EDITOR’S LETTER

A Still Life of a Swag of Fruit Hanging Before a Stone Alcove Containing a Roemer. It’s not a snappy title I’ll grant you. But it is a thing of real beauty. Painted by Joris Van Son in 1655, the artwork on this week’s cover is currently on show at Frieze Masters courtesy of Johnny van Haeften.

Started in 2003, Frieze London has become a must-see in the city’s calendar, attracting the great and the good of the art world to Regent’s Park. It can also be overwhelming. For a gentler experience, I always head straight to its withinwalking-distance sister fair, Frieze Masters, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. Showcasing an embarrassment of riches, from ancient sculptures to 20th-century photography, it’s where the real curiosities are to be found.

I still kick myself for not buying some very reasonably priced shunga a few years ago. (That’s Japanese erotic prints, if you must know.) But, as Picasso famously said: you snooze you lose.

To make sure you don’t miss out, we’ve compiled a four-page digest stuffed full with all-things-art happening in our city right now. FYI: it’s a lot. We also have an exclusive interview with fashion’s king of subversive style, Raf Simons. News of his London Fashion Week show last month was met with K-pop levels of hysteria but, following the Queen’s death, it had to be rescheduled and is being staged during Frieze Week. For a designer at the intersection of art and fashion, it makes perfect sense. A regular Frieze-goer, you might even catch a glimpse of Simons there; no doubt dressed in full Prada (his side-hustle) and carrying a sheet of red stickers.

We also have another subversive visionary: Wolfgang Tillmans. With a major Moma show underway, Tillmans is in full-mettle form so expect some hard truths on youth, politics and — ahem — ‘buttholes’. Sorry. Lastly, we have Paapa Essiedu on My London duties this week.

Right, I’m off to Frieze Masters. See you there. Who needs heating this winter when you can hang shunga on the wall?