BOCA RATON, FL – (Feb. 22, 2016) – Lee Ann and David Lester, organizers and founders of Art Boca Raton, taking place March 18-21, 2016 in the International Pavilion of the Palm Beaches on the grounds of the Research Park at Florida Atlantic University, announce Art Boca Raton Art Week, an extraordinary line-up of lectures, events, interactive demonstrations, local artists at work and off-site events in conjunction with the inaugural art fair.

All programming will take place at Art Boca Raton in the International Pavilion of the Palm Beaches located at the Research Park on the ground of Florida Atlantic University (3450 NW 8th Avenue, Boca Raton, FL 33431), unless otherwise noted. Admission to programming is included with the ticket unless otherwise indicated. For a full schedule and details please visit www.artbocaraton.com.

“Our international art fairs are successful because we are committed to becoming part of the community’s arts scene as we continue to do with Art Palm Beach and as we did as founders of Art Miami. By partnering with local institutions and organizations to create Art Boca Raton Art Week, and involving community leaders and residents we create a unique sense of ownership by all who know how beneficial art and culture are to the city they live and work in, says Lee Ann Lester. “Working closely with Florida Atlantic University, the Research Park, the Boca Raton Museum of Art and Art School and the Mayor’s office and Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce, we have created programming and events with wide appeal,” continues Lester.

Approximately 50 regional, national, and international dealers will exhibit in the custom-built 65,000 square foot exhibition hall with the entrance hallmarked by Keith Haring’s 40-foot long Pop Shop Mural 1986 presented by Castle Fitzjohns Gallery. This $500,000 build-out will include a full service restaurant, sculpture garden and lecture hall. Self and valet parking adjacent to the pavilion makes it easy to visit more than once.

LECTURE SERIES:
Friday, March 18
2 p.m. – On the Road with Dale Chihuly, Alibis & Anecdotes presented by renowned gallerist Paul Fisher of the eponymous gallery located in Palm Beach since 1990.

3:30 p.m. – Abraham Manievich: A Pioneer of Jewish Futurism – Alan Pensler, art historian and author will discuss Abraham Manievich’s career from his humble beginnings as sign painter in Kiev to one of the most famous artists from the Pale Settlement and the abundant symbolism in his paintings.

Saturday, March 19 – 2 p.m. – From the Gulag to the Palace – the Epic story of the life and art of Boris Chetkov presented by gallerist Kenneth Pushkin and Yulia Zigern-Korn, art historian and senior researcher at the Pushkin National Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Sunday, March 20 2 p.m. Bold Beauty Project – KINDSIGHT: Photography as a vehicle for Recognition, Empowerment and Goodness. Panel discussion: Robert Zuckerman (photographer), Shelly Baer (Project Director, Bold Beauty Project), Starr Sariego (Curator, Bold Beauty Project), and Joy Hepburn (project model and photographer.

The Bold Beauty Project is an innovative photography exhibition showcasing 20 women living with various disabilities. Through the creative lenses of the photographers, the audience gets a rare glimpse into the lives of these incredible women revealing their beauty, strength, sensuality and boldness. Each panelist will present their contribution to the project and how they in turn have been impacted by their participation.

3 p.m. Boca Talks at the Boca Raton Museum of Art Wolgin Gallery, 501 Plaza Real, Boca Raton, Museum Members $5 Non-members $15 Students with ID $5

Bob Colacello: In and Out with Andy – Vanity Fair special correspondent Bob Colacello will discuss his new exhibition and his life with Andy Warhol, the brilliant, controlling, private, insecure, and influential man who continues to fascinate us. As the editor of Interview magazine from 1971 – 1983, Colacello photographed the glamorous world of Warhol’s circle of associates, the Factory office, star-studded parties and openings around the world, and captured images of Warhol in quiet moments at his most honest and vulnerable.

3:30 p.m. Everything You Want to Know…About the Art Market and the Golden Rules of Collecting – presented by Sébastien Laboureau, Founder and CEO of MoonStar Fine Arts Advisors (Miami and Paris) and international expert on the intersection of art and finance. Mr. Laboureau will discuss current trends of the art market, the advantages of purchasing at art fairs and art as an investment.

Monday, March 21
2:00 p.m. – Conceptual Art in the 21st Century presented by Milagros Bello, Ph.D.

Dr. Milagros Bello, art historian, sociologist, curator and art writer and a graduate of the Sorbonne, will discuss the practices and purposes of Post-Conceptual Art, From the iconic Duchamp’s urinal, the mass produced objects of Pop Art or the singular simplicity of the Minimalists, artists of the 21st century have critically stretched the margins of aesthetics. This lecture examines the works of Damien Hirst, Jeff Koons, Takashi Murakami, Maurizio Catelan to Wangechi Mutu, among others, who have created new notions of contemporary art.
Alex Katz, ‘Black Dress 3 (Oona)’, 2015, 32-color silkscreen, Edition 35, 80 x 30 inches, Vertu Gallery, Boca Raton

ARTISTS AT WORK/DEMONSTRATIONS:
Faculty artists from the Boca Raton Museum of Art School will demonstrate gold leafing, painting on porcelain, collage and figure drawing in the Art School’s booth at the fair.