Parallax Art Fair

"The displacement of an object as seen from two different points that are not on  a line with the object", this is the definition my iPhone tells me when I typed in the word parallax. In an art world driven by money, at an art fair that drives to sell work, this seems an apt title. Parallax Art Fair run by Barlow Fine Arts was held from 17th-19th of May at Chelsea Town Hall on Kings Road just up from Sloane Square. The show itself displayed a varied field of artists, with varied prices and ranges of works. 

This was a show not only to sell work but for artist and art lovers to share and converse to create a better more caring arts community, with talks from artist not only about their work, but also advice and ideas about their practice and life as an artist. This community feel really helped to drive the show to something more than just a circus such as Frieze, this is due to several factors; first, it is the artists selling their own work, so they have a genuine passion for what they are showing, rather than commission based commercial galleries, and second is the scale, while there were over 200 artist on show, the scale is able to be held in the wonderful setting of the Chelsea town hall which generates a more intimate atmosphere. 

While I attend and worked at the show with the intent to see the inner working of the side of art we like to forget about sometimes, I gained far more by seeing that there is a genuine community that is out there looking out for each other. To me looking out for one's peers and colleges is something truly LADy