There once was a time, when post Paris Fashion Week, editors revelled in the idea of some time off after four weeks spent travelling internationally. Perhaps a day or two in lieu, or a weekend spent a) basking in enforced mini-break sunshine, or b) in bed. But today, Frieze art fair in London’s Regent Park has become the fifth unofficial destination of the spring/summer season, not just a must-see for global collectors and gallerists, but for fashionphiles, who view dressing as if poised to pick up a blue-chip artwork as aspirational as peacocking on the front row.
Admittedly, when I padded around Frieze’s gigantic tents over the weekend, I was just as captivated by the art fair’s obsession with the Hermès Kelly as Benedikte Bjerre’s flock of 125 bouncing helium penguins, or the gallerists’ preference for a bulky and colourful Hoka One One trainer as Memphis artist Nathalie Du Pasquier’s paintings. Top tip: the most stylish in the art world can be found at London gallerist Rose Easton’s booth.
As collectors and creatives collided, Frieze served up an antithetical combination of stealth wealth and eclectic dressing. Street-style photographer Will Wright was on the ground to capture the coolest people he encountered.