The world class chefs from the Michelin-starred restaurants at The Forest Side and Gilpin Hotel in the Lake District will descend on Manchester Art Fair on Friday 21st November to prepare bespoke menus for leading art buyers and collectors from Manchester, the North and beyond over the weekend.

Over the last seventeen years Manchester Art Fair has grown to become one of the most important art fairs in the UK, selling millions of pounds worth of art, creating thousands of new Northern art buyers and collectors, supporting hundreds of artists and galleries across the region. This year, the organisers felt it was important to offer their top collectors a food and drink experience which matched the ambition and artistry of the artworks on display.

The chefs have been selected by Manchester Art Fair Exec Chair, Thom Hetherington, who was previously part of the team which launched Restaurant magazine and the 50 Best Restaurants in the World Awards. He was delighted when Paul Leonard, Head Chef at The Forest Side, and Ollie Bridgwater, Executive Chef at the Gilpin Hotel, agreed to work with Exec Chef Matthew Hagan and his team at Manchester Central to devise menus for the fair’s Collectors’ Dinner and Buyer’s Lunch. Both private events will host the people who consistently support artists and galleries through their collecting and patronage.

“It’s incredibly important that we establish a community of art buyers and collectors in the North of England, to prove to the region’s artists that they don’t need to be in London to build their career, and to ensure that they can live and work up here”, Hetherington says. “When collectors go to international art fairs like Frieze or Basel they would be hosted in incredible pop-up restaurants like Maison Francois and Jikoni. We felt that Northern art collectors deserved a similar experience, and in fact, considering the incredible chefs in our region, why not aim for the stars.”

Fair Director, Sophie Helm, says, “When we launched, we were told we’d never sell art up North, as if there wasn’t enough money or the cultural appetite. We’re proud that over the last seventeen years we’ve disproven that theory, as we’ve developed our own significant and growing community of buyers, collectors and patrons of the arts.

“We engage with hundreds of individuals every year from every possible walk of life, united by their passion for art”, continues Helm, “but we know we’re barely scratching the surface. Any major art buyers in the region who would like to be considered for our Collector Development Programme should email info@manchesterartfair.co.uk.”

The North’s largest and most significant art fair, Manchester Art Fair has welcomed over 122,000 visitors since its inception in 2008, amassing over £7.8m in art sales.  Showing a uniquely diverse mix of acclaimed galleries and independent artists, with a rich programme of artist talks, panel discussions, performances, and installations, it blurs the boundaries between the traditional and the contemporary, creating a friendly and unpretentious Northern art-buying experience.

Manchester Art Fair also features The Manchester Contemporary presenting a carefully curated selection of independent galleries and artist-led spaces from across the UK and internationally.  The fair platforms new work by emerging artists and provides inroads into public collections.

Tickets are available now at manchesterartfair.co.uk and priced at £12 for a day ticket, £15 for a two-day ticket, or £25 for a preview night ticket, including access throughout the weekend.  A booking fee applies.

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