Artists return to sacred themes within the commercial setting of Frieze Art Fair

THE ART NEWSPAPER
By Charlotte Burns
Glenn Brown's work at Gagosian's stand is strongly influenced by religion. Photo: Alexander Webster
UNITED KINGDOM---Art fairs are usually temples to the secular, but there is a distinctly religious feel to many of this week’s displays. While contemporary artists are openly engaging with sacred iconography at Frieze London, dealers at Frieze Masters are downplaying the divine in their displays of devotional art. “Looking back, you can’t ignore the fact that a great deal of art has been commissioned by the Catholic Church,” says the artist Glenn Brown, who has mined art history for a new body of work being shown by Gagosian Gallery (FL, C3). [link]
Display with gilded bronze sculpture on carved wooden cross, attributed to Alessandro Algardi, second half of 17th century (€450,000) Bacarelli & Botticelli (FM, H3)
Christoph Schlingensief, Last Supper, 2007 (edition of five, €25,000 each) Hauser & Wirth (FL, D6)