In the middle of the southern hemisphere’s summer, an old fishing village in Uruguay that is now an exclusive and luxurious seaside resort becomes a magnet for collectors and millionaires from the region, as well as from Europe and the U.S. Este Arte—a boutique-sized contemporary art fair—is the primary draw, punching above its weight class with just a handful of galleries. The typical roster includes galleries from Uruguay, Argentina, Chile and Brazil that have participated in fairs such as Art Basel and Frieze, plus international galleries like Galerie Jocelyn Wolff from Paris that are looking to capitalize on a booming market.
“This is a contemporary art fair that was created primarily with the intention of bringing the Uruguayan art scene to the forefront, so first we had to create a market that practically did not exist,” Laura Bardier, director of the fair, told Observer. “This year, on the first day, all the galleries recouped the cost of their booths, which are 20 square meters and cost $10,000 each. Some even sold their entire stand and had to rehang their works on the preview day.”
A Uruguayan living in New York, Bardier said the inspiration to create the fair, now in its 12th edition, came after working closely with collector and philanthropist Estrellita Brodsky. She persuaded the Museum of Modern Art in New York to create a department dedicated to Latin American art in the mid-2000s—a move that was later replicated by Tate Modern in London and The Met. With Brodsky in her court, Bardier sought to collaborate in raising the profile and professionalization of her country’s art.
Today, Este Arte is one of the first fairs on the Latin American calendar and kicks off a year of art weeks and fairs that continues with ZONAMACO in Mexico in February and April’s SP-Arte in Brazil. German collector Robert Müller-Grünow lives in Cologne and has been attending the fair for five years as a way to add to a collection dedicated to young Latin American artists that he started in the early 1990s. “The difficult part is not buying the works but shipping them to Germany,” he told Observer. He’d just acquired a piece by Francisca Maya (1985), who pays homage to the Uruguayan geometric tradition, from Black Gallery.
The fair is held in the Pavilion Vik, a sober space located a few meters from the sea, opposite La Susana, one of the most exclusive beach clubs on this coast. On the open-air terrace, between glasses of sparkling wine, it is possible to see the sunset over the sea. “I am not interested in importing external models or replicating formulas, even if they are successful in other contexts. I am interested in working from the specific conditions of the region: its rhythm, its relationship with the public, its institutional tradition and its scale,” Bardier reflected.
<img decoding="async" class="size-full-width wp-image-1609947" src="https://observer.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/ESTE-Arte-Almeida-Dale_ph-Maria-Ines-Arrillaga_8.jpg?quality=80&w=970" alt="Sculptural artworks in a white-walled gallery space that look like molten metal pouring from the walls and pooling on the floor" width="970" height="647" data-caption='Sculptural works by Brazilian artist Vanderlei Lopes, brought to the fair by Almeida & Dale. <span class=”media-credit”>Courtesy Este Arte, photo by Maria Ines Arrillaga</span>’>
With three locations in São Paulo and a fourth under construction, Almeida & Dale gallery presented a solo show by Brazilian artist Vanderlei Lopes: nine sculptures evoking liquids and everyday objects, with mirrored surfaces that intensify the illusion of water, created specifically for the fair and in dialogue with the coastal landscape. Prices range from $10,000 to $38,000. “In contrast to larger global fairs, where volume often prevails, Este Arte favors deeper curatorial and commercial relationships,” Hena Lee, director of the gallery, told Observer. “It offers a focused context that has become increasingly relevant for us, as the fair continues to attract a growing number of engaged collectors.”
Jocelyn Wolff gallery is a regular presence at major European fairs and has expanded into Asia in recent years with a space in Seoul. This was the gallery’s first time coming to Este Arte, according to director Inés Huergo; works by Diego Bianchi were priced between $15,000 and $24,000. “We found it especially interesting as a place that brings together people from many parts of Latin America,” she said.
The fair is one of the central events of an art week that offers unprecedented activity in a region where only 400 people live year-round. However, Este Arte is not the only player positioning José Ignacio as a seasonal hub for Latin American art. The Focus International Photography Festival, for example, held its third edition January 6-11. Less a commercial project than an initiative dedicated to promoting photography as an artistic discipline, it mounted free exhibitions in public and private spaces throughout the town, including art galleries, the central square and the José Ignacio Lighthouse. Produced by Fola and Arte x Arte, its mission is “to promote the growth of photography within the art scene,” director Gastón Deleau, a cultural promoter who created the first museum in Argentina dedicated exclusively to photography, told Observer.
Among the highlights of this edition, which was curated by Nicolás Janowski, were historical images of Frida Kahlo taken at her home in Coyoacán by Colombian photographer Leo Matiz, as well as an exhibition by Gaspar Gasparian (a key figure in Brazil) and an exhibition by Colombian artist Oscar Muñoz, curated by José Roca, Chief Curator of Latin American and Diasporic Art at the Hirshhorn Museum, Washington, D.C.
One of the festival venues is Casa Neptuna, home to the Fundación Ama Amoedo, which also operates as an artist residency and has become a key platform for conversations around contemporary art in José Ignacio. It was there that Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung, curator of the 2025 Bienal de São Paulo, was invited to give a public lecture, sharing insights into his curatorial approach to the biennial. Many of the collectors who attended the fair were present. “My humanity is contingent on your humanity and your humanity on mine. If I’m not human, you’re not human. It doesn’t matter how much money you have,” he said, summing up the spirit of the biennial, which concluded on January 11.
Another highlight of the art week was an exhibition by Mexican artist Ana Segovia, who is presenting a solo show at the Cervieri Monsuárez Foundation, curated by Magalí Arriola. “The Office of Inter-American Affairs Presents: Uruguay” brings together a series of recent paintings inspired by short documentaries produced in the U.S. during the 1940s and 1950s, within the framework of the so-called “Good Neighbor Policy,” which offered a stereotypical view of Latin America. Segovia—who will have a solo show in September at Kurimanzutto New York—reinterprets cinematic scenes linked to masculinity in dialogue with the archetypal figure of the gaucho.
Argentine collector and patron Ama Amoedo sees José Ignacio increasingly consolidating itself as a meeting point for Latin American contemporary art—no longer just a summer refuge for collectors but a laboratory where Latin America’s contemporary art scene tests its visibility and market strength.
<img decoding="async" class="size-full-width wp-image-1609932" src="https://observer.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/Fundacion-Cervieri-Monsuarez-_-Ana-Segovia-at-FCM-opening.jpg?quality=80&w=970" alt="An exterior view of the Fundación Cervieri Monsuárez shows a modern building with a glass-walled upper level where people gather inside and on the rooftop during an evening event." width="970" height="647" data-caption='Opening night of the exhibition of works by Mexican artist Ana Segovia at Fundación Cervieri Monsuarez. <span class=”media-credit”>Courtesy Fundación Cervieri Monsuarez</span>’>
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