Turin Lights Up

Rebecca Horn Matthew Barney Maurizio Cattelan Daniel Buren Gerard Byrne Olafur Eliasson Mario Merz Shaq's Big Debut

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Before the Luci d'Artista and the triennial, Turin’s fall art season was dominated by the Artissima art fair. Now in its 15th edition, the event, like its host city, has not always had an easy go of things. Several years ago sales were falling, and Artissima did not seem to be coping with increased competition from other European fairs. But the local museums authority took control and appointed a new director, mindful of the fair’s importance to the north Italian cultural economy. Italian art historian and curator Andrea Bellini, until recently an editor at Flash Art International in New York, has been in charge since early 2007. As he did with his first effort last year, for the 2008 edition, he will concentrate on younger and emerging artists and galleries, ensuring quality by reducing the number of participants. Key sections include “Present Future” — 17 solo artist shows presented by galleries and selected by a curatorial panel — and “New Entries,” a forum for galleries younger than five years old, such as London’s Dicksmith Gallery, Zürich’s Freymond-Guth & Co., and James Fuentes LLC from New York. There are also sections devoted to video and sculpture, and a program of seminars and talks curated by Stéphanie Moisdon, former curator of Manifesta and the Lyon Bienniale.