West Bund Art & Design 2019: 10 Booths To Visit

More than 100 galleries from around the world are flocking to Shanghai this week to take part in West Bund Art & Design, one of Mainland China's most important art fairs. Here are 10 you should make a beeline for when the four-day-long fair kicks off on November 7

White Cube

Above Antony Gormley, STATION XVII (2014). (© Antony Gormley. Photo © Stephen White. Courtesy of White Cube)

One of Antony Gormley's famous life-size steel figures—based on a cast of his own body—will dominate White Cube's booth, which will also feature works by Tracey Emin, David Altmejd, Chuck Close, Cerith Wyn Evans and other international stars.

Local talent is also showcased in the form of Mainland Chinese artists Wang Gongxin and Qin Yifeng, whose haunting photographs are also on show in White Cube's Hong Kong gallery until November 16.

Lehmann Maupin

Above Liza Lou, Clear After Rain (2019). (Courtesy of the artist and Lehmann Maupin)

A highlight of Lehmann Maupin's booth is a new work by Liza Lou, an American artist famous for working exclusively with glass beads.

After years working collaboratively with a team of artisans in South Africa, Lou made this series alone in her studio in Los Angeles. "Working alone has yielded a whole new body of work," she recently told Tatler. "My work has always been handmade but it was a collective of the hand, whereas now you very much see authorship in my work. It’s almost harking back to early work I made 25 years ago."

David Zwirner

Above Josh Smith, Untitled (2019). (© Josh Smith. Courtesy of the artist and David Zwirner)

David Zwirner is showing new paintings by American artist Josh Smith—best known for his colourful, gestural style—alongside historic works by the late Austrian artist Franz West, who worked in media ranging from collage to furniture and sculpture.

This isn't the first time the two artists have been paired. They had a joint show at Neon Parc in Melbourne in 2012, and Smith also took part in Artistclub at 21er Haus in Vienna in 2016—a project for which 36 contemporary artists made new works inspired by West.

Gagosian

Fresh from his debut as a fashion designer—he launched his label at Pitti Uomo this summer—American artist Sterling Ruby is unveiling a new mixed media painting at Gagosian's booth at West Bund.

Also on show are new paintings by Thomas Houseago and Joe Bradley, as well as a 2004 oil-on-canvas by Jonas Food that features his signature potted plants.

Mine Project

Above George Rouy, Bathed (2019). (Courtesy of the artist and Mine Project)