The second edition of Photo Shanghai to feature fifty leading galleries from over 15 international art capital cities

The second edition of Photo Shanghai to feature fifty leading galleries from over 15 international art capital cities, showcasing works for sale by the best emerging and established artists from East & West.
Gagosian Gallery to host Taryn Simon’s first exhibition of Birds of the West Indies in Asia.
Zhang Peili to curate cutting-edge Moving Image programme.
Programme includes Museum Summit and Collectors’ Forum.
Over 500 photographs to be shown by iconic artists such as Elliott Erwitt, Daido Moriyama, Yang Fudong and Horst P. Horst - among many others.

Photo Shanghai, Asia’s premier art fair dedicated to photography returns this September to the Shanghai Exhibition Centre.  The fair will open to VIPs on 10 September and to the public from 11-13 September.  

Since launching in 2014, Photo Shanghai has quickly established itself as mainland China’s most international art fair and is already shaping the relatively untapped market of photography collecting in China and across Asia.  It is today a key date in the art calendar for those wishing to establish and extend their network across Asia. Photo Shanghai has set a new benchmark for fine art photography in the region and achieved huge success both in terms of sales and visitor numbers.

The 2015 edition, once more directed by Alexander Montague-Sparey, will offer a highly curated and elegant exhibition of vintage and contemporary masterworks featuring 50 of the world’s leading photography galleries from Asia-Pacific, Europe and the United States.

Photo Shanghai is dedicated to presenting museum quality shows alongside the fair. As such, the 2015 edition will include a special museum scale exhibition of 190 works by celebrated American artist Taryn Simon, presented by Gagosian Gallery.  

Taryn Simon is known for her unique weaving of photography, text and graphic design and is widely regarded as one of the finest contemporary photographers working today. A retrospective of her work is currently on view at the Jeu de Paume Museum in Paris.  Gagosian Gallery will present the full series of Simon’s seminal Birds of the West Indies.  Photo Shanghai will therefore be a unique opportunity for curators and collectors alike to see all 190 works from the series in Asia for the first time.

Other confirmed galleries include: Blindspot Gallery - Hong Kong; CAMERA WORK – Berlin; Flowers - London and New York; Gagosian Gallery - New York, London, Paris, Athens, Geneva, Los Angeles, Rome and Hong Kong; Magnum Photos; MD Gallery – Shanghai and Paris; Pékin Fine Arts – Beijing; ShanghART Gallery – Shanghai, Beijing and Singapore; Taka Ishii Gallery – Tokyo, New York and Paris, and The Wapping Project Bankside– London.

The galleries will present a wide of artists, from the iconic to the emerging, including: Nobuyoshi Araki; Birdhead; Guy Bourdin; Henri Cartier-Bresson; Elliott Erwitt; Yang Fudong; Candida Höfer; Horst P. Horst; Axel Hüette; André Kertész; Steven Klein; Gustave Le Gray; Daido Moriyama; Vik Muniz; Helmut Newton; Erwin Olaf; Irving Penn; Paolo Roversi, and Hiroshi Sugimoto, among many others.

Since its first edition, Photo Shanghai has established itself as the leading platform for international collectors to find strong emerging work from Asia, locally. It is also the only opportunity for collectors from the region to buy leading household names in the field of fine art photography.

In addition to the special exhibitions, leading experts in the field will host a curated talks and events programme including:
Collectors’ Forum – hand-picked international collectors attending the fair will be brought together to discuss the international photography market and enjoy a private tour of the Taryn Simon exhibition.
Museum Summit – led by Christopher Phillips (Curator, International Centre of Photography) and part of the fair’s commitment to education and development, the Museum Summit will bring together curators from around the world and offer them the chance to further appreciate and understand the importance of photography in the context of a 21st Century museum collection.
Photo Shanghai Moving Image Programme – curated by Zhang Peili, one of China’s foremost video artists, a cutting edge programme of established and emerging artists using video as their main media will be presented in our dedicated video room
Book signings by leading artists from East and West.
Talks by artists and experts alike will be given in the dedicated talks room. Programme to be announced in July, alongside the VIP programme.

Photo Shanghai was created by the World Photography Organisation and Montgomery in 2014.  It was launched in direct response to the increasing demand by audiences from across Asia-Pacific, and beyond, to discover emerging and collectable photography.  

