What is Frieze Week?

Frieze London opened this week in Regent’s Park, marking one of the biggest moments in the international art calendar.

If you are a new collector and you have heard the name but aren't quite sure what it is: Frieze is an art fair that began in 2003 and has since grown into a global event with fairs in New York, Los Angeles and just announced... Abu Dhabi. For one week every October, London becomes the beating heart of the art world, with galleries, auctions and pop-up exhibitions all opening at once.

It’s an exciting time but here’s the honest truth: as a collector,you don’t need to care about Frieze Week.* For all intents and purposes, it’s a week-long industry party.** *

The fair is buzzing and it is amazing to see so much art in one place, but it’s also fast-paced and often overwhelming. Every year when I visit, I’m also struck by how many people are genuinely engaged, standing in front of works, reading wall texts, clearly interested and yet so often, no one on the stand talks to them.

But here’s the secret: the auction viewings open a week before the fair and all the exhibitions stay open for weeks afterwards. You can visit in your own time, take in the art properly, ask questions and really understand what you’re drawn to. That’s where collecting begins; in those quiet, unhurried moments when a work captures you.

**And, if you’d like some guidance on what to see post-Frieze, or a quick overview of how key works have done at auction, send me an email on katharine@watsonevans.art. **