One of the most important art galleries in the world, Gagosian, is a highlight of ArtRio 2012, which opened to special guests on Wednesday, and to the public on Thursday, in Rio de Janeiro. Headquartered in New York, where the first Gagosian opened in 1980, the gallery — which now has 12 locations scattered throughout seven countries — will make its debut appearance in the Southern Hemisphere at Rio’s art fair. In the past, the gallery has participated in fairs in New York, Miami, Paris, London, Basel, and Hong Kong. Founder Larry Gagosian is well known as one of the most influential figures in the contemporary art world.

On the eve of the gallery's appearance at ArtRio, Serena Cattaneo, director of Gagosian Paris, spoke with ARTINFO Brasil about the gallery’s participation in ArtRio.

Why Brazil and why now?

In the last three or four years, there has been a general increase in awareness about the Brazilian art scene. Personally, I’ve always been attracted to Brazil and its artistic production. I think there are connections between Brazilian art being made today and the Arte Povera movement, the vocabulary of which is very close to what I studied. However, for the gallery, the turning point was the exhibition in Paris, “Brazil: Reinvention of the Modern,” which drew many Brazilian collectors.

Was that the first time the Gagosian showed Brazilian art?

Yes, it was the first show of Brazilian art at the Gagosian. It was incredibly well-recieved by the press, both nationally and internationally. Many European curators visited the show, even though at the time, Brazilian art was less well-known in Europe. I have always believed it is important to show the neo-concrete artists in France because many of them lived in, or passed through, Paris. There was a lot of interest in the show; two collectors bought works that were donated to public institutions, which, of course, is an ideal outcome.

Gagosian has 12 galleries scattered all over the world. When did this expansion begin? Is this sort of internationalization a trend in the art market?

Collectors don’t go to New York like they used to. America has always been—and probably still is—the largest art market, but this is changing. So, you have to change your strategy. The market is much more global and you lose this dimension and miss out on other collectors and museums. This wasn’t so important before, because the market outside of America was such a small piece of the market and financially it wasn’t worth the effort. But today it is important to go to the source and art fairs are one of the principle means of acquiring new collectors and curators.

How would you describe the Brazilian art market?

Many Brazilian collections are focused on modern and neo-concrete Brazilian art. And, in many ways, the market is limited and prices are in-line with the international art scene, which is somewhat surprising. Two of the most important artists to include in a Brazilian collection are Di Cavalcanti and Portinari, followed by Amilcar de Castro, Sergio Camargo,  and Lygia Pape. A big problem for the history of Brazilian art, and for the national market, is that limited finances for acquisitions have created giant lacunas in public collections, so there aren’t systematic critical studies. And the rigid legislation and rules governing importing and exporting really aggravate the situation. Still, the market is opening and collectors want to be a part of what is happening in other places. The desire to possess trophy works within Brazil is increasingly palpable.

What is the Gagosian bringing to ArtRio?

In addition to the Gagosian booth at the fair, ArtRio offered us a 1,000-square-meter space to present sculptures and additional works. The space is right next to the fair, in un-renovated hangars, which have really inspiring natural light. For the show, we worked with Claudia Moreira Salles, a Brazilian designer and architect, who created a simple visual language that allows us to present a variety of works by the artists we represent in a single space. Among the artists whose work we brought are John Chamberlain, Alexander Calder, Yayoi Kusama, David Smith, Robert Rauschenberg, Marc Newson, and Guiseppe Penone, to name a few. ArtRio is an incredible opportunity for us to present Brazilian collectors with the wide spectrum of artists we work with. 

Do you think that Brazil has the market and the collectors for works like this? Is the gallery considering working with Brazilian artists?

We are already in contact with Brazilian collectors. Many Latin-American buyers come to the art fairs, especially in Miami, which is understandable, but also in Paris and New York. So, if we are meeting these collectors outside of Brazil, we thought we should go directly to the source, to Brazil. If we’ve been outside of the Brazilian market, and we’ve already been meeting Brazilian collectors, then within the market there must be even more interested people. At this point, we don’t have any specific plans to show Latin-American artists, but it’s possible we’ll come across an artist or a situation that results in a show at some point. Nothing is planned yet.

Does the Gagosian have plans to open a branch in Rio de Janeiro?

We want to see how everything works at ArtRio first.

To see a selection of works Gagosian is bringing to ArtRio 2012, click on the slide show.

This article originally appeared at ARTINFO Brazil.