outsider art fair turns 31 – an inside look! | Arts and the antiques

Yoshihiro Watanabe, Giraffes, 2021

In March 2023, Arts and the Antiques shared a feature on the 31st Outsider Art Fair. For the Jennifer Lauren Gallery, it featured Shinchi Sawada, Yoshihiro Watanabe and Cara Macwilliam. Here are some excerpts, with the full article link below.

“Sixty-three exhibitors, hailing from 15 states and seven international countries, gathered once again for the 31st Annual Outsider Art Fair, which took place at the Metropolitan Pavilion March 2-5. In addition to several dealers who deal in the blue chip “Outsider Old Masters,” – including but not limited to Bill Traylor, Henry Darger, Martin Ramirez, Minnie Evans, William Hawkins and William Edmondson – the fair welcomed exhibitors who showed the work of living artists, both those with an established following, and “emerging” ones new to the field.

Manchester, United Kingdom, dealer Jennifer Lauren, sold an untitled woodfired ceramic piece by Shinichi Sawada early in the show, as well as a set of dried leaf origami or “Oriha” by Yoshihiro Watanabe. Lauren explained that Watanabe uses only oak leaves, selected during the fall, when the leaves retain the right balance of moisture and decay to allow him to render highly detailed and character-filled creatures.

“I took seven sets of [Watanabe’s] along to the fair and sold all before the end of the fair – people loved them,” Lauren said. She reported a good mix of people to her booth, noting a particular response to the work of Cara Macwilliam, a self-taught disabled visual artist who is housebound but who “travels” into surreal landscapes and mythologies using watercolor and dip pen.”