Global travel fears affect Los Angeles-based art shows - Show news - Brief Article

LOS ANGELES--For art dealers and exhibitors at worldwide art fairs, international travel can be a hassle in the best of times. In these times, it can be a deal breaker. Although several Los Angeles-area fall art shows proceeded as scheduled, they were short of some of their international exhibitors. And for one debuting art expo, the events of Sept. 11 forced a suspension of its inaugural outing.

"All of our foreign exhibitors cancelled after Sept. 11th," said Eric Smith, vice president of expositions for Pfingsten Publishing LLP, organizer of what was to be the first-annual Los Angeles International Art Fair bowing Nov. 29. "We had 39 exhibitors, and 20 of them cancelled." As a result, said Smith, "we've postponed the show until 2002." It's now slated for Nov. 14 to 18, at the Barker Hanger in Santa Monica.

However, both the 10th-annual Arts of Pacific Asia Show and the 21st-annual Festival of Jewish Artisans were presented as scheduled. Organizers reported surprisingly high attendance at the former fair and strong sales at both.

The Jewish artists' exposition, held Nov. 17 to 18, is this country's premiere exhibit and sale of contemporary Judaica, and brought to Los Angeles more than 30 artists and artisans from all over the U.S. and the world, including 18 from Israel. Although the juried festival usually only includes two or three Israeli artists, said festival co-chair Susan Needelman, this year "we're trying to support Israeli artists who are feeling the effects of decreased tourism."

Although attendance was down, several of the exhibitors, including silversmith Emil Shenfeld of Israel, did very well. Needelman also observed, "This year people bought more religious and strictly functional items, such as prayer shawls and candle holders, rather than purely decorative items."

These sentiments were echoed by exhibitors at the Arts of Pacific Asia Show, held Oct. 4 to 7 at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. Cari Markell, co-owner of Silk Roads Design Gallery in Los Angeles, noted increased interest in spiritual and religious items from Asia, especially statues of the Buddha, Bodhisattvas and Guanyin. "In our experience, the Arts of Pacific Asia Show has traditionally attracted buyers who were more interested in decorative items," said Markell. "At this year's show, visitors were seeking the spirituality behind their pieces."

According to show organizer Elizabeth Lees, of Caskey & Lees in Los Angeles, "Many vendors were wary that the pall of recent events would overshadow consumer interest, yet the turn-out proved the opposite to be true." Total attendance for the show run was 4,853 visitors.

Still, the Pacific Asia Show was short several scheduled vendors. Suzy Lebasi, owner of Soo Tze Oriental Antiques in Melbourne, Australia, decided at the last minute to pull up stakes and not make the trip. "It was really quite sad. I really wanted to do the show," Lebasi explained. "But we were nervous about the travel after Sept. 11. Then, when they started talking about germ warfare, it just got to be too much."

"But I love doing the shows in the States," Lebasi added. "We're all going to meet again in New York in the spring." The New York Arts of Pacific Asia Show is slated for March 21 to 24.

On the other hand, Eric Thomsen, a private dealer of Japanese ceramics, metalwork and paintings in Bensheim, Germany, thought carefully about his travel plans and then got on a plane. "Sept. 11 has changed everything. I thought hard about whether or not I should go. I went by myself, leaving my wife and kids at home--but I'm so glad I did go, because it was a very good show," Thomsen said.

"In fact, people really appreciated that I made the long trip and that I had good quality pieces with me. Many people actually thanked me for coming," he noted. Indeed, the appreciation translated to cash.

"My sales were up 30 percent" from Thomsen's prior outing at the Arts of Pacific Asia Show. "I'll be in San Francisco next spring. I'm confident my upward trend will continue," he added.

Of course, the events of Sept. 11 haven't been far from anyone's mind in recent months. Proceeds from the Pacific Asia Show's Oct. 7, gala were donated by Caskey & Lees to the New York State World Trade Center Relief Fund, a non-profit charity formed to provide aid to the families, rescuers and others directly affected by New York's tragic incidents. Caskey & Lees also produced the Los Angeles Tribal, Folk & Textile Art Show in November and donated proceeds from its Nov. 11 show date to the same charitable cause.

Meanwhile, planning proceeds for another international art show in Southern California slated for the springtime. The third-annual Palm Springs International Art Fair will go forward as scheduled March 14 to 18, according to Smith of Pfingsten Publishing LLP. "It's co-sponsored by the City of Palm Springs and Palm Springs Life magazine, and the opening reception will benefit the Desert AIDS Project," Smith said. For this show, the global art dealers have at press time confirmed that they will be in attendance, he said.

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