Renowned multi-brand retailer Dover Street Market is coming to Felix LA for the 2024 edition of the avant-garde art fair at a specially commissioned structure within the Hollywood Roosevelt.
The project sought artist Oscar Tuazon to design a site-specific space for the DSM store that will immerse visitors within an incredible fusion of industries.
As Felix LA embarks on its sixth year, the partnership with Dover Street Market represents a broadening of scope and an impactful collision of creativity not typically seen within the art fair sphere. Since its emergence in 2019, Felix LA has redefined expectations, avoiding the usual trade show atmosphere in favor of an intimate, experimental and community-oriented energy.
What’s more, the 2024 on-site Dover Street Market store will reflect the brand's commitment to providing a hub for visionary minds across domains to come together. For the duration of Felix LA, guests will be able to shop DSM's coveted labels while encountering enhanced collaborations, products and experiences curated specifically for the event.
Tuazon, known for occupying the space between architecture and activism through engaging installations, has been commissioned to bring this vision to life. His radical proposition as an artist suggests that in order for a work to be a truly living thing, we must abandon notions of static form. He emphasized, “This is what is so exciting about creating a space for Dover Street Market at Felix, to make sculpture a place where other things can happen.”
The collaboration is also personal for key leadership driving the partnership. James Gilchrist, vice president of Comme des Garçons and Dover Street Market USA, shared how it immediately clicked upon receiving the initial outreach from Felix co-founder Al Morán. “Felix LA embraces discovery and spontaneity—both of which are key to the ‘Beautiful Chaos’ ethos of Dover Street Market. Felix co-founders Al, Mills and Dean have taken a completely new and innovative approach to the traditional art fair experience, which is incredibly exciting and felt natural for DSM to be involved. We're also honored to work with Oscar Tuazon, an artist we have admired for a long time, to transform DSM and incorporate the shop into his own work."
Morán echoed similar sentiments around shared values. He said, “I have a deep appreciation for Dover Street Market’s unwavering commitment towards innovation. The company is constantly on the cutting-edge of fresh ideation surrounding the retail experience. Partnering with DSM allows us to put this concept into practice by putting forth a new model for cultural engagement.”
By colliding two pioneering event platforms alongside the vision of artist Oscar Tuazon, the 2024 Felix LA edition embodies a meeting of worlds and ideas that should thrill artists, gallerists, designers, retailers and visitors alike. This first-of-its-kind partnership looks to redefine cultural engagement and what an art fair can aspire to be.
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Photography by: Courtesy Dover Street Market x Felix LA
