Public Gallery Wins the Focus Stand Prize 2023 at Frieze London
The London-based gallery was awarded the prize for its solo presentation of the work of Adam Farah-Saad in Focus
The London-based gallery was awarded the prize for its solo presentation of the work of Adam Farah-Saad in Focus
Public Gallery has been announced as winner of the 2023 Focus Stand Prize at Frieze London for its solo presentation of London-based artist Adam Farah-Saad (b. 1991, London, UK). Special mentions also went to Nir Altman, Gypsum and Clima. This year saw the debut of Stone Island as the Official Partner of Focus, providing bursaries to further aid young galleries’ participation.
The Focus Stand Prize highlights the younger galleries taking part in Frieze London and rewards those who participate with ambitious and well-researched presentations. The winning gallery is awarded a £5,000 prize. This year the prize jurors were Emma Enderby (Head of Programmes and Research, Chief Curator at Haus der Kunst Munchen), Milan Ther (Director of the Kunstverein in Hamburg) and Yvette Mutumba (Co-founder and Managing Director Contemporary And (C&), Curator-at-Large Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam).
Nicole Estilo Kaiser, Associate Director of Public Gallery, said of the award: ‘We are beyond thrilled to receive the Focus Stand Prize for our solo presentation with Adam Farah-Saad. It’s our first year participating in the fair, so it’s an overwhelming honour to be recognised by both the Focus Stand Prize Jury and Frieze Tate Fund. We have had the immense pleasure of working with Adam since his solo exhibition with us in January of this year. Presenting work with such depth requires a lot of time and trust – so it’s an honour that he has gifted us with that responsibility, especially at a venue as international and highly attended as Frieze London. We are so incredibly grateful to everyone behind the Frieze London team, and of course to Adam, for the opportunity to show his work at this year’s edition.’
In Farah-Saad’s work, objects spark associations and identifications, with a process of mapping, walking, revisiting and cruising one’s past forms a large part of his practice. Described by Farah-Saad as ‘momentations’, the featured works reference early noughties tech, allyship icons and urban staples, bringing these records of a past together. Neither universal nor exactly personal, Farah-Saad’s presentation puts his life and others’ in a broad social frame. Both the content and format of the presentation itself become a live space for encounter and imagination in the city, evidencing Farah-Saad's ability to create sites of commonality and community through shared experiences and memories.
Public Gallery is a contemporary art gallery in east London with a diverse international programme focused on emerging artists.
Stone Island is the Official Partner of Focus at Frieze fairs globally.
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Main image: Adam Farah-Saad, ALL ABOUT SURVIVAL (THE A406 ORBITAL CLASS MIX), 2023, 5 Disc Lift Systems CD listening tower, billboard print, 350 × 350 × 34 cm
Thumbnail: Adam Farah-Saad, My mum died too early to teach me about love and relationships, so I’m trying to learn something from the music I remember her listening to when I saw her crying - or at least connect to her spirit so we can share our heartache, 2021. Lift Systems CD Tower, billboard print, CDs, dimensions variable. Courtesy the artist and Public Gallery, London. Photo: Rob Harris
