We HEART Chicago!!

"But among those of us for whom 17th century French landscapes and $50,000 price tags are more fairy-tale than art fair, NEXT: The Invitational Exhibition of Emerging Art, is quickly becoming the must-visit event..." -The Chicago Tribune, April 30th, 2010

That's right folks, NEXT is really the next big thing in visual-arts events and we are so honored and elated to be a part of it. The Chicago Tribune even paints NEXT as a "feisty up-and-comer that in its third year may have the potential to bypass Art Chicago's three-decade legacy, with flying colors." Woohoo!! We have never been so proud to exhibit and be part of this exceptional and, might we say, historic event. We arrived in Chicago Wednesday afternoon and have been moving non-stop since the plane hit the tarmac. It has been a challenging quest but there is no shortage of energy and excitement, it's impossible to lose that titillating feeling when surrounded by such incredible work and participants. An estimated 50,000 folks supposedly will be stopping in at NEXT by the end of the fair and Like the Spice plans to wow all of them! Now, we don't mean to pat only ourselves on the back as there are many people to congratulate, including all of our amazing artists whose work we are exhibiting at the fair. A special shout-out goes to Jenny Morgan, her incredible new piece, Inner Island, is shown above. This piece has been lauded as a "show stopper" here at the fair and we would like to offer Jenny a huge applause. We have been following Jenny Morgan and her work for years and we are so proud: news and praise of her work has spread like wildfire and we have no doubts that this recent success in Chicago is just another fantastic beginning of something great.

BUT, our most humble thanks and never ending gratitude must be offered to Ken Tyburski, the curatorial director of NEXT. Of the new director Viveros Fauné stated, “As a terrific dealer of young contemporary art who has had two very successful outings at the show, Ken is uniquely qualified to take over NEXT’s mantle as a major American fair of emerging art.” We could not agree more. The success of this fair is contingent upon what is included in it and Ken and his team have masterfully created this amazing accomplishment. Congratulations! Artslant has described NEXT as not just a fair, but "an opportunity t o redefine the relationship between art and its public...A portal to seeing contemporary art in new, innovative, eye-opening ways." Many exhibitors here at the fair have referred to you as a "savior" of the Chicago art fair and art scene; though some might see this as a bit of a loaded statement, we must admit that and in our hearts Ken is most certainly an angel. Thank you, Ken.
For the skeptics, you do not have to take our word for it; amazing press has been swirling around NEXT long before its doors were open to the public. Metromix Chicago has made sure to mark this four day celebration of art, and Chicago Now agrees that there is so much "fresh art to take in." Gozamos and Art Pilsen blogs have also noted NEXT as an incredible showcase for the world's talents. The original founder of NEXT, Kavi Gupta, has proclaimed the fair to be focused strictly on "the up-and-coming: young and midcareer artists, their paintbrushes firmly on the pulse; and, in many instances, young dealers to match." We could not be happier to be included in such a category. Many, many thanks!