Not Cancelled Brasil Virtual Art Fair Launches with 56 Galleries in Response to Pandemic

The Not Cancelled Brasil virtual art fair launched its first edition from June 10 to July 9, 2020, featuring 56 galleries from across Brazil. Organized by Karla Osorio Netto, a gallerist from Brasília, the month-long event was created as a market alternative following the cancellation of physical art fairs due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Hosted on the website www.notcancelled.art/brazil, the platform presented works by 101 artists selected by participating galleries. Daily live content included transmissions, interviews, lectures, and guided tours, with the online program changing weekly to feature different artists and galleries. The initiative is part of the broader Not Cancelled project developed by the Vienna-based agency TREAT, which began in April 2020 with a Vienna edition and expanded to cities like Berlin, Paris, Warsaw, Chicago, and Dubai. The Brazilian edition, the first to last a full month, is described as an independent project uniting major contemporary art galleries of various sizes. It received support from ABACT – Associação Brasileira de Galerias Contemporâneas and aimed to enhance national and global visibility for galleries affected by the pandemic's paralysis of international activities. Participating galleries included A Gentil Carioca, Anita Schwartz, Fortes d’Aloia e Gabriel, Luisa Strina, Mendes Wood DM, Nara Roesler, and Vermelho, among others.