About
When Will Ramsay founded the fair in 1999 his aim was to make contemporary art accessible to everyone, and to show you don’t need to be an art expert or a millionaire to enjoy and buy art. The Affordable Art Fair has since become a leading showcase for contemporary art in 15 cities across the world.
How did it all start?In 1996 Will opened Will’s Art Warehouse in south west London to bridge the increasing interest in contemporary art and the London gallery scene. By concentrating on relatively unknown artists not carrying a premium for reputation, the gallery was able to offer works from £50 - £2,500 from a stable of over 150 artists.
The response to Will’s Art Warehouse encouraged Will to take his approach to the next level, and in October 1999 he launched the first Affordable Art Fair in Battersea Park, London. 10,000 visitors took advantage of the ease of buying, breadth of choice, affordable prices and user-friendly approach.
How has AAF grown?
In 2001 Will started a second event in Battersea Park followed by one in Bristol, UK. Affordable Art Fairs are now established in Amsterdam, Brussels, London - Hampstead, Milan, Melbourne, New York and Singapore. Globally we have welcomed 1 million visitors who have bought £150 million ($235m / €175m) of art.
For the 2nd year in a row, AAF has been selected as one of the UK's coolest brands by an independent council and more than 2,500 members of the British public (they obviously didn't see the picture above!). As brands are unable to nominate themselves to be a CoolBrand, it just goes to show how much support the fair has from its visitors!
Is AAF continuing to grow?
This year we are launching fairs in Delhi, Hamburg, Los Angeles, Mexico City, Rome, Seattle and Stockholm. As Will says, “Buying art can provide a lifetime of enjoyment and inspiration and no one should miss this opportunity!”