A vibrant community of artists and art lovers came together this past Thursday in Santa Monica to celebrate the opening of the The Other Art Fair at the Barker Hangar. The evening started early at 6 p.m., and guests celebrated with food, drinks and a live DJ until the end of the night.

The event supports both emerging talent and prospective art collectors. Pieces sell for as little as $10, though most fall in the $100-$1000 range. As opposed to larger, blue-chip fairs like Art Basel and Frieze, The Other Art Fair emphasizes affordability and accessibility for all.

Sponsored by Saatchi Art, the event hosted 140 independent artists, all exhibiting original works. The art presented included ceramics, sculpture, prints, paintings, photography, drawings, textiles and more. In most art fairs, galleries act as an intermediary between artists and collectors, but for many attendees, this event demystified the process of selling art.

Duncan Sherwood-Forbes, a multimedia artist who specializes in linear wire sculpture, returned to The Other Art Fair again this year. Much of his work, which he describes as drawing “through the air,” explores the close interactions between his live models and captures his personal experience going through the coronavirus pandemic. The Other Art Fair gave him and similar artists the opportunity to connect with potential buyers directly.

“It’s a good chance to meet people and to get real-life feedback. I have friends who are artists, and we critique each other. But it’s different meeting actual people who want art for their homes,” Sherwood-Forbes said. “It’s a reality check — meeting people who care. They want beautiful things.”

Each artist started with an identical booth that they customized however they wanted. Every space had unique elements, including distinct chairs, handmade labels attached to the walls, business cards and promotional materials. With this simple and individualized setup, the fair had a quick turnaround for installation.

Taylor Binda, a textile and abstract painter from Maui, had never been to an art fair before, and said the setup was an exciting new experience for her.

“It is so different from gallery shows,” Binda said. “Setting things up and having them on the wall, committing to where the screws go — it’s such a different thing.”

The application process to join the fair involves a selection committee that changes with each iteration, made up of experts in the field. Thursday’s fair was judged by Nicole Garton, a fair director for The Other Art Fair; Erin Remington, a director of sales and curation for Saatchi Art; Tina Lai, a director of interior projects for Masa Studio; and Faye Orlove, a founding director for Junior High Los Angeles. More than 500 artists applied to participate.

Many projects throughout the weekend directly involved attendees. Haikuists offered free personalized poems for fairgoers, who chose words or phrases for inspiration. An interactive neon fortune teller sign by Dani Bonnet predicted the future for willing attendees, and a workshop by Mich Miller and Jayes Caitlin allowed anyone to become a participating artist by making their own risograph print.

Ruben Ochoa, an associate professor of practice at the Roski School of Art and Design, showcased his ongoing street vendor project. Inspired by his mother and her tortilla cart in San Diego’s North County, he has raised over $50,000 for local businesses through direct donations from his artistic proceeds. In his booth, Ochoa exhibited one of his iconic cart designs in addition to several tortilla stacks made of bronze.

“This is a tribute to my mom — the bronze tortilla — but it’s also a tribute to the greatest invention of the Americas: la tortilla,” Ochoa said. “I’m convinced my family had four boys so we could help with the family business. I stopped selling tortillas because I went to art school.”

Ochoa’s project is his way to give back to what he calls “the social fabric of L.A.”: the street vendor community, which greatly suffered during the coronavirus pandemic from violent harassment and the struggles of undocumented immigrants.

Invited by The Other Art Fair organizers, Ochoa also curated the food for the event. He designed and wrapped the platforms for both At Bev’s Tamales and Tacos De Canasta. In his work, Ochoa partnered with Inclusive Action for the City, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting local vendors, as well as engineers from Revolution Carts, a manufacturer and distributor of sidewalk carts, street carts and food trailers.

“Artists themselves are small businesses. I always tell my students, now that you are an artist, you have to go take classes in the business department. You have to operate like an entrepreneur,” Ochoa said. “The Other Art Fair is supporting everyone as their own business, as artists get to meet people directly and do their own sales and build their collector base.”

Two special exhibitions opened alongside the art fair. Guest-curated by Taylor Bythewood-Porter, an assistant history curator at the California African American Museum, “Acts of Liberation” featured onsite work exploring and challenging the various forms of freedom.  “At Home in Space” offered an immersive light bath experience by artist astrothebaptist.

In 2021, The Other Art Fair launched New Futures, an initiative designed to “break down traditional barriers of the contemporary art world” by giving complementary exhibition space and mentorship to emerging artists. The L.A. recipients this fall included Carly Petersmeyer, Maia Saavedra-Weisenhaus and Natalia Palacino Camargo.

Melbourne, Sydney, New York City, Chicago, Dallas and London also host this global art fair. The Other Art Fair organizes 11 in-person and two virtual events annually to connect budding collectors and artists in an inclusive, fun way.

The Other Art Fair ran in Santa Monica for four days, ending Sunday.