Feheley Fine Arts is proud to announce our participation in the Outsider Art Fair in New York City (March 2 – 5, 2023). The Outsider Art Fair has appeared annually in both New York City and Paris since 1993, exhibiting galleries that show artists not formally trained or who are practicing their art outside of convention. The Outsider Art movement as it is today began in the 1920s and was spearheaded by artist Jean Dubuffet during the Second World War. He described the work as a raw quality untouched by academic rules or current trends. The artwork presented by the various galleries included both emerging and established artists; galleries came from Europe, Asia, and throughout the United States.

We have long been promoting the work of our artists as relevant contemporary Canadian art at contemporary art fairs in Canada and the United States as well as in regular solo shows and catalogues. Since March 2020, we have been looking to expand into new opportunities and we were deeply impressed with the show when we visited in 2022. Participating in a new fair is always a risk, but we felt it would be a window to a new audience and a valuable experience.

We presented drawings by Kakalu Saggiaktok, Shuvinai Ashoona, Saimaiyu Akesuk, Jutai Toonoo, wall-hangings by Myra Kukiiyaut, and sculpture by Pitseolak Qimirpik, among others. The big star of our booth were landscape drawings in coloured pencil by the late Kinngait artist Ohotaq Mikkigaq, which were acquired by Museum van de Geest in Amsterdam. The gallery was also featured in Will Heinrich’s New York Times article “Portraits of Elvis, Erotica and Dreamlike Visions,” a guide to the 2023 edition of the fair.

Elyse and Emily found this year’s fair to be creative, thoughtful, and highly contemporary.  Galleries brought work in an array of media – found object sculpture, prints, drawings and more. Our works complimented those of other contemporary participating galleries that we have followed and admired for years. We are proud of the works we show and enjoy informing new audiences about the exciting history and current practice of art-making in the North. Our aim is to challenge convention and for our artists to be welcomed into varied communities of contemporary art. Our booth was well received by collectors and art admirers, and we look forward to participating again next year.