Contemporary Art: Booming in the Balearic Islands

The Balearic Islands may be the art world’s hottest new destination, its sunshine, easygoing attitude and relaxed way of doing business attracting global players. When German artist Hans Hartung and his wife Anna-Eva Bergman settled in Menorca back in the 1930s, the locals sometimes looked upon the outsiders with suspicion, especially after they built a modernist house. Nowadays, foreigners feed the local economy and are welcomed with open arms. And if they bring a bit of fresh art to Ibiza, Formentera, Mallorca and Menorca, so much the better: the local governments encourage it. More and more projects are popping up, sometimes where they’re least expected. In 2022, Sergio Sancho, the cool director of Madrid’s UVNT art fair, launched the CAN (Contemporary Art Now) Art Fair at the Ibiza Congress Center. Wisely, the event doesn’t open until late afternoon. The second edition, which brought together 38 galleries in July, was a success despite the heat wave. The laid-back atmosphere was a refreshing change from the stressfulness of big fairs. Figurative painting, cocktails, a DJ set…