Guardian Critic Slams Frieze London as a 'Jumble Sale' While Frieze Masters Shines

In a scathing review published by The Guardian, critic Jonathan Jones describes Frieze London as a disappointment, calling it a "jumble sale of mediocre paintings for the super-rich." The fair, held in Regent's Park, London, left Jones "bored rigid," with endless paintings that he deems "not much good," interspersed with photographs. He contrasts this with Frieze Masters, the "posher tent" across the park, where he found his favorite artwork: a painting by a 16th-century follower of Hieronymus Bosch depicting naked figures climbing from the earth, screaming, and a bird-headed bagpiper. Jones notes that Frieze Masters also features dinosaur skulls and "sleazy 19th-century nudes," presenting what he calls "the art market at its most grotesque." He laments that visitors seeking the newest, coolest art would find more avant-garde wonders in the Bake Off tent. The review, published on October 15, 2026, offers a critical perspective on the commercial art fair's offerings and the broader state of the contemporary art market.