Postcard from San Francisco: FOG Design+Art, Untitled, and More

The opening Preview Gala for FOG, benefiting the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) took place Wednesday night, showcasing significant presentations from 45 galleries, many of which are international leaders participating for the first time, like Chamber, Lévy Gorvy, Salon 94, David Zwirner, Pace, Gagosian Gallery, Gavin Brown’s enterprise, James Cohan, and Paula Cooper Gallery.

At the opening, several artist’s work caught our eye, including Wendell Castle at Friedman Benda, and Studio Drift at Pace. Carpenters Workshop Gallery‘s presentation stunned, and Thursday night we sat in on a talk with artist Sterling Ruby and Lawrence Rinder, director of Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA). Ruby spoke of his ceramic work and its connection to the first form of art he experienced growing up in Amish Pennsylvania.

Later we stopped by SFMOMA to see the outstanding Fisher Collection, one of the world’s greatest private collections of contemporary art. It’s spot at the museum makes San Francisco a key destination for modern and contemporary art, and everyone should make the journey to see it if they have not already.

Untitled, the fair’s first West Coast iteration, takes place in a unique location in a not-yet-reclaimed building, Pier 70, making for an impressive start (albeit a bit rough given the chilly weather). The fair offers a selection of presentations from galleries from all around the world, but prominently from California, and in particular Los Angeles. We saw amazing new works from Ori Gersht at CRG, Sophie Calle at Galerie Perrotin, and Elena del Rivero at Josée Bienvenu.

And yesterday, a re-staging of Yves Klein‘s Monotone-Silence Symphony took place at the iconic Grace Cathedral, presented by Levy Gorvy and Artsy, creating a truly unique spiritual and meditational moment.