New Wave Magazine reported that Kalai Gallery extended the reach of Frieze Week beyond traditional gallery spaces by organising an exhibition and cocktail evening at The Ivy Asia St Paul’s. The event merged visual art with culinary and social elements to engage collectors, artists and creative communities in a hospitality setting. Participants experienced the artworks in tandem with flavours designed to echo the artists’ practices, creating a layered cultural encounter.
The exhibition featured five artists from Kalai Gallery’s roster, including Adeseke, Ore Adedeji, Claudia Koh, Venetta Nicole and Ishwarya Ravi. Adeseke’s texture-rich paintings examine African womanhood and identity while Claudia Koh’s contributions explore memory, intimacy and the interplay of nature with urban environments. The publication noted that the assembled works reflected a broad spectrum of approaches within contemporary art.
A dedicated cocktail menu formed a central part of the evening, with each drink named for one of the participating artists and formulated to interpret aspects of their creative output. Adeseke’s A Blue Moment combined Ketel One vodka, mango, hot honey, fig leaf and cucumber, producing a profile that balanced sweetness and warmth with fresh, aromatic notes. New Wave Magazine described how these pairings translated visual concepts into sensory experiences for guests.
According to New Wave Magazine, Frieze Week has long offered London an avenue to encounter art outside conventional settings by convening diverse creative voices across the city. The Kalai Gallery event at The Ivy Asia built upon this foundation through its focus on integration between art, design and flavour. Similar multidisciplinary programmes have appeared with increasing frequency during major art fairs in recent years.
The Ivy Asia St Paul’s provided a fitting venue with its elegant Asian-inspired interiors that aligned with the contemporary works on display. Attendees moved between the exhibition and the bar area, fostering conversations around the pieces in an informal atmosphere. Kalai Gallery’s initiative highlighted ways in which curated hospitality events can broaden access to contemporary cultural discussions.
Frieze publications have emphasised the role of such weeks in connecting global experts and audiences with evolving artistic dialogues. The Kalai Gallery collaboration added to the array of off-site activities that complement the main fair programme each October. Industry observers continue to track how these extensions influence overall engagement with the visual arts sector.
