Since his entry into the Art Fair and Special Event industry, Matthew Eck, has built an expansive network of artists, galleries, and A-list clientele. Since 2011, Eck conceived two brands: SELECT Fair and X Contemporary; both of which took place during Art Basel Miami and Frieze Week NYC. SELECT became an all-encompassing brand tailored to special events; for example, SELECT Projects THE OUT NYC,
The SELECT Residency at Industry City, Brooklyn, The SELECT Masquerade, and The SELECT Video Open Call. Following the success of SELECT, X Contemporary debuted in the blossoming Art District of Wynwood, Miami. The Board of Experts included: Michael Klein, Vincent Harrison, Pamela Willoughby, Kipton Cronkite, and Ariel Adkins. Klein (former curator for Microsoft) organized a massive Grace Hartigan Exhibition – The Hart Perry Collection. Harrison (Owner of Castle Fitzjohns Gallery) invited Robin Van Arsdol to exhibit the famed Keith Haring Pop Shop Sign. Willoughby Owner of Willoughby Art Advisory) brought a star-studded stable of artists including: Peter Dayton, HUSH, Basquiat, Mapplethorpe, Dora Frost and others. Cronkite (Owner of Artstager) brought his core group of collectors and Adkins (Cultural Ambassador, Twitter Inc.) Both of Eck’s Contemporary Art Fairs became platforms for galleries, collectives, and artists to commingle. Attendees included: brands, collectors, educators, business class, and the press. Viewing venues as a blank canvas – he created a unique Art Fair experience. X Contemporary and SELECT both garnered a wide range of accolades from the press. This includes coverage in: The New York Times, T Magazine, Interview Magazine, Huffington Post, Hyperallergic, Art F City, Art Info, Billboard Magazine, Perez Hilton, TMZ, Bedford and Bowery, Gothamist, Whitehot Magazine, Widewalls, among others.
