Digital Editions
Newsletters
Subscribe
Digital Editions
Newsletters
Art market
Museums & heritage
Exhibitions
Books
Podcasts
Columns
Technology
Adventures with Van Gogh
Art market
Museums & heritage
Exhibitions
Books
Podcasts
Columns
Technology
Adventures with Van Gogh
Frieze Los Angeles 2024
news

Winning by a whisker: the rodents of Sharif Farrag’s Rat Race face off at Frieze Los Angeles

Stuffed-animal bodies sporting ceramic heads, hubcaps and their own licence plates roam Frieze

Elena Goukassian
2 March 2024
Share
Sharif Farrag’s Rat Race, commissioned by Art Production Fund

Bas: Eric Thayer

Sharif Farrag’s Rat Race, commissioned by Art Production Fund

Bas: Eric Thayer

Competition is always fierce at Frieze, but this year the art-world rat race begins before visitors even enter the tent. On the athletic field adjacent to the fair, the Los Angeles-based artist Sharif Farrag has created a literal Rat Race (2024), a racing competition featuring rodent sculptures constructed atop remote-control cars, which visitors are invited to race around a track; winners get a ceramic trophy made by the artist. Mid-race collisions are expected, Farrag says, but he doesn’t mind. “They’ll break during the race,” he says of his rats. “Some of the noses are already chipping.”

For his Art Production Fund commission, Farrag created what he calls a “joyous play on competition and survival”. He made a total of 15 rats with ceramic heads, hubcaps and vanity licence plates on stuffed-animal bodies covered with felt patches. Three rats are in display cases outside the Frieze tent; the rest are for racing. They all have different personalities: there is the stoner with bloodshot eyes, the Los Angeles stereotype covered in palm trees, the old rat with giant unkempt eyebrows and Bubblegum (Farrag’s favourite) with its pink face, matching butterfly patch and distinctive fangs.

During the first races on Thursday, rats flipped in turns, their tails waving as they sped down the track gathering bits of artificial grass. There were several pileups, and a contestant was heard complaining of a “bum wheel” on his remote-controlled rodent. The three-lap race ended in under five minutes. “Art won!” yelled an enthusiastic runner-up at the finish line. The final races take place on Saturday afternoon; visitors are encouraged to reserve a spot on Frieze’s website.

Frieze Los Angeles 2024NewsLos Angeles
Share
Subscribe to The Art Newspaper’s digital newsletter for your daily digest of essential news, views and analysis from the international art world delivered directly to your inbox.
Newsletter sign-up
Information
About
Contact
Cookie policy
Data protection
Privacy policy
Frequently Asked Questions
Subscription T&Cs
Terms and conditions
Advertise
Sister Papers
Sponsorship policy
Follow us
Instagram
Bluesky
LinkedIn
Facebook
TikTok
YouTube
© The Art Newspaper

Related content

Art marketnews
22 February 2024

Michael Werner Gallery to open Los Angeles branch in May

The inaugural exhibition will feature the unlikely pairing of works by Markus Lüpertz and Pierre Puvis de Chavannes

Jori Finkel
Frieze Los Angeles 2024feature
1 March 2024

‘Largest Black public art project in the US’ to launch in Los Angeles this spring

Conceived as an outdoor museum, with murals and sculptures by artists both world-renowned and locally beloved, Destination Crenshaw aims to preserve a close-knit community

Scarlet Cheng
Frieze Los Angeles 2024feature
28 February 2024

Meet the next generation of Los Angeles galleries

Even as out-of-town dealers open outposts in Hollywood and Melrose Hill, a fast-rising cohort of local artists, gallerists and curators is experimenting and thriving

Jennifer Piejko
Frieze Los Angeles 2024news
1 March 2024

Santa Monica Art Bank and California African American Museum make opening-day acquisitions at Frieze Los Angeles

Sculpture by Mustafa Ali Clayton and textile Gary Tyler enter collections

Benjamin Sutton