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cherrydodd
Oct 23

Penguins That Cost More Than Your Degree: The Student's Guide to Frieze London 2024

Updated: Oct 31

From the 9th to the 13th October the art world had its' eyes turned on London. During this weekend Regents park was bustling with the annual exhibit of Frieze London and Frieze Masters. An event where the rich go shopping for new home décor, collectors go to scout out the hottest talents/ trends and where anybody who is anybody goes to check in with the art world. That is of course unless you don't have the luxury of footing the expenses of ticket prices, train fares and food and drink throughout the day. So for the sake of all the students who could not make it this year (using a borrowed copy of the Frieze 24 publication and our best internet sleuthing skills) let's explore some of the top picks of this year's Frieze.


Emancipation: The Paintings of Eva Švankmajerová, The Gallery of Everything


Dona Tadea, Eva Švankmajerová, 1970, oil on canvas, 155 x 155 cm, 61 1/8 x 61 1/8 in. courtesy of The Gallery of Everything



Spící Venus, Eva Švankmajerová, 1969, oil on canvas, 125 x 84 cm, 49 1/4 x 33 1/8 in. Courtesy of The Gallery of Everything.


The best thing about events such as Frieze is that every now and again they re-introduce artists to a new audience. That is the exact joyful experience I found within The Gallery of Everything's presentation of Czech artist Eva Švankmajerová's work. Švankmajerová's work became a highlight of Frieze as it received the Frieze Tate Fund. The fund, which totals £150,000, enables the acquisition of works from both Frieze London and Frieze Masters into the Tate collection.


I had not previously known of Švankmajerová prior to Frieze but her sense of play, vivid palettes and inclusion of text immediately captured my attention. As a self-confessed art-history nerd I also found a particular love for Švankmajerová's re-representation and referencing of art historical works/ figures. Dona Tadea re-interprets Goya's portrait of Tadea Arias de Enríquez an affluent member of Spanish society. As discussed by Bertrand Schmitt, the caption reads "DOÑA TADEA ARIAS DE ENRIGUEZ AFTER FRANCESCA DE GOYA BY ME ES, NOT THE NIECE OF FRANTIŠEK NEKOLNY THE BOXER PRAGUE 1970." the latter portion meaning "made by me, Eva Švankmajerová, and not by František Nekolný, the boxer" whom was a Czech Olympian bearing the same surname as Švankmajerová's grandparents. The semi-autobiographical twist and comical implication that after hours of sitting for Goya Tadea would seem to be hastily running off from the scene like a looney tunes character is the exact level of historical re-telling and satire of male artists that women artists prove exemplary at time and time again. This same excellent satire features in Spící Venus (Sleeping Venus) in which Švankmajerová re-interprets Giorgione's Sleeping Venus from 1510 . Here we see the Roman goddess of love, beauty, sex and desire with her hands far more full than Giorgione inferred. That being said I don't think it's outrageous to assume she's taking some well deserved time to herself here.



Tadea Arias de Enriquez, Francisco de Goya y Lucientes, 1798, Oil on Canvas, 191 x 106 cm image © Museo Nacional del Prado

Sleeping Venus, Giorgione, 1508-10, Oil on Canvas, 108.5 x 175 cm © Old Masters Picture Gallery, Dresden State Art Collections



The Birds, Benedikte Bjerre, 2017/2023, Foil, helium, 125 parts, Each 40 x Ø30 cm, Installation size variable

Photo: Linda Nylind, courtesy Frieze.


Now if you've been doing as much online Frieze stalking as me no doubt you will have seen these adorable little penguins bobbing about the internet. Apart from providing great little photo ops These penguins are actually part of Danish Artist Benedikte Bjerre's installation The Birds. Comprised of 125 small, foil, helium-filled balloons this work is intended to provoke reflection on consumerism and climate change. I'm personally reflecting on how these little party favours are selling for a staggering estimate of between €40,000 and €60,000. For all you British folk that is a whopping £33,460.98 to £50191.47. For the record, the average tuition cost for a three year university degree is £27,250 making our feathered friends more valuable than the average higher education. This valuation alone, whilst I am not entirely convinced was intended to be a vessel of message by Bjerre, perfectly mirrors the contemplation of consumerism the work is intended to provoke. Despite their gob-smacking price The Birds also makes it into this list for the moment of comedy and interaction the installation provides. In an art fayre full to the brim of new and complicated works (as well as historical greats) I can only imagine the joyous relief of walking into a corner and standing amongst a bunch of adorable penguins.


Ent-(Non Earthly Delights), Libby Heaney, 2024, Mild steel, fibreglass, acrylic plexiglass, two AR experiences accessible via QR codes


Libby Heaney, Ent-(non-earthly delights), 2024. Courtesy of Gazelli Art House & Libby Heaney. Photography by Deniz Guzel.


Following on from the theme of re-interpreting art history, Libby Heaney's Ent-(Non Earthly Delights) reimagines Hieronymus Bosch’s famous triptych The Garden of Earthly Delights in this new sculptural amalgamation. Heaney's practice highlights contemporary intersections of art and science as she is both a qualified quantum information scientist and practicing artist melding these two areas into one. Heaney's previous ruminations on Bosch include video, sound and interactive sculpture all exploring The Garden of Earthly Delights through a quantum lens. This move to a more traditional sculptural form strikes very differently to Heaney's other works moving into a more physical biological realm of representation. There is an extending creeping sensation from the gold tendrils as if some un-earthly delight is breaking into our world. The stark contrast of the vivid blue, gleaming gold and other-worldly iridescence to the lush greenery of regents park make this an unmissable spectacle. The work is also accompanied by QR codes featuring using her own quantum computing code to bring previous watercolour works of hers to life. These intersections between art and science and physical vs. technological encompass a large portion of contemporary art debate making this work all the more poignant to this years Frieze.



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