August 2013 Press Release

August 22, 2013

New York's Upper East Side welcomes

MASTER DRAWINGS NEW YORK

as the world's most acclaimed drawings dealers

greet private and institutional clients

Saturday January 25 - Saturday February 1 with Preview Friday Jan 24 4-8pm

NEW YORK August 15 - In a fifteen block stretch of the Upper East Side's "Gold Coast' in New York, close to 30 of the most acclaimed international dealers in Master Drawings will show the latest artworks entering the market during the eighth edition of MASTER DRAWINGS NEW YORK, January 25th through February 1, 2014 with a Preview Friday January 24th from 4 to 8pm.

Timed to coincide with New York's major January art-buying events, including the Old Master auctions and The Winter Antiques Show, MASTER DRAWINGS NEW YORK (www.masterdrawingsinnewyork.com) includes top dealers from the US as well as the UK, France, Germany, Spain and Italy.

Originally conceived as an annual walkthrough, MASTER DRAWINGS NEW YORK has grown into a 'must see' event with a number of New York dealers making their galleries available to their overseas colleagues for the week.

MASTER DRAWINGS NEW YORK has received strong support as its range and influence has grown each year. Critics applaud the fact that the artworks on view cut across the full range of styles, centuries, mediums and genres and provide pricing options that are attractive both to seasoned and new collectors. Dealers show important pencil, pen and ink and chalk and charcoal drawings, as well as oil on paper sketches and watercolours.

New York Old Masters specialist Margot Gordon and London dealer Crispian Riley-Smith jointly founded the New York event in 2006 and are delighted to see how well it has matured, with top tier dealers offering an incredibly diverse array of artworks created between the sixteenth and twentieth centuries.

Gordon says, "As an art form master drawings are unique because they represent the very first creative spark of the artist. You are invited to enter the artist's mind and share his passion. It's a strong motivator to those who love art and care about possessing the very first thoughts of the artist."

"MASTER DRAWINGS NEW YORK has become very special to both private and institutional clients because it makes it convenient to see a number of exhibitions from the very top tier of world dealers in a single area of the city and close by other venues they need to visit," Riley-Smith adds. "For those interested in learning more about the quality and range of drawings on offer, there's simply no better way to expose yourself to the very finest examples."

Gordon admits that, "Some visitors to our shows are surprised to see that not all our drawings date to the early centuries. We have several dealers who specialize in 20th century works. In fact, our members display everything from Medieval illuminations to preparatory studies by Raphael, to Picasso sketches. We particularly love the fact that curators, museum patrons, private collectors and the press all get to see the newest market offerings of each form at one time. It's a model that works similarly well with our sister event in London each June, London Art Week, which also incorporates top dealers in master drawings.

"With our format, dealers get to put their individual stamp on their own exhibitions and can entertain their private and museum clients as they like. We stage Private Previews for our clients the day before MASTER DRAWINGS NEW YORK officially begins. This year that will be Friday, January 24, from 4 to 8pm."

With such a wide range of options on offer, Gordon and Riley-Smith point out that drawings and watercolours represent a wonderful collecting opportunity, especially to those forming a new collection. Price points range from several thousand dollars to several million.

In previous years, noted experts on the subject have contributed to the brochure, including William Griswold, Director The Morgan Library and Museum, New York; Cara Dufour Denison, Curator Emerita Drawings and Prints at The Morgan; Linda Wolk-Simon, the Charles W. Englehard Curator and Department Head Drawings and Prints, The Morgan Library; Rhoda Eitel-Porter, former Curator and Department Head; Isabelle Derveaux, Curator Modern and Contemporary Drawings, The Morgan Library; Rick Scorza, Thaw Senior Fellow Morgan Drawing Institute; and Margaret Holben Ellis, Eugene Thaw Professor of Paper Conservation and Director, Institute of Fine Arts, New York University and Director, Thaw Conservation Center Morgan Library & Museum.

Cara Denison says, "Master Drawings New York is an indispensable event for lovers of drawings."

If You Go

2014 MASTER DRAWINGS NEW YORK

Private Preview Friday, January 24, 2014 from 4 to 8 pm

Open to the public Saturday, January 25 - Saturday February 1

January 24(Friday) 4-8pm Private view opening of Master Drawings New York

January 25(Saturday) Open weekend: 11 am to 6pm

January 26(Sunday) Open weekend: 2-6pm.

January 27(Monday) Open 11am-6pm <

January 28(Tuesday) Open 11am-6pm , late opening till 8pm

January 29(Wednesday) Open 11am-6pm

January 30 (Thursday) Open 11am-6pm late opening till 8pm