Fair Director Alexander Montague-Sparey comments:
“After last year’s unprecedented success, we are delighted to bring to Shanghai an even stronger hand-picked selection of works by the world’s leading galleries for the medium. Photo Shanghai will offer once again a unique opportunity for collectors and curators alike, to experience the best in fine art photography by the key international players in the field.”

Sandy Angus, co-founder of ART HK (now Art Basel Hong Kong) and Chairman of Montgomery and the World Photography Organisation adds:
"We launched Photo Shanghai last year as we sensed there was a gap in the market for the collection of fine art photography in China.  Following the huge success of our inaugural year, we have been both delighted by the sheer appetite for photography in the country and are looking forward to return to Shanghai this September with an even more impressive roster of galleries and artists. Photography is an easy entry point into the world of art collecting and Photo Shanghai makes it possible for those in China and across the Asia Pacific region to access the very best contemporary and vintage masterworks from both the East and West."

On being involved in Photo Shanghai Meg Maggio, Owner of Pékin Fine Arts in Beijing, comments:
“We are very pleased to be returning again this year to the second annual Photo Shanghai, Asia’s leading contemporary art fair focusing on photography at this level.  With a decidedly contemporary slant, Photo Shanghai is redefining and re-establishing the critical importance of Chinese photography and video-based contemporary works.  Mainland museums are increasingly looking to contemporary photography and video forms for exhibit, and this fair affirms photography's rising art critical and art market status.”

Photo Shanghai is supported and advised by a board of international industry professionals including: Wang Huangsheng, Director, CAFA Art Museum, Beijing; Christopher Phillips, Curator, ICP, New York; Francis Hodgson, Financial Times Photo Critic and co-founder of the Prix Pictet, London; Lise Li, Founder and Owner, Vanguard Gallery, Shanghai; Jeffrey Boloten, Co-Founder & Managing Director of ArtInsight Ltd, UK; W.M Hunt, Photography Consultant & Collector, New York; Zelda Cheatle, Portfolio Manager & Curator, London; RongRong, Photographer, Founder & Director, Three Shadows Photography Art Centre, Beijing; Wang Zhonglei, President, Huayi Brothers Media Corporation, Shanghai; Lisa Botos, Curator and Art Consultant.

Photo Shanghai is part of Shanghai Art Week, a new collaboration between the fair and West Bund Art & Design (8-13 September) and Art in the City Festival (11-14 September) in which the very best in contemporary art takes over the city in the second week of September.

Notes to editors

Dates: Photo Shanghai, 11-13 September 2015
VIP and Preview day: Thursday 10 September
Venue: Shanghai Exhibition Centre, 1000 Yan’an Rd, near Tongren Rd
Website: www.photoshanghai.org

Full public and VIP programme will be announced in July.

About Alexander Montague-Sparey, Fair Director
Alexander Montague-Sparey advises international collectors and institutions on photography acquisitions, conducts private sales and commissions exhibitions of blue chip work for international luxury brands.   Prior to starting his own business, Alexander was the youngest Director in the history of Christie’s and their Head of Photographs in London. A native French speaker born in Geneva, he holds a Master’s in the History of Art from the University of Oxford.

About World Photography Organisation (WPO)
Founded by CEO Scott Gray in 2007, the World Photography Organisation (WPO) is a place where photography is celebrated and the art of the photographer is recognised.  Working with professional, enthusiast and student photographers alike, WPO provides a global network across the photography industry not only to raise the level of conversation around the subject, but to also increase awareness and appreciation of this art form.  In addition to Photo Shanghai, WPO hosts a year-round portfolio of industry and public events including the Sony World Photography Awards, the world’s largest photography competition.  For more information please visit  HYPERLINK "http://www.worldphoto.org" www.worldphoto.org
About Montgomery
Montgomery is at the forefront of trade and consumer shows in Europe, Asia, Africa and the Middle East, was the co-founder of ART HK, now Art Basel Hong Kong, and manages other fairs including Art14 (London), ArtInternational (Istanbul), Art Central (Hong Kong), and India Art Fair (Delhi).

Photo Shanghai is part of Shanghai Art Week.  Combing West Bund Art & Design (8-13 Sept.), Photo Shanghai (10-13 Sept.) and Art in the City Festival (11-14 Sept.), the very best in contemporary art takes over the city in Shanghai Art Week.  Art lovers and collectors can enjoy exciting new exhibitions, talks and events by leading Chinese and international museums, galleries and art institutions across the city.   Shanghai will be brought alive with art in the second week of September like never before.