New faces in the International Committee of ART COLOGNE

Sakhile Matlhare, Gabrielle Ammann and Rodolphe Janssen support the art fair now to present an international and relevant field of participants this year

Photo: Arne Jennard - Gabrielle Ammann

This year, ART COLOGNE welcomes design expert Gabrielle Ammann as a new member of the advisory board. With the Belgian gallery owner Rudolphe Janssen and the gallery owner Sakhile Matlhare from Frankfurt, two people have already been selected in 2021, each of whom underlines the international orientation of the fair with their specialised view of the art market.

Gabrielle Ammann, who founded her gallery ammann//gallery in Cologne in 2006, is an internationally respected gallery owner for the collecting field of design. Known for her unique curatorial approach, she creates an innovative programme in her exhibition spaces that is informed by extensive knowledge around the themes of craft, design and architecture.

Rodolphe Janssen

Gallery owner Rodolphe Janssen has been associated with ART OLOGNE for many years. Shortly after opening his gallery in Brussels in the 1990s, he presented contemporary art at an international art fair for the first time in Cologne.

Today, he represents 33 artists from 14 countries. The palette of works is colorful, ranging from humorous sculptures by David Adamo, to surrealist oil paintings by Texas artist Emily Mae Smith, to brightly hued abstract paintings by Berlin-based Cornelia Baltes. Rodolphe Janssen says there has always been a special relationship between Belgian and German collectors and artists.

I'm often in Cologne to visit my artists Gert and Uwe Tobias, and I’m always amazed by the dynamism of the institutions and galleries there.

Rodolphe Janssen

So it goes without saying that he is excited to be present as an exhibitor and member of the International Committee.

Africa in focus

Sakhile Matlhare, Photo credit: Katharina Bubno

The participation of Sakhile Matlhares opens up new horizons for the fair. The sociologist, who earned her doctorate at Northwestern University in Chicago, has exchanged her university professional environment in Germany for one at the intersection of the art market, exhibition activities, and mediation work.

Her gallery Sakhlile&Me, which she founded in 2018 with Daniel Hagemeier in Frankfurt am Main, focuses on contemporary works from Africa and its diaspora. It also sees itself as a research center with collaborative aspirations. Awareness-raising workshops and mediation talks with artists, curators, critics, and researchers complement the gallery’s solo and group exhibitions of both young and established artists.

Matlhare, who has a background in education and curatorial practice, said that as an Advisory Board member she will pay special attention to international representation, both in terms of the galleries exhibiting at ART COLOGNE and the artists presented.

"ART COLOGNE is the most important art fair in Germany with a long tradition of presenting contemporary positions. It is an excellent opportunity for us to introduce the artists we work with and their practice to an enthusiastic art audience in Germany and the region."

Sakhile Matlhare

The ten-member advisory board also includes Jan Kaps, Christian Nagel, Thole Rotermund, Deborah Schamoni, Aurel Scheibler, Rob Tufnell, and Moritz Willborn. They decide on the selection of galleries for and the program of ART COLOGNE 2023.