Melbourne Art Fair’s inaugural artistic director for 2020

Independent curator and writer, Emily Cormack has been appointed the role of Melbourne Art Fair 2020 Artistic Director by Melbourne Art Foundation, for the 16the edition of the fair scheduled to take place at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre from 18 to 21 June 2020.

Cormack has been curating exhibitions and public art since 2001 in an institutional and freelance context throughout the Asia Pacific region and in Europe. Cormack’s most recent exhibitions include From Will to Form: 2018 Tarrawarra Biennale, and Primavera: Young Australian Artists (2016) at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney.

Emily Cormack. Courtesy Melbourne Art Foundation

‘We are thrilled that Emily Cormack will be working with us to define the 2020 edition, to develop a bold artistic program that both challenges and engages a diverse audience,’ said Melbourne Art Foundation CEO and Fair Director Maree Di Pasquale.

‘She is a curator that is drawn to the experimentation and dynamism of emerging arts practices, and we look forward to materialising this in the development and programming of the fair,’ she continued.

This new, high profile position signifies a key moment in the evolution of the Melbourne Art Fair as a forum for contemporary art and ideas. Changing on a biennial basis, the artistic director will establish a unique fair identity for each edition, providing galleries, collectors and the art-loving public even more reason to attend and engage every two years.

‘While artistic directors are more prominent in biennales and festivals, the creation of this position demonstrates Melbourne Art Foundation’s commitment to producing a fair of the highest curatorial standard, and reflects the public’s demand for original thematic experiences,’ Di Pasquale adds.

Accepting the inaugural role Cormack shared ‘As a curator, I am increasingly focused on the moment of encounter, how we can be held captive by this affective and activating experience. As Artistic Director of Melbourne Art Fair, I look forward to exploring how these encounters play out within the expanded platform of the newly reconfigured art fair. In this new role, I will focus on the activity generated by these moments of connection, where the art fair’s diverse audiences are enlivened by a honed collection of innovative, sometimes challenging and always captivating contemporary art.’

Melbourne Art Fair, Australasia’s most progressive forum for contemporary art will present iconic and new work by artists from over 50 of the region’s most respected galleries in 2020. Melbourne Art Fair continues to be a seminal fixture on the Australasian cultural calendar, stimulating critical and commercial attention for galleries and their artists for over 30 years.

Gallery applications close 18 October 2019.

For more information visit melbourneartfair.com.au

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