Art Paris Art Fair – 29 March / 1 April 2012

[27/03/2012]

 

The first rendez-vous of the Parisian art calendar in 2012 is Art Paris Art Fair which will open its doors to the public on March 29 with a number refreshing new features. Nearly 48,000 visitors are expected during the 4-day event.

A new twist
Like its previous manifestations, the event will take place under the colossal glass dome of the nave of the Grand Palais; but a number of changes have been made. First of all the fair has decided to re-baptise itself Art Paris Art Fair (as opposed to Art Paris). The new team, led by Julien Lecêtre (CEO) and William Piens (General Curator and former Director of Paris Photo), has completely overhauled the event by focusing it primarily on European art. Working hand-in-hand with a new selection committee, the organizers have already signed a selection of 120 galleries from 15 countries, of which, 56% are newcomers and 40% are under foreign ownership.

Ambition and dynamism
For the latest edition, Art Paris Art Fair has decided to set its sights substantially higher and to focus on the fundamental qualities of an event with international pretensions by increasing its openness, enhancing its visibility and improving the overall quality of its services. These improvements were unavoidable for an event seeking global credibility and a larger audience of international art collectors.
In order to highlight the issues and challenges involved in organising an artistic project such as Art Paris Art Fair, there will be a programme of daily conferences. By choosing to focus on Europe’s different regions, Art Paris Art Fair is taking the daring step of opening to geographical areas that are very much on the periphery of a highly centralised global art market.
Art Paris Art Fair is retaining its original policy of giving equal space to Modern and Contemporary creations, but is enhancing its international dimension. Thus collectors of classic signatures will have plenty of opportunities to acquire works by Pablo PICASSO, Francis PICABIA, Joan MIRO, Raoul DUFY, Yves KLEIN, Victor VASARELY, Jean-Michel BASQUIAT, Keith HARING etc. The key figures of Contemporary art are also strongly represented with, for example, Robert COMBAS, Miquel BARCELO, Wim DELVOYE, Jan FABRE, Jonathan MEESE, Shirin NESHAT or Subodh GUPTA. Photography aficionados will be happy to discover works by Robert MAPPLETHORPE, Nan GOLDIN, but also by Claude CLOSKY, Erwin OLAF, Philippe CHANCEL, Joel-Peter WITKIN or prints by Japanese photographers like Nobuyoshi ARAKI. And for those seeking new signatures there will be plenty to choose from with artists from all over the world (Europe, South America, Asia, Russia, Africa, North Africa, the Middle East, etc.). There will also be a particularly strong Hungarian presence with the galleries Dovin, Erdesz, Faur Zsofi, Inda and Kalman Makláry Fine Arts). Lastly, the vital Asian scene will have its representatives with three galleries that have opened showrooms in China (10 Chancery Lane, IFA, Paris-Beijing) and four from South Korea (313 Art Project, A & B, HAN, Art Space Shuim).

Two new areas…
With the addition of two new sectors, “Limited Series” and “Large Formats”, Art Paris Art Fair has also opened to “alternative” forms of artistic expression. Focused on design, “Limited Series” will show works selected by six galleries: Patrick Brillet Fine Art, Pierre-Alain Challier, Domeau & Peres, Galérie Matignon, White Moon Gallery and Galérie Slott. Exploring the porous boundaries between design and the visual arts, the selections will include a number of exclusive works. The French magazine Les Echoes – Séries Limitées has created a “Prototype” prize especially for the occasion that will be awarded to the work that represents the best collaboration between a designer and a gallery. Meanwhile, the Large Format area will offer ten monumental pieces in the alcoves of the right wing of the Grand Palais. Mostly brand new works, the 10 pieces will include works by Robert CURRIE, Sarah BRAMAN, Karim GHELLOUSSI, Folkert DE JONG or the Joep VAN LIESHOUT‘s workshop.

ARTPRICE’s report for Art Paris Art Fair: the European Leaders
Echoing Art Paris Art Fair’s objective of focusing on European art, ARTPRICE has produced an overview of the Contemporary European art market. The 48-page report entitled Contemporary Art Market: the European Leaders gives a broad overview of the key aspects and players of the European art market and analyses Europe’s position in the global marketplace. Based on ARTPRICE data, the relative positions of the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Northern Europe, Belgium, Eastern Europe, Germany and the Iberian Peninsula are examined in the context of Asia’s phenomenal rise and the USA’s tenuous second place. The report highlights the primary artists in each region with a particular focus on young talents. In addition, it contains a ranking of the Top 50 Contemporary European artists in 2011 and provides the key figures of Europe’s auction market.
Distributed to the press and visitors of Art Paris Art Fair (bilingual French-English, limited stocks), it will also be available free on the Artprice.com website when the Art Paris Art Fair opens.