This year, GALERIAKALO (Kalo Gallery) was invited to participate in the second edition of the Thessaloniki International Art Fair, which was held from the 23rd to the 26th of November at the International Exhibition Center of Thessaloniki.
This second Thessaloniki edition of the International Contemporary Art Fair displayed 300 artists from 30 galleries from around the world. The fair was organized by TIF-Helexpo and the artistic director of the event, Pantelis Tsatsis. The International Contemporary Art Fair was hosted by the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Interior (Macedonia-Thrace) of the Central Macedonia Region, the city of Thessaloniki and numerous city agencies.
GaleriaKalo was represented at the Art Fair with about 80 paintings and sculptures, including the creations of a total of 25 contemporary, as well as emerging artists in order to promote their work. The purpose of participating in this activity was to promote Albanian visual arts through increasing its visibility beyond our borders, in a place where contemporary art works are promoted from all over the world and where art galleries from different countries meet – an important tool in establishing a market for art.
The KALO Foundation, through its institution GALERIAKALO, founded in November 2014 as a non-profit entity, sees the promotion of Albanian visual arts as a priority, as announced in its mission, and this fair was in line with the mission in word. GALERIAKALO organized the transportation of paintings and sculptures from Albania to Thessaloniki using road transport vehicles to reach the final destination. The transportation was organized in accordance with all safety regulations for art works and accompanied with all related documentation.
Last year, the art-loving public that visited the Art Fair reached 1,200 people. This year, GALERIAKALO managed to attract the attention of many visitors from far-away countries like the USA, Australia, and nearby European countries who were curious about Albanian artists and art. In the list of selected works were two drawings, sketches of Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, which attracted a lot of interest from visitors from all over the world. The duration of the activity was 4 days. GALERIAKALO will continue its efforts to promote Albanian art and artists in various artistic activities and spaces inside and outside Europe.
