Contemporary art in historic sites: why do we love them?

From boutique hotel art fairs to regional festivals, there is a huge appetite for contemporary art in historic venues.

The concept of presenting contemporary art in historic and heritage venues isn’t especially new, but it seems that this juxtaposition continues to draw crowds, generate excitement and ignite new conversations.

Kate Barber is the Co-Director of Sarah Scout Presents and one of the Co-Founders of boutique art fair Spring1883 at Hotel Windsor. She tells ArtsHub that when the fair first started in 2014, ‘it was a bit of a risk’.

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Celina Lei is ArtsHub's former Content Manager. She has previously worked across global art hubs in Beijing, Hong Kong and New York in both the commercial art sector and art criticism. She took part in drafting NAVA’s revised Code of Practice - Art Fairs, and was the project manager of ArtsHub’s diverse writers initiative, Amplify Collective. Celina is based in Naarm/Melbourne. Instagram: @lleizy_