The annual Masterpiece Art fair took place between the 28th June and 5th July. It’s held on the traditional grounds of the Royal Hosiptal Chealsea. What makes this art fair different to Art Basel is that it brings together galleries and specialists covering antiquities, jewelry and art. It attracted over 40,000 visitors from collectors to those simply wanting to admire from afar.
It simply overloaded the mind and senses as you walked through each avenue. No two displays were the same, ranging from Dali and Picasso to more contemporary masters such as Kusuma, Qin Feng and Warhol. Time travelling with sculptures from 12 and 13th century from Iran to the 1st Millemiunum BC. The sparkle of antique jewelry displayed by the fine antiques dealers such as Wartski to the more modern craftsman of today such as Theo Fennel and Boghossian.
It was hard to say with such a display as to which artist was a favourite and which not. Wartski displaying some of the original works from the likes of Carl Faberge - a maker filled with history and heritage. But alongside this, to see some amazing craftsmanship of Indian origin such as the Mughal Octagonle container. That said, one of my favourite pieces was a sculpture called “Mother and Child” from Iran around the 12th century that resided with David Aaron. To me it shows the gentle moment where a mother nutures and shows love to her child as its sat on her lap. That the child remains close by her even after birth. As much as my mother would love to get rid of me, there’s nothing like the warmth of a mother that can ease most troubles.