The Venice Biennale is arguably the art world's ultimate insider platform - expected to attract 300,000 visitors this year alone and offering attendees thirty permanent national pavilions. 

However, the emphasis by curator Massimiliano Gioni at this year's 55th iteration on works by outsider and self-taught artists reflects a prevalent societal yearning for a more authentic point of view. 

The BBC commented that this year's Biennale is "a reaction against the increasing commodification of art". GalleristNY described the "Encyclopedic Palace" as an exploration of "the inner voice of the artist, rather than demand created by a market." The critic went on to note that "In a fast-art world over saturated with images and rife with overproduction, Mr. Gioni is advocating for a slow-art movement, one with implications for both production and reception—slow making, and slow looking."

The METRO Show's strength has always been in both the unexpected and unusual material at the fair and its diverse mixture. The inclusion of important works by outsider and self taught artists sets the tone for the fair. The juxtaposition of disparate genres, the inclusion of inside and outside, old and new, historic and contemporary at METRO has restarted the dialogue, and hopefully in a thoughtful direction. In contrast to the din of the mega fairs that abound, METRO offers a conversation that is both deeper and more nuanced and more in keeping with Gioni's Biennale.