RJN - First and foremost, I am a businessman. Looking for new business ventures, I was driven creatively towards the art world, which at the time lacked a suitable platform that would provide real exposure for artists and galleries in the entire Caribbean region. Putting together a team of specialists, who felt the same passion for the project, was the key to success. That is how Elvis Fuentes, now curator at the Museo del Barrio, Curator Celina Nogueras Cuevas, and publicist Anabelle Lampón came together and alongside me conceived the idea of launching this unique art fair.

In a way it was a logical move, as there is a strong breed of private collectors in Puerto Rico, many of them quite well-known internationally. Furthermore, CIRCA PR aims to make contemporary art accessible to increased strata of Puerto Rican society, so in this sense it has strong pedagogical input, and also supports the intense local art scene with many young emerging artists like, Melvin Martínez, Bubu Negrón, Chemi Rosado, Allora & Calzadilla, and many others. A group of people from TATE MODERN visited the island, as well as collectors like the Rubells, and CIRCA PR surely had something to do with that, and with putting Puerto Rico on the competitive art scene map. 

WAM - What were the results of CIRCA PR 08?

RJN - To such a direct question, and given the transparency that distinguishes the CIRCA PR team, the answer is simple: reported sales reached the 3.5 million dollar mark, which - in view of the notable global economic crisis and compared to our last edition - represents a sustained level of sales for this year. Also, attendance of the general public increased from 12,000 to 15,000.

OPEN CALL: SOLO PROJECTS AND CIRCA LABS

WAM - What will CIRCA offer in 2009? Can you give us any details about next year’s program? Will there be specially-curated sections at the fair?

RJN - Of course there is the “General Program” open to galleries with an international focus on Modern and Contemporary art, especially young emerging art. In addition to that, we have two curated sections: SOLO PROJECTS and CIRCA LABS.

SOLO PROJECTS is a section curated by Paco Barragán featuring solo artist exhibitions presented either by galleries or by individual artists, who respond to an open call, and are selected via “application” by the section’s curator. This year’s theme, “Painting as a state of mind,” reflects on how painting relates and interacts with other media like photography, video, installation, performance, sculpture, and the digital realm, on any kind of support. The whole idea behind it is that painting may well be a state of mind.

CIRCA LABS is curated by Celina Nogueras Cuevas and functions as a more experimental and alternative cutting-edge art space that complements the art fair scenario. Set in containers outside the CIRCA Puerto Rico ‘09 exhibition hall, it becomes a laboratory of ideas where individual artists, galleries or institutions respond to an open call, and are selected via “application” by the section’s curator. The CIRCA 09 theme is: “In a Nutshell: What’s all the fuzz about Public Art?“

WAM - Previous editions have included the presence of North American, Latin American, and European galleries, and last year we even recall the participation of an Australian gallery. What’s foreseen for 2009?

RJN - Puerto Rico is geographically located in the Caribbean; that’s a fact, and it provides the visitor with a magnificent experience due to its wonderful weather and the variety of activities available at such close proximity to one another. It’s a proven fact that CIRCA is very appealing to Europeans who love the sassiness of the “Boricuas,” as well as favorable exchange rates.

So, you will find not only galleries like Jacobo Karpio, Walter Otero, and Casas Riegner from Puerto Rico and Latin America, but also galleries like Samson Projects from Boston, Hamish Morrison and Brot & Spiel from Berlin, Marta Cervera from Madrid, the French Air de Paris, or even BreenSpace from Sydney. We expect more or less the same distribution of galleries for the 09 edition.

“CHAMBRES DES COLLECTIONNEURS” AND COLLECTORS’ PROGRAM

WAM - As you have stated before, and what many people in the art world may not know, is that there is quite a strong group of private collectors in Puerto Rico that has been collecting for many years now.

RJN - In the past few years, in response to the bourgeoning and dynamic artistic community, an important group of private collectors has emerged in Puerto Rico mirroring both local and international trends, among which are: Diana and Moisés Berezdivin, María and Alberto de la Cruz, César Reyes, Margarita Serapión and John Belk, Pedro and Cheti Muñoz Marín, Rosalía and Humberto Ugobono, Mara and Javier Méndez, Dinorah and Horacio Campolietto, Millie and Luis Gutiérrez, María Olga and Ramón Luis Lugo, and Milly and Chilo Andreu.

In cooperation with these collectors and in homage to Jan Hoet’s Chambres d’Amis (1986), during CIRCA, the section “Chambres des Collectionneurs” offers a unique opportunity to visit private collections. In the 08 edition we visited the Carlos Trápaga Collection, Pepe Álvarez, Luis Gutiérrez, Ugobono Collection, and Horacio Campolietto.

So, this makes CIRCA PR unique, and offers the possibility of visiting private houses and having more personal and direct contact with collectors. This is the advantage of creating a small, intimate art fair. 

WAM - What is the collector profile you seek for CIRCA PR? Do you have a program aimed at promoting participation of both local and international collectors?

RJN - Instead of answering that myself, I would like to quote Artnet’s editor, Walter Robinson: “Well-organized and welcoming, Circa PR 08 presented an intimate collection of mostly emerging but sophisticated art.” We are particularly interested in young collectors who can buy “emerging and sophisticated art” at CIRCA PR at very good prices before these young artists skyrocket to fame. Such was the case not only with Melvin Martínez, but also with other artists like Sandra Gamarra, Sophia Schama, and Changha Hwang.

On the other hand, we are trying to get a new breed of collectors off the ground on the island. We already have a nice group of collectors, but we’re aware that we still need to attract foreign collectors to the island, and that’s one of our main goals for the CIRCA PR 09 edition.

As you have seen and experienced, we have a tailored VIP Program that besides visits to private collectors’ houses, also hosts visits to artists’ studios, museum openings, and parties, in order to make Puerto Rico the ultimate experience for the visiting collector and art lover, who can at the same time enjoy the unique scene of Old San Juan.

MIAMI AS PHENOMENON

WAM - And Miami?  How would you interpret what’s happening in Miami with the launch of ABMB?

RJN - It’s amazing what has happened to Miami since the advent of Art Basel Miami Beach. It has changed the whole city and it has put Miami totally on the map. Besides, Miami is a city that has many other things to offer, like good weather, a notable club scene, and this edgy-kitschy atmosphere that people like for a change. I’m not sure if this whole phenomenon has become too excessive; the market will determine that.

But of course, Miami is important to us, and for collectors in Miami, flying to Puerto Rico is very easy, with fast access to all kinds of amenities, and everything being close by. In a way, we are “a Miami in miniature,” but with the advantage that everything is more intimate, and smaller, and has more charm. The only thing I could say is that maybe everything is too concentrated around those two weeks in December, and the rest of the year Miami practically doesn’t exist.  

WAM - We are experiencing an excess of art fairs, not only in Miami. How do you envision the future of art fairs?

RJN - Well, if you ask me how I see the future of art fairs, I have to answer that many existing fairs will be like CIRCA PR: fairs clearly positioned, between 30-60 commercial galleries, providing a calmer albeit intellectually-challenging scale, allowing gallerists, collectors and other art professionals to interact on a more personal one-to-one basis.

WAM - In 2009 what will CIRCA offer as an event, as a cultural experience, to its non-collector public?

RJN - Circa PR is complemented by Puerto Rico’s playful scenery of unrivaled beaches, unsurpassed landscapes, the singular charm of Old San Juan with its bars and restaurants, the welcoming character of our people, and a deliciously warm climate. So, it provides a great opportunity to see art while touring and experiencing a beautiful island.