Swab Barcelona

Swab is the only Contemporary Art Fair founded by an art collector, Joaquin Diez-Cascón, this offers a unique vision for both the visitors and the final buyers.

Our proposal is to break with the elitist and hermetic idea that often surrounds the contemporary art scene, making it more accessible to the general public.

Swab wants to be a Fair that discovers.The place where to find artworks never seen at other Fairs. That is why its selection committee is formed by gallery directors and art professionals. At Swab, the process of selection is based on searching and following from any dicipline artists’ works that represents in particular ways the emergent art tendencies of their countries. Swab combines the participation at the Fair by invitation and by application.

Swab keeps its origins based on creating opportunities for emerging galleries, artists and cutators that are beginig their art careers. One of our objectives is to offer them access to the art market, something difficult to do in the current situation and its endogamic trends.

Following this premise on 2011 MYFAF was created. It gives the opportunity for new galleries that had never participated in Art Fairs to present their program, sponsored completely by Swab.

Swab not only supports emergent art in the creation field. It also, wants to promote contemporary art collections, making the initiation easier through the participation of young artists with affordable works. These new art collectors are fundamental to keep the art market in our country alive and to guarantee its continuity.

SWAB BARCELONA KEY POINTS

1. Break with the elitist art world making it accessible to people.

2. Discover, innovate and avoid repetition.

3. Invitation and application: Emerging art is the protagonist.

4. Supporting up-and-coming galleries.

5. To create opportunities for galleries, artists and curators.

6. Initiate new art collectors.

ABOUT SWAB BARCELONA

SWAB Barcelona was founded in 2006 by the initiative of the Contemporary Art Space Diezy7 private collection in Barcelona, from the beginning the Fair has had the support of important national and international galleries and it is supported by the City Council of Barcelona and the Generalitat de Catalunya.

-2007 the first Swab edition was created, with the participation of 42 galleries from 13 different countries. 6,000 visitors enjoyed the first International Contemporary Art Fair in the cultural scene of Barcelona.

-2008 SWAB consolidates its position in the international scene offering together 38 emerging galleries from 11 countries. The number of visitors increased to 8,000.

-After a needed break in 2010 Swab Barcelona International Art Fair came back with the participation of 32 galleries from 11 countries. Moving to a new location, in the Italian Pavilion, became a great success with more than 13,000 visitors.

-Swab Barcelona 2011 exceeded the expectations getting the influx of more than 15,000 visitors, offering new and different activities and spaces promoting national and international Emerging Contemporary Art. Its fourth edition involved the participation of 48 galleries from 15 countries. In 2011 SWAB introduced a new program of complementary activities in order to transcend the stage of the fair to the rest of the city:

SWAB OFF, program of activities around the city of Barcelona.

All these initiatives had the cooperation of different institutions, private companies and Artistic platforms of the city of Barcelona; the aim was to enhance visibility to emerging contemporary art and bring it closer to citizens.

-The 2012 Swab Barcelona edition had the presence of more galleries than any other previous edition, with 64 galleries from 20 different countries making of Swab 2012 an important meeting point for Emerging Contemporary Art on the international scene.

New activities were incorporated in the Swab Off program, like the BAD (Barcelona Art District) which gave the opportunity to more than 20 urban artists to paint 200 linear meters of city walls and the Swab Stairs project with TMB collaboration.

-In 2013 Swab presented its sixth edition and a change of dates and location, returning to the Italian pavilion from 3 to 6 October. This change worked out very favorably, becoming the consolidation of the show in the international emerging art scene.

52 galleries from 18 countries and more than 15,000 visitors both local and international made Swab sixth edition a great success, having 75% revenue in sales for the participating galleries. A new curator’s program to attract galleries from countries like Lebanon and Israel was created.

In addition, Swab was reaffirmed as a momentum space for young artists through competitions as Swab Stairs or As Sun As contest Possible by Volkswagen that gave design students the opportunity to showcase their creations.

The Collectors Program had the participation of a group of 40 national and international collectors which during three days they enjoyed Barcelona and exclusive visits to private collections and art institutions of the city.

Swab Barcelona Awards expanded this year to five important awards. The already stablished Drawing Prize by Diezy7 Collection, the Award for the Best Gallery by Fundación Banco Sabadell, the Mango Award for the Best Young Artist, Photography Award by Volkswagen and a new one: The Art Idea Award by Marset.

These awards have had a jury formed of personalities from the world of art, as European commissioners, directors of foundations, international gallery owners, among others.

-The Seventh edition 2014, consolidates the new dates, from 2 to 5 October 2014, holding the socation in the Italian Pavilion at Fira de Barcelona, 60 galleries and a big number of visitors from over 18,000 maintaining galleries sales success by 75%.

Continuation of programs like MYFAF are growing and incorporating more international programs like Swab Solo, consisting of Latin American galleries curated by Direlia Lazo and Carolina Ariza. American and Asian Galleries Galleries with a selection of Asian and American artists born after 1970, Positions of Drawing, a program curated by Monica Alvarez Careaga and Oscar Alonso Molina having a selection of 8 galleries with drawing works.

The collectors program is enriched with activities such a breakfast in the Miró Foundation and private visits as well as the number of activities at the fair as Swab Thinks organized by the Independent Studies Program (PEI) MACBA and directed by Beatriz Preciado, a space for conferences and debates between artists, curators, collectors and art critics.

Swab off activities as Swab Stairs is expanding into more stations in the city and consolidating as the urban artistic intervention.