GLASGOW.- Glasgow Art Fair 2010 takes place from THURSDAY 25 TO SUNDAY 28 MARCH. Located within its trademark white tented pavilions which dominate George Square in the heart of Glasgow’s city centre, this eagerly anticipated annual art buying extravaganza offers its 16,500 visitors four days of buying, selling and discovering art.

Having firmly established itself as the UK’s most prestigious contemporary art fair outside of London since its inception in 1996, Glasgow Art Fair 2010 will showcase 46 selected galleries from Scotland, the rest of the UK, Europe and beyond exhibiting work for sale by over 1000 artists.

Glasgow’s outstanding reputation for the visual arts; the Art Fair’s status as a platform for encouraging and developing Scotland’s art buying market, together with the City’s position as a European style capital, make Glasgow an ideal platform to present the best of contemporary art for sale and to encourage its residents and visitors alike to invest in new pieces.

With sales figures exceeding £1.2 million and individual purchases ranging from £50 to over £70,000, occasional art buyers and dedicated collectors alike recognise Glasgow Art Fair as the place to view and discover quality work by established artists and emerging new talent across a wide range of media.

Of the 46 galleries selected to exhibit this year, twelve will be showing at the Fair for the first time. From near and far, new galleries include ALPHA ART, Edinburgh, BLEACH BOX, Cambridge, CLINK PRESS, London, FINE ART UK, Ledbury, GALLERY PERUTZ, Calstone, Interior Angle Art Design Gallery, Essex, LIBERTY GALLERY, West Malling, MACGREGOR FINE ART, Glasgow, OC-EO GALLERY, London; THE QUEEN'S GALLERY, Dundee, RHUE ART, Ullapool, ROWAN GALLERY, Helensburgh.

Artists’ work on display will range from internationally established names to emerging talent working across a whole range of media - paintings by the likes of ARTHUR MELVILLE, E.A HORNEL, JOAN EARDLEY, J.D. FERGUSSON, TRICIA CAIN, CATRIONA MILLAR and DAVID CALDWELL; print work by VICTOR PASMORE, ALASDAIR GRAY, ADRIAN WISZNIEWSKI, PETER HOWSON, ELIZABETH BLACKADDER and ROSALIND LAWLESS as well as photography & lens based work by GORDON SCAMMELL and PHILIP TOWNSEND.

This year’s Fair will also feature a special exhibition of work by THE ROYAL GLASGOW INSTITUTE OF THE FINE ARTS (RGI). Founded in 1860, the RGI promotes and encourages Scotland's contemporary art and artists is the third largest organisation of its kind in the UK. Renowned for its Annual Exhibition - open to all artists and representing the largest and most prestigious of its type in Scotland - RGI will showcase a series of same-size, affordable artworks by established as well as young RGI-connected artists such as PATRICIA CAIN, BLAIR THOMSON, JAMES WATT, HELEN F WILSON, CHARLES MACQUEEN and HAZEL NAGL, at this year’s Glasgow Art Fair.

PETER IRVINE, Director, Glasgow Art Fair said: “With the proliferation of Art Fairs beyond London and throughout Britain, many following our example, it’s gratifying that Scotland’s National Art Fair is still a UK brand leader. Nobody does art and the atmosphere in which to appreciate it like the Glasgow Art Fair. Come hook up with us.”

Bailie Liz Cameron, Chair of Culture and Sport Glasgow said: "As a city renowned for visual arts, The Art Fair this year marks the beginning of a busy few weeks in Glasgow. Early April will see the launch of the biggest ever Glasgow Boys exhibition at Kelvingrove followed by the return of the Glasgow International festival. The Art Fair is a wonderful opportunity to see works by home-grown artists, as well as those from further afield - and an opportunity to invest in the talent of tomorrow.”

The popular Glasgow Art Fair informal GUIDED TOURS offer visitors the opportunity to meet gallery owners and find out more about works on show. These free, daily tours leave regularly from the Information Desk at the following times: