UBS is celebrating its 10th year of support for Art San Diego, which opens its 11th edition on 10 October, entering its second decade in a new location, the San Diego Convention Center. Curated around the theme “Explore: Art is Everywhere”, this year’s four-day event is expected to welcome more than 15,000 collectors, with work by more than 500 emerging and established local and international artists.
Community is central to Art San Diego – a legacy that this year’s edition is set to continue, with the annual Access to Art Program, a community outreach initiative presented in partnership with UBS. Access to Art works with selected non-profits and their clients to share opportunities in sectors including art, design, business development and more. Beneficiaries in 2019 are the Monarch School, GenerateHope, Rady Children’s Hospital, ArtReach and Humble Design, and the initiative is in partnership with FREE FILM: USA, Liberty Station and the San Diego Film Festival.
During the fair, "Impact Night" highlights non-profits in the Access to Art program who are using art and design to have a positive social impact. Chris Marsh, UBS Managing Director, Newport-San Diego Market, said: "Impact Night brings together 1500 guests from the community with artists from around the world. Organizations are using art to spur homeless students to find their creativity, help previously homeless families build dignity in their first home, and even using art with human trafficking victims to work through their trauma through expression where words would never suffice. This is how we think about impact, and we are grateful to Art San Diego for partnering on such a thought-provoking experience."
The fruits of the Access to Art Program are among the displays at Art San Diego, providing program participants with a rare early opportunity to participate in an established art fair. Highlights include works developed through Monarch’s After School Art Program, where artist Tom Liguori guided students in creating their own version of his innovative holographic works. Other participants include artist Shima Shanti, who shared her techniques for creating encaustic artworks using a traditional technique involving beeswax.
New in 2019, Art San Diego will launch its inaugural LOCAL TALENT Program, which aims to showcase and further amplify the area’s exceptional artistic talent. The initiative will provide a number of unrepresented San Diego artists with an opportunity to develop a curated exhibition, allowing them to showcase their work to wider audiences. Alongside this, the San Diego Art Prize will celebrate an established San Diego artist, with one winner selected from four finalists nominated for demonstrating outstanding creativity in the last three years.
Accompanying the fair is Art Labs: a dynamic program that spread across the city, featuring specially curated projects by several leading San Diego-based art institutions, alternative spaces and universities. Among them is Oslo Sardine Bar – an eccentric pop-up restaurant featuring a video installation and miniature gallery. Programs introduced last year are back by popular demand, including Palette of Desserts, which asks local chefs and bakeries to draw inspiration from an artist’s to-be-exhibited work.
Since its inauguration, Art San Diego has witnessed annual growth, becoming one of the best-attended cultural events in Southern California. The event builds upon the city’s rich cultural offer, which includes the San Diego Museum of Art and Liberty Station – a multidisciplinary arts center with studios – as well as providing art lovers and collectors with an opportunity to discover the exceptional talent in its extensive community of artists.
Like what you just read?
Like what you just read?
October 2019
